District Nurses step into Christmas for palliative care patient

Pictured above: Patient Georgina Cuddy (front row, centre, with glasses) with her sister Lyn Wilkinson (left front row) and members of the Allerton and Aigburth District Nursing Team

Warm-hearted district nurses have ripped up the traditional calendar to provide a Christmas to remember more than a month early for one of their patients facing the uncertainty of a palliative care diagnosis.

District nurses from Mersey Care NHS Foundation Trust’s Allerton and Aigburth Team decided to bring Christmas forward for their patient, Georgina Cuddy, and brought around decorations and festive food to her flat in Aigburth, Liverpool, as a surprise in early November.

“As we were walking down to her flat, we were singing ‘Jingle Bells’ and all the neighbours were looking out of the windows wondering what was going on,” explained Jessica Morris, one of the district nurses who planned the surprise.

“I’d attended earlier in the day with another nurse and was dressed up very Christmasy and she thought that was it, but we returned for her Christmas dinner, sang songs, dressed up and gave her a present and a card – she was crying.”

In response to the kind gestures, Georgina wrote a card to the team saying: “Girls, I’m so touched and blessed to have such wonderful angels taking such good care of me – I appreciate you more than you will ever know.”

Mersey Care delivers a district nursing service across Liverpool, Sefton (including Southport and Formby) and Knowsley seven days a week, 365 days a year and are accessible 24 hours a day.

They provide care to vulnerable and housebound patients, keeping people safe within their own home or home environment and helping to reduce hospital admissions.