TODAY - Thursday, 12 May, is International Nurses' Day and Nub news is delighted to share two stories about nurses at Basildon Hospital.

A GROUP of overseas nurses are celebrating their 20-year anniversary at Basildon Hospital on International Nurses' Day.

In May 2002, 90 ambitious nurses travelled to Basildon from the Philippines to start exciting new careers in the NHS.

Some have gone into management and others the clinical side of nursing, all thriving in a range of different roles including matrons, senior sisters, unit managers, deputy managers and nurse practitioners, and all having a huge positive impact on patient care.

One of those original 90 was Niel F. Pelaez, who still works at the hospital and is now a nurse practitioner on the surgical ambulatory care unit.

Niel (pictured) said: "We are very thankful for this life-changing opportunity that Basildon Hospital has given us - not only for ourselves but also for our families in the Philippines. It has really allowed us to have a better life.

"Nursing is a dynamic profession; it is still evolving and we never stop learning. Some of us are even looking at going into further studies to complete a Master's degree in nursing."

Niel now calls Basildon his home and has nothing but positive things to say about the experience and the friends he has made.

"When we got here we felt so supported by Basildon Hospital. Our accommodation, food and financial allowance were all ready for us, which made a huge difference.

"Most of us lived in the Province of the Philippines, so after waving goodbye to our family we had a 12-hour bus journey to reach the capital Manila to process our travel documents and visas, and then catch a flight to the UK."

There are more than 20 of those original Filipino nurses still working at the Trust, with many of them completing their mentorship training. This means they have come full circle and now mentor and support new groups of overseas nurses joining Mid and South Essex NHS Foundation Trust, giving them the same warm welcome they were given two decades ago.

Dawn Patience, director of nursing, said: "When the nurses arrived in the UK I was a ward manager and supported the nurses in their programmes. They really have a fabulous supportive community, and I am proud to say they are a dedicated and essential part of our very own nursing community at the Trust. Here's to the next 20 years."

Craig and Co bring their lifesaving skills to great use

A NURSE is helping heart attack patients get home more quickly, reducing the time they need to spend in hospital.

More than 700 hours of hospital time has been saved in the last 18 months by specialist nurses discharging heart attack and pre-planned stenting patients home rather than doctors. This has shortened the time they have to spend in hospital by an average of seven hours.

Craig Robertson, 30, from Southend, is a percutaneous coronary intervention nurse specialist at the world-renowned Cardiothoracic Centre at Basildon Hospital.

He said: "Before I started my role in November 2020, patients were, on average, going home at 4pm - they're now getting to go home at 10.30am. I'm almost up to my 100th discharge, meaning we'll have saved patients around 700 hours in time, getting them home sooner and giving the same great standard of care."

Craig has been a nurse at Mid and South Essex NHS Foundation Trust since 2014 and has a real passion for his job, and most of all helping people. As part of International Nurses' Day (May 12) he took time to talk about his chosen career and continued love for his role.

Nursing was always something Craig wanted to do. He said: "I think I was one of those lucky people who knew they wanted to be a nurse from a young age, whereas a lot of people struggle about what they want to do growing up."

And Craig thinks attitudes to men being nurses has changed. He doesn't feel there is any difference in being a nurse, whether you are male or female, so other men thinking about going into the profession shouldn't see that as a barrier.

"I never really thought about it because there's male and female nurses and male and female doctors. I think I'm from that generation where I don't really see it in that way at all.

"Nursing is really tough, but it is really rewarding. It comes with its challenges, but so does every job. I absolutely love cardiology, and now I don't think I could work in any other speciality. It is my passion and so are my patients and their care."