National Careers Week — Carmel’s story

As part of National Careers Week, we’re shining a light on some of the colleagues who make the NHS what it is today and their journey into their roles.

Carmel, a practice nurse in London, was inspired to join the NHS after seeing how colleagues cared for her father, who sadly passed away in 2012 from Non-Hodgkins Lymphoma.

Carmel’s NHS career began as a receptionist at a GP surgery before enrolling on a three-year healthcare assistant course. She undertook a nursing degree and is now a qualified practice nurse. This is her story.

I’ll be honest, I haven’t always wanted to be a nurse. The little girl you see probably wanted to be a vet or a hairdresser. However, I’ve always known for as long as I can remember that I wanted to help, whether that be humans, animals or even help myself to a packet of biscuits on the top shelf of the cupboard. But life takes turns and when mine took a turn back in 2012 and losing the greatest person in my life, my father, I knew I wanted to be a nurse that helped, cared and brought light into at least one other person’s life. So here I am, a nurse and I’ll be forever proud of how far I’ve come.

My nursing journey started in 2012. I lost my father to Non-Hodgkins Lymphoma. He was a single father and raised my brother and I alone after we lost our mum back in 2001. My father was diagnosed around 2010. He took me to all of his hospital appointments at the Freeman Hospital in Newcastle whenever he had appointments outside of school hours. From then, I watched healthcare professionals do everything they could for my dad — I was specifically inspired by the nurses who tended to my father whilst he had his chemotherapy and stem cell transplants. I knew that when we sadly lost him in July 2012, that I wanted to be like the nurses who cared for my dad; I wanted to pay it back. I felt like there was no other job role that spiked my interests like nursing did.

I moved from Newcastle to London towards the end of 2012 where I completed my GCSEs and A-Levels. I took a gap year from studying and wanted to gain some healthcare experience before applying to university. I got a job in reception at a local GP surgery in September 2016, from there I was motivated by our lead GP and practice manager who, within 3 months of my employment there, saw my potential and funded my phlebotomy and Healthcare Assistance course — I worked as a HCA there for three years.

I’d reached my full potential as a HCA and I was encouraged by the GP’s and practice manager to take the plunge and apply to university to study BSc Adult Nursing. I was accepted and started my Nursing degree in September 2019 at University of Essex. From 2019–2021 I studied Adult Nursing and, although it felt like the longest three years of my life, I soon qualified and being a registered nurse is my biggest achievement to date.

Not long into my nursing degree I knew that bedside nursing wasn’t for me; I felt like I belonged in primary care, I felt like I could be more compassionate towards my patients in primary care, have the resources to listen and make a difference. I was offered the job at the practice nurse when I qualified with my BSc Adult Nursing degree (at the same GP surgery I first started at in 2016) and I have never looked back. I have gone on to do my practice nurse training and, despite some tough days and the challenges that comes with being a NHS nurse, there has not been a day where I have felt that I have made the wrong decision in my career.

What I love the most about nursing in the NHS is that it is deeply rewarding; there is no better satisfaction than knowing you have helped another person. As an NHS nurse I feel a strong sense of pride and purpose in being part of an organisation that is dedicated to providing high quality healthcare to everyone, regardless of their background or financial situation. I love the sense of belonging I feel working as a practice nurse, the strong interactions and professional relationships I have built with the patients.

I work with a great team who are highly supportive and the teamwork is incredibly rewarding and gives me a sense of camaraderie on a daily basis. The NHS and the support from my colleagues and especially the GPs and practice manager at the surgery have given me the ability to enhance my nursing skills, adapt and grow both personally and professionally as well as handle a variety of medical and emotional challenges with resilience and flexibility.

I am driven to be the nurse someone looks up to — to inspire someone, like I was inspired by the nurses at the Freeman hospital back in 2010. I’ve been a qualified nurse now for 3 and a half years with a total of nine years working with in the NHS. From an 18-year-old GP receptionist to a 26-year-old Practice Nurse — I feel proud.

Thank you, Carmel for sharing your journey with us. If you’re inspired by Carmel’s story, there are over 350 careers available in the NHS that could lead anywhere. Search ‘NHS careers’ to find out more.