An ex-army nurse from Salisbury, recognised in the Queen’s New Years Honours for 2022, recounted the ‘harrowing’ experience of working in intensive care over the pandemic. 

Julie Anne Fulford who lives in Paul Dene was the first military nurse in the history of Frimley Park hospital in Surrey to take on the nurse in charge role, alongside her civilian colleagues.

She was assigned as head of department for Critical Care on March 20, 2020, during the first few weeks of the Coronavirus pandemic.

For her work there as part of the Queen Alexandra Royal Army Nursing Corps during that challenging time, the 34-year-old was recognised with an Associate Royal Red Cross in the 2022 New Years Honours. 

Whilst assuming the Nurse in Charge position, the 12 bed Intensive Care Unit unit she led went up to around 46 patients as they expanded to four Covid ITU’s and one non-Covid ITU.

Despite the pressures of her job, the mother-of-two coordinated wellbeing rooms for the NHS staff at the hospital to recuperate in, an initiative which started with her ward and soon expanded to the whole hospital. 

On what led her to take these actions Julie-Anne told the Journal: “Intensive care during the pandemic was harrowing, as you can imagine. 

"It was really difficult to have any down time during the pandemic because we were stretched with our numbers. 

“So even if it was 10 minutes to go in sit with some music on or some dim lighting and just have a few moments to yourself, or people would go in and have a cry. It was just such a safe space.”

To get the wellbeing rooms set up Julie-Anne asked the public for help, emailing companies to see if they wanted to get involved. 

She was grateful to be ‘inundated’ with support and donations from both individuals and businesses. 

“Initially my plan was just to set up [a wellbeing room] in the intensive care unit for my immediate team," she said.

"But because they were being utilised so brilliantly and the public were so generous, we ended up expanding them around the whole hospital.”

Julie-Anne, her husband Craig Fulford and two children, who are aged 3 and 4, have recently returned to Salisbury where she grew up when she was younger. 

The St Edmunds School alumni left the army in March 2021 after 15 years of service and started at Basingstoke Hospital where she is now a Matron. 

Salisbury Journal: Julie-Anne with her husband Craig Fulford and children Evelyn, age 3, and Ethan, age 4.Julie-Anne with her husband Craig Fulford and children Evelyn, age 3, and Ethan, age 4.

What she found the most difficult at her previous role in the ITU was when family members were no longer able to visit their loved ones in hospital.

She said: "When I was working in intensive care you couldn’t have visitors and that was the hardest thing I’ve ever experienced because when a patient is asleep on a ventilator and they’re in an induced coma you don’t get to know about their lives you learn about them from their visitors.

"You'd talk to the wife who comes in and holds their hand or sits by the bed, and try to get them to feel comfortable about the machines, but they weren't there. 

"We were speaking to relatives over FaceTime and every means possible so we can reach them, but there will be a lot of nurses who are suffering from moral injury. We did the best with what we could but you always strive to be even better." 

She was sad to leave ‘such an incredible team’ in  Frimley Park hospital, but has found she has been welcomed at Basingstoke and is excited to be taking on a more clinical role. 

At the moment she is fighting through the winter pressures, but says ‘wellbeing is always at the forefront of my mind’.

On whether she’d always known if she wanted to be a nurse, she said: “I always knew I’d do something caring.”

After carrying out work experience at Salisbury Hospital as a tea carrier, when that was still a role, she decided that this was the career path for her.

On her reaction to receiving the Associate Royal Red Cross award on December 31, as part of the Queen's commendations for 2022 that recognise extraordinary people, Julie-Anne said: “I’m not a massively emotional person, but I burst into tears.”

In the award mentions it was said of Julie-Anne that she demonstrated ‘without doubt’ an ‘immense compassionate and authentic clinical leadership during an unprecedented time in the history of healthcare’. 

READ MORE: New Year's Honours: All our Wiltshire winners of OBE, MBE and BEM

Salisbury Journal: Julie-Anne and her mother Susan Tabor.Julie-Anne and her mother Susan Tabor.

Julie-Anne’s mother, Susan Tabor, wrote into the Journal to share her daughters success and described herself as ‘the proudest mum ever’. 

She said that on finding out, “I couldn’t believe it and I’m so proud. 

“You can image after a shift of people dying with Covid, they needed that wellbeing support and it’s great that the work she has done has been recognised.” 

Hampshire Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust (HHFT) congratulated “our very own Jules” on Twitter after hearing the news. 

Although the roll out of the vaccine has meant that the number of Covid patients in a critical condition has reduced dramatically since the first few months of the pandemic, staff shortages are leading to problems across the NHS. 

Speaking on the problems facing the NHS, Julie-Anne said: “We just need more nurses. 

“Nursing is not a profession you can do unless you love it. The best nurses are the nurses who absolutely love their job.

"They treat every patient that comes in like your friend or family member.

“I think because of Covid and the winter pressures, everyone is tired and a lot is being asked of the NHS and the nurses.

Ending on a final note of hope, Julie-Anne said: "It is hard to keep going, but I know we will.”

Although the date is not yet confirmed, Julie-Anne will be presented with her medal along with other recipients of New Years Eve 2022 honours at Windsor castle later this year. 

READ MORE: Salisbury hospital dealing with 250 staff absences as Covid cases soar 

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