Briefly, could you tell us about your background and career up to this point?
I was a nursing student at King's in the mid-90's and then had a 25-year career in the NHS. My clinical background is trauma, orthopaedics and plastics but I spent much of that time in management and leadership roles. In my last two jobs I was deputy divisional director of surgery, cancer and cardiovascular sciences at Imperial College Healthcare NHS Trust and then I moved into the medical director's office to head up the trust safety improvement programme. So my interests are quality, patient safety and quality improvement. I returned to King's four years ago and teach on a range of pre-registration and post-registration undergraduate and post-graduate programmes.
What is your involvement in the Ngee Ann project, and how did you start working on it?
I am module lead for the 15 credit Leadership and Clinical Governance in Healthcare module and work alongside module deputy Sara Stevenson-Baker. I was fortunate to be first offered this opportunity when a colleague went on maternity leave, and this will now be the third year that Sara and I have been lucky enough to deliver the module together.
What are the differences between teaching internationally and teaching students in London?
Interestingly, there seems to be very little difference between teaching home students and international students. What I have noticed is that international students will come to the module with a different range of experiences in healthcare and, to some extent, different perspectives on these experiences and so I learn as much from them as perhaps they do from me!
You also work on work-based learning at the Faculty. What is this, and what’s special about how the Faculty does it?
Work-based learning recognises that we continue to learn and develop as we progress through our careers, not only in formal academic environments but also during our day-to-day work. Work-based learning is currently offered by the Faculty in collaboration with local NHS providers to post-registration nurses and other healthcare professionals. On successful completion, students are awarded academic credit at level 6 or level 7 when they demonstrate their learning at work through a process of structured teaching and assessment.
What is your favourite thing about working at King’s?
I love seeing that light bulb moment in students when, hopefully, they understand something new for the first time or see something from a novel or different perspective as a result of their own curiosity and hard work. It's always lovely when students tell you how they will apply what they have learnt, both to flourish in terms of their own personal and professional development but also to continuously improve the care that that they are delivering in practice.
What do you do with your time outside of work?
I take every opportunity to travel: I love to visit new places ... especially big cities!
Quick fire:
Favourite film?
I should probably pick something much more serious ... but The Devil Wears Prada is my guilty pleasure. Apparently there is a sequel in the making!!
Favourite holiday destination?
Mexico City ... food, culture, chaos and lovely, friendly people.