It’s an exciting year ahead for me, I am due to graduate from Middlesex University in the #YearoftheNurseandMidwife as a children’s nurse. Part of me wants this time to speed ahead, get the assessments out of the way and start my management placement. Yet the other part of me wants to be able to slow it all down and savour every moment… my time at Middlesex University has been such an important piece of my student life journey.
I recently wrote an article that was published in the student section of the Nursing Times which you can read here, about #FutureNurses, speaking to school aged students about choosing nursing as a career for them. This has been a nationwide initiative, for nurses to be a presence at schools and career fairs speaking to students about nursing as a career and I plan on continuing to speak to school age children about the benefits of following a career in nursing and all the options this would open to them.
I started really using Twitter just over two years ago, when I began my degree. It has been such a great source of information, from finding out about conferences, programmes, meeting other student nurses and healthcare professionals. Sharing tips and sharing our ups and downs. Last year, I became a part of the #150Leaders. This is where I met Ricky Baker (@ragbaker) where we spent the two days at the conference chatting about children’s nursing and what can be done to help promote nursing. Ricky, always full of ideas, felt that one of the ways that we can help is to start a network on Twitter directed at student children’s nurses, to help support them through their years of university. Ricky’s plan came to fruition and @CYPStNN was born! I stepped on board with him as a founding member of the network. In just a short time the network has amassed over 1000 followers and the numbers keep rising, it’s fabulous to see people engaging with each other and sending out messages of support, tips and advice.
The years of studying are not easy times, balancing study, work, placement, family and social lives and through Twitter and talking to people I hope that I will continue to be able to support my peers through their more difficult periods and together celebrate our accomplishments.
#YearoftheNurseandMidwife will see us all shaping the future of nursing together and I look forward to seeing how it all unfolds.