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IAN : ACUTE CARE NURSE CONSULTANT

Ian Setchfield served 13 years in the RAF as a Sergeant in the Critical Care Air Support Team –retrieving and transporting critically ill servicemen and women around the world.

He is now settled in East Kent with his family and enjoying his role in urgent care at the Queen Elizabeth the Queen Mother Hospital in Thanet.

“Military nurses bring crucial skills which are of huge benefit to the NHS,” said the 47-year-old father of two, who lives in Westgate-On-Sea near Margate. “Obviously we are good in a crisis with our operational experience, but we also have great leadership skills and flexibility.  When my wife and I decided to settle in Thanet I approached the Intensive Care Unit at the hospital and they recognised the transferable skills and experience that I could bring to a role here. They supported me from the start and encouraged me to complete a Master’s degree, and I am now about to embark on a PhD in systems leadership.”

Ian progressed rapidly through the ranks at QEQM, which is run by the East Kent Hospitals University NHS Foundation Trust, and is now an Acute Care Nurse Consultant after completing a unique ‘Aspiring Practitioner Programme’, which was developed by EKHUFT and allowed Ian to carve out his current role. “EKHUFT are a forward-thinking Trust, I have always felt that my experiences are valued and listened to. It’s a teaching trust too so it means that we are at the forefront of new research and development.

“The Trust have always encouraged and supported me to develop my NHS career,” said Ian. “My daughter and son are now teenagers and have benefited from great local schools and a wonderful way of life in east Kent.”

“The Trust have always encouraged and supported me to develop my NHS career”