Learning Disability Nurse Lecturer wins 2019 RCN Wales Award
Dr Ruth Williams, a Learning Disability Nursing lecturer at Bangor University won the 2019 RCN Wales Nurse Education Award. The award acknowledges two strands of Ruth’s work in particular, her leadership and commitment to education and her focus on people with learning disabilities and the Welsh language.
Ruth has made a significant contribution to the bachelor of nursing learning disabilities programme and to students on other nursing programmes. She has designed, implemented and evaluated innovative approaches for adult nursing students to enable them to engage with people who have a learning disability. Her innovative and inclusive approach to teaching to ensure a meaningful application of learning to practise are evident in her passion and drive.
Dr Williams was keen to stress that this award is representative of the whole LD team involved in the Bangor programme “For me - the award goes to the 'team', without the input of people with learning disability and their families and carers, the nursing students, health board colleagues and the learning disability lecturers it wouldn’t be possible for me to be a nurse lecturer. Receiving an award that acknowledges the unique and essential contribution of 'experts by experience' to nurse education will hopefully inspire other lecturers and nurses to embed co-production with all stakeholders in their day to day work.”
The award also acknowledges the opportunities provided to nursing students at Bangor to engage in their education in the language of their choice, Welsh or English, thus inspiring student nurses to offer language choice to their patients too.
Dr Lynne Williams, Head of the School of Health Sciences said “I am delighted that Ruth’s efforts, and that of the whole team, have been recognised by this RCN Award. This is an excellent illustration of the quality of Nursing education at Bangor University and shines a light on the teaching activity, at both our Bangor and Wrexham campuses, that is training the nurses of the future for north Wales and beyond.”
A full list of RCN 2019 award winners is available on their website: - https://www.rcn.org.uk/wales/get-involved/awards/award-winners-2019
L-R Helen Whyley Director of RCN Wales, Dr Ruth Williams, Sarah Thornton a co-lecturer on LD Nursing linked to Mencap Mon and a representative of the award sponsors Swansea University Health Board
Publication date: 20 November 2019