This is the list of nursing staff qualified less than 2 years, who were nominated for having shown outstanding team work, personal development and promise.
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Rebecca Ainscough
Works at University Hospitals Plymouth NHS Trust
Since qualifying Becky has worked on CAU and has flourished into an amazing nurse, when I see she is on shift I know it will be a good day. She is forever hardworking, and will do anything to support her colleagues. She is always willing and wanting to learn, in developing further. Becky is now truly a fantastic CAU nurse, able to make quick, succinct and accurate patient triages/assessment, helping to identify and manage sick children. Becky is always an advocate for her patients and families and will always ensure their voices are heard. She thrives to providing the highest standard of care to her patients. She is an asset to the team and should be very proud of how far she has come since qualifying.
Since qualifying last year Becky has grown with such confidence within her role on CAU. She is one of the most compassionate and caring nurses I know, advocating for the children she cares for and their families ensuring the receive gold standard care.
Becky has continued to enhance her knowledge & skills, becoming Triage trained and grasps every learning opportunity with both hands. Becky is such a supportive & valued member of the CAU team, nothing is much, she is always there with a listening ear to whoever needs it and will always do anything she can to help anyone!
Working with her is like working with a ray of sunshine, she is smiley, positive and has a can so attitude which makes your shifts that bit brighter. It’s a privilege to work with her.
Since qualifying last year Becky has grown with such confidence within her role on CAU, she is one of the most compassionate and caring nurses I know. Over the past year Becky has continued to enhance her knowledge and skills, she has become Triage trained, and grasps every learning opportunity that she can.
Charley Bashford
Works at University Hospitals Plymouth NHS Trust
Charley has recently joined our ward team and has settled in amazingly!
Charley has used every opportunity to gain the new skills required for our ward and she is excelling at these new skills.
Charley is an excellent nurse providing amazing care and support for her patients and their families. Ensuring the needs of her patients are met by being a fantastic advocate.
Charley works well within a multidisciplinary team and is a pleasure to work alongside!
Always smiling, Charley really does make the shift brighter when she’s around!
Looking forward to continuing to work with Charley and seeing the progress she will make!
Eleanor Bouchard
Works at Royal Devon University Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust – EASTERN
El is such an amazing nurse, having started on Bramble only a year ago, she has settled into the team like she has always been there. She truly is a breath of fresh air. El Gives her all to her role, going above and beyond for the team, patients and families. El has such a positive attitude, with a friendly smile and is suited to be a nurse, with outstanding communication and compassionate understanding for the patients that we see. She is always advocating for the best care for her patients. El has taken her own progression with dedication and is always seeking new opportunities to better herself but has no qualms in sharing her knowledge and experience with students and peers. I love working alongside El and seeing how she progressed in such a short time.
Lovely El has absolutely flourished in the last year. I have had the pleasure of watching her grow from a newly qualified nurse, to a very competent and conscientious nurse. El has grown in confidence throughout the year, developing skills and ensuring she seeks support when needed. She has looked after very poorly children with the expertise of someone qualified much longer. If she is unhappy with anything, she will seek support and has ensured she reflects on patients and scenarios, including meeting a consultant to discuss care given and ensure she learns from every situation. El is a wonderful team player, supporting those around her. Patients and families adore her and I have never heard a bad word said about her. I have had the pleasure of El being my preceptee…..well what an easy job that is! She is now moving on to support other neely qualifieds and act as a role model and I could not be more proud and know she will provide wonderful support. I will enjoy watching El progress and look forward to seeing the nurse she will one day become.
El where to start, you have been in bramble for just over a year now although it feels you have been here for a lot longer. You are a team player, and an asset to bramble. You are fab with your patients, always giving your all and not stopping until you have given 110%. El works well within the multidisciplinary team and ensures to advocate for her patients to better the care for them. She is so compassionate to do her best within her job. Not only is she fab with her patients but she is also a loyal colleague who will always give a helping hand if needed. The shift is automatically better knowing that El is on. Thank you for all you do, keep it up.
El is an incredible junior nurse! She has been qualified for over a year, and is a massive credit to Bramble. I love working with El, whether that be on Bramble ward, or when we are required to support another ward, I know El will always be there to support me no matter where we are. El is confident in seeking out opportunities, and pushes herself to develop her own learning and practice. When El and I are assigned the same patient with myself as a HCA she ensures she checks I am also happy with the daily plan, she communicates effectively. El is confident in escalating cares for her patients, she ensures their families are always kept up to date, and also escalates any cares that are required.
El, you’re an absolute pleasure to work with, I am so happy to have a colleague like you!
Els is an enthusiastic member of our nursing team, who is always ready to help out and keen to learn new skills. She is a caring, cheerful nurse who always works to provide the best care for babies and their families.
Katie Buchanan-Hughes
Works at University Hospitals Plymouth NHS Trust
Katie is an incredible nurse and a precious member of the NICU team. Katie has worked hard towards the ICU course and has adapted well to the ICU environment and works well with everyone within the NICU team. Katie advocates well for patients and their families and her passion for the job shows in the excellent care she provides. Katie works in partnership with parents to ensure they are involved with the care of their babies and always has a great, professional relationship with families. I always know when Katie is on my shift its going to be a lovely day!
Molly Carpenter
Works at Royal Devon University Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust – EASTERN
Molly has been with us just over a year and in that time has quickly developed into a highly skilled, confident and compassionate nurse. She is motivated and determined to improve and build upon her role to look after more complex and sicker babies in ITU. I have witnessed her rapidly responding to an emergency situation in low care and she was calm and composed while she managed the babies’ airway and directed team mates to support her. Molly works safely and will ask if she is ever unsure of something. She will manage her workload efficiently and willingly support others who have a heavier workload. She is kind and smiley and a pleasure to work with.
Emily Corry
Works at University Hospitals Plymouth NHS Trust
Works hard is lovely to work with in the team
Chloe Crean
Works at University Hospitals Plymouth NHS Trust
Chloe is a fantastic junior nurse. Caring, compassionate, and hard working, she exhibits all the traits needed to excel in her role. I’ve been particularly impressed with how calmly she goes about her job despite only qualifying recently. She’s good fun and I’ve thoroughly enjoyed working with her. Keep up the good work!
Fab nurse very caring not afraid of hard work takes on and challenge amazing to work with and brilliant personality
Chloe has an amazing attitude towards the care of her patients, nothing is ever too much, she is always making sure everyone has what they need. For a junior nurse she has great instincts.
Leah Dart
Works at Royal Devon University Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust – EASTERN
Leah is a wonderful Junior Nurse showing great empathy to her patients and forever growing in her job. For Leah her main priority is always the patient and they family.
Leah is one of Brambles newly qualified nurses who started in September last year. She is a breath of fresh air. Nothing is too much trouble for her. Leah is a great advocate for patients and families and always ensure a professional relationship, whilst also being a happy, friendly face. Being a newly qualified can be tricky to find the balance when faced with complex patients on the ward, but Leah manages this well. Leah manages to juggle her case loads whilst also showing amazing communication with MDTs and everyone knows who Leah is, as she is so approachable, friendly member of the team. Leah always shows great commitment and compassion within her role. She strives to put the best interests of the child and their families first and will seek advice when required. Leah is a great support to other junior members of staff and one who have been a staple on the ward for many years. Leah pushes herself with her own progression and is proactive in attending study days to become more competent in a variety of skills. Leah has the capacity to manage her workload while helping others with theirs to enable ongoing continuous development of knowledge, skills and abilities to improve the quality of patient care, safety, compassion and experiences. Well done Leah, it lovely working with you.
Leah is one of our wonderful newly qualified nurses on Bramble. Leah is an absolute pleasure to work with. She goes above and beyond for her patients, families and colleagues. She always has the best interests of the patient and is a brilliant advocate for them.
She is a valued member of the team, she is always so happy and smiley and willing to help anyone. You know it is going to be a good shift if Leah is on.
Throughout my time working with Leah, I have been amazed at her extremely high levels of knowledge and skill which exceeds her level of experience. Leah’s empathy and care for patients comes naturally to her, allowing her to connect and support patients throughout their treatment journey. In her first year qualified, Leah has already encountered some challenging and complicated circumstances which she has managed with professionalism, expertise, and confidence. Leah is a fantastic patient advocate who doesn’t hesitate to challenge decision-makers to make sure patients receive the care they need. She consistently seeks to improve her practice and works to the highest standards. Leah is a huge asset to the team and I am excited to see how she progresses in her career.
Leah is such a fantastic nurse. She cares so much about her patients. She is regularly going out of her way to chat with long term patients and parents because she genuinely cares about them, and wants to make their stay in hospital as positive as possible. Her patients come first, always, and she will advocate for them whenever needed. She makes sure her patients receive a great level of care, and nothing is too much to ask of Leah – she will always help out her patients as families as much as she can, as well as helping out her colleagues. She works so well within the team and is such a fantastic asset to have working alongside on Bramble. She has just finished her first year qualified, but it feels as though she has been qualified much longer than that. She is confident in her abilities and will escalate care when needed, and she is constantly keen to learn new things. She is already booked on to the HDU course in Bristol because she is keen to improve her nursing skills to be able to provide better care for her patients. She is super positive and upbeat, always smiling, and you know you are going to have a good shift when you’re working alongside Leah!
Leah is one of Bramble’s junior nurses but you wouldn’t know it. Leah is an expectational nurse and has knowledge and skills above her years qualified. Leah always acts as an advocate for her patients and families but has proven she does with a challenging situation going above and beyond. You always offer to help and support all of your nursing colleagues no matter what is going on within your own workload. You are exceptional with all patients under all different specialities. You are always expanding your skills and knowledge and are due to attend your HDU course at the beginning of next year. You always go above and beyond and its absolutely admirable. You are an outstanding nurse Leah!
Leah is amazing! She always goes above and beyond for her patients. She is kind, approachable and empathetic. You would not know that she was newly qualified because she is so incredibly competent, confident, and is thriving! She works well within the MDT and is not afraid to voice her concerns and advocate for her patients. She is an absolute pleasure to work with and I wish her all the best in her future career.
Leah is an incredibly kind and hard working nurse. She advocates for the children in her care and often stays late to ensure everything is handed over. I would be happy for her to look after any member of my family. Leah is a lovely person to work with, she communicates well with the resident doctors and escalates appropriately. Leah is keen to lean and wants to reflect on every good and not so good experience. She is supportive of others and a truly lovely person.
Leah always brightens any shift. She is so friendly and approachable and is amazing with her patients. She is very keen to learn and will always ask the medical team interesting questions to improve her knowledge. I love working with her on Bramble and PAU as know I have a safe and enthusiastic nurse supporting me.
Leah has been with us just over a year but you wouldn’t think so. She is an amazing asset to the team with a huge amount of knowledge. She always strives to learn more and jumps at any learning opportunities such as attending resus/emergency situations and having interest in courses that become available to nursing staff such as the HDU course. Patients and families lover her and always have a good thing to say about her. We have one shift together where we looked after an unwell patient in resus and she did amazing despite being in an emergency situation she stayed calm and showed the greatest compassion to this child and family. Keep doing what you are doing Leah.
Ellie Davison
Works at Torbay & South Devon NHS Foundation Trust
This nurse has demonstrated a lovely bedside manner, works well with everyone in the MDT, she’s shown an eagerness to learn. Ellie is a very keen to help others and has taken the newly qualified nurses under her wing to help build their confidence. Ellie advocates for patients and their family. She is a lovely addition to the Louisa Cary team. Ellie is a fantastic nurse who has a great nursing future ahead of her! She is always extremely professional, is calm, approachable, takes great care of the patients she is looking after and also makes sure other members of the team are ok even when she has a busy work load herself. If I was ever on the ward with my own children I’d be very grateful if Ellie was our nurse looking after us.
Harriot Day
Works at University Hospitals Plymouth NHS Trust
Very skilled nurse who always thinks about the children and advocates for them, is a lovely person to have on the team
Alice Greaves
Works at Torbay & South Devon NHS Foundation Trust
Coming in, new to trust, new to area, hitting the ground running & being simply amazing. She has so much experience to bring to the ward, we are incredibly lucky to have her.
Carrie Heywood
Works at Royal Devon University Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust – EASTERN
Carrie has been working on Bramble since newly qualified and is an amazing addition to the Bramble team. She is always happy, warm, kind and friendly. She has a calm and optimistic attitude. Carrie is a real team player and is happy to help in any way she can. Bramble is lucky to have Carrie, she is a credit to our team.
Where do I start. Carrie has been working in bramble for a year now and blimey everyone loves her. She is the kindest most loveliest nurse ever. always willing to do anything for anyone and always going above and beyond for her patients. Carrie displays good management skills with her workload each day and has great potential within her role. She effectively works well within the wider multidisciplinary team to advocate for her patients. Carrie is an asset to bramble, everyone loves working with her she is a team player and is always willing to help others despite having a busy workload herself. Carrie is everything you want in a nurse and colleague, she has good communication and listening skills. She shows compassion and kindness to the families and patients that she comes across. Carrie keep up the good work.
Been a amazing asset to the team. Very calm and professional. Excellent at caring for the critically ill children and supporting their families in a holistic manner. Always looking to improve her knowledge and practice. Manages her time well in a very busy environment. Work efficiently and effectively within the multi disciplinary team. Excellent newly qualified nurse.
I could say that Carrie goes above and beyond for all her patients, their families, and the staff she works with. Carrie puts her patients care first. She is knowledgeable in what she does. In addition, she does works in such a professional manner.
Carrie, you are an exceptional nurse. You have grown and developed as a nurse so much over the last year. You always work so hard and are constantly providing above and beyond care to your patients and their families. You’re always happy to support the bramble team in any area and are a fantastic team player. Your nursing skills have developed and you’re able to demonstrate that in the cares you provide. A fantastic nurse!
Carrie started on Bramble only a year ago and appears to have settled in with such ease. Being dual trained, there is not much Carrie can’t do. She is utterly fab. Carrie has taken to a natural leadership role which I’m not even sure she knows she is doing, as it is just effortlessly done. She is super organised, uses her initiative with working in PAU, taking referrals on the ward and is such a joy to work with. Seeing her develop over the last year has been a privilege to see. Carrie is a great team player, always happy and upbeat. Carrie advocates with ease for her patients and families and she builds professional relationships so naturally. Carrie has taken her own development in her nursing with passion and dedication to ensuring patient care and safety is a priority, attending course and ensuring that she uses her time to build on skills. Well done Carrie, it’s always a lovely shift when you’re on.
Carrie joined Bramble as a NQN in October 2023. Carrie is an amazing paediatric nurse, and is an inspiration to the students who we now have on the ward. Everyone admires and notices Carrie’s soft nature. Carrie is a huge team player, and is always there to support her team mates doing all she can. Carrie displays a huge willingness to learn, and develop in her career. Carrie manages her work loads effectively, and is never afraid to speak up or escalate a young persons care when she believes it is required.
I look forward to my shifts when Carrie is working as you know you’re going to be working with a friendly face who is happy to help you out if you need it.
Chloe Nation
Works at University Hospitals Plymouth NHS Trust
Chloe has recently joined HDU and despite coming in under difficult circumstances with short staffing and floor-wide changes, Chloe cracks on with a smile. Chloe has absorbed the knowledge and skills of those around her and quickly become a competent HDU nurse. Chloe goes out of her way to seek learning opportunities, and is always eager to share these with others. Chloe should be proud of how she handles herself, how she advocates for her patients and how she has quickly become a valued member of the team.
Maddison Negus
Works at University Hospitals Plymouth NHS Trust
Maddi joined Wildgoose last year and is a joy to work alongside. Maddi has a calm, caring, understanding and confident approach with her patients and families and puts them at the centre of her work. Maddi always has a postive attitude and a smile on her face. Maddi has an enthusiastic willingness to learn new skills and put them into practice.
Maddi is very good at supporting some of our more challenging patients and builds positive relationships with them. Sometimes when patients feel upset and stressed Maddi is able to reasure, calm and settle them. Maddi will use her voice to advocate for patients if
needed. Maddi turns up for each shift with a willingness to work hard and a strong work ethic which shows through her compassion and commitment towards the patients, their families and her colleagues.
Maddi has fitted into the Wildgoose team so quickly and learnt so fast. She is confident and works well in the team, always keen to learn, and also shows great skills of leadership.
Maddi has never faltered ever since she started working with us. She is kind, caring and empathetic, always striving to do the best she possibly can. She will always help out the ward when we need her and we know we can count on her. She is happy to give patients that bit of extra time if they are upset or just want to talk to her, she sits with them and supports them and gives any advice she can. She will always listen to families and patients and advocate for what they want and what’s best for the patients. Maddi goes above and beyond in her work and it always shows, you can go to her with any problem or question and she will try her absolute best to help you and is willing to point you in the right direction when confused. She works amazing in our team and we are so happy to have her.
Maddison is such a joy to have on the ward. She is incredibly confident and had come out of her shell so much since qualifying. Her patients love her and she advocates for every patient she cares for. She attends MDT’s and liases with professionals to provide the best care and to facilitate discharges to our complex patients.
Wow what an amazing first year of nursing, Maddi is the most caring, compassionate and knowledgeable nurse. Maddi has been proactive since day one to enhance her skills and knowledge, Maddi has been able to take these skills and apply them into practice so as to better support the ward and the team.
The patients adore Maddi and she is keen to advocate for them and their families when needed.
When I work with Maddi she is hardworking and passionate, she strives to provide evidence-based person-centred care, and she is already showing many management and leadership skills above that of a Newly qualified nurse.
With many of our patients Maddi has worked with other health and social care professionals, often needing to communicate the needs of the patient to ensure the optimal outcome.
It is always a pleasure to be on shift with Maddi, it has been a pleasure to have her as part of the Wildgoose team.
Maddi deserves to be recognised as Junior Nurse of the Year for her dedication and positive impact on both patients and colleagues. Her enthusiasm for nursing is contagious, and her commitment to providing outstanding care shines through. Maddi consistently demonstrates a proactive approach, always anticipating the needs of her team and patients, which greatly enhances the workflow on the ward.
Her friendly and can-do attitude make her a joy to work with. Maddi is passionate about opportunities to learn and grow, embracing challenges with a willingness to improve her skills and knowledge.
Furthermore, her ability to support her peers creates a positive work environment. Maddi’s combination of professionalism, teamwork, and passion for nursing makes her a standout junior nurse, and she is truly deserving of this recognition.
Charlotte Neville
Works at Royal Cornwall Hospitals NHS Trust
Char is a great nurse. She is relatively newly qualified and undertaking her QIS. She shows dedication to improving her skills and knowledge. Char already has great communication skills and families always warm to her as she is helpful and kind. I am always impressed by her knowledge of the babies she is looking after on a shift and how hard she works. She is a very supportive team member!
Char has been working on our NNU since qualifying as a RN in September 2023. Since then she has demonstrated the potential to be an exceptional qualified specialist neonatal nurse. She has completed the Neonatal Foundation Programme already. Char is eager to learn. She attends many teaching sessions in her own time. She puts herself forward to many specialist areas of interest on the unit. Her leadership and management of new starters and students demonstrates clear potential for her as a ward leader in the future. All of this and, her confident and caring nature with the tiny people and their families makes her a commendable nominee for Junior nurse of the year.
Hannah Skinner
Works at Royal Devon University Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust – EASTERN
Hannah is a massive asset to the bramble team.
She is calm and has a quite confidence.
She approachable and will ask for help at appropriate times. She works safely within her limitations and is keen for opportunities to learn. She reflects on her practice and uses this to better herself and the care she gives her patients.
She can manage a work load effectively and is showing evidence that she is looking at the ward as a whole not just her patient work load.
I believe Hannah has a bright future and its a pleasure working with her.
Hannah you are an amazing nurse and do not give yourself enough credit and praise. You have grown so much since coming to Bramble as a newly qualified nurse. You are fabulous with all of your patients and families. Ensuring they recieve the care and compassion they require. You have grown within your clinical skills and able to demonstrate them within the care you provide. You always bring a smile to everyone’s face but are also a fantastic member of the team, always supporting and helping your team wherever you can. You’re a fabulous nurse Hannah!
Amelia (Millie) Sweet
Works at Royal Cornwall Hospitals NHS Trust
Millie is one of those nurses who has quietly become a powerhouse. She started on the neonatal unit as a newly qualified nurse and has gone from strength to strength. She has completed her Neonatal Foundation program and is progressing beautifully towards readiness for her qualification in specialty module. Millie never says no! She takes whatever is offered and achieves it with steady determination. She is the best advocate for the babies and families in her care. She gets on well with the whole team. She will make a fantastic neonatal nurse when she returns from becoming a mummy.
Nicole Taylor
Works at University Hospitals Plymouth NHS Trust
Excellent teamwork, compassionate and dedicated to the patient care
Lauren Wagg
Works at Royal Devon University Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust – EASTERN
Lauren you don’t realise how amazing you are! Lauren is a fantastic nurse and has developed so much since joining us last year in Bramble. Always pushing herself to grow and develop, ensuring she provides the best care for her patients and families. You always support your team and work within a MDT to provide the best care for your patients. Always a pleasure to work with you, and it has been a pleasure to see you grow and develop as a fabulous nurse
Lucy Ward
Works at Royal Devon University Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust – EASTERN
Lucy is the most exceptional newly qualified nurse I have had the pleasure of working with. She has a wonderful, sunny personality and brings fun and joy to every shift she works.
Lucy is a caring and compassionate nurse, she has a fantastic attitude and is supportive for patients and colleagues alike. Lucy’s knowledge and skills are at a level far beyond that which would be expected having only qualified a year ago. She is a confident and extremely competent practitioner and constantly seeks out opportunities to better herself.
Lucy joined the ward mental health eating disorder team as a band 6 Specialist Nurse 2 months ago and has found her niche. To have reached this level in just a year is remarkable in itself. In the time she has been with us, she has worked hard to improve the service. She has created smart-phrases to ensure time is used more efficiently and promote consistency within the specialist nursing team. She has developed training packages for students, HCA’s and newly starters to ensure they are prepared to support our complex patient group. Lucy has already become confident and competent in delivering nurse led clinics and has demonstrated sound clinical judgement and intuition, particularly when managing young people with complex presentations. Lucy has worked to support patients and parents, developing comprehensive care plans. She has build good rapport with patients which has enabled them to accept care and treatment they were otherwise declining. In addition, Lucy has worked hard to support staff in managing these young people and has led debriefs and followed up staff involved in incidents with care and compassion. We are all looking forward to where Lucy will go with this role as it is evident that she is going to go on to have a remarkable career that will make a real impact in this field.
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We use the nomination text and categories as provided by those who submit the nomination.
If there are any issues with the nomination pages (errors, people placed in the wrong category or any other concerns) please email s.janoff@nhs.net
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We will use the following criteria for creating the shortlist and choosing the final winner:
Junior Nurse of the Year
1. Exceptional advocate for children and families in their care
2. Actively seeks out opportunities for learning and self-improvement, and shows ability to incorporate these into their practice.
3. Displays fantastic potential through early leadership and management skills.
4. Works well within the multidisciplinary team and enhances its effectiveness.
5. Displays and develops the Principles of Nursing Practice
PAFTAs 