Career profile - Advanced practitioner single point of care/non-medical prescribing lead

Why did you become a nurse?
My grandmother was a nursing auxiliary who retired in 1973. She started as a fever nurse in the early 1920s and spent most of her career working in infectious diseases. I visited her at work, as a child and was fascinated by the nurse role.

How has your career developed since you started nursing?
I qualified as a RGN in 1987 and worked in acute medical admissions and acute surgical admissions and later as a day staff nurse; in district nursing (including an out-of-hours role and in liaison); rapid response; and intermediate care.

In 2003, I became a PCT Professional Executive Committee (PEC) nurse for North Stoke PCT prior to the merger with South Staffordshire PCT. I served as a PEC nurse for four years, becoming nurse lead for respiratory, with a special interest in medicines management and, later, joint clinical champion for COPD.