East Kent

Clinical Nurse Specialist in Rheumatology

Kathryn has been a Registered General Nurse for 34 years, with her early career beginning in Care of the Elderly and Rehabilitation where she was a Band 5 Nurse and a Moving and Handling Trainer. She then worked in the Endoscopy Unit at QEQMH, assisting with the endoscopy procedures, managing equipment; including being link nurse for COSHH, and managing patients pre and post procedures. In 1998 an opportunity arose for Kathryn to become a Rheumatology Nurse as an assistant in clinics to the Rheumatology Consultant Dr Alison Leak. To her advantage she had a special interest in Paediatric Rheumatology and was therefore able to add this to her skills and development. With the support of the team, she was able to develop the role to become an autonomous practitioner; achieving competencies in administering intra-articular joint injections and aspirations and soft tissue steroid injections. Kathryn became an Independent Nurse Prescriber in 2004, further enhancing the role.

Working in an environment which over the years has changed significantly has been challenging and exciting for Kathryn. She has been able to continue to demonstrate and maintain excellent standards of care compassionately. In 2018, she joined the Connect Health team to provide care for Rheumatology patients in a community setting and Kathryn feels passionate about this model of care.

Service Manager

Amy’s professional background is within private healthcare management, with experience in intensive care management, successfully developing a start-up business and excelling during a CQC inspection. Amy’s professional qualifications includes her Level 5 Diploma in Health & Social Care Management. All roles have related highly to exceptional patient experience, with quality and safety at the forefront.

Amy joined Connect Health in July 2019 as a Service Manager to provide the service with exemplary operational leadership support. As a Service Manager, Amy’s role includes supporting the development of Clinical Nurse Specialists and the operational delivery and development of the service across the contract. To date, this has included involvement within the development of a revised service specification jointly with the local trust. Amy has a particular passion for ensuring that patients receive an excellent quality experience.

Clinical Nurse Specialist in Rheumatology

Alison began her nursing career in 1997, working as a staff nurse in a variety of jobs, largely within acute medicine at William Harvey Hospital. In 2004, she took the job as Ward Manager of a 32 bedded acute medical ward specialising in diabetes and endocrinology. In 2009, she began work in a new role within EKHUFT as Inpatient Diabetes Clinical Nurse Specialist, working there until the end of 2012. Alongside this, she studied for a master’s degree in Diabetes at the University of Brighton.

After a brief hiatus from nursing for personal reasons, Alison took a job as a Rheumatology Clinical Nurse Specialist in 2013 with EKHUFT. She gained an Independent Prescribing qualification in 2015 and left EKHUFT to join Connect Health in 2018 as a Rheumatology Clinical Nurse Specialist.

Developing Clinical Nurse Specialist in Rheumatology

Eileen achieved her BSc in Adult Nursing in 2011 and is also a Qualified Mentor. She worked within the Neurology field for two years, before moving into Vascular Intensive Care and High Dependency for a further six years. Eileen joined the Connect team in May 2018 as a Developing Clinical Nurse Specialist in Rheumatology.

Developing Clinical Nurse Specialist in Rheumatology

Melanie is a dedicated professional, with over 20 years’ experience in the private & commercial sector and 10 years in the NHS. She has a strong background in oncology, operational management and service design. She is an accomplished leader with expertise in the development of quality and educational strategies, protocol development, patient support programmes, change management, and service development and implementation. Melanie joined Connect Health in December 2018 as Developing CNS in the East Kent Rheumatology Service.

Clinical Lead

Michael is a Physiotherapist with a special interest in rheumatic diseases. He has worked in the Essex Community Rheumatology Service since its inception in 2017, establishing and growing the service over the years. He has recently joined the East Kent Rheumatology service as Clinical Lead.

Michael graduated in South Africa as a physiotherapist in 2010 and has developed his interest in rheumatology since then, by completing a masters in Musculoskeletal medicine, the EULAR diploma in Rheumatic disease and other CPD related courses. He is a registered prescriber and injection therapist, he also works as a bank MSK sonographer for various NHS Trusts.

He has an interest in providing community based rheumatology services for appropriately stable patients which benefits both the patient and the tax payer. He enjoys running and playing with his three cats.

Developing Clinical Nurse Specialist in Rheumatology

Ricardo qualified as a nurse in 2012 and has gained a broad range of experience since then. After qualifying, he worked for East Kent University NHS Foundation Trust (EKHUFT) in different areas such as Theatre, ENT and A&E either as permanent staff or bank. As an agency nurse, Ricardo had opportunities to work in different hospitals and trusts, and gained further experience in General Medicine and General Surgery.

In 2014, Ricardo joined a Master Programme in Advance Practice within Canterbury Christ Church University with a view to develop his knowledge and career. With this in mind, at the end of 2015 Ricardo left the acute setting to work with Forensic Nursing in the prison setting, where he worked until 2018 when he joined Connect Health. During his time as a Forensic Nurse, Ricardo worked autonomously between running Long term Conditions Clinics and acting as a First Responder for emergencies.

His passion for rheumatology started in the early days of his student life, when Ricardo worked with a very inspiring rheumatology nurse consultant. In this student placement, Ricardo learned the basis of his future career and since then he has been working hard to enhance his knowledge about different rheumatology conditions and to provide the best care possible for his patients.

Ricardo started working for the Connect Health Community Rheumatology team in April 2018 as a Developing Specialist Rheumatology Nurse and he is looking forward to independently running clinics very soon. He is also aiming to complete the Master Program and to become an independent non-medical prescriber.

Administrative Assistant

Claire started her professional career working in Private Medical Insurance and has experience of working for several large insurers located in the South East.

Her roles have always been customer driven, ranging from Medical Claims Helpline Consultant to Clinical Case Manager. Each role has required a high level of contact with patients, Consultants and Hospitals within both the NHS and private sector alike.

Claire joined Connect Health in November 2019 in the role of Administrative Assistant and will be supporting the East Kent Team/Nurses. Alongside the team, Claire will be providing a comprehensive administrative service during the patient journey to ensure a smooth patient experience, while supporting clinicians to provide an exemplar service.