Dedicated Derbyshire nurse is named International Community Nurse of the Year 2024
Dedicated Derbyshire nurse Ferdinand (Ferdi) Esteban has been named as the International Community Nurse of the Year 2024 in awards hosted by the Queen’s Nursing Institute and covering the whole of England.
Ferdi was nominated for the award by his colleagues in the tissue viability team at Derbyshire Community Health Services NHS Foundation Trust where he has worked for nearly three years.
His commitment to nursing started 30 years ago when he qualified as a nurse in the Philippines, moving to the UK seven years later to join the NHS where he has served for the past 23 years – and counting.
For over a decade Ferdi has devoted his professional life to working with patients and their families in their own homes and local communities as a community-based nurse. The award nomination praised his holistic, sensitive approach to the needs of the patients in his care. For the past seven years Ferdi has specialised in the care of people who have complex wounds requiring the expertise of the tissue viability team. His strengths as a teacher and mentor of newer members of the tissue viability team was singled out, as well as his generosity in sharing his expertise and his enthusiasm for innovation.
Nominating nurse Rebecca Bamford said: “Ferdi enjoys teaching and education, he strives to make his teaching fun and interactive and matches the level of educational need to the individual. Ferdi encourages nurses to use their clinical judgement and provides them with the support to gain confidence in making those decisions. It is clear Ferdi loves working in the community and works to the improvement of community nursing.”
The International Community Nurse of the Year title is open to registered nurses who have joined the health and social care services in England having undertaken their initial nurse training internationally. In presenting the award, the Queen’s Nursing Institute commended Ferdi’s commitment to “enhancing healthcare standards and empowering his fellow nurses. A true advocate for professional development, Ferdinand’s greatest strength lies in his fervent passion for teaching and mentoring those around him.”
Describing what he most likes about his job, Ferdi said: “I am able to share my knowledge, skills and experiences to support our staff to provide an evidenced-base practice, high standard of care for the benefit of our service users.” And he added: “I choose nursing to make a difference to someone’s life… This recognition is not only a personal milestone, but it is also a reflection of the collective efforts of the incredible individuals and teams I’ve had the privileged to work alongside.”
All of us at Derbyshire Community Health Services NHS Foundation Trust are delighted that Ferdi’s dedicated to his team and his patients has been recognised with this prestigious award. Well done Ferdi!