Posted 06 July 2019 - 06:00
Posted 06 July 2019 - 06:00
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Game of Thrones star announces neurorehabilitation specialist nurse education programme
Actor Emilia Clarke pays tribute to the nursing care that helped her survive two aneurysms
Actor Emilia Clarke pays tribute to the nursing care she received following two aneurysms
Game of Thrones star and RCN ambassador Emilia Clarke is launching an initiative to train more nurse specialists in neurorehabilitation.
Ms Clarke revealed she had survived two aneurysms when she launched neurorehabilitation charity SameYou earlier this year.
‘Nurses key to my recovery’
SameYou will lead the implementation of the specialist education programme next year, in partnership with the RCN's charitable arm, the RCN Foundation.
‘The nurses who helped me are the reason I was able to get back to a life I recognised’
The actor said nurses had been instrumental in her recovery from brain injury.
‘The nurses who helped me are the reason I was able to get back to a life I recognised,’ she said.
‘They were there to give me support on every level, and to answer every question, to hold my hand, and to calm me when you needed it.’
Importance of rehab
Ms Clarke said while healthcare professionals did an amazing job saving the lives of people following stroke, resources and expertise to help patients afterwards were lacking, something she hoped would improve with more specialist nurses.
‘These people who are now alive need to be helped back to a life they remember,’ she said. ‘It’s putting a human back together again.’
Programme the first of its kind
RCN Foundation director Deepa Korea said: 'This programme will be the first of its kind and will give nurses a chance to help young people get their life back on track after a stroke,’ she said.
‘The programme focuses on improving the physical, mental and cognitive health and wellbeing of stroke patients and helping them throughout their recovery.’
Centralisation of specialist teams
Alongside, the SameYou and RCN partnership, Ms Clarke is also backing NHS plans to expand the number of centralised expert stroke teams.
CNO for England Ruth May welcomed Ms Clarke’s support.
‘Emilia speaking about her own experiences raises crucial awareness of the signs to watch out for, and it’s great that her support focuses both on the expansion of specialist stroke units and specialist training for nurses so that the NHS can continue to deliver world-class stroke services,’ she said.
Emilia Clarke’s real-life role as an RCN ambassador
After a year in post as RCN ambassador, Emilia Clarke said it still felt ‘amazing’ representing nurses.
‘I value them so much, so the fact I can be incorporated in any way into that space is brilliant,’ she said.
However, Ms Clarke said the challenges the nursing profession was experiencing in the UK was ‘heart-breaking’, highlighting the 40,000 nursing vacancies in England.
‘We need to be able to create an environment where people can come in and feel safe and fulfilled and valued in their jobs,’ she said.
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