The role of the stoma nurse in a tertiary centre

Stoma formation is a life-changing procedure and a patients' journey adjusting back to life may be very overwhelming, both physically and psychosocially. This is why it is of paramount importance that a dedicated stoma nursing team can provide life-long support for these patients. Stoma nurses are fundamental to the provision of care for these patients. They ensure that with their clinical expertise and skills, patients are well-supported to ensure their quality of life is maintained to the highest standards and hospital admissions and unnecessary appointments with other healthcare professionals are avoided. However, the role of the stoma nurse as a clinical nurse specialist is not well-defined and the lack of understanding often leads to unrealistic expectations from the multidisciplinary teams. This is why it is fundamental to define the role of the stoma nurse, to ensure that both patients and healthcare professionals have realistic expectations and understand what a unique role this is.