Why I value my time as a trustee
I remember being a newly qualified nurse 22 years ago and attending the BAUN conference for the first time. I was completely in awe of the speakers and trustees. Networking was brilliant and I met a lot of people who were able to offer help and advise throughout my career. I feel privileged to become a Co-opted trustee. I want to be able to pass on my own knowledge and help others to have a fulfilling career in urology.
Without BAUN I don’t think I would ever have had the help and support of colleagues to help me get to where I am now. I love to see staff excel in their work and think we should celebrate people’s achievements more. Everyone works really hard in urology and whatever situation you may face in the work environment, there is usually a member somewhere who has been in this situation before or who can offer words of advice.
I like to think I am a good representative of the urology workforce with a breath of experience and welcome anyone who wishes to contact me for advice, to share ideas or just to network and say hi.
Why I have a passion for urology
I never actually thought about working in urology, however I was lucky enough to have had several placements as a student nurse on a urology ward, and since then have never looked back! There is always something different and new going on in the field of urology, that time never stands still and there is never any time to get bored. Covering 5 different tumour sites, urology has allowed me to gain insight in many different conditions and treatments.
I have been able to focus upon one aspect of urology to then move into something exciting and new. There are so many opportunities in urology to help develop your career. Urology is one of those areas which feeds into most other specialities, whether that’s a problem with patients maintaining their bladder function or having kidney problems, these patients can be found on most wards.
Having so many links to other areas forges good working relationships around the hospital. Wherever I go, there is always someone I know or have had contact with. Patients themselves we see often. We see them at low points in their lives and help them to overcome this or manage themselves in a better way, which improves their quality of life. There is nothing better than this.
Biography
Kelly began in 2001 as a staff nurse and progressed to ward manager, Benign CNS, and Advanced Nurse Practitioner. Her passion for education and audit led Kelly and her team to winning The Nursing Times Cancer Nursing category 2020 and being the 2nd place finalist for the British Journal of Nursing for Urology Nurse of the year 2021.
Kelly’s passion is the management of men with prostate cancer. She has created guidance on personalised stratified follow-up for the West Midlands Caner Alliance as well as assisting in the creation of the Infopool for The Prostate Cancer research organisation. Kelly is the lead administrator for the Urology NHS Futures platform which was created to share information and best practice regarding the fasttrack suspected prostate cancer pathway.
Working in urology for 22 years, Kelly has completed her MSc in Advancing healthcare practice and is an independent non-medical nurse prescriber. Her current role involves undertaking TRUS and LATP prostate biopsies, managing GP referrals for men with suspected prostate cancer, prostate cancer follow-up, LUTS assessment and treatment as well as managing men with erectile dysfunction.