Hundreds of people are receiving care in their own homes every week thanks to a team of nurses working across the whole of Bolton.
From Westhoughton to Breightmet and Horwich to Farnworth, community nurses provide nursing care including palliative care, wound management, catheter and continence care, and medication support for patients who are unable to leave their homes.
Each nurse can carry out up to twelve patient visits a day to make sure people are able to receive the care and treatment they need.
Their work supports Bolton NHS Foundation Trust’s 2024-2029 strategy and the Government’s ‘10 Year Health Plan for England‘, which both aim to deliver more care away hospitals and closer to where people live.
A day in the life of community nurses
On Friday 22 May 2026, two teams shared a glimpse behind the scenes to show a day in the life of a community nurse and the difference they make in the lives of people in Bolton.
In the north east of Bolton, Caseload Holder, Esther Okwesili, starts her day at Breightmet Health Centre by gathering the stock she needs for the day’s patient visits and checking the glucometer works.
“In the morning you do your equipment checks and one of the things you have to check is for your glucometer testing, this makes sure your glucometers are in good working condition. We have a good reading, so we’re ready to go.”
Having previously worked on a ward at Royal Bolton Hospital, Esther has been working as a community nurse since August 2024 and explained what inspired the move.
“Everyone in the field of nursing renders care and services to patients, whether in the home or in the acute care setting. But for me, transitioning from the ward to community has made me love my work and job more.
I feel more comfortable doing what I’m doing now because I have that one-on-one approach with my patients. You see the patients when they are most vulnerable in their homes. You tend to get to know them better. You have that holistic care, which is what I always aim for.”
10.15am
By 10.15am Esther is on the road and heading to her first visit to see Steve, who receives support with his insulin medication.
Before going into Steve’s flat, Esther uses her work phone to check-in to her location so that colleagues in the office know where she is.
“My mobile device has a lot of apps on it including ORBIS, which helps you to ring in case you are in danger, and the Civica app which we use to check in and check out of our visits. Once we check-in our colleagues in the office know where we are.”
Once inside, Esther checks-in on Steve’s general wellbeing by making sure he has a good stock of food that will help him to manage his condition and maintain a healthy lifestyle. She then carries out an insulin finger prick test to measure the amount of sugar in is blood and injects insulin using an insulin pen, which helps keep blood sugars in a safe range.
11am
After saying goodbye to Steven, Esther makes a short trip in her car for her second visit of the day at 11am.
“We’ve come to see one of our lovely ladies, called Freda, she’s got bilateral leg ulcers and we manage her for that. The district nursing team come to her daily, she’s been on the caseload for a little while because management of leg ulcers can take time to heal, but she’s been doing well for the last for weeks we have been.”
Esther spends between 30-40 minutes removing Freda’s leg bandages and compressions and replacing them with a fresh set to help with her ongoing recovery.
Freda said she’s grateful to the nurses who come to visit:
“I couldn’t manage without them and they’re so nice with me. They’re smiling and friendly, but my legs feel so nice after.”
12.15pm
Each nurse in the community is provided with a work laptop to help file patient notes whilst working remotely across Bolton. By the time Esther finishes her third patient visit at 12.15pm, she takes a few minutes to update her cases whilst reflecting on the confidence and skills this job has equipped her with.
“Working as a community nurse gives you that independence to walk on your own, but at the back of my mind I know I’ve got a larger team working with me. You’ve got your managers, you’ve got the matrons, making sure you have that support that you actually need.
We are all working together for the same cause.“Initially when I joined as a community nurse it felt daunting because you don’t know the area and you don’t feel fully confident with patients, but you soon get into the flow of it and at every moment, even when you’re out on a visit on your own, there is someone in the team looking after you too.”
2pm
At 2pm in Westhoughton, a huddle is taking place at Winifred Kettle Centre as the community nurses provide updates on some of their morning visits with patients.
Joining the huddle, Kirsty Kidd, who after 19 years working as a Healthcare Assistant, set herself a new challenge by training to become a Nursing Associate.
Kirsty qualified in 2025 and is enjoying the opportunities that have come with it:
“I like looking after people in their own homes, keeping them out of hospital, and keeping them as independent as they can be.
“On busy days we’ll have between seven and twelve visits and on quieter days we can spend a little bit longer with patients, which is really nice because some days that might be the only person they see.”
The daily huddle makes sure patients are receiving the support they need as the nurses highlight actions for follow-up care and treatment, such as medication, bandages or wellbeing support.
3pm
Once it’s finished, Kirsty goes to visit John at 3pm, who is receiving care for the management of insulin. The nurses visit him each morning and evening to administer insulin and check his bloody sugar levels.
John said:
“I wouldn’t be able to look after my insulin without them because I have a debilitating disease in my hands that’s stopping me from using the insulin pen and to load it up with a needle and safely do things.
“They’re here to help.”
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