Black History Month: My story
I started my journey in the NHS when I began my nurse training in 1990.
From the very beginning of my career in nursing I have been able to grow professionally in the NHS through the number of opportunities available.
I have learnt that a valuable skill to possess in my profession is having the ability to analyse situations and to pick my battles wisely as it is always better to see the bigger picture. As someone who always strives to be the best that they can be in their role, this principle is applicable to my work.
Over my many years of being an enthusiastic member of the NHS family I have been involved in the set-up of patient focused services, developed other nurses and health care workers with the goal of providing an overall great service.
I have always had an unwavering dedication to my career and to the overall success of the NHS. One of my proudest moments came in 2019 when I was awarded the coveted RCNi Leadership and Nurse of the Year award, for my contributions and improvements to the profession I love.
As they say ‘a dream does not become reality through magic; it takes sweat, determination and hard work’. I can proudly say my hard work took me as far as Australia, where I was able to share my work and further develop expertise with like-minded colleagues. I now network and share good practice with colleagues locally, nationally and internationally.
Although the experience has been largely positive, as a nurse from the BAME background I have also experienced many challenges which I have learnt to navigate through resilience and determination. With the most important quality being to never give up no matter how far the journey may seem.
The challenges I have faced has meant that it has not always been easy to achieve what I have achieved, as I have met many obstacles and challenges along the way.
These included difficult conversations, having to work in a hostile environment, dealing with micro aggression and unfortunately racism. I have been bypassed for promotion, labelled difficult, defensive and aggressive.
But as a person who strives to constantly move forward and never give up, I recite a motivational motto which I developed through my NHS career which is - ‘when one person says NO it does not mean the whole organisation is saying NO’. Through experience I have learnt that there is always someone out there who is willing to support and nudge you in the right direction, all you have to do is provide the correct attitude and motivation to achieve.
However, despite the challenges I have faced as a BAME nurse, my great colleagues have been a constant reminder that, for me, the NHS is like a family. Through the years I have met great people who have played a pivotal role in me becoming who I am today.
I am humbled and grateful that the NHS has given me the opportunity to develop and share my knowledge to improve the care we give to our patients.
Tara Matare
Senior nurse and advanced nurse practitioner of opthalmology