16th May 2025

Celebrating International Nurses Day with our winners

Your Healthcare is proud to celebrate International Nurses Day today. Our nurses work across a number of YH teams, but are equally skilled, dedicated and willing to go the extra mile.

Five of our nursing colleagues were recognised On Friday (9th May) at the Kingston and Richmond Annual Nursing Conference and Awards. Winning these awards is a significant achievement and the judges’ citations included descriptions of exceptional care, and themes that represent all that is good about Your Healthcare nursing teams, and teams across the organisation.

Our winners are:

• District Nursing Sister Kyley Parfitt, Nurse of the Year: Recognising a nurse who has gone above and beyond what is expected of them in their day-to-day role.
• District Nurse Karen Parsons, Rising Star: A nurse who has been qualified for less than five years and demonstrates exceptional qualities that embody the best of nursing and the leadership skills to inspire others to follow their example.
• Learning Disability Nurse Barry Hyde, Award for Safer Care: A nurse or team that has undertaken an initiative to address factors that place patients at risk and promote safety as an essential part of healthcare.
• Senior Nurse, Cedars Ward, Nighat Khan, Teamwork: Award for a team who has undertaken projects that demonstrate the value of teamwork in improving a service.
• Palliative Support Worker Karen Whymark, Non-registered Healthcare Support roles: An award for non-registered healthcare support roles such as healthcare assistants (HCAs, MA, MSW, AP). The nominee demonstrates a significant contribution to the team/patient care.

Kyley Parfit
“Kyley is one of those truly special people who lights up every room she walks into. Larger than life, full of warmth and energy, Kyley is the heart of our District Nursing team. She is the person everyone naturally gravitates towards — the one who lifts spirits when times are tough, and who always has a sympathetic ear ready to listen without judgment. She is the first to offer a shoulder to cry on and the first to bring a smile when it’s needed most. Her kindness, positivity, and ability to make people feel safe and supported is something truly rare. Beyond her bright and loving nature, Kyley is an exceptional nurse. Her clinical knowledge, professionalism, and experience are second to none. Patients and colleagues alike seek her advice, confident in the care and wisdom she shares. She is incredibly hardworking, utterly dedicated to her patients, and fiercely supportive of her colleagues. No matter how busy or pressured the day, Kyley always finds time for those who need her. She embodies everything that is best about nursing: compassion, skill, humour, and heart. She truly is the beating heart of our team.”

Karen Parsons
“Karen goes above and beyond for each patient she sees. Often staying late at work and putting extra effort into everything she does. Karen shows strong initiative and leadership skills. She quickly developed strong clinical skills and has a questioning nature – ensuring that she finds or learns more, to enable her to give the best possible evidence-based care. She inspires other team members to work harder and she has also been a fabulous mentor/assessor to her first student. Karen definitely embodies the best of nursing and has the leadership skills to inspire others to follow her example. She is a much-valued colleague and a great asset to the team.”

Barry Hyde
“Barry has been the nurse lead on a multi-disciplinary initiative to address the very specific challenge of obesity and diabetes prevention in people with learning disability. This initiative titled “the super seven” has required him to take leadership of the health aspects of the programme and deliver sessions that require specific and well-thought-through communication adjustments and augmentations. He has also devised and implemented effective pre and post questionnaires which service users report established, and then continued, a highly supportive professional relationship which has enhanced the outcomes of the programme. In feedback, Barry has been named by every member of the group as a key factor in their engagement of the super 7, and a unanimous request that he continue to work with them. He has managed to utilise his health care promotion skills with his knowledge and experience of how best to ensure effective and long-lasting outcomes for the health needs of a very vulnerable group. The super 7 initiative is now in a position to grow and develop due to Barry’s involvement.”

Nighat Khan (jointly with Liz Riedlinger, Pamela Bryant Unit, Teddington Memorial Hospital)
“Liz and Nighat provide in-reach from the wards at TMH (Teddington Memorial Hospital) to identify patients that would benefit from bed-based rehab on Pamela Bryant Unit and Cedars. They have worked with the wards, discharge nurses and the transfer of care hub to identify patients in a timely manner and ensure that where possible, appropriate patients access the beds at Teddington. This has resulted in an improvement in patient flow, better patient outcomes and a reduction in the length of stay. It has also improved patient experience and helped to manage patient expectation because they can ask questions about rehabilitation and have met someone who they will see when they are transferred. This has been an invaluable service over the winter period.”

Karen Whymark
“On behalf of all the nurses and patients she cares for, we would like to recognise Karen Whymark for all the incredible work she does. She goes above and beyond every day offering kindness, support, approachability and unwavering advocacy for her patients entering the terminal stage of their lives. Her compassion and empathy bring comfort to those who need it most, and her presence is truly thankful as nothing is ever too much trouble for her and we are all grateful for her support. Karen delivers truly holistic care, working closely with teams such as Princess Alice Hospice, community matrons, and proactive anticipatory care groups to ensure that her patients receive seamless, coordinated support. Her professional skills are matched only by her warmth and humanity, which shine through in everything she does. She is, quite simply, wonderful — and we feel lucky to work alongside her.”

In total 23 nurses or nursing teams were nominated for an award.