Published 16 December 2022
Tributes have been paid to a nurse and hospital Governor, who has died after her brave battle with cancer.
Sophie Pettifer worked as a nurse for almost 40 years, and also served as a staff and public Governor for East Kent Hospitals.
She was first diagnosed with cancer several years ago but continued to work until April this year, when she retired on medical grounds. But her dedication to healthcare saw her elected as a public Governor for the Trust after she retired.
Niall Dickson, the chairman of East Kent Hospitals, said: “Sophie was incredibly hardworking and insightful and she brought her immense experience as a senior nurse both as a staff and more recently as a public Governor.
“She had good humour and was a pleasure to work with - I know we will all miss her personally, and miss her contribution to our deliberations and more widely for what she has done for the Trust. Sophie was a much-loved friend and colleague.”
Bernie Mayall, lead Governor for the Trust, added: “Sophie brought a courage and warmth to our group, and to the NHS in which she worked for many years.
“She held a rare and welcome sense of perspective and care.
“She talked sense, a commodity not always abundant. Above all our thoughts and love go out to her family.”
Sophie, 55, leaves her husband Scott, and their two children who are both in their 20s.
Scott said: “Her kind and generous nature was perfect for nursing and it’s all she ever wanted to do.
"She cared deeply about the Trust and attended her last meeting as a Governor just a month ago.
“It is a great comfort to know she was loved and cared for by so many people at different levels; we have had some wonderful messages and she had some great friends among the Trust staff.”
Sophie’s interest in nursing began as a child and was encouraged by her late father, Brian Lewis, who was an anaesthetist at the William Harvey Hospital.
She joined St John Ambulance volunteering and as soon as she was old enough she started nursing training at Addenbrooke’s Hospital in Cambridge. She worked at the John Radcliffe Hospital in Oxford before spending two years working at St John of Jerusalem Eye Hospital in Jerusalem.
Scott said: “She told me that sometimes when there were difficulties getting Palestinian nurses across the border, she would drive down to the check points in her uniform and march up to the border guards and soldiers and argue with them until they let them through, as she needed them to help care for the patients.
“Sophie had a real ability to connect with people and I will miss her smile, and her love and her care for other people.
“She made me a better person; she loved her family and friends and looking after people, she would always rather ask how someone else is than talk about herself.”
Sophie also worked at Moorfields Eye Hospital in London, and West Suffolk Hospital, where she helped set up the eye treatment centre, before joining East Kent Hospitals about 10 years ago. She worked her way up to deputy head of nursing and, during the pandemic when she had to shield at home, helped the resourcing team recruit internationally educated nurses.
Her funeral will be a private family service but her family are planning a memorial service in January that all her colleagues and friends are welcome to attend. We will share more details once they are finalised.
