Working in Critical Care

Helping patients and their families at their most difficult time is an absolute honour, said one nurse who works on the Intensive Care Unit at the Princess Elizabeth Hospital.

Former Ladies College pupil, Kristy Grant, 25, works as a Senior Staff Nurse on the ICU.

Kristy's sister, a Healthcare Assistant, encouraged her to look into a career in nursing. She started doing Bank work, which allowed her to come in to the Hospital, as an unregistered nurse, on her weekends and school holidays to do paid work in Health and Social Care. This confirmed what she already knew - that a career in nursing was definitely for her.

She completed a three year nursing course on island at the Institute of Health and Social Care Studies. The combination of theory and practical placements allowed her to experience working across many sectors both in the Hospital and the Community.

'As soon as I started with the ICU, I absolutely loved it. I knew straight away that was where I wanted to be,' she said.

Kristy was one of the first newly qualified nurses to start with the ICU team, initially shadowing nurses for three months before taking on patients under supervision and ultimately being responsible for patients under her care.

'What I loved the most was that I could focus on one patient and give them that care that they need. You can totally prioritise just looking after them.'

The nature of the Unit means it can be a very intense working environment.

'It is a time when your patients and their families are at their most vulnerable and it's an absolute honour to look after them when they are going through what is often an incredibly difficult time.'

As a Critical Care Nurse, Kristy looks after both ICU and High Dependency patients. She said that working in the ICU in Guernsey gave her a unique opportunity to look after a range of patients - something that would not happen in a larger hospital.

'Other ICUs are separated into departments but here you get everything which is good because it broadens your experience and knowledge.'

There are seven beds in the ICU, which means the team has to work efficiently and communication is vital.

Kristy has already progressed to a Band 6 nurse and, since she joined the team, has gained qualifications in Advanced Life Support, and specific ICU training in Southampton. She is now working towards the additional training she needs to become a Band 7 Team Leader.

'The team is amazingly supportive and incredibly encouraging, I can't imagine working anywhere else,' she said.

Find out more about these nursing vacancies in the Critical Care Team here: Your New Critical Care Job in Guernsey - States of Guernsey (gov.gg)