Everyone at Wrightington, Wigan and Leigh Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust (WWL) takes great pride in ensuring that we do our upmost to support the Armed Forces Community when accessing healthcare at any of our sites. The Armed Forces community in Wigan faces numerous challenges that are often unique and difficult to explain to people who have never experienced them. As the new Armed Forces Healthcare Lead here at WWL, I look forward to using my experiences of both living within the Armed Forces community, and my NHS career to help provide the best care possible for veterans, those still serving, and the wider community.
After growing up in Euxton I made the move to RAF Brize Norton with my husband, currently a Flight Sergeant in the RAF, along with many house moves in the ensuing years, however after having my children I moved back to Lancashire to really put down roots.
It was during the times when my husband was away from home on deployment that I found it very difficult not having family around to support me – something those in Armed Forces families I’m sure will relate to.
Following a successful career in banking I retrained as a nurse, and, since 2014, have held several roles working across various children’s wards, High Dependency and Neonatal units, as well as working with children with additional and complex needs and safeguarding. I also provide training and expertise to the Children’s Safeguarding Assurance Partnership and Lancashire Adults Safeguarding Board regarding the impact of Domestic Abuse on adults and children.
The Armed Forces Healthcare Lead is a new role at WWL which aims to support all members of the Armed Forces community.
As part of WWL’s commitment to the Armed Forces community here in Wigan, veterans can expect special consideration where appropriate when accessing healthcare and will ensure that none of our veterans or their families face any disadvantages compared to other members of the public.
I will also be working on providing extra training and support for WWL staff so that they can better understand the specific health needs of our Armed Forces Community and the unique challenges that they face. In turn, this will allow us to provide a first-class healthcare experience for our Armed Forces community and we will be able to signpost them on to other bespoke services to meet their health and social needs.
On the whole, by providing this high-quality healthcare for our veterans we will be able to maintain our ‘gold’ veteran aware status.
This is an incredible opportunity to really make a difference for the members of the Armed Forces communities who use our services here at WWL and ensure that WWL is a shining example of being a Veteran Aware Trust.
For more information on WWL’s Veteran Awareness Programme, visit www.wwl.nhs.uk/veteran-awareness-programme