“I was very fortunate to have support and encouragement" | Blogs

My Learning Journey :

My Name is Abdulkadir Mohamed. I arrived in the UK on December 1998 as a refugee from Somalia. I was faced with a lot of challenges however, Central and North West London NHS Foundation Trust (CNWL) supported me to get a job as a Health Care Assistant.  I was offered the opportunity to work in a variety of mental health settings.

My learning journey started with mandatory trainings at CNWL. I was later supported by CNWL to do my foundation degree at London South Bank University (LSBU) between 2012 to 2014. During my studies I found things very challenging. I was assessed by an Educational Psychologist at LSBU in 2012, who found that I had Dyslexia.  

Learning that I had dyslexia put added pressure on me. It was difficult as, I had to put in twice as much time compared to my “normal peers”. At the same time, I had to maintain a student, work and personal life balance.

2018 to 2023

With the support from CNWL I was sponsored to do my Registered Nurse Degree Apprenticeship (RNDA) training at Buckinghamshire University. There were times when I thought that this was not going to be possible. 

On 9 April 2020 after returning home from work I fell ill and collapsed at home. The GP thought I had Covid-19.  Thankfully Claire Symons, a Deputy Borough Director and Vivienne Cohen, Community Team Manager, came to my rescue and sent a nurse to my home address to test if I had Covid-19. The test came back negative. I was rushed to hospital  with the advice of Dr Tamara Joffe (GP) and had to do open heart surgery. Although, I was off sick for some time and losing my father in same year, this did not stop me from pursing my goal of becoming a mental health nurse.

I am the first to achieve a University Degree in my family due to the civil war in Somalia and I am now inspiring my children and the rest of my family.

Achieving my Nursing degree made me to be a better practitioner and to develop both personally and professionally. I am now able to support my clients and help in their recovery journey, by using up to date knowledge and skills to delivery evidenced based care.

I was very fortunate to have support and encouragement from the CNWL educational team, Wood field Trauma Services, Grenfell team, South Westminster Home Treatment Teams, and South Westminster PCN hub.

I am currently working in the South Westminster hub where I am able to contribute in the Multi-disciplinary team meetings and bring my knowledge, skills and experience.

I have also started supporting nursing students to pass on my knowledge and skills in line with NMC, (2018) standards.

Read the full story here.