Portsmouth Football Club Magazine July 2020 | Page 7

Football and
nursing on the
frontline
The Coronavirus pandemic has led to
many people going into lockdown. But for
some people it’s led to them embracing new
challenges on the frontline. One of these people
is Rosie McDonnell. Portsmouth F.C. Women’s
football player and frontline nurse.
Rosie qualified as a nurse last year having joined
the Royal Navy with the aspiration to deploy to
a conflict. But she’s found herself on a different
frontline, one where the threat is biological, not
physical. She’s now based at Queen Alexandra
Hospital in Portsmouth.
Rosie explains ‘I think football has prepared me
massively for working in a team environment.
Because I’m part of the military contingent we
move around the hospital depending on staffing
levels. So you might find yourself in a ward that
you’ve never worked in before with people that
you’ve never met. You’ve probably got an hour to
get to know them and then you’ve got to get the
best teamwork out and the best results.’
Rosie said ‘I’m still getting to grips with
everything but my degree helped prepare
me. I learnt a lot of the job whilst on degree
placements and now I’m qualified there’s another
learning curve. But the degree gave me the
background knowledge I need.’
TRANSFERABLE SKILLS
Whilst football is currently on hold, nursing most
certainly isn’t. But the skills and experiences
Rosie has gained from her football career are
proving useful on the ward.
Football can be a stressful game to play and
it’s taught Rosie some useful lessons. In the
game and on the ward Rosie finds herself under
time pressure with goals to achieve – literally
or otherwise! Rosie commented that in both
settings she sometimes wonders ‘How on earth
am I going to manage to do all these tasks?’ But
she manages by setting herself time deadlines,
knowing that by pushing herself she’ll get the job
done.
STUDENTS ON THE
FRONTLINE
The University’s Adult Nursing degree course
is preparing the nurses of tomorrow but
many of them are joining Rosie and other
healthcare workers on the frontline now.
Third-year Nursing student Diana Rasoul is
working in the Queen Alexandra Hospital’s
intensive care unit (ICU). Not only is she
helping in the fight against Coronavirus but
has discovered that ICU nursing is the career
for her. Meanwhile, fellow student Charles
Tick is working in the haematology and
oncology ward and has accepted a job at the
hospital after he’s graduated. And third-year
nursing student Emma Collar added ‘I wanted
to do this so I could continue my studies but
also to contribute, no matter how small it feels
it is at times.’ Our Paramedic Science students
are also pitching in. First-year student James
Hey has been working in patient transport
whilst second-year student James Corney has
undertaken emergency care assistant training
and is also working as a call handler for 111.
We’re very proud of all our students and
members of Portsmouth F.C. who are helping
make a difference during these unprecedented
times.
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