Jade Ainsworth

My own experiences with mental health are what brought me to a nursing degree. Having fought my own battles, I want to help others fight theirs.

Edge Hill has a lovely campus, not too big not too small. The lakes make for a lovely view. My favourite place is sat in front of one of the campus lakes on a sunny day watching the geese, with some uni work or a book.

Studying nursing will increase your confidence. But make sure you get out of your comfort zone otherwise you’ll miss opportunities to grow. I often had little confidence in my academic abilities. Receiving a first in year one proved that I should believe in myself more. Being awarded an Excellence Scholarship is another highlight.

This degree develops many skills. I believe the most important are resilience, important in this chosen career; reflectiveness, vital when nursing; and most importantly, knowing when to ask for help

I love how my lecturers are all different, with individual skillsets. It makes for a variety of teaching material and, of course, many nursing stories. I enjoy the simulated practice in the Critical Skills and Simulation Centre, practicing clinical skills on dummies, testing and enhancing our knowledge.

There are so many roads to go down in nursing. My career goals change every week. I’d like to work with children and young people suffering with PTSD and trauma, and become a nurse consultant/chief of nursing within 15/20 years of qualifying. I also want to work within the Care Quality Commission, helping to improve service provision. Decisions, decisions.

If you have personal experience with mental health, don’t be afraid to share it. Experts through experience are often more qualified than any other health care provider. Use your experiences to help others – don’t hide it.

I love medical programmes. Sometimes I watch GPs Behind Closed Doors and find myself shouting the diagnosis at the screen. I’m currently watching American medical drama New Amsterdam, and reading an anatomy and physiology book. I also use Instagram. You get to see what everyone is up to, whether that’s your best friend – or Beyoncé.

Living in halls was safe, secure and well-maintained. You won’t get on with everyone, and some neighbours can be loud, but there’s always someone to talk to. The cleaning and maintenance team are very friendly. You get your own bathroom, and, of course, the lovely campus is on your doorstep for evening strolls. I’m not a good cook, but I love a good chicken korma…if it’s made by someone else, and I do like a pina colada (possibly while getting caught in the rain).

My big adventure was my overseas formative placement. I worked in Muhimbili National Hospital, a 1500-bed public teaching hospital in Tanzania. I went through an organisation called Work the World. Although my heart is with mental health, I love learning skills from all fields and experiencing holistic nursing that ultimately will make me a better nurse. I spent two weeks in the psychiatric department, one week on paeds and oncology, and one week in maternity. It was scary, but even from there I always followed the nursing code and worked within my competency. There are things I noticed that made me frustrated and really sad. But there were also amazing aspects. The strength, the resilience of the patients and their families was incredible, and the community love and friendship was inspiring, and something we could learn from back home. You’ll have to find out for yourself, though. I wasn’t there to change the system, but to learn their ways and do my nursing, African-style.

My heroes are anyone who has helped me. The people who were there for me in my darkest times. Most importantly, though, I’m my own hero. The one who was, and still is, resilient and determined enough to get to where I am today and to continue going where I want to in the future. Thank you, me.