Meet the Team
Based at Leeds Children’s Hospital, the team work across three wards. L31 is Children’s oncology and haematology ward for patients aged 0-12 years, L32 is our Stem Cell Transplant ward for children and teenagers, and L33 is our Teenage Cancer Trust unit.
All three wards work closely together and they have the same senior nursing and medical team responsible for treatment and care. This means that patients receive consistent care wherever they are in the unit from a team that they know and trust.
As well as the nurses, there’s a dedicated multi-disciplinary team, which includes doctors, play leaders, physiotherapists, pharmacists, social workers, dietitians, clinical support workers, psychologists, ward clerks, catering and so many more, who all play an important role in caring for our young patients.
Karen Potts, Ward Manager on L31 said: “We’re a specialist treatment centre for children and teenagers with cancer, as well as a range of haematological conditions. This means that patients come to use from across most of Yorkshire and beyond. Patients can stay with us for a really long time while they undergo intensive treatment so we make try to make the unit a positive and a safe place to be so that the children, teenagers and their families feel comfortable and well looked after.”
The unit is supported by our fantastic charity partners, including Candlelighters - a local children’s cancer charity - and the Teenage Cancer Trust. They have both helped us to improve facilities for patients and families on the ward, and fund a number of additional posts which add that extra dimension to the care provided by our core team.
Karen continues: “The whole team are just fantastic to work with and each of our wards is actually a happy place to work. It can be very fast moving, the care we give is complex and emotionally demanding at times but it is so rewarding to see the children get better. I feel very honoured to be a part of this team and to meet so many wonderful families.”
Rachel Hollis, Matron for Children’s Oncology and Haematology, said: “When a child is diagnosed with an illness it’s an incredibly difficult time for the whole family. The care we provide supports the child but also their parents, siblings and wider family too because that’s just as important.
It’s not unusual on any given day for there to be parties happening on the wards and we have regular film and pizza nights in the Teenage Day Room and in the Candlelighters pavilion, which are dedicated spaces for families and patients to take some time out away from the wards. It’s important that children and teenagers continue to play, to learn and to do things that make them happy during their time in hospital and this team do everything they can to make sure this happens.
Equally important is the specialist nursing care that patients require when undergoing treatment. Every single member of this team is just brilliant at what they do and we receive many compliments from families about the care they provide.”
