Cancer treatment doesn’t stop because it’s Christmas. This Christmas Day, colleagues from across the Trust will be working to deliver cancer treatments, support patients and keep the hospital running. You can hear from just a few of them below how they’re going to be spending the day and making Christmas special for patients.
Grace Garbett and India Hallgate
India and Grace are 2 of 9 nurses working on ward 12, one of our inpatient wards, on Christmas Day. India is covering the day shift and Grace is coming in at night.
India, Grace and the team try to make sure everyone who is well enough to go home for Christmas can do so, but they also make the ward as festive as possible for those who can’t.
“I’ve worked it for the last few years because I enjoy doing it,” India says. “Although our day-to-day work isn’t different, the atmosphere is special. We get to hand out presents and see more of the patients’ friends and family, which is lovely. The catering team also bring up Christmas dinner for both patients and staff, which is great.”
Steve Harcourt
Steve Harcourt works in the teenage and young adult (TYA) service at The Christie NHS Foundation Trust.
He splits his time between managing the service’s education and employment programme and managing a team of youth support co-ordinators who look after 16 to 24-year-olds being treated for cancer at The Christie.
Steve and the team, like all colleagues at The Christie, work hard to make sure that patients are supported over the festive period.
“For a lot of patients, being home on Christmas means a lot, so we try and make that happen for them, even if it’s just for a couple of hours,” he says. “And if they can’t, we bring the festivities to the hospital. There are presents, the staff will dress up and we’ll be decorating the wards and social areas.
“Ahead of the day itself, we’ve also got loads of plans – we’re hosting a show here at the hospital, taking patients to the panto and are organising things like wreath making and baking session. It’s a great way to bring people together and bring a little bit of joy to what can be a difficult time,” he says.
Elizabeth Hadley
Elizabeth Hadley, known as Liz, is a 27-year-old pharmacist from Oldham who has been part of The Christie team for 2 years. She works as one of the rotational pharmacists, supporting patients across different areas of the hospital.
This Christmas Day, Liz will be the on-call pharmacist, ready to respond to any urgent medicines-related needs. While wards are stocked with essential medicines, Liz knows she may be called in at any time to assist with supply issues, answer clinical questions, and ensure medicines remain safe for patients during the festive period.
In the lead-up to Christmas, Liz and the pharmacy team work tirelessly to help as many patients as possible return home to their families. “It’s a very busy time for the clinical pharmacy team, which includes pharmacists, pharmacy technicians, and pharmacy assistants,” Liz explains. “The hospital aims to discharge as many patients as possible so they can spend Christmas at home, even if just for the day. It’s essential they have all their medicines. Discharge prescriptions are assessed by the pharmacy team on the wards and then dispensed by our colleagues at The Christie Pharmacy.”
Liz adds: “It’s a huge privilege for my team and me to support patients in this way as we approach Christmas. We know it makes a big difference to them and their families.”
After her shift, Liz plans to celebrate with her mum, enjoying her saved Christmas lunch.
Ayla Doostdar-Smith
Diagnostic radiographer Ayla Doostdar-Smith is also on call on Christmas Day. She could be brought in at any time to do any urgent scans, X-rays or ultrasounds.
“Either I or the on-call radiologist will review all cases and decide who needs to be seen, and then we’ll come in and do whatever needs doing,” she says.
“Cancer doesn’t stop just because it’s Christmas and we’re bound to get called in at least once. I don’t celebrate it, so have done the shift for the last 4 years. We’re a close-knit team and it’s a privilege to be able to give that time to my colleagues who want to be at home with their families on Christmas Day.”