SERIOUSLY ill children at St Mary's Hospital will benefit from a new posting — a WellChild Children's Nurse.

Paula Brooke has been appointed in the role thanks to WellChild, the national charity for seriously ill children, which is funding the post at the Isle of Wight NHS Trust, made possible through money from global healthcare company GSK.

Paula is based at St Mary’s Hospital, and will support families by working closely with colleagues across the hospital and in the ambulance, community, mental health services and specialist centres to ensure the highest quality of care.

She will help reduce the time children have to spend in hospital by arranging and coordinating the care they need at home and providing specialist advice and emotional and other practical support for the whole family.

Paula is a qualified children's nurse with 21 years' experience working on the Isle of Wight. Her most recent role was as a senior staff nurse on the Special Care Baby Unit (SCBU), developing an outreach service to support families through the process from hospital to home.

Paula said: "I am enjoying the challenge of this new role, meeting new families and introducing the benefits of having a WellChild nurse. Through my role, I will aim to make the process of hospital discharge more streamlined and coordinated for families with children with complex care needs.

"As a key worker for these families I can offer nursing care at home and liaise with other professionals, reducing the need for hospital readmissions."

One child who is benefitting from Paula's support is George Burton, who was born extremely prematurely. His condition means he needs a tracheostomy to breathe and is fed through a tube.

George's mother Rachel said: "While in Southampton Hospital we had a long term ventilation nurse who was a WellChild nurse. The whole team was so supportive and taught us the skills to get our son home.

"George came home in November 2017. Paula has supported us so much, coming out to help when I'm unsure on something, or she will bring my supplies if I can't get to hospital.

"She is always at the end of the phone, and will also take the stress away if carers need sorting out, such as changing hours or days. I can't thank her enough."

Community children's nurse team leader Becky Hepworth said: "Paula has already made a difference to the families under her care. She has gradually taken over the care co-ordinator role for nine families."