27 November 2012

Action for sick children honour for Fiona

picture show Irene McTaggart (left) and Fiona Reid (right)

A University of Dundee graduate has been awarded a major prize by the charity Action for Sick Children for her work in children and young people's palliative care in rural Scotland.

Fiona Reid was awarded the prestigious Norah Rees Award for her dissertation - 'Identifying and Managing the Emotional Support Needs of Community Nurses Delivering Paediatric Palliative Care in a Rural Scottish Context'.

Fiona is a graduate of the School of Nursing and Midwifery's MSc Advanced Practice (Children's Palliative Care) programme. She is now a paediatric oncology nurse specialist at Raigmore Hospital in Inverness.

"I am absolutely delighted to have won this award, and particularly pleased that it recognises the unique needs of community nurses working in some of the more remote areas of Scotland," said Fiona.

For the last five years Action for Sick Children has made a Norah Rees Award - awarding the best Master's Dissertation from a nurse or allied healthcare professional in the UK which addresses Action for Sick Children Charter Points through the student's research.

The Award was presented to Fiona by Professor Sir Al Aynsley-Green at a Lord Mayor's Reception held in Manchester.

Irene McTaggart, Senior Lecturer in Nursing at the University, supervised Fiona's dissertation. She said, "I am thrilled for Fiona, who is extremely deserving of this award. Her work is making a strong contribution to not only community-based palliative care for children and young people but also to those in other care settings."

Action for Sick Children, founded in 1961, continues to influence key policy makers and government. Parents have access to a helpline and other methods for information regarding hospital stays and hospitalisation.

For media enquiries contact:
Roddy Isles
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University of Dundee
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E-MAIL: r.isles@dundee.ac.uk
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