It was a real privilege to receive this award on behalf of the 2YoungLives team. I also want to echo the fantastic work that FUDEN does in promoting and giving visibility to the leadership and impactful work led by nurses in Spain and globally. This award helps shine a light on the critical health needs of adolescent girls in Sierra Leone and the potential of locally developed solutions for communities to survive and thrive.
Dr Cristina Fernandez Turienzo, senior research fellow at King’s
20 November 2025
Dr Cristina Fernandez Turienzo receives FUDEN Nursing in Development Award
Dr Cristina Fernandez Turienzo, a nurse, midwife and senior research fellow in the Department of Women & Children’s Health at King’s has received a Nursing in Development Award 2025 from the Foundation for the Development of Nursing (FUDEN, Fundación para el Desarrollo de la Enfermería) in Spain. The award recognises Cristina’s work as part of the 2YoungLives project – a locally developed, community-based mentoring intervention to support pregnant adolescents in Sierra Leone.
FUDEN is a non-profit organisation that champions the strategic role of nurses in education, research, leadership, and innovation to transform people's lives and promote their vital impact on society. Cristina was presented with the award at the XI FUDEN Awards Gala in the Teatro Real in Madrid on 13 November. The event was attended by over 1,500 nurses, healthcare leaders, researchers and policymakers.
Cristina and the 2YoungLives teams at Lifeline Nehemiah Projects in Sierra Leone and King’s, which also includes nurses and midwives Mrs Lucy November and Professor Jane Sandall, won the award in the 'Co-responsible initiatives' category. This category recognises collaborative programmes and activities led by nurses that aim to improve the lives of vulnerable and marginalised populations across the globe.
The 2YoungLives project was developed in 2017 after the Ebola virus outbreak, to support pregnant adolescents in Sierra Leone – a country with very high maternal mortality rates, particularly among adolescents. The programme supports girls from pregnancy until one year after birth, using trained local women as mentors. These mentors provide vital one-to-one support, encouraging the girls to use health services, re-establish family connections, and return to education or start small businesses.
A trial evaluating the 2YoungLives intervention, funded by the National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR) as part of global health research group CRIBS, was recently published in The Lancet. The group-randomised controlled trial included more than 670 adolescents and found the intervention reduced a composite of maternal and perinatal deaths by nearly 50%. For every 18 girls who received 2YoungLives, one baby’s life was saved.
Cristina and colleagues are currently completing the process evaluation and cost-effectiveness analysis for the intervention, with future plans focused on long-term impact and scaling the intervention in Sierra Leone and other countries.
I am delighted that the work Dr Fernandez Turienzo has led has received this recognition. In particular, her work shows how nurses can lead large multi-disciplinary research projects, which not only make an impactful difference to adolescent girls in Sierra Leone, but are recognised by The Lancet in terms of academic high-quality research.
Professor Jane Sandall, Professor of Social Science and Women's Health at King’s
See Cristina’s video for the nomination here.
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Senior Research Fellow
Professor of Social Science and Women's Health
