Florence Nightingale Travelling Scholarship

During the summer of 2003 I was frantically writing up my Masters thesis and had submitted an abstract to the International Society of Nurses in Cancer Care bi-annual conference in Sydney, August 2004. As I didn’t for a minute think it would be accepted I gave no thought or consideration to how I would fund the trip should it be accepted. That was until I got a phone whilst working in the hospital library from the then Director of Practice Development to ask me “how exactly do you plan to cover the costs Mhairi?” to which I replied “I haven’t thought about it as it wont be accepted”. She then posed the question “have you ever thought about applying for a Florence Nightingale Travelling Scholarship?”. After a short period of time considering the possibilities I began to work on my submission to the Florence Nightingale Foundation in London. As a Clinical Nurse Specialist at the time I was keen to explore similar roles in other countries, in particular Australia and the USA. I quickly began a search on the internet and identified a number of potential clinical sites to visit in Sydney, Australia and Rochester, Minnesota. I wanted to compare and contrast the roles and services provided for people affected by colorectal disease. My employers, NHS Lanarkshire, were very supportive and agreed to allow me the required period of leave (5 weeks). Typically I sent off my application but was pessimistic that I would be invited for an interview but the letter of invitation did arrive and the Foundation very kindly paid my travelling expenses for the trip to London for the interview. Interviews are never pleasant experiences however I was quickly put at ease and was encouraged by the interest in my proposal. After a short period of time I was notified that I was successful and I was off across the world. Although the Foundation does not support conferences I was able to attend the conference and deliver my poster presentation at the same time as my visits to three hospitals in Sydney, August 2004. Prior to this I had experienced the Mayo Clinic, Rochester, Minnesota, USA, which was a wonderful experience and provided insight into a different healthcare system; they couldn’t believe I had come all the way from Scotland. During my visits I was welcomed and my hosts were wonderful, ensuring my clinical visits met my aims and objectives as well as ensuring I had fun in the evenings and at the weekends. Upon my return I had to submit a report to the Foundation, which is posted on their website (http://www.florence-nightingale-foundation.org.uk) and Mary Spinks, the Director of the Foundation encouraged me to write an article for publication in the nursing press, which I eventually did (Simpson 2005). I consider myself very fortunate to have been supported by the Foundation who awarded me the then Scottish Executive Award and NHS Lanarkshire for giving me the time to travel. I would encourage you all to consider the opportunities that are out there for cancer nursing and the potential pioneering units that could be visited in the UK, Europe, North America and Australia. My advice JUST GO FOR IT. If I can be of any support or assist you in relation to this please don’t hesitate to contact me .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) Reference: Simpson MF (2005) Plus ca change….Gastrointestinal Nursing Vol 3 (4) p18-21. For more information please visit http://www.florence-nightingale-foundation.org.uk