Clare Wren

I am nominating Clare for this award to recognise the pivotal part she plays in the Orthopaedic Physiotherapy team and across the physiotherapy department here at Worthing Hospital.

Clare is a band 4 and has now supported 3 apprentices through their courses, as well as numerous band 5’s on rotation. All 3 apprentices have developed into outstanding physiotherapy technicians, one has now qualified as a physiotherapist and another is in their second year of their physiotherapy degree.

Clare is known for taking new and junior staff ‘under her wing’. She is an excellent role model; hard working, knowledgeable, keen to support and develop staff. She delivers excellent patient care, totally focussed on progression of patients to safe discharge with our very elderly cohort.

As a supervisor she is an expert at delivering constructive criticism; being kind, compassionate and friendly when appropriate but being giving honest feedback and taking no nonsense!

She is the heart of the team but is aware of the less confident team members and has an enviable knack of drawing them out, including them in conversation and discussion, and building their confidence.

Clare’s skills are also appreciated by her MDT colleagues. The following plaudit from the Clinical Consultant in Orthogeriatics says it all!

Whilst I am always massively appreciative of the efforts from all the therapy teams, I would like to provide some individual feedback for Clare Wren.  

Clare consistently shows remarkable clinical judgement and leadership skills and delivers incredibly high standards of patient-centred care, and when the chips are down on Broadwater, her strengths really do shine through!  

Here’s just a few examples of observed practice:

Clinical Leadership 

• Excellent communication and organisation skills at MDT meetings and board rounds  
• Excellent prioritisation skills. Handles unpredictable events very professionally, i.e. poor staffing levels and high workloads. sets clear, realistic goals and plans for managing labile work pressures  
• Supportive towards qualified physios, physio techs and other therapy team members, giving clear instructions and providing an excellent balance of clinical supervision, whilst supporting the development of the individual’s confidence and autonomy 
• Has a great sense of motivation for the team and a real ‘let’s get on with it’ attitude, without being dismissive of issues on the ward i.e. lack of staffing and resources.  
• Participates in discussions and projects to constantly improve the #NOF pathway and the patients’ experience. 

Clinical Judgement  

• Good diagnostic skills. Clare can confidently communicate across all professions and grades to ensure patients receive appropriate investigations and assessments. She has helped diagnose conditions such as missed fractures and strokes.   
• Excellent patient safety and clinical risk skills i.e. identifying acutely ill patients, identifying potential events, i.e. syncope, and in emergencies, acts calmly and professionally to manage the situation.  

Patient-centred care  

• In jest, Clare sees herself sometimes as the ‘bad cop’, giving patients that firm encouragement they sometimes need to participate in their care. In reality, she is incredibly compassionate and implements finely tuned skills of emotional intelligence to motivate patients.  
• Clare has joined me in some challenging family meetings, where she has been able to articulate clearly to relatives the rationale for why patients can’t always fully rehabilitate and sets safe, achievable goals that promotes optimal quality of life      

I just wanted to share some feedback, so you and Clare understand how appreciative we are of her continuous hard work and commitment on the ward and that her efforts have definitely not gone unnoticed. 

Needless to say, Clare also has a wonderful sense of humour- the most essential attribute of all!