A student Learning Disability Nurse at the University of Chester was one of only five in the country to be selected to attend a prestigious national conference.
Mature student Sandy Costall, of Irby, Wirral, took part in the National Network for Learning Disability Nurses (NNLDN) annual conference at the University of York. It is a national event for professionals and each of the five selected students was sponsored by a different company to attend.
The five students were specially selected from 50 who entered a competition to submit their reflections on training to become a Learning Disability Nurse. The competition was organised by Helen Laverty, a Senior Lecturer at the University of Nottingham who organises the learning disabilities Positive Choices conference where Sandy had spoken earlier in the year on her inspirational decision to leave a successful career in pharmaceuticals to return to education.
The students were asked what gave them the most Inspiration, Perspiration and Aspiration. Sandy described how she had decided to make a career change after looking after her youngest son who has Down’s Syndrome. Sandy said she wanted to use all the knowledge she’d gathered by having her son to help others.
Sandy said: “I started on a course at the University of Chester and without the support from my husband and our families I would struggle to cope with childcare and the demands of running a home.
“My aspirations for my future are to qualify as a Learning Disability Nurse so that over time I will have the knowledge and strength to keep fighting not just for my son’s current needs but also as he moves through his life but also to keep caring and fighting for all individuals with a learning disability. Finally, to keep providing support and information to people so they may be empowered to take action in their own lives as I have in my own life. I want to show others that it’s never too late to learn.”
Extracts of each of the five chosen students’ submissions were put together in a special poster which will be on display in the University of Chester’s Faculty of Health and Social Care.
Sandy was also approached at the event by Helen Laverty to work with the other four nominated students to produce a piece to present at the Positive Choices learning disability student nurse conference next April, at the University of Hertfordshire.
Sandy said: “We all jumped at the chance but it’s not such an easy requisite given that geographically we are all based far apart so that’s a challenge to work together.
“It’s a great opportunity to be able to work with students from different universities and I’ll be very proud to be representing the University of Chester in 2011.”
Dianne Phipps, Deputy Head of Department, Mental Health and Learning Disabilities, said: “Sandy has been an inspiration to other nursing students, both at the University of Chester and at other universities throughout the UK. Sandy manages to combine her studies with conference presentations and networking opportunities, which will put her in good stead for her future career supporting people with learning disabilities to maintain and improve their health. How Sandy manages to achieve this with her busy home life is a mystery! But her motivation to learn and be involved, not just locally, but nationally will help to make a difference to the lives of people with learning disabilities.”
