Atrial Fibrillation - Cardiac Nurses

Although nurses are trained in every aspect of healthcare we believe that if we were patients we would prefer to be looked after by specialists and we therefore ensure that all of our senior nurses are specifically trained to care for heart patients. The nurses will look after you in outpatients, on our dedicated cardiac wards but also in the catheter lab ensuring your comfort and safety throughout your stay with us. The nurses are responsible for ensuring that you are fully prepared for any treatment by ensuring that you understand what is happening at all stages of your care. They can also help to teach you about your condition and its treatment and may also teach you how to give yourself heparin injections if that is necessary. They will monitor your condition during any treatment and ensure that you are comfortable throughout and will then help you to recover fully after.

At the London Bridge Hospital the cardiac ward manager Anne Hardy is supported by 2 Ward Sisters and a Night Charge Nurse. They lead a team of experienced Senior Staff Nurses and Staff Nurses who are assisted by Health care assistants and ward receptionists. The Hospital is accredited by several local universities so also supports student Nurses in training.

Student Nurses and healthcare assistants work under the supervision of a registered nurse.

They always have a senior nurse on duty in charge of the ward. All the senior staff and many of the more junior staff have undertaken post qualification specialist cardiac courses and advanced/immediate life support training. All staff are trained in Infection control, Manual Handling, Resuscitation and Health & Safety as part of their mandatory training.

The Catheter Lab Nurses are managed by Audrey Kerr and Sharon Ryan. They are also experienced Cardiac Nurses with specialist Catheter Lab skills, qualifications and training.

The team of Outpatient Nurses are managed by Linsay O’Sullivan and Sharon Stringer. They also all receive mandatory training, and have a wide variety of qualifications and experience between them.

All areas use temporary staff from time to time, many of whom are provided by the in house Nurse Bank. They work regularly in the Hospital, some even full time, so are very familiar with the Hospital and each area.

The Nurses work closely with other Health professionals, including pharmacists, dieticians, physiotherapists, and Resident Medical Officers (RMO’s). There are always at least two RMO’s in the Hospital, specialising in Cardiac and Critical care, and general medicine and surgery.