In support of International Women's Day on 8th March, we will be profiling our 'Inspirational Women' colleagues here at DGT over the coming weeks.
We want to celebrate our staff and share their career journeys to inspire others!
"When I was in my final year at school, my mum encouraged me to do my work experience at our local hospital in Chesterfield with the nursing team and being a child that struggled through my school years, I embarked on a pre-nursing course at college - this enabled me to achieve the required grades in my GCSE’s to apply for Nurse training. At interview, the panel said that they didn’t think I had what it took to be a nurse but they were willing to take a chance with me, so I had to work hard to prove myself
Not being at all work shy, I undertook numerous jobs whilst waiting for a place to become available to start my training. These including working in a greengrocer, bar work, cleaning, being a care assistant in a residential home and volunteering for riding for the disabled.
In 1994, aged 20, I moved to Newcastle Upon Tyne to commence my Adult Nurse training at Northumbria University and graduated in 1997. Since then I certainly have certainly grabbed every opportunity that has come my way!
In 1997, I embarked on my first nursing role in Stoke On Trent on an Intensive Care rotation post and went on to complete a teaching and assessing course and a Degree in Intensive Care Nursing at Keele University.
Soon after qualifying as a nurse, I joined the Territorial Army (TA) where after a short time as an Officer Cadet, I sat my first commissioning board. Receiving my commission however, did not come easy as I was told ‘I was not ready to be an officer’. I did not take this as a knock back, but as an opportunity to prove that I could better myself. Next time, I was successful and became a Captain in the Queen Alexandra Royal Army Nursing Corps. Over the 6 years I was in the TA, I gained a wealth of experience including officer training at The Royal Military Academy Sandhurst.
In 2000, I travelled over to New Zealand where I worked in Wellington Hospital ICU for 12 months, followed by 6 months travelling through Australia and Asia learning to scuba to Rescue Diver level.
In 2002, I returned home from travelling with little money, so I returned to work as a Health Care Assistant in the same residential home where I had previously worked. I worked there until I had saved enough money up to buy a car which then enabled me to move to Nottingham where I worked in ICU at The Queens Medical Centre for 6 months.
In 2003, I went on a skiing holiday in Bulgaria where I met and fell in love with my now husband. Within days of returning I was called up for active military service and was deployed to Iraq to serve as a Nursing Officer in the 2nd Gulf War. This presented many challenges, which required me to improvise due to shortage of equipment and supplies when working in an ICU within field hospital.
On my return from Iraq, I moved to Kent to work in the ICU at DVH where I progressed to an E grade, got married and following maternity leave, I took on the role of the ICU Band 7 Audit and Research Nurse. During this role, my line manager encouraged at me to work outside of my comfort zone, which gave me the confidence to complete a Level 7 Leadership and Management course at Greenwich university. As a result of my efforts within the role, I was nominated and shortlisted for the Trust’s Employee of the Year.
When I look back, I certainly believe Newcastle University were right to ‘take a chance’ on me. As I continued to develop my leadership skills, in 2018 I was successful in commencing a secondment as Chief Nurse Informatics Officer with an initial key focus on leading from a nursing perspective on rolling out eOBS (electronic observations) throughout the Trust. This experience led to me securing the substantive role as Lead Nurse Informatics Officer and 3 and a half years into the role, I continue to develop my knowledge and skills every day. I don’t see myself as a ‘techy’, but with the knowledge and skills of the non-clinical members of the team, our roles complement each other.
I am passionate about improving the experience for both patients and staff and together with 24 years’ nursing experience, I will continue to strive to be the best I can be and support my team to develop to be the best they can be. Together as a team, we will continue to champion and drive digital technology to enable safer and more efficient joined up care within our hospital."
"My name is Ana Zakaryan. I work as a Consultant Obstetrician Gynaecologist at DVH and have a private practice.
I was asked to share with my journey in the NHS as an international graduate. I completed Medical University and a 4-year training program in Obstetrics & Gynaecology in Armenia. Then, due to the political situation in the country. I migrated to the UK as a refugee.
Although the General Medical Council recognised my medical degree, to obtain GMC registration I had to complete English exams. I have always considered language being one of the most important parts of the culture and crucial for effective communication, and I decided to do an Advanced English course along with International English Language Testing System courses. I then had to pass Professional and Linguistic Assessments Board 1 and 2 exams before doing clinical attachments in hospitals in London.
Finally, in Dec 2007, with help from “Help for refugees” council from London Deanery, I was appointed as a Foundation Year 2 doctor in A&E at Princess Royal University Hospital on a supernumerary contract for 4 months. I must have done something right, as only in a month’s time I was put on a rolling rota with on-calls and was advised to apply for the Acute Care streaming training program. I then got a call from one of the hospitals where I did one of my attachments, and managed to do an audit and small research project which was presented orally on international conference with a job offer on Obstetrics & Gynaecology. This is where my journey in O&G started. I have completed 4 Advanced Training Skills Modules before obtaining Certificate of Completion of Training via Certificate of Eligibility for Specialist Registration and got appointed as a consultant.
It was not as easy as it looks. The main problem was for me, as well for anyone else I have asked from overseas, is overcoming the differences in a system, attitudes, approach, relationships and communication issues. Understanding and accepting the need for evolving and adapting is the main key to becoming a successful practitioner in this country, and the sooner it happens, the easier the journey will become."
"From a very early age, I’d always wanted to be a nurse, this was as a result of my Dad being a patient following a traumatic accident when I was very young. Looking back, I realise what a rose tinted version of nursing I had and remember vividly the first shift I ever worked on a ward – what a shock I got and the third year student nurse in charge of me was definitely not impressed.
I had many ups and downs in those early years – training in the 80’s in Ireland was tough, if the Ward Sister took exception to something you’d done you could spend many hours in the sluice scrubbing bedpans or remaking beds if not up to her particular standard or mood for that day. Having said that, you knew exactly where you stood and what was expected of you - the standards were high and that made us all try harder to get that rare acknowledgment that you’d done a good job.
One of my main memories of that time was my ward reports frequently feature the comment, ‘lacks confidence’ and one of my Nursing Tutors went as far as to say that I’d never amount to much. I do suspect that he thought a bit of reverse psychology would help prod me in the right direction, and to be fair I think he was right, but even if his intentions were to humiliate me, I wasn’t going to let that hold me back.
What I’ve learned about myself over the years is that I’m a very determined person, (some may say stubborn). If someone tells me that I can’t do something, it just makes me try harder. Every knockback, although upsetting, also needs to be viewed as an opportunity. I’ve always sought feedback and re-evaluated what I need to do next, whether that be another qualification or to seek experience through a different route.
The greatest thing about nursing and a career in the NHS is that there are a variety of roles that suit our strengths, you just have to find out what that is. For me it was Orthopaedics. I loved getting to know my patients and supporting them in their recovery pathways, trying to persuade patients who’ve had a major trauma or lost their confidence following a fall that they really did need to get up and walk without upsetting or offending them - this became the basis for developing my communication skills. I quickly learnt that the key to managing a complaint or unhappy person was to deal with it head on and I would go as far to say that any complainant on my ward became a personal challenge to win over their confidence and gain their faith that we had the skills and expertise to care for them or their loved ones. I also learned that this reduced the number of formal complaints we received and saved time in the long-run, (sorry – can’t help giving a little plug for Governance).
If anyone had told me back then that I’d have ended up moving away from nursing into a Governance role, I wouldn’t have believed them. My career pathway has been varied. Starting in Belfast, I had to move to England to get a job, hard to believe that we were training too many nurses in the 80’s for roles available. Having joined an agency, I ended up in Kent (they told us it was close to London!). I liked the hospital so much that I took a job in Orthopaedics where I stayed for 15-20 years before making one of my bravest moves into Women, Children and Sexual Health. Not only did I change specialities but changed role to become a Head of Service and take on general management. I was terrified and for 6 months kept questioning what I’d done, but I stuck at it and learned the role. I really surprised myself as I loved learning something new and applying what I knew to improve patient outcomes. Having done it once, I then moved to ED and later out to the CCG as Deputy Chief Nurse before returning back into an Acute Trust to take up my first Governance Role.
My advice is to challenge yourself, be brave and to stick at it until you’ve mastered the skills required. The secret is to not be afraid to ask for help and to admit when you’re wrong."
"As a teen, I always dreamt of being a teacher and never considered working in healthcare. The teaching journey was extremely turbulent with many twists and turns. So much so, that I was very close to leaving that dream behind until I found the courage within myself to continue.
Since then, I successfully reapplied to University and began my teaching journey whilst juggling a part time job as a support worker. At the time I was very dubious about the role but quickly grew an increased passion and admiration for it. While bouncing between the two, I instantly discovered my fascination and interest in the role of Speech and Language Therapists. This was specifically initiated while I was working with a remarkable young boy, who was non-verbal with autism. This encouraged me to research the role further and carry out a research project on how Speech and Language Therapists support communication development for children with autism.
Following the completion of my degree, I had my work set out to find out more and get some experience in relation to the role. Again, with some challenges along the way of attempting to get a job as a Speech and Language Therapy Assistant and more importantly, being accepted onto the course. I was FINALLY able to enrol onto the course (2 years later). The sigh of relief was unexplainable.
However, the tempestuous journey did not end there, and this time it was completely unexpected and unimaginable what I was about to experience. Before relocating to another city (from Manchester to London) and after the most amazing and memorable 3-week spiritual retreat with my family, I began my course.
The excitement, and motivation I had to start this course, that I had worked so hard to do was apparent. Although, fast forward two months into the course all those feelings quickly vanished. I was sadly informed that my mother’s cancer had returned, and this time was incurable. After an intense and emotionally challenging 6 months, my mother sadly passed away. Nonetheless, this did not hinder my determination of what I set out to do, and I continued with my studies and successfully completed my MSc and have since secured my first job as a newly qualified Speech and Language Therapist here at Darent Valley Hospital. In the midst of this, I was fortunate to have met my partner along this rocky journey, where we recently got married and are pleased to be expecting our first child together.
In turn, despite the emotional rollercoaster, I learnt to be resilient and appreciate life for what it is. Though my career has just begun I aim to inspire and make others believe that we are more capable to achieve realise and succeed in anything that we set out to do."
“Never stop trying. Never stop believing. Never give up. Your day will come.” – Mandy Hale
Nominated by Paul Seymour, Clinical Systems Manager (Maternity):
"Can I please nominate my wife, Joanne Seymour, (yes, I know, I AM a little biased!), who is the Trust’s Clinical Governance Midwifery Manager, as she is a truly inspirational woman!
She has worked for the Trust since it opened (and a Gravesend hospital prior to that) and has ‘risen through the ranks’ to her current position which she has held for several years now.
Despite her important role, she has never ‘forgotten her roots’ and is always the first to volunteer to help out when/if ever the need arises - she loves nothing better than working on the maternity wards and delivering the occasional baby each year too! She also supervises and teaches students, junior midwives and other clinical colleagues, and is also a Professional Midwifery Advocate (PMA).
Joanne is hugely respected by her colleagues (by myself too of course!) and is a veritable font of all knowledge with many years or experience and numerous qualifications to her name (although she remains extremely humble and down to Earth. For example, she does not display the ‘letters after her name’ despite working hard to achieve them)
Her role can be very stressful and demanding too. She will often be required to speak to staff/patients under difficult/emotional circumstances but she approaches this with considerable tact and sensitivity whilst always remaining professional and empathetic at the same time. This is not an easy balance but is a testament to her attitude and endless patience.
Also (and, whilst I appreciate that this nomination is aimed at people working here), it would be remiss of me not to mention just how inspirational she is to both ME too! She works hard, is very dedicated and dependable and yet, despite all this and the ‘extra pressures’ that she/we all experienced in the past few years, she continues to gain more and more knowledge. As well as attending numerous clinical courses and training sessions, she has now gained qualifications in Astronomy, Egyptology and is now currently studying Greek Mythology too! She has helped me through ill-health (including a very nasty bout of Covid-19) and has been involved in numerous charity events – including helping to raise over £10,000 for the Little Buds fund at the hospital for example.
I have been privileged to have known (loved!) Joanne for almost 40 years (we celebrate our 38th wedding anniversary later this year) with some 18 years working together in the hospital - we even share the same office as I also work for the maternity department! In all this time she continues to learn, teach, support, inspire and motivate people and is truly an amazingly inspirational woman in every aspect of the word, and is a huge asset to the Trust/department!"
"My early career was working for Barclays Bank; my last role was as Principle of Financial Services where I led a team of 7 involved in various aspects of financial services from international payments, through to producing loan and mortgage offers and legal documentation for secured borrowing. In 1996, I took voluntary redundancy and looked for a part-time job to fit in with my young family.
A few months later I found a part-time role as a Clinical Audit Clerk, Band 2, at Joyce Green Hospital which had a nursery and holiday play scheme on site. It fitted in perfectly for me. The role was so different to my previous roles in Barclays and took a bit of getting used to working in a hospital setting.
Over the next 16 years, I worked my way up to Clinical Audit & Effectiveness Manager (Band 7). I led a team of 4 that supported clinicians whilst undertaking clinical audits to improve the quality of care provided as well as patient experience. With the Clinical Audit Chairman, I implemented a system known as the Implementation of Clinical Effectiveness (ICE) score, which identifies the importance of the results and when a re-audit should be undertaken; a score of 1 indicates high priority, 2 moderate priority and 3 low priority. I also implemented an ICE pathway for high risk projects (ICE score 1), so that when audit recommendations are not put in place and/or a re-audit is not undertaken a risk assessment is completed. I introduced the annual Clinical Audit Competition, which showcases and rewards the good quality work undertaken by staff; it also allows staff to learn from others work.
In 2012, I became Service Improvement Lead, this was a new role for the Trust and initially it was a secondment, and was later made permanent. The role involved the planning, facilitation and implementation of specific projects and work streams to deliver rapid, demonstrable and sustainable improvements in quality, safety, cost, delivery, staff and customer/patient experience. I completed Prince 2 training and other project management training to improve my skills.
The Service Improvement Team was reformed in 2016 after the majority of the previous members left. I was involved in the recruitment, induction and training of 5 new members of staff and l became Service Improvement Manager. In 2017, I helped to implement putting GPs in ED, this involved reviewing, redesigning and successfully implementing 6 ED pathways. I also worked with the IT Department to remove fax machines across the Trust, and introduced Lean Thinking workshops, which produced more than 20 projects with over £1.3 million in time and potential cost efficiency savings.
Following the CQC visit in November 17, I was asked to lead on the completion of the CQC Action Plan. This role involved meeting with the leads for each area and working with them to complete the various actions, collating evidence and updating the action plan. In recognition for this work I was nominated, shortlisted and won the runner up staff award in September 18. I also became Freedom to Speak Up Guardian and enjoyed supporting colleagues to speak up when they felt that they are unable to do so by other routes. The role included ensuring that the issues raised were responded to, and that the person speaking up received feedback on the actions taken. I found this role very satisfying.
The Service Improvement Team staff were moved over into the PMO in 2018; the PMO was later renamed the Delivery Unit. I have been working with Core and Integrated Services as the Transformation Improvement Lead for the last 2 years working on QIPP schemes for the Division. During the pandemic, I carried out a number of other roles including helping HR to implement e-HealthRoster across the Trust and Procurement to set up a new PPE store and the process for reporting to NHSE on the daily PPE stock levels.
I have worked for the Trust for 25 years, mostly working part-time hours. My career has been varied, and I have managed to progress up the career ladder whilst bringing up my family as a sole parent. I don’t have a degree, but I have excellent organisation skills and tenacity. The advice I would give to my younger self is ‘Dream big, you can do anything that you put your mind to’."
"I am a Clinical Scientist working in Biochemistry for NKPS, the merged Pathology service for Medway and Dartford. I have worked in the NHS for 22 years and started as a Trainee Biomedical Scientist (BMS). I had done a Biochemistry degree but was working in the theatre industry (not the operating kind!) as I had been doing through school/university. I decided I should really use the degree and asked around for work experience and advice on a career in Pathology. At that time, I had no idea how it all worked! I was very lucky and was interviewed for a trainee job at Medway, which I got despite not having the correct degree!
To convert my degree to Biomedical Science, I needed a top up course in order to complete my registration. This was meant to be a yearlong postgraduate certificate but the course leader had one place free on the MSc course and he thought I would cope so he put me on that instead! This meant I couldn’t qualify for two years but it also meant I got the more advanced qualification at the same time. Those first few weeks on the MSc were a very steep learning curve but I was very determined and the others on the course, all more experienced, helped me catch up to them.
As soon as I passed the MSc, I did my registration exam and qualified as a Biomedical Scientist. A few years later, my Consultant asked me to consider re-training as a Clinical Scientist. He was so sure he wanted me to do it, he took my CV and got approval for training! I was going through an unconventional route to qualify and found myself navigating very much alone alongside other trainees across the country on very structured training programmes. I had to produce a portfolio of at least 6 years evidence to cover the more clinical aspects and sit another viva exam in order to become a registered Clinical Scientist. Now I am dual registered and a very proud BMS and Clinical Scientist. Having worked in both careers, I think each allows me a unique perspective on the other and gives me an all-round view.
Completing my Clinical Scientist registration was very tough; there were times I really didn’t believe I could do it. Since then juggling work and family is a constant challenge and the merger in 2018 was incredibly difficult to work through. The job is always busy and you have to be methodical but efficient! I love the fact we can make a difference to a lot of patients whilst working quietly behind the scenes and I will always be an advocate for anyone wanting to work in Pathology!"
"If anyone would have asked me 10 years ago as I started University, that I would be in the role I am now - I wouldn’t have believed them! I studied Sports Therapy, and was adamant that I was going to have a career in the sports industry. Once I finished my studies, the opportunities just weren’t available, so I went back to where I did some summer work as a student on the staff bank which I enjoyed, so pretty much fell into recruitment in the NHS as my first job post studies. I started out as a Recruitment Officer at GSTT and worked my way up to a Recruitment Manager. I then went on to have my first child and required something more local, so applied for the Deputy Recruitment Manager role here. I was presented with the opportunity to act up into the Head of Service role – something which was incredibly exciting, but also a little overwhelming at the time!
If I could give anyone advice in a similar position, it would be that sometimes we need to push ourselves out of our comfort zones in order to show other people (but most importantly ourselves!) exactly what we are capable of. I took on the role of leading the Recruitment Team at a really important time; in the middle of a complete transformation. I was then successfully appointed to this post not long after.
If I was to give my younger self advice, it would be to not be disheartened if your career doesn’t go in the direction that you think it will, as something totally different but just as exciting was the chosen path for me in the end!
The conversations I have with new starters - how excited they are to be a part of our Trust and a part of the NHS (particularly since the pandemic), motivates me to ensure we continue to promote our opportunities as much and as widely as possible and provide our new employees with a great experience from the outset and to show them just how great working for DGT can be."
"I joined the Trust in January 2020 as a Consultant Urologist and am the current Urology Department Audit and GIRFT lead, leading the transformation of patient care and services locally and within the region in Urology.
From a young age, I always knew this career path was for me – there was no other option that I considered. I studied Medicine at the University of Southampton and have completed a fellowship in andrology and male factor fertility at the internationally renowned Institute of Andrology, University College London Hospital.
I am passionate about leading transformation and finding ways to improve the services we provide, particularly when it comes to enabling equitable access to specialist care. My current mission to is to repatriate the specialist commissioned fertility services for patients in Kent and Medway to DGT for patients otherwise referred into tertiary units. These patients face very long waiting times for assessment and treatment of a time sensitive condition. In my role as a clinic ambassador for the Fertility Network UK and in the British Fertility Society, I aim to improve patient information and access to care. I find it motivating to find ways to overcome potential challenges to delivery of services to see positive outcomes as a result of transformation of services. I am a strong advocate for supporting our doctors in training. Investing time in our future colleagues and potential care givers is pivotal and it so rewarding to witness a trainee progress clinically and surgically.
At the beginning of my career, I found it challenging to sometimes be heard, to convey my ideas at the correct forums, in the correct manner and to find the appropriate stake holders. I found it useful to meet with experienced individuals willing to share their knowledge and advice which was invaluable in progressing to the next stage in my project and in my career. I have invested time in self-development and also found tools given by the NHS Leadership Academy, extremely useful in allowing me to find my voice, recognise my strengths and to have courage to keep pushing.
Advice that I would like to share with fellow colleagues:
- Network. Be open to connect with people, learn from those who are experienced.
- Prepare. Each meeting is an opportunity. Prepare your thoughts and ideas in advance.
- It’s okay to say no. Your time is valuable and not every opportunity is the right opportunity for you. Getting the balance right is tough.
- Invest time in self-development. This will help identify powerful tools to becoming the best version of yourself.
As you achieve your goals, remember to the leave the door open, and to help those who are also trying to climb."
"My family are from Dorset and I went to a very large comprehensive school in Wimborne. I was always really drawn to working in healthcare so I decided to study Physiotherapy at King’s College London.
I loved doing a vocational degree, and it really helped to physically steer me in a career direction. I have dyslexia and ADHD, but I have developed some helpful strategies and used lots of different learning formats to help me – like using videos and audiobooks.
When I qualified I started at Newham Hospital and I worked there as a locum (tough first job!). From there I went to Barking, Havering and Redbridge Trust where I progressed to a band 6 rotational Physio and then a band 7 respiratory Physio. I really loved my job, but I also wanted to help people to overcome the challenges I was facing when trying to improve the service we delivered.
By chance, the Trust was starting a partnership with an organisation who teach hospitals how to develop strong improvement systems, and I was lucky enough to be offered the role of an Improvement Specialist. I was flown out to Seattle for some intensive learning and then spent time teaching, coaching and facilitating teams to improve their work.
From there, I moved to Guy’s and St Thomas’ Trust and progressed from being an Improvement Specialist to the head of Quality Improvement. I led the Trust’s design of their improvement system before coming here as the associate director for Continuous Quality Improvement. I’m also completing my MBA at the moment via the apprenticeship scheme, which is very challenging but I’m learning a lot.
My advice is to be kind to yourself. I promise you that most of us are working it out as we go – it’s not just you! Trust yourself a bit more tomorrow than you might have done today."
"As the gender lead for EDI, I felt it was only right to share my story in celebration of International Women’s Day on the 8th March 2022. I wish to dedicate this day to all the women that have inspired me, nurtured me and most importantly, to those who have been a mentor and advocate throughout my personal and professional journey - they know who they are and I thank you!
I left school with no academic qualifications to speak of, only CSEs which were poorly graded! I was 16 and wanted to leave home, therefore my options were to either join the police force, (I was too short!), or nursing. Thankfully I was accepted for cadet nurse training for DGT in 1973 due to the academic qualification I gained at 15yrs of age. Following this, I completed my State Enrolled Nurse training and was told by the tutors that I was only SEN material!! I qualified in 1978. Metaphorically speaking, some people in life like to cut the heads off of others to make them look taller and sadly, I’ve met a few in my life!
Later in my career, when my beautiful two children were older, a senior inspirational colleague said that I must do my conversion course from State Enrolled Nurse to Registered General Nurse, which I excelled at. Following this, I trained to be a midwife and qualified in 1992. The training was extremely challenging and again, I wish to highlight the support and positivity from dear, kind colleagues that kept me going through hard times. I have since gained several academic qualifications and had a fantastic career - it has been a privilege.
Therefore, please care for and be kind to each other, not only on International Women’s Day but every day!
Be proud."
"My career has been wonderfully varied. I have worked with an array of blue-chip organisations in both the public and private sectors, and across a range of industries, mainly financial services, both in Ireland and in the UK as an accountant and consultant. I now have a career portfolio involving a number of diverse roles, so no day is the same. My role as non-executive director at DGT is an honour, and I relish working with such an engaged and ambitious team providing outstanding care to our patients.
I believe in life-long learning as this wonderful world has so much to offer. I trained as a tax consultant, then as an accountant, completed a Masters in Management & Leadership, followed by a Certificate in Learning and Teaching. Online learning is a massive opportunity and last summer I completed a certificate in Sustainable Business Strategy at Harvard Business School Online.
When I moved to London from Dublin, I arrived with a back-pack and very little money. I didn’t know anyone, I didn’t have a job, I didn’t even have a place to stay! It took time and persistence but from landing my first role I never looked back. What sustained me was the belief that in a city with a population of 8million, there had to be room for one more person!
Throughout my life I have advocated for social justice. I believe that if we can, we should help those who through no fault of their own have been dealt a difficult hand. In my various roles, I lead by example, believing that each of us can make a positive difference to our world.
My advice to anyone, irrespective of gender, is to actively manage your career. Take time to get to know yourself and to trust your instincts. Work with an experienced mentor to help you develop, and where possible, find a sponsor who will champion you and support your career success."
"I never intended working in the Health Service. I was a student working at a local hospital in the summer before going to university and I enjoyed it so much that it changed the whole direction of my life. My journey began in the NHS in 1989 when I came to England as part of an overseas recruitment campaign.
After I qualified as a Registered General Nurse in 1992, I worked on a HIV and Infectious Disease Ward. I have always enjoyed learning and in 1993 decided to train as a Midwife.
After getting married and having my first child, I completed an Aquanatal Teacher Training Course and for the next 20 years, provided weekly classes for pregnant and postnatal women at a local leisure centre in Gravesend. It was a great way to network with women whilst providing advice and guidance regarding health in pregnancy.
Over the next 5 years, and two more children later, I worked in all areas of the Maternity Unit, including a year in the Special Care Baby Unit. This provided me with a broad knowledge and understanding of clinical midwifery. In 2000, on return from maternity leave, I returned to work part-time as a Community Midwife where I ran Community Clinics, supporting mothers to birth at home and was part of a team that developed and shaped the midwifery services.
In 2004 I undertook my BSc Honours in Professional Practice and over the next 2 years completed various other academic courses to support my practice. There was always more to learn and I also managed to squeeze baby number 4 into the mix. Four years later, I was successful at interview for my first Band 7 Community Team Leader’s role, managing and leading a team of Community Midwives to deliver care in the Northfleet area.
I have always had a keen interest in public health and have co-written a healthy life style programme for obese pregnant women called Pregnancy Plus. Pregnancy Plus was identified in 2013 as best practice by the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence and won the Royal College of Midwives Public Health Award in 2015. I presented this programme at the Royal College of Midwives National Annual Conference in 2016. It was at this point in my career that I realised how much I enjoyed the leadership role and in 2014 I completed my MA in Management and Leadership. I also published an article in the British Journal of Midwifery, ‘Supporting the individual needs of obese pregnant women: Effects of risk-management processes’.
Over the next few years I undertook several secondments, including: Community Midwifery Manager, managing community and antenatal services; Senior Midwifery Manager, managing and leading the midwifery projects and specialist midwives; Maternity Projects Officer, working on the NHS Resolution Maternity Incentive Scheme. These opportunities were invaluable, supporting me to grow as a leader, develop project management skills and understand, in more depth, the running of the organisation and the NHS. I applied for various roles and was unsuccessful. This was disheartening for a while but I picked myself up and continued to look for other opportunities.
At this point in my career, after almost 10 years in leadership roles, 2 of which were in senior management posts, I was at a crossroad and there was nowhere for me to go in maternity. I looked at various roles within other Trusts but nothing felt right.
I then found myself in the world of nursing after being appointed Clinical Services Improvement Lead, - far outside my comfort zone after 23 years as a Midwife. I had to learn the new terminology, Google became my go to best friend. There was so much to learn but it was exhilarating. Although I enjoyed the new role I missed midwifery but was resigned to the fact that this was my new career pathway.
After almost one year in post, I was informed that the Head of Midwifery was leaving and was encouraged to apply for the role. I did not feel confident that I had the skill set to be the leader the service required and deserved but knew that I had the drive to learn and develop. I had been part of the Maternity Service at Dartford and Gravesham NHS Trust for 23 years and I felt passionate about ensuring that the outstanding standards of the service were maintained and further developed.
I was successful in securing the role of Director of Midwifery and have been in post now for over 3 years. Every day is different, every day brings its challenges, every day I learn something new but I feel content in the fact that I rose to the challenge and, thankfully, have not broken anything yet.
My journey has shown me that most roads are not direct, they have so many unexpected twists and turns. The experience gained from various opportunities, as well as the disappointment of knock backs, have shaped me as a leader. Having the courage to step outside your comfort zone and take the opportunities presented to you will open doors and hard work always pays off.
My journey began in 1988 as a Health Care Assistant and has resulted in being Director of Midwifery and Gynaecology in 2018. If I can do this, then you can too."
"My career in the NHS began 20 years ago. I left school with minimal qualifications and never attended higher education. My experiences have come from life, learning on the job and a certain degree of faking it ‘til you make it!
I joined the NHS as a temporary Ward Clerk at Gravesend Hospital in the step down ward – a big change from running my own business and a massive step backwards financially, but if I’ve learnt one thing in life, it’s that sometimes you have to go back to move forward.
My talent for IT was quickly spotted and I became the Project Assistant for the new Gravesend Hospital, then I moved over to the CCG and became a Commissioning Manager and soon became involved in the rollout of Choose and Book. This led joining the Dartford & Gravesham NHS Trust as the IT lead back in the early 2000’s. Since then, I’ve had many titles and roles here. I’ve been honoured to lead the following teams; IMT, Business Intelligence, Medical Records, Information Governance, Coding, Radiology, Service Improvement, Marketing, Strategy and Planning and now Wellbeing, so I’ve had quite a varied career.
One of the best things about DGT is that there are always opportunities to develop and grow. I have been able to progress from a Ward Clerk to Board Director within 20 years. Within all my roles, my primary driver has been to make DGT a better place to work in or be treated in.
If there was some advice I’ve give my younger self it would have been to stick with the education, go to college and university. I attended the Nye Bevan programme before moving up to Board level here and that was both the worst and best thing I ever did! At the time, I hated it, struggled with it and couldn’t see the value in it but having completed it, I’ve learnt so much, including many new skills that I continue to use every day.
And now as I am coming to the end of my career journey, if there’s some advice I can give to those just starting is; dream big, believe in yourself, never be afraid to get help, develop, learn, ensure you find some joy in what you do and be kind to those around you."