Some years ago I nursed a man in the final weeks of his life, who had a beautiful painting of Slieve Binian on his wall. This view is one of the most beautiful of the high Mournes whether looking east to the Irish Sea or west over Spelga dam (as in the picture above).

In recent weeks I have been nursing a man in one of our hospitals, a man who told me he had led a full and active life, in fact just 2 weeks ago he was working on renovating a building. His life changed overnight, as it does for many people who are diagnosed with cancer. One day he fell on the stairs, a sudden loss of mobility and walking function – investigations that day determined he has spinal cord compression, likely secondary to a recurring cancer of the prostate that he had understood was being treated successfully. From climbing ladders and working on the roofs of houses to sudden paralysis and the likelihood that he will never walk again, this man cried as he described the anguish he was feeling and thanked me for carrying out the simple task of assisting him to the toilet and with washing, a basic need he could no longer manage.

Every hour of every day, Marie Curie Nurses are helping people in their home or in hospice as they approach the end of life. Our jobs are similar to those of any other person working in a caring profession – to assess need and provide advice, manage symptoms, give compassionate care, and offer emotional support for the individual and their family. Where Marie Curie nursing differs to some extent is in the relationship between one nurse and one patient, the individual being cared for, along with those others significant to the individual, whether family, or friends, or in some cases when there is no significant other.

I have nursed many people in many different situations in the community over the past 24 years, remembering one baby and several children I cared for at home, young people with life-limiting conditions such as motor-neurone disease and CJD, and the majority being older people with cancer, and an increasing number with end-of-life dementia, heart failure and respiratory disease. I can recall many courageous families and moments of hope, dignity and unconditional love. I can picture the experience of loss from many perspectives and have been present at the moment of dying many times.

Over the next 12-18 months I would like to remember all of those people through a year if fundraising, as an acknowledgement of their courage and in support of Marie Curie Nurses throughout Great Britain and Northern Ireland. I hope to raise £1000 for every year I have been a Marie Curie nurse through a number of fundraising challenges starting with the Tour de France Power Peleton in July, and to reach this target by the end of my twenty-fifth year, in 2015. I look forward to the support of family, friends and colleagues across the country and hope many of you will sponsor me no matter how small the amount, and that some of you will join me on a range of adventures.