I am now retired but previously I was a nursing member of the equality team covering the acute hospital sector in a Scottish health board.

My Fellowship concerned the care and experiences of children with disabilities from minority communities with particular reference to those of Pakistani heritage. I travelled to Pakistan to gain some insight into possible influences on social and cultural attitudes.

I was able to apply some of what I learned to service improvements back in Scotland both within my own health board and also through national NHS working groups, local community groups and university teaching. I was also able to share experience through conferences in Europe and as a founding member of two health taskforces, which were initially European but later included members from North America, South America and Australia.

Some of the outcomes of the work of one taskforce in relation to child rights was further shared when utilised by the World Health Organization in former Soviet republics. The contacts made through these wider networks enabled me to contribute to further service improvements in my own NHS board, particularly in relation to language support for patients and service quality monitoring.