Occupational therapy is wonderful, every day. Meet hospice OT Katy

Hospice occupational therapist (OT), Katy, aims to support every one of her patients to live their lives to the fullest possible extent.

Getting to know her patients is central to Katy’s work as an OT. Her first conversation will involve understanding who they are as people and what matters most to them.

The things we all take for granted when we’re well are clearly much more difficult when we’re ill and even more when that illness is life-limiting.

It’s brilliant then that we have Katy, alongside her colleagues, fellow OT, Alison, Physiotherapist Miriam and therapy assistant, Tracy, to work with and support our brilliant patients.

Katy warmly welcomes patients, new and old, with a broad smile. She laughs easily and it’s infectious. She’s also thoroughly professional and dedicated to helping people live the best lives they can.

From the North East originally, Whitley Bay to be precise, she worked as a health care assistant at North Tyneside General Hospital during her A-Levels. It’s here Katy started to become interested in occupational therapy, listening to the hospital OT’s and seeing the difference their practice was making to patient’s lives.

Resolving to pursue a career as an OT she went to York St John university to study the science, and practical application, of her subject and graduated with BSc Honours in 2011.

As well as a delighted Katy, mum, Jill, dad, Stuart, twin sister, Lauren, and Katy’s now husband, Rob, celebrated too. A life as an OT was taking shape.

Katy and Rob had met in Scouts, part of the brilliant Scout Association, when they were both sixteen. As well as building their careers, Rob has a doctorate in astrophysics, they were playing their part in community groups, which Katy still does nowadays, as a parent helper at the local Beavers group. Wholesome!

The motto of Scouts is ‘Be Prepared’ and we’re assured Rob and Katy were when they married in 2015. Nice!

After a stint as an OT in Newcastle, Katy and Rob moved to Southampton where he would complete his doctorate and Katy would work at the University Hospital Southampton.

Six monthly rotational roles across a variety of clinical areas, orthopaedics, elderly care, stroke, surgery, oncology and others, gave Katy an increased knowledge and skill set. During her rotations Katy found her passion for palliative care which led her to a static role in oncology.

So, when the time came for Katy and Rob to move back north, (Jill and Stuart were living in Preston and sister, Lauren, was now in Manchester) they were looking to Northwest England.

Happily, this coincided with Wirral Hospice St John’s search, via NHS jobs, for a new occupational therapist.

Katy and Rob lived with Katy’s sister, Lauren, in Manchester for a while and eventually liked the feeling she got when driving through Stockton Heath in Warrington and they settled there. Katy is very happy to make the commute for her three days at the hospice (in a role she shares with aforementioned OT colleague, Alison).

Nowadays Katy and Rob have daughters Isla and Freya and the whole family, it’s that Scouts influence again, including Jill, Stuart, sister Lauren, her husband, Lee, and their children, Jackson and Finlay are often together on family camping and other outdoorsy holidays, in the UK or Spain.

Of the hospice Katy says,

“I feel so lucky to work with some really amazing people who care deeply about the wellbeing and quality of life of our patients and their families.

I couldn’t do what I do without the support of them all. From the day I started at the hospice I felt the warmth of the people around here, in my own team, patient and family services, and the wider hospice teams, I felt so welcome.

As an OT it is important, of course, to help patients to a point where they can carry out the tasks which might be classed as ‘everyday’ and facilitate necessary adjustments for their life outside of the hospice. But it’s when, working as a multi-professional team, we can facilitate things that could sometimes be described as extraordinary.

Like the time we put everything in place for a dad to attend his daughter’s graduation and I also remember fondly, helping a mum record her speech for her daughter’s wedding. Special moments.

To see the difference we make for our patients is truly fulfilling.”

It is, Katy, and we’re so glad you’re a key part of it. Thank You.

We’ll raise a glass in 2027 when you celebrate ten years at Wirral Hospice St John’s.