A CHILDREN'S nurse will be swapping the hospital wards for the open road next month as she revs off on a five day fundraising road trip.

Lesley McCarthy, who works at Oxford Children’s Hospital, will embark on the marathon drive from Oxford to Rochester in a Citroen 2CV named Florence in aid of Roald Dahl's Marvellous Children's Charity.

Joined by husband Tony, the fundraising pair will pull out of the John Radcliffe Hospital site on Tuesday April 30, finishing in Rochester four days later at a showcase event with the charity.

En route, they will visit hospitals in Southampton, Portsmouth, Guildford, Basildon, Dartford, and Rochester for fundraising events and activities.

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Mrs McCarthy, who looks after around 150 children with blood conditions such as Sickle Cell disease and Thalassaemia in Thames Valley, is a Roald Dahl nurse specialising in non-malignant haematology.

Her role, funded by the charity, is to support children and their family from diagnosis and through the transition into adult services.

She said: “As a Roald Dahl nurse, I can see first-hand how we are making a difference.

“My role helps the child and family in numerous ways, from supporting at diagnosis, navigating around the health system, and educating and empowering them to manage their condition.

“It is a privilege to be part of their journey and a really rewarding and enjoyable role. The charity has identified a need and they fund the posts in collaboration with the NHS – it’s a great concept.

“By taking the car on the road and meeting up with other Roald Dahl nurses we hope to raise awareness of the charity, and promote the specialist OUH nursing role for children at the children’s hospital.”

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The idea for the ‘Follow Florence’ tour came from husband Tony, who has worked for Citroen and has a small collection of 2CVs and foolows last year's 70th anniversary of both the NHS and the iconic 2CV design.

Roald Dahl's Marvellous Children's Charity provides over 70 specialist nurses to support 21,000 seriously ill children across the UK.

To donate visit www.justgiving.com/fundraising/followflorence and keep an eye on #FollowFlorence on Twitter for updates of the journey.