Hat-trick of nominations for nursing degree students

The Student Nursing Times Awards 2022 highlights excellence in all specialities of student nursing and brings together the nursing community to shine a light on the brightest talent making their way into the profession.

It also provides the opportunity to congratulate the lecturers, practice supervisors, universities, trusts and private organisations providing the best support for student nurses during their studies.

Anna Hobbs has been shortlisted for Inspirational Student Nurse of the Year and Student Nurse of the Year: Children. Chris Gettins has been shortlisted for Outstanding Contribution to Student Affairs and Student Nurse of the Year: Mental Health and Carrie Eagleton has been nominated for Outstanding Contribution to Student Affairs.

All three students study in the school of nursing in the University’s Faculty of Education, Health and Wellbeing. The faculty is based in Walsall and students also study at the university's Telford campus.

Anna Hobbs, 41, from Buckinghamshire and now living in Staffordshire, studied for a paediatric nursing degree and qualified in January. She now works as a paediatric emergency nurse at New Cross Hospital in Wolverhampton.

"I was really surprised to have been nominated and shortlisted in two categories," said Anna.

"At the beginning of the course I was diagnosed with ADHD and since then I have strongly advocated for students with neurodiversity and learning difficulties and helped module leads to create more inclusive and accessible content. I’ve also been involved in the Cleft Collective initiative of the Scar Free Foundation which is one of the largest cleft lip and palate research programmes in the world and have recently presented at a global conference for them. I’m also an ambassador for people with scarring."

Chris Gettins, 24, originally from Blackburn but now living in Wolverhampton, studied for a mental health nursing degree and qualifies in September.

He said: "It’s an absolute honour to have been nominated for these awards. Carrie and I are school reps and have worked closely with university and partners at practice trusts on lots of initiatives to enhance the student experience. I’m currently involved in a publication with one of the nursing lecturers, which we hope will be published soon, regarding the importance of student nurse feedback and how this progresses to future positive change. It’s a pleasure to be shortlisted with such inspirational student nurses."

When qualified, Chris will work as a registered mental health nurse with NHS inclusion covering prisons across Staffordshire.

Carrie Eagleton, 28, lives in Walsall and studied for the Nurse Integrated Master’s four-year degree.

She said: "I was absolutely stunned to hear I’d been nominated and am delighted to have been shortlisted. What’s most important is having made a difference to students and getting recognised for that is an absolute honour. I was nominated by an individual student who had some personal, health and family issues. I provided her with continuous support throughout the pandemic."

Kasim Bashir Raja, lecturer in nursing at the university, added: “I would like to congratulate all three students on their shortlisting for these awards.

"Having been involved in the nomination process, it makes me exceptionally proud to see their outstanding efforts recognised in this way.

"Nursing is a demanding course wherever it is studied and requires perseverance and resilience which the students have shown day in and day out on this programme to get to this point.

"I’m hoping that they are all successful when they journey to London for the ceremony and I’m sure that the recognition will stand them in very good stead for brilliant careers in the future."