Honours for Defence Nurses

Published: 11 June 2012

Three Royal College of Nursing members have been honoured for their work treating severely injured soldiers and civilians in Afghanistan. Commander Carol Betteridge was made an OBE for her role as the head of Camp Bastion’s field hospital while Lieutenant Commander Peter Selwood and Lieutenant Victoria Long both received the Queen’s Commendation for Valuable Service.

The naval nurses were among 131 service personnel given military honours for going above and beyond the call of duty between April and September last year.

Commander Betteridge (pictured right), who was in charge of every aspect of patient care at the hospital in Helmand, was rewarded for being a "dynamic and energetic character" who "pushed herself to extremes of physical endurance and yet always had more to give."

Her citation said that she "personally ensured that every single person who entered the hospital, regardless of capacity or rank, was treated with respect and dignity and received the care and attention appropriate for both their physical injuries and their mental anguish."

On receiving the honour, Commander Betteridge said: "Running the hospital was a great challenge, involving people from 61 units, four nations, regulars, reservists and civilians. It was a great example of teamwork in action. I was out there for seven months and it was a tremendously rewarding job."

Lieutenant Long (pictured left), who spent six months as a burns and plastic surgery nurse working across all departments at the field hospital in Camp Bastion, was applauded for developing innovative techniques to treat catastrophic injuries. "This is a fantastic honour and I am very grateful for having been nominated," she said. "I feel humbled to be among such courageous company on the honours list."

Lieutenant Commander Selwood, who worked as a senior nursing officer, was honoured for effectively managing the flow of patients through the hospital at Camp Bastion and for co-ordinating the departments they passed through. He was commended for helping fellow staff deal with difficult clinical situations and reinvigorating weary teams. He was also praised for his clinical skills, committed leadership and vision.

His citation said: "It is rare that one individual can make such a lasting and positive impression on both patients and staff but that is exactly what Lieutenant Commander Selwood achieved."