Our Enhanced Supportive Care (ESC) team has won a Macmillan Professionals Excellence award in the Whatever it Takes category, which recognises teams and individuals going to extraordinary lengths for cancer patients.

Pauline Staley, clinical nurse specialist (CNS) and joint team lead, said: “It was amazing. We’ve been shortlisted for awards before, but this was our first win.

“We had a good feeling going in as our presentation had gone well, however, you never know. We’re a small team and are so passionate about what we do. We believe it’s the small things which can make a big difference to our patients. We know we’re making a difference every day, and it’s great to receive recognition from our peers.”

Our team, which is the only nurse-led ESC service in the country, offers palliative care expertise to patients with incurable cancer right from their diagnosis. The aim is to help patients manage their symptoms and support them to ensure they live as well as possible, for as long as possible.

They work hard to prevent their patients from reaching a crisis point by regularly checking in with them, so they can detect when people are becoming less well. Part of their role also involves encouraging patients to compare the burden of treatment versus the benefits, when considering what is right for them.

Co-team lead and CNS Lucie Summerfield said: “Sometimes we need to have difficult conversations with patients, but it’s what we do. We’re a very pro-active team and don’t rely on our patients calling us. We regularly check in to see how they’re doing, which helps us identify if they’re getting close to a tipping point, so we can support them.”

Going above and beyond for their patients could be as simple as taking a prescription out to them so they don’t need to park and come into our hospital, or supporting a blue badge application, to helping them access support from a foodbank and sorting out housing issues.

Both Pauline and Lucie have long backgrounds caring for cancer patients, and working in palliative care.

They were given their award by TV presenter Gail Porter during a ceremony held at the Hilton London Wembley on Tuesday 8 November.

The team also consists of: CNS Claire Edwards, data coordinator Karen Hawkes, advance care planning nurse Tiffany Brammeld, CNS Rachel Bowcher, and Macmillan support worker Deana Bird.

You can find out more about the awards on the Macmillan website.

Pictured top: Claire Edwards, Lucie Summerfield, Pauline Staley and Karen Hawkes with Gail Porter and their award.

Pictured below is the ESC team (l-r): Deana Bird, Rachel Bowcher, Lucie Summerfield, Pauline Staley, Claire Edwards, and Karen Hawkes.