Nicki Wood

Having trained at Southampton General Hospital from 1992 to 1995, which was a regional centre for Neurology and Orthopaedics, Nicki gained her qualification in nursing. After qualifying, she undertook a rotational role within the Cancer Care Directorate at the Royal South Hants Hospital. From there she moved to the Countess Mountbatten Hospice in Southampton to develop further knowledge and skills in Palliative Care.

In 1998, she worked at the local hospice as a nurse on the inpatient unit. From there, she moved on to community nursing in Cornwall. In 2004, she was given a development opportunity with Macmillan Cancer Support and became a clinical nurse specialist in Palliative Care. Nicki also undertook a course at Glasgow University where she developed links with other clinical nurse specialists.

After 7 years in the post, she moved into management and was responsible for a team of nurses delivering specialist treatments in the private sector and was a responsible manager with CQC for the service. She then went back to community services working at a strategic level with commissioners.

In 2016, Nicki returned to a clinical role as a Peripatetic Nurse based within community hospitals, and in 2019, she went to work for a government department as a nurse. In 2020, at the start of the Covid pandemic, she volunteered to work in intensive care learning new skills in ventilation, tracheostomy care and nursing clinically complex patients. She then decided to move back to a client-based role with Helping Hands.