World HMV Day – Steph Grant

My name is Steph and I am one of the nurse specialists in the home ventilation team in Newcastle. We are a team that covers a wide geographical area covering the North East of England and North Cumbria.

I have worked in this role for 10 years and before this was a nurse in critical care in Newcastle. Before this I started my career working on a care of the elderly ward in Sunderland.

When I worked in critical care I often gravitated to looking after patients who were on ventilation at home but had been admitted due to an acute illness. Their admissions were tended to be long and frustrating while waiting for care packages to be arranged. Because they had been so acutely unwell there was often a fear of going back to live in the ‘real world’. This is where the part I enjoyed most comes in; I love supporting people to get back to the quality of life they remember. We start small and go for a walk around the hospital and the grounds gradually building up to trips to the cinema, into town for food (and a well needed haircut!) and even helping going to family weddings. Because of this I was convinced by some of the team to apply to for the role as a home ventilation nurse when a post became available and I was lucky enough to get the job.

I have continued this into my current role with a huge emphasis on quality of life! Give me a challenge and I will take this on!

The worst part of the job is not being able to switch off and always wondering what people are doing. It is lovely to see people on the news but this does mean that work becomes life!

Everyone knows how much financial pressure the NHS is under currently and the world of home ventilation is not cheap so it is a constant battle to try and provide good quality patient care without compromise!

My top tip is that if something doesn’t fit together then it doesn’t for a reason!