If you’ve read anything by Adam Kay, you’ll have a slither of insight into what it’s really like to work in an NHS hospital.
While late nights, long hours and emotional exhaustion are all a part of the job description, nursing is still one of the most deeply rewarding professions in the world.
This week, we wanted to cut through the cacophony of negative news stories and remind readers of the benefits of working for the NHS.
And who better to do so than someone with more than 20 years of nursing experience under their belt?
Carry on reading to find out how Lucy Pitt, intensive care matron for The Royal Sussex County Hospital, advanced in her nursing career and everything she learned along the way…
What do you do?
“I’m in charge of the intensive care unit which consists of trauma, cardiac, general and neurointensive care,” Lucy explains.
“I’ve worked in critical care for about 15 years and for the NHS for 20 years.”
What motivated you to become a nurse?
At 18, Lucy left her cosy Somerset village and set off to the big city lights of London to study. However, she tells us she very quickly felt homesick and realised she was still unsure of where her passion lay - so she returned home to recalibrate.
It was not until Lucy worked as an assistant in an old people’s home that she had her “eureka!”’ moment.
“I suddenly found something that interested me, so I headed to Brighton to do my nursing training,” she tells us.
“Once I’d qualified, I went to work on a really busy surgical ward for about 5 or 6 years.”
Having given birth to a little girl at university, Lucy says that flexibility was an important factor in choosing a career.
“I had to find a job that would support me in terms of having set shifts, which isn’t always easy in the health service. Luckily, I had a really good boss and I loved my job there. So that was a good grounding for working in intensive care.”
How has your career progressed since you first entered the field?
“Once I’d got my diploma in nursing, I started working on the wards while studying for my degree on the side.”
She tells us having a young child helped her to stay motivated during this busy period.
Lucy then went on to work in the intensive care unit, having also completed her intensive care training which she says gave her a competitive edge and opened the door to further career progression.
“I went from being a band 5 nurse to jumping up a grade after I received my intensive care training.”
“After I did that, I joined this team called ‘outreach’ - so I’d attend to all the emergencies in the hospital and then follow up with the patients that had been in intensive care.”
Lucy enjoyed this role for a few years before returning to intensive care as a band 7 ward sister.
“At this point, you’re an expert in looking after crucially ill patients and have a clear understanding of all of the different medical kits. You look after a range of patients, including those who are on ventilators, those needing kidney support and those on different cardiac monitors,” she explains.
When did you become a matron for Brighton ICU?
“I got the job here just before the pandemic,” she says.
“I was a relatively inexperienced matron, and then four or five months into my job we had the pandemic so that completely changed my role. We had to expand - we went from having 31 beds to 70 beds, so that was really scary.”
Lucy notes that her experience working for a refugee camp in Greece, as well as her diploma in Tropical Nursing at the London School of Hygiene helped prepare her for the storm that was Covid-19:
“We’ve always planned for a pandemic scenario, and obviously, we’ve had swine flu and other pandemics, but nothing to this scale. I feel like that training helped me stay calm in an otherwise very pressurised situation. We are lucky that we have a really amazing team here in Brighton.”
Outside of Covid-19, what does a typical working day look like?
“We have a meeting first thing in the morning to talk about any elective cases that need to come to intensive care; whether we can accommodate them and what emergencies we’ve got to get in. We also look at staffing, and the acuity of patients on the ward to make sure it’s safe."
Lucy stresses the importance of making time to check in with staff throughout the day, which is something she learned during the pandemic.
“People want your time,” she explains.
“I try to stay clinical so I might cover breaks and go look after a patient for a bit but it’s very easy to lose your skills in intensive care.
“For example, I wouldn’t be confident troubleshooting certain bits of kit anymore. I feel a bit sad about that but I don’t mind asking someone to come and show me how to use something.
“I think it’s good for the team to see the manager actually out on the shop floor too,” says Lucy.
What advice would you give someone looking to progress in their nursing career?
“I would say to someone wanting to progress in their nursing career is that you can!"
She says that it is important, however, to consider your options: “if you work somewhere you don’t feel valued, there is always the option to move.
“The NHS is brimming with opportunities so you never have to settle.”
We then discuss the additional benefits of nursing: including travel, aid work and the multitude of learning opportunities.
“There is something for everyone in nursing.”
Lucy adds that once you work your way up to a senior position, night and weekend shifts become a thing of the past. If that’s not an incentive for newbie nurses, we’re not sure what is!
“Nursing is a really brilliant career,” she reiterates as we wrap up.
“The NHS is still amazing and we’re very lucky as a country to have it.”
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