Senior leader reflections: Natasha Salmon

University Hospitals Birmingham NHS Foundation Trust runs Good Hope, Heartlands, Queen Elizabeth and Solihull hospitals.

I started in the NHS in 2010 as a bank nursing assistant, before joining permanently in 2011. My manager supported me to be able to do my Access to Health Science course, letting me go to college for two days a week. I also worked nearly full-time hours and looked after my young daughter as well. I was accepted into the University of Birmingham (UoB) to do my nursing degree and while I was preparing to do that, the Trust reintroduced the opportunity to be seconded to a nursing degree while still working. So despite having a place at UoB, and the secondments being available at Birmingham City University, I decided to be bold and ask if I could do my secondment at UoB. Luckily this was possible, and I qualified as a nurse in 2015.?

I was determined to progress in my career, so a few months into my staff nurse role (working on the ward on which I had started as a nursing assistant in 2010), I was already putting myself forward for more responsibility, training and taking on other duties. After 18 months, a junior sister opportunity came up, and while another applicant was successful, they were impressed with my interview and took me on to do a 12-month secondment.

In that role, I covered for my manager when they were not there, and I really enjoyed it. Again, I pushed for more responsibility and approached my manager about taking on more duties as I wanted to prepare for the next step up –?the ward manager role. Three months later, I was seconded as a ward manager to Ward 515, a Medicine/Respiratory ward. I started this in April 2019, and by March 2020, our ward was being repurposed as the first full COVID-19 ward, which felt very challenging to me!?

One of our Trust values, Kind, really means a lot to me. During the pandemic, I was really worried about our staff. They were very close to breaking and I worked really hard to keep them safe and well, while balancing the needs of our patients. I wasn’t afraid to speak to senior leaders and raise my concerns, which were: if we don’t look after these staff now, there won’t be any left to care for our patients when the pandemic ends. I really do feel that showing this kindness has made them stronger and more resilient.?

Despite coming into this role at a relatively young age, my team trust me and look to me to lead them. I can influence and make a difference to them and their careers. I encourage my staff to take advantage of opportunities and I love to watch them develop and progress. I feel so proud when they are promoted.

I am now ready for my next challenge, and will start in my new role at UHB next month as a Matron for Trauma and Orthopaedics.?

I did my life a little bit ‘backwards’ and I had my first child before I finished school. I grew up wanting to be an obstetrician/gynaecologist. When I had my daughter at 15, although I continued my education, I had to drop a couple of subjects. However, by the time I took my GCSEs, I had already decided that I wanted to be a nurse.?I had to spend time in hospital when I was pregnant as I was ill, and the nurses looking after me were amazing! They were so kind and caring and showed me no judgement for being a teenage mum. They inspired me to want to do the same.

So, while I was in hospital, my mum would collect work for me, and I would do it when in hospital and she would take it back into school for me. Both my parents work in the NHS; my mum as a mental health nurse and my dad as an IT manager. They ingrained a strong work ethic in me, and I hope I have done the same for my daughters. I was the first in my family to go to university, and I am really proud of that. My eldest, who is 17, wants to be a physiotherapist, and my youngest daughter is 13 and she either wants to work in finance or medicine!

I have always seen myself as a leader – being a ward manager is all about being a leader. We are providing a caring environment for our patients and there is no room for ‘dictating’.?

I would say to anyone who wants to become a leader?be prepared to change and grow but, never lose who you are. You must always remain true to yourself and what you believe in. Treat everyone with respect and it’s OK not to be liked by everyone. Someone can like you and not respect you – however, if they respect you, they will like you. Maybe not enough to be your best friend, but there will be something about you that they respect.

As a young black woman in leadership, it hasn’t been without its challenges. However, my parents have always told me that I can be whatever I want to be. Although there may be times I will have to work harder in comparison to others, if I work hard and never give up, I can achieve anything. I know that not everyone in my community has that kind of encouragement and support to persevere beyond racial constrictions. Too many young black people are made to believe that leadership roles are something that are out of their reach, so there is no point in trying, because they already believe they won’t be able to achieve it. This needs to end, there needs to be more support and education for young black people to empower them to believe, as I have always been told to believe, that they can do and be anything they want to be.?

Being a black single teenage mum has all the building blocks of what society would have you believe isn’t conducive to becoming successful at a young age. I wish that every young person, not just those that are black, would break free of the box that society ‘puts’ them in.?

I am not worried that someone who is white will get a job easier than me, it just means that I am going to be their biggest competition!?