Liesbeth Verhoeven
For Adolescent with cystic fibrosis, the transition from
paediatrician-led care to management within an adult CF clinic can be a difficult and trying time.  That is why Liesbeth Verhoeven, winner of the inaugural PathoGenesis Best Care Award, chose to study this period of transition at the Young Adult Cystic Fibrosis Clinic at St James's and Seacroft University Hospitals, Leeds, UK.
Liesbeth, a CF nurse specialist at the Wilhelmina Children's Hospital in Utrecht, spent a fortnight observing how transition of care is managed in Leeds, where adolescents meet members of the multidisciplinary team who will be looking after them as adults - during weekly clinics held in the paediatric CF unit.
Presenting her observations at the European Cystic Fibrosis Conference in Stockholm, Liesbeth concluded 'Nurses are very capable of coordinating this transition process and can also act as advocates for adolescent CF patients.'