Somerset NHS staff thanked for "outstanding" blood cancer service
Myeloma UK presented the Somerset NHS Foundation Trust with an award for their treatment
Staff at Taunton’s Musgrove Park and Yeovil Hospital have received an award for their treatment and care for patients living with an incurable blood cancer.
Myeloma UK presented the Somerset NHS Foundation Trust with a Clinical Service Excellence Programme (CSEP) Award in recognition of their outstanding care and dedication to people with myeloma.
Claire Smith, Clinical Nurse Specialist at Somerset NHS Foundation Trust, said: “As a team we are very proud to have achieved Myeloma UK accreditation and to receive the Clinical Service Excellence Programme Award.
“We recognise the significant impact a diagnosis of myeloma can have, and it is very humbling to receive such positive feedback from our patients. They are at the heart of what we do, as we strive to deliver excellent care at all times.”
Myeloma occurs in the bone marrow and currently affects over 24,000 people in the UK.
It is a relapsing-remitting cancer, meaning that although many patients will experience periods of remission following treatment, the disease will inevitably return.
Monica Morris, Clinical Practice Programme Manager at Myeloma UK, said: “Myeloma is a challenging cancer which keeps coming back and can be really difficult to cope with, both physically and mentally, so we were hugely impressed with the hospital’s efforts to make patients’ treatment that little bit easier – no matter where they live.
“Nurses Claire Smith and Sam Ellison-Nash, in particular, provide invaluable support and are always on hand to signpost other services, lend an ear and offer advice to patients and their loved ones.
“Seeing the team go the extra mile day after day for people with myeloma is truly inspiring.”
Peter Wingrave, from Crewkerne, was diagnosed with myeloma in 2018, after experiencing severe back pain.
By the time his cancer was caught, the disease had started eating away at his bone and one of his vertebrae was being crushed. Peter has lost three and a half inches in height as a result.
Peter has thanked staff for supporting him through the rollercoaster of treatment and allowing him to lead a full life.
“They are so focused on the patient – they really understand,” said the 77-year-old architect. “It’s a miraculous service. Claire, the specialist nurse, gives us her mobile number and just says, ‘Call me’. In this day and age it’s very difficult to get people’s contact details but hers is freely available if there are any issues.
“If there is a change, they catch it quickly and you’re not left at home worrying whether everything is OK. It’s remarkable what they’ve done for me.
“I have a two-weekly infusion in Yeovil and that takes about two and a half hours and I have drugs which I take at home, so it’s all been made exceedingly smooth. It’s brilliant. It’s giving people like me a normal life.”
“I’ve lost three and a half inches, but myeloma is not stopping me from doing anything,” he went on. “The cancer has been very much on a steady line. It’s slowly creeping up, as it will, but it’s been at an extremely low rate. I’m touching wood. The treatment that they’ve given me over these six years has kept it a bay, for which I’m extremely grateful.”
“I’ve been blessed,” he added. “My wife and I have written a number of books which is quite enjoyable. I talk to the local museum and I’m doing a presentation at the minute. Six years is longer than we thought the treatment would last. I thank my lucky stars.”