At Friends of the Elderly, we are honouring this month’s National Nurses Day by celebrating the commitment and dedication of the nurses within our caring teams.
We have 12 registered nurses working throughout its care home and day care services, who all have an unwavering commitment to make a difference to older people’s daily lives, supporting them to live well in later life.
Rachel Wilson, the Registered Manager at Friends of the Elderly Malvern, is just one of the Registered Nurses in our team. “Since I was young, I’d always wanted to be a Nurse – to be able to care, support and look after people, is my calling,” said Rachel.
Rachel studied at The Queen Elizabeth School of Nursing in Birmingham with a focus on Palliative Care. Prior to joining Friends of the Elderly, Rachel worked in hospitals and a hospice in Solihull. “When I worked in the hospitals, I found Neurology fascinating and complex. It was lovely to see the patients recover from their injuries and illnesses,” Rachel added.
To ensure she keeps up-to-date with any changes, advancements, the latest practices, standards and to help with developing new skills, Rachel undertakes a continuous and regular revalidation with The Nursing and Midwifery Council (NMC). This is the process that all Nurses, Midwives and Nursing Associates need to go through to renew their registration. Rachel also attends sector conferences, regularly training and keeps up-to-date with all the nursing journals.
Talking about her decision to move into caring for older people, Rachel said: “I had been in my previous role for 20 years and achieved what I wanted to achieve, so felt it was time to explore other avenues. I was previously an Inpatient Unit Manager so, along with my nursing skills, I have many additional transferrable skills such as safe staffing levels, symptom management, staff training, supporting staff and, of course, patient care to be able to work in the Care Sector supporting and looking after older people.
“In 2015, I was delighted to become the Registered Care Home Manager at Perrins House, which is dedicated to nursing care at Friends of the Elderly Malvern. I love being a part of a caring team that devotes each day to keeping our residents motivated, engaged and safe. Their health and well-being are our main priority and Perrins House is their home. We are a family and all the team work to make each day a good day for each resident.”
Through three care homes and a day care centre at Malvern, we deliver dedicated and personalised services to our residents and clients whether they attend our weekly day care activities or stay with us for longer residential stay or a short-term respite break. To find out more call 020 7730 8263 or email enquiries@fote.org.uk.