From patient to nurse – Lauren has career inspiration from her cancer care
A soon-to-be qualified nurse at Birmingham Children’s Hospital has been inspired to a career in nursing after receiving care at the city’s specialist centre following a cancer diagnosis 10 years ago.
Lauren Foster, aged 21, is currently in the final year of her nursing studies and is looking forward to completing her course this August.
A decade ago Lauren and her family was diagnosed with Rhabdomyosarcoma – a rare type of soft tissue sarcoma.
Sarcomas are cancers that develop from cells in the supporting or connective tissues of the body. Lauren developed a tumour at the back of her throat.
She was cared for by the Oncology team at the Children’s Hospital after receiving the news. She explained how her experiences as an 11-year-old inspired her to take her career path.
Lauren, who is from Birmingham, said: “The nurses in the Oncology ward inspired me to go into nursing. I wanted to be able to give back after they treated me.
“I had nine sessions of chemotherapy at the hospital, along with proton therapy in America, as we didn’t have that in the UK then. It was hard, especially being so far away from family for a couple of months, but I had to see the bigger picture.
“While the nurses were working with me, it was a career that I could see myself doing long term, both here and in America.”
Birmingham City University student, Lauren is currently in the process of applying for roles post-graduation and hopes to get a job on the ward that helped her, where she can really relate to the children and young people on the same journeys.
She said: “I love giving something back. I feel like I have a connection with patients, and I can help them because I understand what they are going through. I enjoy the feeling that caring for people can give you, it is a good feeling at the end of the day.”
Lauren also had a message for those nurses who helped her.
“It’s obviously a ‘thank you’. If it wasn’t for them, I wouldn’t be here. They also pushed me in this direction, without them I wouldn’t know what I wanted to do. They inspired me to be who I am today.”
To learn more about joining the team at Birmingham Women’s and Children’s NHS Foundation Trust visit https://bwc.nhs.uk/the-recruitment-journey