Memoirs of a Black NHS Mental Health Nurse: A Nursing Journey: Nursing The Early Years

By Carol Webley-Brown

This book is all about my training as a registered mental health nurse, as a black British nurse in the NHS.
This is an important book as little has been written and form the experiences of Black nurses and to raise the profile of Black nurses.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Lulu.com
• Release date: Feb 9, 2023
• ISBN: 9781387563487

Book preview

Copyright © 2022 Carol Webley-Brown.

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced, stored, or transmitted by any

means—whether auditory, graphic, mechanical, or electronic—without written permission

of the author, except in the case of brief excerpts used in critical articles and reviews.

Unauthorized reproduction of any part of this work is illegal and is punishable by law.

This book is a work of non-fiction. Unless otherwise noted, the author and the publisher

make no explicit guarantees as to the accuracy of the information contained in this book

and in some cases, names of people and places have been altered to protect their privacy.

ISBN: 978-1-3877-1952-5 (sc)

ISBN: 978-1-3875-6349-4 (hc)

ISBN: 978-1-3875-6348-7 (e)

Library of Congress Control Number: 2021915010

Because of the dynamic nature of the Internet, any web addresses or links contained in

this book may have changed since publication and may no longer be valid. The views

expressed in this work are solely those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the

views of the publisher, and the publisher hereby disclaims any responsibility for them.

Any people depicted in stock imagery provided by Getty Images are models,

and such images are being used for illustrative purposes only.

Certain stock imagery © Getty Images.

Lulu Publishing Services rev. date: 09/23/2022

Forewarned is Forearmed

People say Forewarned is forearmed,’

meaning that when you know about something which is going to happen in the future, you can be ready to deal with it.

Originated as Latin proverb – early 1500s

Professional & Personal Memoir of a

Black NHS Mental Health Nurse

Dedicated to all the Mental Health nurses that started as my colleagues and became my loyal friends–you know who you are. Thank you for sharing my journey and allowing me to share yours.

I have lost touch with many, but whenever we meet at study days or conferences we reminisce about the good old days.

Thank you to the friends who read and helped edit this book, which became three books. I am truly blessed.

Thank you to my family, especially my Special Four.

Thank you, Helen, for putting up with my jumping all over the place and staying with me throughout my book publishing journey

Thank you to my nursing students from Kings College London and London South Bank University, especially those who call me over on the bus, in the street, and at the market. I am now old and grey, but they still recognise me.

Thank you to all my clients and patients of forty years and more. l hope I served you well.

A special ‘thank you’ to an incredible writer and close friend, Shirla Philogene, for reading and editing the very first draft, and another, then another...

Shirla Philogene has written a few books herself and published two. It was her brilliant idea that the book should be broken into three distinct books. This is a reflection on my nursing journey all the way to the highest rank: Clinical Grade I. This first book will cover my mental health nurse career. The second book is about juggling family life with a career in general nursing. The final and third book is about general practice nursing, my attempt to find equilibrium in Ghana, and the final part of my career as a nurse.

I started my writing process in Ghana. I was fortunate to celebrate my 60th birthday in Ghana while Ghana celebrated its 60th year of independence. Spiritually, I sensed the determination and strength from Mary Seacole who was as a Black Nurse leader. Seacole funded her own journey to the frontlines of the Crimean War so that she could care for soldiers. Despite her bravery, success, and empathy, Mary Seacole’s is often overlooked and written out of the history books. The slow and hard fight for recognition has been at last been evidenced as a statue.

Seacole’s work has inspired me throughout my nursing career. To paraphrase Maya Angelo, despite society’s neglect and knocks to Black women, we shall rise.

My career has taken me from student nurse to a member of the Chief Nurses Advisory Group. Despite my successes within the NHS, my career and mental health suffered because of institutional racism and discrimination. In many ways, my story is not unique. Speak to any person of colour and they can tell you terrible stories–personal or shared–of missing out on jobs they were overqualified for, malicious colleagues blocking their promotions, and facing interview panels that didn’t have a single member that looked like them. These stories help us to understand the problems within the NHS and wider society. Here, I share mine with the hope that it helps us move forward stronger, together, and better than ever.

INTRODUCTION

The pressure, stress, and sadness caused by ongoing Covid-19 pandemic has highlighted the importance of developing supportive, accessible mental health services. While we have much further to go, attitudes towards mental health have improved since I first joined the NHS as a student nurse in 1976. Celebrities, including members of the Royal family, have recently talked about their own mental health experiences to try to reduce the stigma surrounding mental illness. We must strengthen our mental health services and destigmatise mental illnesses so that we can better meet the needs of our nation, especially our children, working aged people and our elderly.

My complete memoir discusses my training experience, subsequent roles, and my eventual return to mental health nursing. My journey is divided into three parts. The first book is my memoir of mental health nursing. Mental health nursing was the first qualification l gained. Throughout my long NHS career, I have seen the work of mental health nurses be overlooked and treated as the poor relative of general nursing, midwifery, and paediatrics. One aim of sharing my story is to help raise the profile of mental health nurses.

The second book details my time in Accident and Emergency (A&E) nursing, marrying, having children, and leaving A&E to teach in universities. Lastly, my third book will cover my time in General Practice Nursing (GPN), caring for my husband, and volunteering in Ghana for over four years.

Nursing hierarchy is best described as Guinness–a little white froth at the top and a large volume of black at the bottom. NHS policies written and implemented by the white elites are used as a weapon of mass career destruction against non-white employees. I have seen and experienced this time and time