Nightingale House Hospice welcomes new face to its senior management team

Nightingale House has welcomed a new face to its’ senior management team.

Yvonne Lush, of Marford, took up her post as head of clinical and patient services at Nightingale House at the start of January.

The mother of three, has substantial experience and knowledge in cancer care throughout Wales. She said it was a ‘great time to join Nightingale House’ and that she was as enthusiastic now about her career as she was when she started out.

Yvonne started her career at Wrexham Maelor Hospital as an 18-year-old student nurse. She already knew she had an affinity with people with cancer despite not having any personal experience of the illness amongst family or friends.

Her career path was further strengthened when she spent 18 months training at one of the UKs leading cancer centres, the Royal Marsden hospital, London back in the mid-80s. It confirmed to her that oncology would be the area she would specialise in.

Since then her career has taken her into various clinical and managerial roles within local health board and cancer support settings. Yvonne brings a wealth of experience to the hospice, including the lead responsibility for the Transforming Cancer Services Together Programme in North Wales, working with Macmillan Cancer Support and Betsi Cadwaladr University Health Board.

Yvonne’s latest role is to provide leadership and management to the clinical team within Nightingale House, inspire change and enable more people in the locality to tap into the services on offer for those with life-limiting illnesses, including chronic forms of cancer.

“I am delighted to be joining Nightingale House as the organisation fits in with my values, is person-centred, holistic and focuses on the family and their carers,” said Yvonne.

“With more people living with and beyond cancer my vision is to reach more people in our locality and offer them services, whilst maintaining the same standard of care and support.

“A lot of people with chronic forms of cancers are treatable although cure may not be possible. With medical advances there are many things that can be done to help treat and support those people. We want them to live their best life.

“It is estimated that there are 8,000 people in Wales with chronic cancer and there are hundreds of patients within our locality who we can be directing supporting with services provided by Nightingale House, who maybe not accessing it now. I want to reach more people and their families in our communities who can benefit from our services going forward.”

“If anyone has any ideas about our service delivery or believe there is an unmet need in their community then Yvonne would love to hear from you. “Because Nightingale House is all about person centred services, I see it as ‘their’ hospice and therefore their views and comments help us with future service development.”