Today we wish Dr Clare Abley a very happy retirement as she nears the end of an illustrious 40 year career in the NHS, stepping down from her role as Nurse Consultant for Vulnerable Older Adults at the end of the month.
Clare was the first Nurse Consultant to be appointed at Newcastle Hospitals and one of the first specialising in older people’s care nationwide. Her exemplary knowledge, experience and expertise has been the cornerstone of excellent Dementia Care here in Newcastle.
Clare qualified at St Georges in South West London in 1987 as a general nurse with a Bachelor of Science (BcS) degree. With a keen interest in Older People’s Medicine she progressed quickly from staff nurse, to junior sister, and then senior sister.
It wasn’t long before she took up the role of Clinical Nurse Specialist, gaining experience in acute care and rehabilitation in both hospital and community settings.
In 1996 Clare moved to Cardiff to take up a newly established post as nursing practice development advisor for older people, which was a senior position working across the older people’s service.
Clare’s career in Newcastle began in the Millennium
Then in 2000 Clare moved to Newcastle to take up a joint post between Newcastle City Health and Newcastle Hospitals. She embarked upon a part time PhD two years later, undertaking research focusing on vulnerable, older people.
Clare was appointed Nurse Consultant and Trust Lead for Dementia Care in 2010 and has remained committed to championing best practice across the Trust, making it her quest to ensure the delivery of person centred care for every patient known to have dementia.
This has included the introduction of ‘Forget-me-not’ cards, applying for (and securing) significant capital funding to appropriately refurbish day areas on all the Older People’s Medicine Wards making them ‘dementia-friendly’, as well as chairing the Trust’s Dementia Care Steering Group.
Trailblazing clinical academia in nursing
Having a post-doctoral fellowship provided Clare with the opportunity to develop her role as a Clinical Academic and in doing so has paved the way for many other nursing colleagues.
Clare’s clinical lectureship culminated in the Trust’s Dementia Care Leaders’ Toolkit which, with Research Capacity Funding (RCF), was piloted in 2019/20 and is now being rolled out across the organisation.
She shared her work in National Forums with like-minded dementia care leads from across England. She ran two national study days in Newcastle and London in 2018, has presented her findings at national conferences and written publications for several peer reviewed journals, including Nursing Older People and the British Journal of Psychiatry.
Clare has always been committed to developing best possible practice and has undoubtedly made an enormous difference to patients with dementia here in Newcastle, whilst influencing practice nationwide.
Clare will be a huge miss but we wish her a long and happy retirement.
