Brenda Cheer

Paediatric Specialist Continence Nurse & ERIC Nurse

Brenda started her nursing career in London in 1983. After her general training Brenda specialised in children’s nursing, and over the years has worked with adults and children, in London and Cardiff in both hospital and community settings. Since 2002 she has focussed on paediatric continence, working as Paediatric Specialist Continence Nurse at the University Hospital of Wales until summer 2018.

Brenda currently works two days a week as ERIC Nurse, the first person to take on this role, originally funded by the Department of Health. She works a further day a week as Paediatric Continence Nurse for Shine: Spina Bifida, Hydrocephalus Information, Networking and Equality.

The ERIC Nurse post was created to seek ways to improve early intervention into childhood continence problems. Brenda strives to increase awareness of children’s bladder and bowel health, by designing easy-to-understand information for parents and providing training for health care professionals and early year’s workers. She has produced a generic Children’s Continence Pathway, which ERIC is promoting as a model of best practice. The ERIC Nurse project won a prestigious Nursing Times Award in 2016, and has stimulated articles in the nursing press. Brenda has re-written many of the ERIC leaflets, and is enjoying working at the heart of the charity she supports.

When she is not busy with her regular jobs, Brenda is much in demand as a freelance trainer and speaker. In her rare moments of spare time she enjoys the company of her three children and her husband John, a musician and music therapist.