Posted 05 January 2024 - 12:33
Posted 05 January 2024 - 12:33
News
A family business: father and daughter become nurses at same time
Steven and Stevie-Leigh Jewell qualify as mental health nurses within weeks of each other after ‘we both realised we wanted the same thing’
Steven and Stevie-Leigh Jewell qualify as mental health nurses within weeks of each other after ‘we both realised we wanted the same thing’
A father and daughter are set to embark on their nursing careers together after qualifying as mental heath nurses.
Steven and Stevie-Leigh Jewell graduated within weeks of each other and are both starting work at The Harbour mental health hospital in Blackpool, part of Lancashire and South Cumbria NHS Foundation Trust (LSCT).
‘It has been wonderful to do this together’
The pair – who were inspired to embark on a nursing career after experiencing personally the impact that poor mental health can have – said they were lucky to follow their dream together.
'Myself and Stevie-Leigh are both really passionate about helping others, it must be a trait that runs in the family,’ said Steven, a former greengrocer.
‘People often ask us who inspired who, but I think it was a joint effort. After speaking about our career aspirations together, we both realised we wanted the same thing.
‘It has been wonderful to do this together and support one another, all be it via very different graduation paths.’
‘It can be daunting starting a new career path later in life’
While Stevie-Leigh chose a more traditional route into nursing by completing a degree at Edge Hill University, dad Steven took another path. He initially started as a healthcare support worker at The Harbour, gaining a vast wealth of experience of working in the care sector, before later undertaking a Trainee Nursing Associate course and finally completing the Registered Nurse Degree Apprenticeship.
‘The majority of my working life has been spent in manual jobs and working in retail as a greengrocer,’ said Steven. ‘I have always had an interest in mental health but wasn’t sure what opportunities would be available for someone like me who didn’t have any previous qualifications in nursing or mental health.’
‘It can be daunting starting a new career path later in life, but I have been supported and encouraged to follow my dream and it has led me here and I couldn’t be happier.’
‘It feels special to have graduated within weeks of each other’
Meanwhile Stevie-Leigh’s time at university was affected by the pandemic, which meant first-year placements were cut short with extra time needed in subsequent years to make up the time.
She said: ‘I love my job and I feel so lucky to be able to share this experience with my dad. We started studying at the same time so it feels special to have graduated within a few weeks of each other, as we’ve both seen how hard we’ve worked.’
Steven works with older adults and Stevie-Leigh works with older adults with dementia.
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