A Life in Chapters
The Experiences That Shaped Me
A journey across countries, cultures and professions — shaped by remarkable people, unexpected lessons and a deepening understanding of what it means to serve others.
Before 2004·Zimbabwe
Zimbabwe: Where It All Began
"I grew up on a smallholding in Zimbabwe — a place without running water or electricity, but rich in everything that matters most."
My earliest memories are of family, community and the rhythms of the land. Life on the smallholding was shaped by hard work, resourcefulness and a deep sense of belonging. We grew what we needed, shared what we had and understood from an early age that the harvest rewards those who tend it with care.
Zimbabwe gave me my identity. It gave me my values. It gave me an understanding of community that no institution or qualification has ever replaced. The relationships formed in those early years — with family, neighbours and the land itself — remain a foundation I return to, even now.
I qualified as a secondary school teacher, completing a Diploma in Education before leaving Zimbabwe in 2004. Teaching was my first experience of the responsibility that comes with shaping how others see the world — a responsibility I have never taken lightly.
Lesson learned
The people who surround you in your earliest years shape who you become in ways you only fully understand much later.
2004–2009·United Kingdom
New Beginnings: The United Kingdom
"Moving to the United Kingdom in 2004 was the beginning of a new chapter — one that would challenge and expand my understanding of people, community and compassion."
My first role in the UK was as a support worker for people experiencing homelessness. It was work that brought me face to face with the complexity of human circumstances — with the stories behind the statistics, and the dignity that persists even in the most difficult situations.
I learned quickly that people are rarely defined by the circumstances in which you encounter them. Every person I worked with carried a history, a set of relationships and a sense of self that extended far beyond their immediate situation. That understanding has stayed with me throughout my career.
Between 2006 and 2009, I completed an Advanced Diploma in Nursing — a decision that would open new doors and deepen my commitment to healthcare, human experience and professional responsibility.
Lesson learned
One act of kindness can make a difference. You do not always know what someone is carrying — but you can choose how you meet them.
Qualifications & Roles
2009–2018·United Kingdom
Mental Health, Care and Justice
"The years between 2009 and 2018 took me across some of the most complex intersections of healthcare, community and the criminal justice system."
Working as a Staff Nurse in a medium secure forensic mental health ward from 2009 to 2012 was a formative experience. It required holding professional responsibility alongside genuine human compassion — understanding that the people in my care were not defined by the circumstances that had brought them there.
Healthcare and justice are both systems — and people find themselves within them because of complex, often interconnected problems. The process within the system should never take priority over the person. That principle guided my practice as a Forensic Community Psychiatric Nurse and, later, as a Liaison and Diversion Nurse working across healthcare and criminal justice settings.
These years also deepened my academic engagement. I completed a BSc top-up degree in Practice Development in 2012, graduated with a Master's in Public Health in 2013, and completed a Postgraduate Certificate in Teaching and Learning in 2016. Each qualification reflected not just professional development, but a growing curiosity about how systems, institutions and individuals interact.
Lesson learned
Systems are made of people. The most important thing you can do within any institution is to keep the person — their dignity, their story, their humanity — at the centre.
Qualifications & Roles
2016–2025·United Kingdom & Singapore
Education, Research and Sharing Knowledge
"From 2016, my career took a new direction — into education, research and the privilege of contributing to the development of the next generation of healthcare professionals."
I joined The Open University as an Associate Lecturer in 2016 — a role I have continued alongside other appointments. Teaching has always felt like a two-way exchange. Every student brings their own experiences, perspectives and questions. The best learning happens when both sides of the room are genuinely curious.
From 2018 to 2025, I served as an Assistant Professor in Mental Health Nursing at Northumbria University. Between 2023 and 2025, I had the remarkable opportunity to teach for Northumbria University in Singapore — an experience that expanded my understanding of how culture, context and professional identity shape the way we approach healthcare education.
In 2025, I completed my PhD: 'Working at the Interface of Health and the Criminal Justice System: The Lived Experiences of Liaison and Diversion Nurses. An Interpretative Phenomenological Study.' The research brought together everything I had learned across two decades of practice — and opened new questions I look forward to exploring.
Lesson learned
Education is not a one-way process. The most important thing a teacher can do is remain genuinely curious — and willing to learn from the people in the room.
Qualifications & Roles
2025–present·United Arab Emirates
New Perspectives: The United Arab Emirates
"In 2025, I began a new chapter — moving into healthcare quality and accreditation leadership in the United Arab Emirates."
This new role brings together the full breadth of my experience — healthcare delivery, education, research, governance and quality improvement — in a context that is itself a remarkable intersection of cultures, ambitions and perspectives.
The UAE is a place of extraordinary energy and possibility. Working here has reinforced something I have believed throughout my career: that the most interesting learning happens at the edges — at the intersections of disciplines, cultures and institutions.
This chapter is still being written. I approach it with the same curiosity and openness that has guided every stage of my journey — grateful for what has come before, and genuinely excited about what comes next.
Lesson learned
Every new environment is an invitation to see the world differently. The willingness to remain open — to new perspectives, new people and new ways of working — is perhaps the most important professional quality of all.
The Journey Continues