Welsh Ambulance nurses celebrated at prestigious ceremony

Welsh Ambulance Service nurses attended a prestigious service to celebrate nurses and midwives around the world.

Ellen Edwards, Clinical Support Desk Senior Professional Practice Educator for the Trust, was invited to the Florence Nightingale Commemoration Service, which took place on the 12 May.

Since 1965, the Florence Nightingale Foundation (FNF) has hosted an annual service celebrating nurses and midwives everywhere, and this is the first time a UK ambulance service nurse has been asked to walk in the procession.

The procession is made up of a Lamp Carrier, two Lamp Escorts, esteemed Scholars of the Foundation and student nurses and midwives.

“It was a huge honour to take part in the lamp procession as part of the Florence Nightingale Commemoration Service,” said Ellen.

“Being an FNF Digital Scholar has given me the opportunity to highlight the amazing work nurses do within pre-hospital care and the ambulance service.

“To be the first ambulance service nurse to walk in the procession, representing the Welsh Ambulance Service and NHS Wales was the perfect conclusion to my scholarship.

“Although this is the conclusion to my scholarship, it is not the end of my dedication to promoting nursing in the ambulance service.”

Elizabeth Price, NHS 111 Wales Senior Professional Practice Educator, was also in attendance after being invited by the Chief Nursing Officer (CNO) for Wales.

She said: “I feel very privileged to have received the CNO nomination and invitation for the FNF commemoration service.

“It was a humbling experience, and it is a good way of reminding us of where the nursing profession came from.

“I feel very honoured to have been given the opportunity to represent nursing in the Welsh Ambulance Service.”

Liam Williams, the Trust’s Executive Director of Quality and Nursing, said: “The Florence Nightingale Commemoration Service is an important event in the nursing calendar as it celebrates one of the founding members of our profession.

“The work of Florence Nightingale remains as relevant today as it was innovative at the time.

“It was a great honour for the Welsh Ambulance Service to have two members of staff attending the service and for Ellen to be part of the main procession.

“I would like to thank both Ellen and Liz for representing WAST and am pleased that the experience was felt equally valuable by them.”