A local nurse has been awarded the prestigious title of Queen’s Nurse for her high level of commitment to patient care.
Lisa Cummings, who qualified as a nurse in 2018, was given the award by community nursing charity The Queen’s Nursing Institute (QNI).
The Queen’s Nurse programme brings together community nurses to develop their professional skills and deliver outstanding patient care in the community. The title of Queen’s Nurse is available to individual nurses who have demonstrated a high level of commitment to patient care and nursing practice.
Lisa, aged 44 from Walsall, has worked as a nurse in the Black Country for five years, starting her nursing career as a practice nurse in Wolverhampton.
She currently works as an asthma practitioner in the children and young people’s asthma team for the NHS Black Country Integrated Care Board (ICB), helping to improve accurate diagnosis and quality of life for children living with asthma.
Lisa said: “I was late to nursing really as I started university in January 2015 at the age of 35 and became a qualified nurse when I was 38. I helped care for my aunty who passed away in 2013 from cancer, which made me think about a career in nursing. Each year I’d send for the university prospectus and then talk myself out of it. I was a single parent, financially I couldn’t afford it and I felt like I wasn’t academic enough – the list of excuses I told myself was long!
“In August 2014 I decided that enough was enough and said to myself that it was now or never. I went for it and got a place last minute at university though clearing. Once I finally made it to university, I really got going. I qualified as an adult’s nurse in 2018, and not even a week after I qualified, I started my course in the fundamentals of general practice nursing. In 2019, I did my post graduate diploma specialist practitioner qualification in general practice, qualifying in 2021, and in 2022 qualified as an independent nurse prescriber, as well as completing my asthma diploma.
“I would say my love for community nursing started as a student nurse when I was allocated to a community nursing team for placement. I then had an elective placement within a GP surgery, spending time with the whole team and learning about the varied roles, which really helped shaped my career.
“I was really shocked but delighted when I found out that I’d received the award. There are some inspirational nurses within the Black Country who hold the Queens Nurse title and I feel very proud to join them. I have always been passionate about community nursing and consider it a real privilege to work for the NHS. I am extremely proud to work alongside such dedicated and compassionate professionals.”
Sally Roberts, Chief Nursing Officer for the NHS Black Country ICB, said: “A huge congratulations to Lisa on receiving the title of Queen’s Nurse. Queen’s Nurses serve as leaders and role models in community nursing, delivering high-quality health care in the communities that they serve.
“Only a handful of nurses from across the country receive this award every year and we’re very proud of Lisa for being presented with the title in recognition of the dedication she shows to the nursing profession.
“I’d also like to thank all of our nurses in the Black Country for what they do. Whatever the setting, wherever the location, whomever the patient, the one thing all nursing staff have in common is their unwavering commitment to make a difference to people's lives.”
