A Day in the Life of Noreen Murphy, HCA
My name is Noreen Murphy and I am a Health Care Assistant (HCA) in the Symptomatic Breast Unit in University Hospital Limerick (UHL). I have been an HCA for 23 years, and have worked in the Breast Unit for the past seven years. I work opposite my HCA colleague NicolaMcNamaraas part of a multi-disciplinary team that includes the Breast Unit Co-Ordinator, Data Manager, a Clinical Nurse Manager (CNM2), Advanced Nurse Practitioner (ANP), five Clinical Nurse Specialists (CNS), an attendant and secretaries. Prior to UHL, I was an HCA in Mallow General Hospital and Castletownbere Community Hospital. I have three children, with one still in school. Outside of work I love social dancing such as jiving and rock & roll dancing. I also enjoy playing Gaelic for ‘mothers and others’ and going on long walks with my dogs Buddy and Buster.
My working day
Work starts at 8.15am, but my day begins a lot earlier, as I commute from Mallow and need to get on the road early so I can get parking at UHL. My role varies from day to day. In the busy clinic, I bring patients in from the waiting room to the clinical room to see the doctor or Advanced Nurse Practitioner (ANP), and also chaperone for breast examinations. I will often meet patients and their relatives again at the end of clinic, and some of them may have received bad news. At those times, I find a comforting word and an offer of a cup of tea is a kind and compassionate gesture that many patients appreciate.
I also work as a Fitter in the Breast Unit, which involves measuring women for fitting with a prosthesis and bra eight weeks after mastectomy. I trained for this role in Dublin several years ago and attend refresher courses regularly to keep up with developments.
What I enjoy most about my work
I really enjoy working as part of the breast team. We all have our own roles, and all our contributions are valued. I enjoy supporting patients, from diagnosis to survivorship, listening and chatting to them, and helping them to feel at ease as they make their way through the clinic. Many patients attend for check-ups on a yearly basis, so you really get to know them and their families.
My favourite part of my working day is…
My favourite part of my work is fitting patients after mastectomy. For women, having a breast removed is life-changing for your femininity and sexuality, so I allocate an hour for each patient, to ensure they will have time to try on different bras and prostheses and feel comfortable and more confident when they leave. A prosthesis does not replace their own breast, but it makes them feel good and (a term that many patients will use) ‘normal’ in their appearance.
My most exciting career moment to date
The most exciting moment in my career was becoming involved in the ‘world first’ 3D Breast Prosthesis Pilot Programme to create bespoke breast prostheses for women post-mastectomy in Limerick. State-of-the-art 3D manufacturing is used to scan the chest wall and provide a custom-fit prosthesis for each individual woman. This exciting programme is run between the Symptomatic Breast Care Unit in UHL, Mater Private Radiation Oncology UHL, and the Rapid Innovation Unit in University of Limerick. I will be trained in using the technology that will allow me to fit these bespoke 3D prosthesis for women who have undergone mastectomy in UHL.
I really enjoy working as a Health Care Assistant as I am a people person. I enjoy the one-to-one service I am able to offer patients as a fitter. It gives me great job satisfaction to see the difference that particular service can make, giving confidence back to women who have been through life-changing surgery.
October is Breast Cancer Awareness Month, and we're shining a spotlight on our dedicated Breast Services team at the Symptomatic Breast Unit, UHL, and the care they provide to our patients.