International Nurses' Day: meet Sheena Calinghen

I learnt about GOSH when I working on paediatric placements as part of my studies and had the chance to do some researches about diseases.

I trained in France, and continuous learning has always been a core value of mine. I came to GOSH through an open day and have since then - with the support of the incredible international team I work with and the resources available to us - built up my skills to become a senior staff nurse. The role is a balance of clinical and leadership.

I strongly feel that I have found my feet at GOSH. Coming from another country allows me to see the best of both countries - in term of working - and see clearly which areas could be improved.

As an international nurse, I feel GOSH is a welcoming place and there is a lot of support available to help you settle in.

Working with patients from all over the world has taught me many things. It makes you even more open minded toward cultures that are you may not be familiar with. Being aware of those differences has impacted my role as I am always willing to go the extra mile for those families knowing that they are in an unknown countries in a difficult context.

There are many things that I love about being nurse: having contact with our patients and their parents, and also working alongside nurses who come from various countries.

I am looking forward to continuing to acquire new skills, developing my leadership abilities, participating in QI projects and continuing to further studies via the courses available to nurses.