Elaine Richardson is one of the Trust’s Cancer Nurse Specialists, working as part of the Bone and Soft Tissue Tumour Service on Montgomery Unit and Oswald Ward.

Elaine has been part of the Trust since 2014, joining the Montgomery and Oswald Team in 2021.

You can find out more about her day as a Macmillan Cancer Nurse Specialist here:

8am – I start my day by checking any phone messages or emails that may have come in overnight. I will then support the Consultant Surgeon’s on their round on Oswald Ward, who will review each of their patients on the inpatient ward.

8:30am – The multi-disciplinary team will gather for a huddle, before ensuring that everything is prepped and ready for the day ahead.

9am – This morning will see consultant-run clinics taking place. Before clinic starts, we will then get together for a meeting to go through the patients who will be seen and double check aspects like imaging are in place and ready.

9:30am – Clinics will commence, myself and the other Nurses will be on hand throughout the clinics to ensure that everything is running smoothly. Sometimes we will have patients who may have learning disabilities, or will be receiving bad news, so we ensure we are offering a holistic approach to all patients and their individual needs.

11:30am – I’ll spend part of my morning speaking to patients about the support offered by Macmillan. This advice can range depending on those patient’s needs, from signposting to support packages offered, financial advice or living well with or beyond cancer. We aim to offer a whole wrap around service to our patients, ensuring they are consistently supported.

1pm – Clinics have finished and its now lunch time!

1:30pm – This afternoon we have nurse-led clinics taking place and we will see a range of patients, from those who have had a 2-week referral and its their first contact, to those who our under surveillance and undergoing a clinic review. When it a patients first appointment, we will liaise with the radiology booking clerks to ensure they have their ultrasound, meaning we can potentially give a diagnosis on that first appointment. One of my passions in my role is service improvement, including advancing our service in stratified follow-ups, which involves moving follow-up care from outpatient clinics to remote monitoring, and personalised care.

3pm – I visit Oswald Ward again to check on patients who have undergone surgery or awaiting test results. I’ll then spend some time reviewing the patient pathway and systems in place to ensure that our patients have the smoothest experience when being referred to the service. I also will speak to different hospitals to organise any other services a patient may need.

4pm – I finish for the day! I’ll go home and spend time with my family.