Vicky McNally

What made you want to get into nursing?

Midwifery was something I wanted to do when I was at school. However, none of my family went to university so it wasn’t the norm. I didn’t really know how to go about it, so I left school and got a job. It was when I had my first little boy, who’s now 7, that I started to think how can I get into this? I now have another boy, who’s 4. I still wanted to do it having been through the experience and my sons came to my graduation which was really nice and I hope it will inspire them.

Why did you choose to come to Northumbria?

I came to Northumbria based on my circumstances. I was a single mother so it wasn’t feasible to go elsewhere as I needed the support of my family for childcare.

What have you enjoyed most about the course?

While you’re studying it’s so busy – you don’t really realise what you’ve achieved until afterwards. It was really challenging to get through the course and I look at my classmates and realise just what we have achieved. I had a couple of acute situations whilst on placement. Towards the end of your third year, when you’re about to qualify, you’re given a lot more responsibility and have a caseload of women whose care you lead, although you are very well supported. There were situations where things can change quite quickly and I was faced with a couple of situations where that happened. I’m not going to lie, it was quite challenging, however, the support was excellent. It’s been amazing. It’s the best thing I’ve ever done! 

BSc Midwifery