Janet is contender for Nurse of 2006Head (From Penarth Times)

Janet is contender for Nurse of 2006Head

A NURSE from the Marie Curie hospice in Penarth has been shortlisted for the Nurse of the Year Award 2006.

Janet Suart, of Barry, is one of 13 finalists, who has been nominated for the award which recognises the terrific contribution they have made to so many lives.

Janet has been working for Marie Curie as a nurse for the last nine years and says she has loved every minute of it.

She is one of 100 Marie Curie nurses in Wales who look after people who are seriously ill with cancer.

Before joining Marie Curie, Janet spent 12 years working as a midwife at a clinic in Johannesburg.

She said: "When I came back I wanted to work in a different area, and after maternity I found a job working at other end of the spectrum in palliative care.

"It was a complete change from helping people through birth to helping them through death. I believe there is a time to come into this world and a time to leave it.

"We cannot change the outcome but at Marie Curie we have a great team and we pull together to make death as comfortable a passing as possible for both the patient and their relatives."

Janet said the way nursing staff handled a tragedy in her own family provided the inspiration for her own nursing career.

She said: "I became a nurse at the age of 17, following a family tragedy in which my brother was killed in an accident at work.

"The way the nurses supported my family left a lasting impression on me and inspired me to become a nurse.

"Our family received brilliant support and this inspired me to help others as I was helped during those tough times."

Janet admitted that sometimes she does get emotionally attached to the people she meets at the hospice.

She said: "The patients become like your extended family and you do feel like you are losing a friend. At the end of my shift I have to become a mum and a wife, and as a professional there is a fine line which shouldn't be crossed."

By becoming an ambassador for Marie Curie, Janet hopes to increase awareness of the work carried out by staff at the hospice.