Our Team

Our dedicated specialist nursing team provides a monitoring service for people with stable liver cirrhosis of a variety of causes. They coordinate our pre and post-liver transplant care service, provide monitoring of autoimmune liver conditions, and support our liver cancer pathway. They also deliver other specialist services as outlined within the individual descriptions below.

• Andy Mierkalns
  • Qualified in Nottingham and has been in the role since 2000.
  • Special interest in patients with neuroendocrine tumours.
  • Runs a nurse-led cirrhosis clinic and supports the joint liver transplant clinic.
  • Passionate about education and delivers liver courses for registered and non-registered staff.
  • Tel: 0115 924 9924 Ext: 83457

• Karen Bennett
  • Qualified in 2001 with a diploma in nursing from the Nottingham University School of Nursing.
  • Worked in the team since qualification.
  • Served as deputy ward sister (2008–2019), then became a specialist nurse focusing on Hepatocellular Cancer care.
  • Coordinates Transarterial Chemoembolisation (TACE) therapy.
  • Runs a nurse-led cirrhosis clinic and supports the joint liver transplant clinic.
  • Tel: 0115 924 9924 Ext: 80128

• Vicki Sugden
  • Qualified in 1989 as an enrolled nurse, later became a registered nurse in 1992–1993.
  • Achieved a diploma in nursing in 1997.
  • Joined Nottingham as a haemochromatosis nurse specialist in 2010.
  • Runs a nurse-led haemochromatosis service, including consultations, venesection, monitoring, and surveillance.
  • Runs a nurse-led cirrhosis clinic.
  • Tel: 0115 969 1169 Ext: 54139

• Maria Appleyard
  • Over 30 years of experience as an NHS nurse.
  • Worked on the ward for ten years before joining the specialist nursing team in October 2020.
  • Special interest in assessing and managing pancreatic cysts.
  • Tel: 0115 924 9924 Ext: 80128

•  Becky Savage
  • Qualified in 2009 from the University of Nottingham.
  • Deputy sister of the liver ward since 2019.
  • Experience in hepatology, gastroenterology, and endoscopy (worked in Essex).

Our dedicated viral hepatology specialist nursing team provide nurse-led care for patients with viral hepatitis including treatment for hepatitis C, monitoring and treatment for hepatitis B, and monitoring of PBC patients prescribed OCA in a variety of settings.

To contact the team, please Tel: 0115 924 9924 Ext: 86019

Viral Hepatitis Clinical Nurse Specialists

Image	Specialist Nurse
	Sherrelle Fanthorpe Sherrelle qualified with a BSc(Hons) in health and social care in Nottingham and has been with our team as a viral hepatology specialist nurse since 2001. She provides viral hepatitis clinics for assessment and treatment of hepatitis C at the Nottingham treatment centre, HMP Ranby, and HMP Nottingham as well as a joint clinic with the CGL Nottinghamshire drug recovery organisation. She also assesses, monitors and treats patients diagnosed with hepatitis B.
	Liz Blackwell Liz qualified in 2005 with a diploma in adult nursing followed by a BSc in healthcare studies in Nottingham. Liz has been a virology nurse specialist with our team since 2010. Her clinical time is shared between our hospitals and several outreach locations across Nottinghamshire, including the Mary Potter practice and several clinics held jointly with CGL Nottinghamshire’s drug recovery organisation. Within this role, Liz assesses and begins treatment for those diagnosed with Hepatitis C. She also takes a lead role in our Hepatitis B service.
	Jasmina Khaldi Jasmina qualified as a registered nurse with a BSc in health and social care in Nottingham and has been a viral hepatology specialist nurse with our team since 2009. She provides viral hepatitis clinics for assessment and treatment of hepatitis C at HMP Lowdham Grange and multiple drug and alcohol outreach centres within the Nottingham city area.
	Saba Meskel Saba qualified in 2013 with a diploma in adult nursing from the University of Nottingham and has recently completed her degree. Her positions at NUH were in acute stroke and major trauma before joining the viral hepatitis team in 2021. Saba leads on testing in approved premises throughout Nottingham and also helps to run the monthly PBC clinic.

Virology Clinical-Academic Nurse Specialist

Dr Kathryn Jack PhD

Image	Specialist Nurse
	Dr Kathryn Jack PhD Kathryn is a registered nurse who has worked clinically as a specialist nurse, and more recently as a researcher, in viral hepatitis since 2000. She has a strategic role in NUH to support non-medical clinical academic career development.

Our dedicated paracentesis service is delivered by specialist nurses and a support worker who liaise directly with patients to arrange elective paracentesis as required on the Queen’s day case unit at QMC. The paracentesis team use the Florence Telehealth system to monitor patient weight at home and predict when patients may benefit from paracentesis (abdominal drain).

In addition to providing high quality and responsive patient care, the paracentesis team regularly train clinical colleagues to perform paracentesis and provide an outreach service for inpatient paracentesis throughout the hospital.

If you would like to contact the Queen’s day case unit, please Tel: 0115 924 9924 Ext: 61912

Paracentesis Specialist Nurse

Nicola Monahan

Nicola trained in Nottingham and has been a member of our paracentesis nurse specialist team since 2016. She delivers a paracentesis service for patients with liver disease and provides education and support to patients and their carers. Her areas of interest include liver cirrhosis and diabetes.

Helen Garrity

Helen trained in East Anglia and has been a member of our paracentesis nurse specialist team since 2016. She delivers a paracentesis service for patients with liver disease and provides support to patients and their relatives. She has a keen interest in research.

Deborah Simpson

Deborah qualified as a registered nurse from the University of Nottingham in 2002. She has always been fascinated by ambulatory settings and has worked in day surgery and daycase environments since 2005 supplementing this with a course focussing on long-term conditions. She assisted in developing our paracentesis service and is deputy manager of the Queen’s day case unit. She has a keen interest in hepatology and gastroenterology research.

Paracentesis Assistant Practitioner

Beverley Aram

Bev trained in Nottingham as a healthcare assistant and commenced her current role as paracentesis assistant practitioner in 2016. She supports our paracentesis nurse specialists to deliver the day case paracentesis service by triaging patients and arranging bookings for reviews. Her area of interest is liver disease and she educates patients about the Florence Telehealth system.

Our dedicated alcohol care team provide support and specialist input into the care of patients at risk of alcohol-related harm.

• Alan Davis

  Alan qualified in 2007 and began his career in the Emergency Department. He always had an interest in complex patients and subsequently took a post in helping to support and manage the NUH regular attender patients. This was followed by further specialist work in substance use and education. Alan is now the clinical lead for the NUH ACT and leads on education and training.

• Tim Hardern

  Tim started his career as a mental health nurse in Essex before working in the community in East London. He holds a diploma in substance misuse and has worked in the drug and alcohol field for over 25 years. He worked within the Haringey advisory group on alcohol as a community detox nurse then as the alcohol lead in a community drug and alcohol team. He set up the alcohol liaison service in Broomfield hospital in Chelmsford and has been in our team as alcohol liaison since 2013. He assesses inpatient alcohol needs referring on to appropriate community services and runs alcohol care clinics at NUH.

• Chloe Green

  Chloe graduated from Sheffield Hallam University in 2016 with a BSC hons in Nursing. Chloe spent the last 5 years working in Intensive Care, caring for complex level 2 and 3 patients. Always having an interest in Alcohol and Substance Misuse, she joined the Alcohol Care Team in June 2022. Chloe has recently completed her Non-Medical Prescribing and is starting a nurse-led clinic in 2024.

• Joe Salt

  Graduating from Sheffield Hallam University in 2013 with Advanced Diploma in Adult Nursing, Joe began his career working in the Neurosurgical/Neurological setting. Not to shy away from challenges, he then took on positions in Burns Unit team and as a community staff nurse. The complexity of alcohol and substance use has been a constant throughout his practice and is a subject he is extremely passionate about. Ensuring high-quality care and patient safety are at the heart of what he does, while being an advocate and a voice for patients that are often stigmatised is a key passion. Having now been a CNS for the Alcohol Care Team since December 2021, he is able to fulfil this passion in not only clinical work but also by delivering teaching on keeping patients safe and the harms of stigma.

• Marianne Sheehan

  Marianne graduated in 2017 from the University of Nottingham with an MSc in Adult Nursing. She joined the Alcohol Care Team in May 2023 after working in infectious diseases (Nightingale ward) for two years and the Burns unit for four years. She has a keen interest in substance misuse and the treatment of it and has really enjoyed this new challenge.

• Olethea Lewis

  Olethea is a graduate from the University of Nottingham with a BSc (Hons) in Adult Nursing. Her clinical experience spans across Gastroenterology/Hepatology and Ambulatory care. She has joined the Alcohol Care Team as a specialist nurse and is delighted to add to the positive clinical experience that patients will gain from their expertise.

• Kieran Grant

  Kieran has been working for Framework for 15 years. He is a dynamic leader who has had significant input in the delivery and implementation of community Drug and Alcohol services. Kieran has recently returned to NUH as Alcohol Pathway Lead for Framework after the successful implementation of The Rough Sleeper Drug and Alcohol Treatment Team. He is a passionate clinician with an excellent track record for successful outcomes and a strong advocate for the client group. He graduated as a Drug and Alcohol Counsellor from The University of Leicester and when he isn't in clinic he is working on staff and service development.

• Debbie Hall

  Debbie has worked in Substance misuse for 6 years, working in the community supporting adults with drug and alcohol addiction. Starting her career in the Lincolnshire service providing clinics county-wide, delivering needle exchange services, peer support groups, and training staff on Naloxone, BBVs, and harm reduction. In February 2022, she joined the Framework Rough Sleepers Team within the Nottingham Recovery Network supporting rough sleepers to access substance misuse services. Debbie joined the Hospital Alcohol Liaison team for Framework in September 2022.

Our dedicated ward team oversee Ward F21, which is a 28 bedded mixed ward comprising of 4 bays each with 6 patients, and 4 single side-rooms. The ward specialises in hepatology and gastroenterology caring for patients with conditions such as liver disease, gastrointestinal bleeding, gastrointestinal cancers and inflammatory bowel disease.

Contact Ward F21 on Tel: 0115 924 9924 Ext: 89021

 

Ward Manager

Carly Clare

 

Carly began her nursing career on F21 surgical ward specialising in Gastroenterology. She then spent a number of years working within Endoscopy and following this completed research completing a Human Factors project within the Infection control department. Since July 2023 he has been in his current role as manager of our ward.

 

Ward Deputy Sisters

 

Linda Jamera

Linda started on our ward as a band 5 staff nurse in February 2018 having completed her training at NUH. She began a secondment post as a Band 6 in July 2019 and continues in this role to date. During her time on our ward she had a keen interest in promoting the infection control link nurse role. She is now also involved in health and safety on the ward and continues to support and supervise students during their placement.

Lisa Brown

 

 

Claire Smith

Claire started on ward F21 as a student on her management placement before qualifying in January 2019 as a registered nurse. She then began a secondment post in NUH Emergency department for seven months before coming back to the ward F21 and starting a three week secondment post in NUH ACT. Since then she has begun a secondment post as a band 6 deputy sister on ward F21 and continues this role to date. During her time on our ward she has since started the shared governance council for the ward which stopped during covid.

 

Clinical Educator

Anne Brooker

Annie trained in Nottingham and started as a staff nurse in 1994. In 2002 she became deputy sister of our liver ward and oversees the general running of the ward. She is responsible for ensuring patient flow and patient safety as well as deputising for the ward manager. She acts as the student nurse link for our ward and has an interest in pressure sore prevention and falls reduction.

 

Matrons

Our matrons are responsible for the overall clinical, operational, service development and staff management of a number of specialist services. These include gastroenterology and nutrition, colorectal, liver (medical & surgical) and viral hepatitis.

 

Jo Manogue

Jo has enjoyed a long career in nursing and commenced her post as matron in 2010. She qualified in 1983 and worked for 27 years in a number of critical care settings – predominantly cardiothoracic intensive care.

Jo also spent 4 years working in the cardiac transplant and cardiothoracic intensive care unit at a major teaching hospital in America.

 

 

 

 

Ed Nicholson

Ed qualified with an MRPharmS, Pharm IP and PG diploma in clinical pharmacy. He commenced his role as a specialist pharmacist within hepatology and the Nottingham hepatitis C ODN in our team in 2018.

He provides specialist pharmacist support and supply of medication to our patients in a variety of settings. He deals with medication prescribing and provides advice to healthcare professionals and patients. He leads our homecare service for liver transplant medication and leads our viral hepatitis treatment service.

 

Rachel Conway

Rachel qualified with an MRPharmS from Keele University, before completing my clinical diploma and independent prescribing qualification at NUH. I have joined the Hepatology team as a specialist pharmacist in 2023.

I provide support to the inpatient Hepatology services for admitted patients, as well as participating in HCV clinics and MDTs.