Supporting further education and advancement is a prominent part of our culture. So when Monica Quinlan completed her Masters in Advanced Clinical Practice at Birmingham City University (BCU), it took her on both a personal and professional journey that has changed her life. Heartbeat caught up with Monica who shared her heartfelt story with us.

“I completed my Masters in February 2020. It was a three-year part-time course funded by the Trust. Being able to join this course meant so much to me. I required the academic side to support and underpin my advancing role, and I was determined to complete the course. It involved combining practical work placements and classroom sessions.”

“I was due to complete my course in October 2019; however I took four months off from studying as I lost my husband, who also worked at the Trust, in December 2018. He took his own life and, as you can imagine, my world fell apart.

“My older son was at university at the time, and my younger son was completing his GCSEs – both were distraught. My eldest son did his best to support us through what was the most traumatic time of our lives.”

Looking towards a brighter future, Monica explained how her studies helped her to find the focus she needed to start rebuilding her life. “I found strength in focusing on my academic work; it gave me the distraction I needed to overcome some of my weakest moments. My studies helped me discover the strength, focus and determination to move forward during this painful time, and I am thankful to the Trust for that.”

Monica is also grateful to everyone that supported her over the last few months. She told us how the kindness and compassion of those around her made such a positive difference. “The Trust, my department, my late husband’s colleagues, BCU, my family and friends have all been a huge support to me. The wellbeing department has been on hand to help me navigate the different stages of my grief – their support has helped me to start looking ahead to the future.”

She added: “So many people cheered me on to help me achieve my goal of completing my course. I’d like to say a special thanks to all of those people and in particular the library staff. Nicola Ager and her team have been a huge help over the past three years. Having a resource like a library within our organisation is invaluable.”