Jessica Fitzgerald

Consultant Nurse- Learning Disabilities
North Staffordshire Combined Healthcare Trust.

I qualified as a Learning Disability Nurse in 2002 and have absolutely loved the diversity LD nursing offers and the unique opportunity to work with people of all ages and abilities; people who are unwell and people who are developing health independence. I have worked with adults and children, in-patients and community services. for me, learning disability nursing has enabled me to pursue specialist roles within the specialism for example; health promotion, mental health, education, Positive Behaviour Support, Forensic care, and epilepsy. It is an incredibly rewarding career.

I commenced my role as a Consultant Nurse in June 2020 and this enables me to spend time in clinical practice working predominantly with Children and young people at risk of family/ placement breakdown and those with complex health needs. My time is divided across education, clinical leadership and research. Projects I have recently been working on include the design of a new, assessment and treatment unit which includes specialist, modern environment and technologies to improve service users care experience, reduce restrictions and support assessment and clinical decision making.

I am leading on a variety of other exciting initiatives, all of which place people with learning disabilities, their families and carers at the centre.

For me, learning disability nursing was a great career choice, and with all the investment in the profession and a new national plan, it really is very exciting!