ILKLEY resident Fiona Throp, Community Advanced Clinical Practitioner, at Airedale NHS Foundation Trust has been given the prestigious title of Queen’s Nurse (QN) by community nursing charity The Queen’s Nursing Institute (QNI).

The title is not an award for past service but is for a commitment to high standards of patient care, learning and leadership.  Fiona works in the Community team on the Virtual Ward and was recognised because of dedication to her patients who have care at home.

Fiona says: “I’m so proud to have this award. To me being a Queen’s Nurse is about upholding the values of community nursing, being able to support people at home, so they’re much more empowered to be able to do what they want to do and have their wishes met. Being able to have treatment at home is so important to them.

“As an advanced practitioner I’m able to take that next step for my patients, to look at people’s wishes and to have the autonomy to put management plans and treatment plans in place that really can help them to stay at home, and that can push the boundaries of what we can do in the community, rather than in hospital. It means we can truly keep people at home and offer them something different and an alternative route to just being in hospital, where there’s the risk of deconditioning.

“Safety is obviously paramount, but it's important to challenge those mindsets and to offer people excellent alternatives to being in hospital.”

Fiona was recommended for the award by Liz Thwaite, Clinical Lead for Community Nursing and it included patient testimonials from care she had recently given to a family when a patient had a potential catheter infection.

The patient’s partner said: “Fiona was an absolute saint and is an exemplary person. She put a plan in place which prevented Mike from been admitted to hospital. Fiona demonstrated all the attributes that we knew we were in safe hands. Thanks to everyone involved, they managed to keep Mike out of hospital and get him the help he needed.”

Fiona is the fifth Queen’s Nurse at the Trust and she joins Trudy Balderson, Liz Thwaite and Tracey Hellawell in Community services and Rachel Woodington in the Digital Care Hub, who are all Queen’s Nurses.

Fiona, who lives in Ilkley and has always worked at Airedale Hospital since qualifying in 1999, received her award, along with other Queen’s Nurses, at a prestigious ceremony in London. It was presented to her by Dame Elizabeth Anionwu, who carried the Orb at King Charles’ coronation.

Dr Crystal Oldman CBE, Chief Executive of the QNI said: “On behalf of the QNI I would like to congratulate Fiona and welcome her as a Queen’s Nurse. Queen’s Nurses serve as leaders and role models in community nursing, delivering high quality health care across the country. The application and assessment process to become a Queen’s Nurse is rigorous and requires clear commitment to improving care for patients, their families and carers.

"We look forward to working with Fiona and all other new Queen’s Nurses who have received the title this year.”