Retired Furness nurse to travel to Cambodia to share her experiences

First published Sunday 15 February 2015 

by Tom Murphy, Reporter

Retired Furness nurse to travel to Cambodia to share her experiences

A RETIRED nurse is to travel to a Cambodian hospital to share her experiences and help local people improve healthcare.

Cambodia is now advertised for the adventurous tourist but between two to three million people are estimated to have died under the Khmer Rouge rule during the 1970s.

Many of those who perished were people with higher levels of education. During this time the entire healthcare system was destroyed along with equipment, supplies, major infrastructure, transportation, power, water, sanitation, and irrigation.

Only 45 medical doctors survived, and of those, 20 left the country. Only 26 pharmacists, 28 dentists and 728 medical students remained in Cambodia in 1979.

The charity Transform Health Care Cambodia aims to help locals in Cambodia recover from the atrocities of the regime and Sian Beard, who worked as a nurse for more than twenty years at University Hospitals of Morecambe Bay NHS Foundation Trust, wants to play her part.

’I’m looking forward to working alongside colleagues in Cambodia and sharing my clinical and managerial experience whilst gaining a better understanding of working within a challenging, under resourced environment, whilst being respectful of cultural differences," said Sian, who lives in Broughton-in-Furness.

The 50-year-old was previously a Matron for Medicine and later worked as an Infection Prevention Matron.

She will travel to Battambang as part of a leading team of health care professionals.

“Infection prevention has been recognised as a priority at the Battambang Provincial Referral Hospital and supporting nursing and medical staff there through education, to understand the impact of good infection prevention practice will be a priority for the charity," she added.

“I feel very fortunate to be joining a team of experienced, like-minded people and I am looking forward to meeting and working alongside the staff both from the UK and the staff at the Battambang Provincial Referral Hospital.’’

Sian will join colleagues from North Tees and Hartlepool NHS Foundation Trust and start work on February 16.

Later this year, Sue Smith, executive chief nurse at UHMBT, who is one of the founders of this charity, will lead another team who are due to go out in November.

To find out more visit www.transformhealthcarecambodia.org.uk.