Keeping the spirit of Florence Nightingale and staying innovative

Angel Ma Cho-kan
Ward Manager (Medicines and Therapeutics), Prince of Wales Hospital

Angel Ma Cho-kan was determined as a teenager to follow in her mother’s footsteps and become a nurse. “When I witnessed the meticulous care that my mother gave to family members when they were ill, I truly felt nursing was not only a profession but something that could bring the spirit of Florence Nightingale into our daily lives,” she recalls.

Angel studied nursing at university and became a nurse of gastroenterology and hepatology at the Prince of Wales Hospital where she helped develop the hospital’s innovative hepatitis prevention service by giving nurses greater responsibility and a bigger role to play.

One in every 18 Hong Kong people suffers from hepatitis B, a silent killer which can turn into liver cancer at any time, Angel explains, which means prompt diagnosis and treatment are critical for sufferers. “Nurses have sufficient professional knowledge to assist doctors in caring for hepatitis patients,” says Angel. “Take the service provided for pregnant women with hepatitis B as an example. If a pregnant woman is found to have a high hepatitis viral load after a blood test, the nurse at the nurse clinic will provide health education on hepatitis and introduce the antiviral drug which can reduce the risk of mother-to-child transmission. After that, the nurse will continue to monitor the patient’s condition.”

Angel is not only the first nurse to provide a service for pregnant women with hepatitis B but also the first nurse to provide early blood testing for hepatitis C patients. They are now able to get assessments and blood tests before doctor consultation, allowing them to receive treatment at an earlier stage. Nurses are a bridge between doctors and patients, Angel believes, and she discusses service needs with doctors to find the best way of working together. “Everyone imagines that nurses just follow doctors’ instructions, but the role of nurses has changed over the years,” she says. “We have to think independently how to complement the work of doctors. It is innovative.”

Angel is also involved in behavioural studies of patients to improve the services provided by the hospital, including surveys into medication compliance. Looking ahead, she is determined to pass her knowledge and experience on to new generations and encourage more young people to embrace the spirit of Florence Nightingale and stay innovative.