CANCER patient care at Hampshire Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust (HHFT) has been given a significant boost by a key appointment.

Philippa Aslet has taken up the role of lead cancer nurse – and she is on a mission to improve treatment for patients, their families, and staff across the trust, which runs hospitals in Winchester, Basingstoke and Andover.

The announcement comes on World Cancer Day, and in the year that has been recognised as the International Year of the Nurse and the Midwife by the World Health Organisation.

Philippa said: “Lead cancer nurses take a leadership role, looking at quality, safety, nursing, supportive care as well as our national cancer targets. A key part of my job is to oversee the experience of our patients with cancer from diagnosis to recovery, or to end of life care, trying to make every point in their journey as good as we can."

Philippa, who has worked for HHFT for 16 years, has had a long and distinguished career. She was the first urology specialist nurse at Addenbrooke’s Hospital in Cambridge, her work has been widely published, and she is a former President of the British Association of Urology Nurses.

As well as working alongside clinical speciality teams, and the patients groups supporting and driving improvements in cancer care within HHFT, Philippa will also have a pivotal role to play in giving the trust a stronger voice in cancer care across the Wessex region, and further afield.

Julie Dawes, chief nurse at HHFT, said: “I am delighted to welcome Philippa into this critical nurse leadership role. The care of patients with cancer and their families is a key priority for us and Philippa’s leadership and nurse expertise will help us strive to meet our ambitions.”

“It seems fitting to announce this crucial role not only on World Cancer Day, but in the year that we celebrate the invaluable contribution nursing and midwifery staff make every day to our patients. Philippa is a great example of the varied career a nurse in the NHS can look forward to, all whilst keeping patient care at the very heart of what we do.”