Lymphoedema Nurse, Catherine Tooley shares insights into her role

Hospice at Home West Cumbria (HHWC) is one of more than 200 charitable hospices across the UK taking part in Hospice Care Week (10 – 14 October) an awareness campaign led by the national hospice and end of life care charity, Hospice UK.

As part of Hospice Care Week, today we get an insight into a day in the life of one of our Lymphoedema Nurses, Catherine Tooley and what her day to day responsibilities are.

“After dropping off my three and four year old boys at school and nursery, I start my workday. I often start my day in the office, where I check my emails and collect notes for the patients I have booked for the coming day. Then I either make my way to our clinic on Finkle Street, the clinic in Whitehaven or to the patient’s home.

Patients can be seen by our nurses for a variety of reasons. I can examine them and see how they are managing their lymphoedema, or I can perform one of our treatment options using specialist equipment; lymphatouch, laser or lymph assist. After seeing each patient, I update their medical record to document what I did and what we discussed. If garments need to be ordered, I make sure they are requested from the doctor’s surgeries.

At the end of each clinic, I will respond to any queries that patients may have asked and make a note of tasks for the following day.”