Donny Trust Programme – A Career of Great Rewards

For Fiona Gardiner, the third recipient of the Donny Trust Palliative Care Nurse Specialist Training Post, a career in palliative nursing is a career of great rewards.

Fiona completes her year placement with Mercy Hospice in July and has gained experience both as a community palliative nurse and within the in-patient unit at the hospice.

With no formal palliative care qualifications offered to nurses, the Donny Trust programme allows nurses to undertake paid post-graduate training to develop specialised skills, while tailoring papers and to suit experience and interests.

The programme consists of four clinical placements where the nurse develops skills working in a hospice impatient unit, hospice community team and hospital palliative care team.

After her time with Mercy Hospice, Fiona will spend six months at Auckland Hospital. For her final placement she hopes to work in a rural palliative care team, working with Maori communities.

"The support you gain throughout the programme is outstanding," says Fiona "You get regular input from mentors and experienced nurses. It’s impossible to replicate".