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Biography

Patricia has been a Lecturer in nursing since 2003. She has been with the Department of Nursing and Healthcare since 2016 and teaches across a wide range of undergraduate and post-graduate programmes. Patricia trained as a Registered General Nurse before specialising in palliative care and cancer nursing. Patricia’s clinical experience includes staffing on a bone marrow transplant unit at St Bartholomew’s Hospital in London, working as a Team Leader in a hospice, setting up the first Clinical Nurse Specialist Service in Oncology in the role of Clinical Nurse Specialist at Ealing Hospital, and working as a Clinical Nurse Specialist in Palliative Care at The Royal Marsden Hospital in London. She led the development of a breathlessness service at the Royal Marsden Hospital, and co-authored a chapter in two editions of The Royal Marsden Manual of Clinical Nursing Procedures. Patricia worked at The Royal Marsden School as a lecturer for 12 years, and during her time she led and developed cancer and palliative care programmes. Whilst at The Royal Marsden School, Patricia also worked on a palliative care education project in India with a cancer charity. Patricia visited India twice during this project to deliver and implement a palliative care programme to local nurses. 

Patricia is the current President and Academic Representative on the National Executive Committee of the Irish Association for Nurses in Oncology (IANO). Patricia represented the Royal College of Nursing from a palliative care nursing perspective on the first National Institute of Health and Care Excellence (NICE) guideline development group for lung cancer, which was published in 2005.  She has published chapters in books, peer reviewed journal articles, and presented at conferences.  

Patricia is passionate about nurse education, and she holds a Post-graduate Diploma in Teaching and Learning (Nursing). She currently teaches across a wide range of subjects on both undergraduate and post-graduate programmes. Patricia has a particular interest in developing critical thinking and clinical decision-making skills in nurses. She completed a Learning to Teach Online programme at Sheffield College in the UK. Patricia developed and led several fully online and blended learning modules at both undergraduate and postgraduate level whilst at The Royal Marsden School, and has continued to develop and deliver blended learning modules at Waterford Institute of Technology.  

Awards related to teaching:

Pfizer Excellence in Oncology Awards (2011) Winner Best Professional Education Initiative in Oncology.  Awarded to Hunt, P., Moore, S., Darlison, L., Russell, D., Brighton, D. and Gledhill, D. for the development of an online Mesothelioma module.   

The Education in Lymphoedema Award (2009) The International Lymphoedema Conference, Ascott, UK.  Awarded to Woods, M., Brighton, D. and Hunt, P. for development of a blended learning Module: Lymphoedema in Cancer Practice.  

Patricia’s research interests are in cancer care and palliative care, particularly in the areas of compassion, empathy, emotional intelligence, and compassion fatigue. Patricia's PhD used mixed methods to examine the relationships between compassion fatigue, empathy and emotional intelligence in cancer health care professionals. She is passionate about cancer and palliative care nursing, and is committed to the development of care for patients, and the advancement of education and support for cancer and palliative care nurses through research and education.   

Irish Cancer Society Palliative Care Award 2022 (Research Team member) 

€30,218  

Project: Energy Poverty in Palliative Care at Home – understanding issues and promoting actions to improve quality of life (EPipCH). 

National Cancer Control Programme Survivorship Funding 2022 (Co-investigator) 

€43,300  

Project: Dance Exercise Intervention in Survivorship Evaluation (DEISE)  

WIT Department of Nursing Summer Scholarship July 2021 (PI) 

€2,000 

Project: The role of the Advanced Nurse Practitioner in cancer prehabilitation: scoping review  

Waterford Institute of Technology – Southeast Regional Development Fund (R2) 2020 (Co-investigator) 

€90,000 

Project: Exploring the Physical Health of people with high-grade brain tumours: A grounded theory study.  

Health Service Executive 2014 (PhD Funding) 

€ 56,000 

Project title: Examining professional quality of life in cancer health care professionals: relationships to empathy and emotional intelligence. 

Awards related to research:

Successful Bursary Award for the European Oncology Nursing Society research workshop for Doctoral students 2016 at Sterling University, Scotland.  

Winner of best poster Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences at Waterford Institute of Technology Research Day (2015)  

Patricia is a Registered General Nurse with the Nursing and Midwifery Board of Ireland, and holds an MSc in Advanced Clinical Practice (Cancer Nursing) and the Palliative Care (ENB 931) & Advanced Palliative Care (ENB 285) certificates. Prior to working as a Lecturer in WIT, Patricia has worked in the following clinical and academic roles: 

Lecturer Practitioner: The Royal Marsden Hospital, London. 

Clinical Nurse Specialist in Palliative Care: The Royal Marsden Hospital.  

Clinical Nurse Specialist in Oncology: Ealing Hopsital. 

Team Leader: Meadow House Hospice.

Staff Nurse: Bone marrow transplant unit, St Bartholomew’s Hospital. 

Staff Nurse: Ibn al Bitar Hospital, Baghdad, Iraq. 

Staff Nurse: Gastro-intestinal medical/surgical unit, St Thomas’s Hospital. 

Membership of professional and research bodies: 

Registered General Nurse with The Nursing and Midwifery Board of Ireland.

Executive Committee member (Academic): Irish Association for Nurses in Oncology (2017 - present)

Biomedical Research Group, Waterford Institute of Technology and University Hospital Waterford (RCSI: 2014 – present) 

Awards relating to clinical:

The Royal Marsden Hospital Badge 2004, for clinical services to The Royal Marsden Hospital.  

Joan Frances Stowe Prize for outstanding practitioner/clinician for 2002. The Royal Marsden Hospital and the Institute of Cancer Research.  

Hunt, P, Denieffe, S and Gooney M (2019) Running on empathy: relationship of empathy to compassion satisfaction and compassion fatigue in cancer healthcare professionals. European Journal of Cancer Care 28(5) e13124  

Hunt, P, Denieffe, S and Gooney, M (2017) Burnout in nursing: relationship to empathy.  Journal of Research in Nursing 22(1-2) 7-22.  

Hunt, P (2017) Review: Nurses perceived stress and compassion following a mindfulness meditation and self-compassion training.  Journal of Research in Nursing. 22(8) 584-585. 

Moore, S, Hunt, P., Darlison, L., Russell, D., Gledhill, D. and Brighton, D. (2012) Improving nurses’ skills through E-learning. Cancer Nursing Practice 11(1) 14-19.  

Wilcock, A., Neal, R.N., Hunt, P. (2009) Supportive and palliative careIn ABC of Lung Cancer Hunt, I., Muers, M. and Treasure, T. (eds) Chichester, Wiley-Blackwell. pp 48-51  

Woll, P. Hunt, P. and Snee, M. (2009) Small-cell lung cancer In  ABC of Lung Cancer. Hunt, I., Muers, M. and Treasure, T. (eds) Chichester, Wiley-Blackwell.  Pp 21-24  

Hunt, P. (2008) Diagnosing and managing lung cancer. Nursing Standard 22(33) 50-58  

Hunt, P. and Stevens, A.M. (2006 & 2010) The unconscious patient.  Dougherty L and Lister S (eds) The Royal Marsden Manual of Clinical Nursing Procedures(6th ed). Oxford, Wiley-Blackwell.   

NICE (2005) Diagnosis and Treatment of Lung Cancer.  NICE London. (Represented The Royal College of Nursing on guideline development committee). 

Poster presentation 

Hunt, P., Denieffe, S. and Gooney, M.  Compassion satisfaction and compassion fatigue in cancer nurses: relationships to empathy. European Oncology Nursing Society Conference, Dublin, 17-18 October 2016  

Hunt, P., Denieffe, S., Hennessy, A., Keenleyside, M. and Gooney, M.  Nurses and radiation therapists’ professional quality of life: comparisons of levels of compassion satisfaction and compassion fatigue. International Psycho-oncology Society Conference, Dublin, 19 – 21 October 2016  

Hunt, P., Denieffe, S. and Gooney, M.  Examining compassion fatigue in cancer health care professionals: relationships to empathy and emotional intelligence.  Waterford Institute of Technology Research Day, Waterford, Ireland.  April 28, 2015.  

Hunt, P. and Woodcock, J.  Developing Critical Thinking at Master’s level: phase I, an audit of recommended student reading. NET Conference, Cambridge, UK, September 3 – 5, 2013.  

Moore, S., Hunt, P., Darlison, L., Russell, D., Gledhill, D. and Brighton, D. Improving the care of patients with mesothelioma: Development of an online educational resource for health care professionals. International Mesothelioma Interest Group (iMIG) Conference, Boston, USA, September 11 – 14 2012 

Oral presentations 

Nurses and radiation therapists’ professional quality of life: comparisons of levels of compassion satisfaction and compassion fatigue at University Hospital Waterford and Royal College of Surgeons Ireland Research Meeting (2016)  

Invited speaker: Paraneoplastic syndromes at The Association of Chartered Physiotherapists in Oncology and Palliative Care National Study Day, 8 November 2013. 

Hunt, P, Denieffe, S and Gooney M (2019) Running on empathy: relationship of empathy to compassion satisfaction and compassion fatigue in cancer healthcare professionals. European Journal of Cancer Care 28(5) e13124  

Hunt, P, Denieffe, S and Gooney, M (2017) Burnout in nursing: relationship to empathy.  Journal of Research in Nursing 22(1-2) 7-22.  

Hunt, P (2017) Review: Nurses perceived stress and compassion following a mindfulness meditation and self-compassion training.  Journal of Research in Nursing. 22(8) 584-585. 

Moore, S, Hunt, P., Darlison, L., Russell, D., Gledhill, D. and Brighton, D. (2012) Improving nurses’ skills through E-learning. Cancer Nursing Practice 11(1) 14-19.  

Wilcock, A., Neal, R.N., Hunt, P. (2009) Supportive and palliative careIn ABC of Lung Cancer Hunt, I., Muers, M. and Treasure, T. (eds) Chichester, Wiley-Blackwell. pp 48-51  

Woll, P. Hunt, P. and Snee, M. (2009) Small-cell lung cancer In  ABC of Lung Cancer. Hunt, I., Muers, M. and Treasure, T. (eds) Chichester, Wiley-Blackwell.  Pp 21-24  

Hunt, P. (2008) Diagnosing and managing lung cancer. Nursing Standard 22(33) 50-58  

Hunt, P. and Stevens, A.M. (2006 & 2010) The unconscious patient.  Dougherty L and Lister S (eds) The Royal Marsden Manual of Clinical Nursing Procedures(6th ed). Oxford, Wiley-Blackwell.   

NICE (2005) Diagnosis and Treatment of Lung Cancer.  NICE London. (Represented The Royal College of Nursing on guideline development committee). 

Poster presentation 

Hunt, P., Denieffe, S. and Gooney, M.  Compassion satisfaction and compassion fatigue in cancer nurses: relationships to empathy. European Oncology Nursing Society Conference, Dublin, 17-18 October 2016  

Hunt, P., Denieffe, S., Hennessy, A., Keenleyside, M. and Gooney, M.  Nurses and radiation therapists’ professional quality of life: comparisons of levels of compassion satisfaction and compassion fatigue. International Psycho-oncology Society Conference, Dublin, 19 – 21 October 2016  

Hunt, P., Denieffe, S. and Gooney, M.  Examining compassion fatigue in cancer health care professionals: relationships to empathy and emotional intelligence.  Waterford Institute of Technology Research Day, Waterford, Ireland.  April 28, 2015.  

Hunt, P. and Woodcock, J.  Developing Critical Thinking at Master’s level: phase I, an audit of recommended student reading. NET Conference, Cambridge, UK, September 3 – 5, 2013.  

Moore, S., Hunt, P., Darlison, L., Russell, D., Gledhill, D. and Brighton, D. Improving the care of patients with mesothelioma: Development of an online educational resource for health care professionals. International Mesothelioma Interest Group (iMIG) Conference, Boston, USA, September 11 – 14 2012 

Oral presentations 

Nurses and radiation therapists’ professional quality of life: comparisons of levels of compassion satisfaction and compassion fatigue at University Hospital Waterford and Royal College of Surgeons Ireland Research Meeting (2016)  

Invited speaker: Paraneoplastic syndromes at The Association of Chartered Physiotherapists in Oncology and Palliative Care National Study Day, 8 November 2013.