A midwifery student from Edinburgh Napier University believes her experiences as a new mum helped develop her award-winning caring skills.
Ellen Pool received the Simon Pullin Award at her graduation ceremony last week. The award was created to honour the human side of nursing and midwifery in memory of Senior Nurse Simon Pullin. Pullin played a key role in Edinburgh Napier’s Compassionate Care Programme up until his death from cancer in July 2011.
Ellen, a mother-of-one from Morningside, impressed judges with an account of her care of a new mum during a placement at the Royal Infirmary. The written piece was seen to have clearly demonstrated her understanding of compassionate care. She said:
”Having a baby during the course and experiencing maternity care firsthand has given me another perspective on the simple things we can do as midwives that can really enhance a woman’s experience of birth.”
“I’m looking forward to continuing my midwifery journey and working in such a wonderful profession.”
Her submission for the award also included feedback from a woman she had supported through her pregnancy, a community midwife mentor and one of her lecturers.
Dr Stephen Smith, who is Lead Nurse in Compassionate Care, said: ”Ellen is a worthy winner of the Simon Pullin Award. Being compassionate in busy clinical settings is a significant challenge for many, and the professional’s response has an important impact on experiences of care.”
