Shannon Philp, one of Australia’s first nurse practitioners in gynae-oncology, has received the 2021 HESTA Nurse of the Year award. The award recgonises and celebrates Shannon’s contribution to nursing education and patient-centred care for women, as well as her demonstrated leadership and dedication to improve care for women with gynaecological cancers.
Shannon’s remarkable efforts have not gone unnoticed, including her work in leading the development of services to support women with cancer and, in particular, her colonoscopy clinic and sexual function and intimacy clinic. Additionally, Shannon established the first fast track surgery nurse role to support women post-surgery, with specific attention towards ongoing specialist support and symptom management. This program aims to decrease recovery time and the possibility of post-surgery complications, and consequently its success has resulted in the program being implemented by other specialties.
Her patient-centred model of care has steered practices to change for the better. Shannon’s dedication to educating others and sharing her knowledge has proven most beneficial to the care of women with gynaecological cancer, as is her work to support the physical, psychological, emotional and social impacts of the illness.
