Call The Midwife actress Charlotte Ritchie nominates cancer survivor and trainee nurse for The Sun’s Who Cares Wins health awards… and you can still vote for your own hero
ENTRIES are flooding in for The Sun’s Who Cares Wins health awards – with your heartfelt letters already moving our judges to tears.
And it’s not too late to nominate the health professionals who have made a difference to your life. See details at the bottom of this page.
Choose from eight categories – Best Midwife; Best Doctor; Best Nurse; Best Volunteer; Best Charity; Ultimate Lifesaver; Pioneer or Discovery; and Special Recognition.
The winners will be announced at a special ceremony hosted by TV host and Sun columnist Lorraine Kelly on October 11.
Here, CHRISTINA EARLE shares just some of the inspiring stories we’ve received so far.
Clara Markiewicz
Special Recognition Award nominee
WHEN Clara was diagnosed with acute myeloid leukaemia aged four, she was given a fifty-fifty chance of survival.
But thanks to Cancer Research-funded clinical trials, the 20-year-old is alive and well and training in Southampton to be a paediatric nurse – inspired by the team who cared for her.
Clara, who has been nominated by Call The Midwife actress Charlotte Ritchie, says: “The hospital became a home from home and the nurses became a kind of surrogate family.
“A lot of them were only in their early twenties at the time and they seemed like cool big sisters.
“I knew when I was around ten that I wanted to be a nurse.
“Hospitals can be scary and alien places. Children can panic and worry about being there but because of everything I’ve been through I’m able to tell them it’s OK and I’ll help them feel better.
“While I’m not qualified yet, I know it’s the best job in the world.
“Being nominated left me completely speechless. I just feel lucky to be able to turn my cancer into something which has had a positive impact.”
Actress Charlotte, 27, adds: “Clara lives each day with the side-effects of her treatment, including nerve damage and chronic fatigue syndrome.
“Most people who spend so much time being treated have an understandable dislike for hospitals.
“But not Clara. She helped me work on a project for Cancer Research UK, which is how we met.
“I was so in awe of her. Not just because she’d been through so much but also because she had such an inspirational attitude.
“She is so generous and positive, determined to help other people going through similar suffering.
“Clara is a true hero and I know she will make a wonderful, empathetic and incredibly talented nurse.”
Scroll down to nominate your heroes
Kicks Count
Best Charity Award nominee
AT 37 weeks pregnant, Rebekah Hattersley noticed her baby son’s movements had changed and he was not kicking as often.
But the mum of two, from Rotherham, only knew this was unusual after spotting a Facebook post by the Kicks Count charity.
Rebekah, 25, immediately went for an emergency scan, which revealed her little boy was lucky to be alive after all the protective fluid around him had leaked.
She was induced early and gave birth to a healthy baby, Arlo, now six months.
She credits the charity for saving his life and has nominated it for our award.
Kicks Count CEO Elizabeth Hutton joined the charity four months after her own son was stillborn in May 2010.
Even being diagnosed with breast cancer has not stopped her tireless work to help other expectant mums.
Rebekah, who also has Rubie, two, says: “Without Elizabeth’s hard work my little boy might not have been here now.”
Elizabeth, 37, says: “No matter how much pain I have with breast cancer, nothing compares to the pain of losing a baby. I’m honoured by the nomination.”
Nigel Toms
Best Volunteer Award Nominee
AS an unpaid volunteer for South West Ambulance Service NHS Foundation Trust since 2010, Nigel has saved more lives than he can count.
The 61-year-old from Modbury, Devon, works as a first responder helping to bridge the gap between a 999 call being placed and paramedics arriving.
He has even been known to restart hearts on the side of the road.
Nominating him for the award, paramedic Richard Buckley, 41, says: “He’s the most selfless volunteer we’ve ever had.
He’s on call 24/7, 365 days a year. He’s one in a million who never turns down a job.
“He genuinely cares and there would be a huge gap in the service without him.”
Nigel says: “I can be called to a road traffic accident, a cardiac arrest, a fall at home, a farming accident, anything at any time.
“When my pager goes with a call, I’m off, whether dinner’s just been served or I’ve just sat down from coming in from another job – including on Christmas Day.
“And, while I’m near retirement age, I won’t be stopping any time soon.”
