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Kimberley St. John was a passionate nurse who was building a reputation both nationally and internationally for her trailblazing work in the field of palliative care. Through her “Let’s Talk” campaign she was seeking to inspire people to talk about death and dying more openly and without fear. Kim’s death from a stroke at the age of 32 in July 2020 came as a shock to her family, friends and colleagues.
Kim saw life clearly – she loved people and put them first; she wasn’t interested in systems and jargon, and she was good at explaining things simply. She was young, beautiful and full of energy. She was proud to be a nurse, making many friends and surprising is with her achievements. Working to advance her speciality through both practice and research, Kim was granted a prestigious Darzi Fellowship for aspiring clinical leaders and had undertaken a master’s degree. She was an advocate of the gentle, loving approach of Namaste Care, for people with advanced dementia, Champion for Hospitals of Namaste Care International, and was a guest speaker at the organisation’s inaugural conference in 2018. You can also see Kim speaking on our NCI conference video
Kim took inspiration from all around the world, travelling to the USA to learn about Namaste Care from its founder, Professor Joyce Simard, and see it in action. She worked in a volunteer scheme in Trivandrum, Kerala, that underpins an exceptional palliative care programme, and worked within theatre and the arts to take the conversation about death and dying to the local community and beyond. Namaste Care International together with Kim’s family, friends and colleagues would like to create a memorial that reflects Kim’s passion for end-of-life care. The Kimberley St. John Prize will be awarded to the author of an essay to inspire people not to fear facing the end of life for themselves or others. We hope this prize will provide an incentive to educate, promote and further Kim’s honesty of approach around the subject of death.
After deliberating our skilled and experienced panel of judges, headed up by Steve Ford- Editor of the Nursing Times, reached complete agreement on the winner and two other entries weren’t far behind. We are delighted to announce Nicola Pickstone Site nurse practitioner/ clinical response nurse Guy’s and St. Thomas.
Thank you so much. I really am thrilled to have won; I am such a fan of Kimberly St John; she was so inspirational. ‘says our winner Nicola
Namaste Care International have the pleasure of supporting young aspiring nurses to make an impact on wat we care for the individuals we support. Also for celebrating a holistic approach to care that does not only focus on the clinical but looks at elements of mindfulness and well being to give the most human approach to clinical interventions.
