A nursing student has won a national award for her work on a clinical trial.

Oxford Brookes student Cynthia Okoli studied the use of ketamine as a treatment for severe depression while on a research placement.

The Mental Health Student Hybrid (MESH) placement forms part of her MSc in mental health nursing.

She said she was "so excited" about winning the Most Engaged MESH student award, and will attend a ceremony in London later this month.

Ms Okoli moved to the UK from Nigeria, originally expecting to study business administration.

But she was inspired to switch to nursing after working as a part-time support worker on mental health wards and comparing the mental health provision in the UK to that in Nigeria.

"In Nigeria there is little provision for mental health and still a stigma around it," Ms Okoli said.

She was also inspired by the time she spent with a patient who had alopecia, who was "really excited" to see how Ms Okoli wore wigs to "experiment with different looks and styles".

"She helped me see how we can help people," said Ms Okoli.
The MESH programme is a pilot scheme run by the National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR), which aims to provide nursing students with research experience while they carry out their clinical placements.

Ms Okoli said she was involved in screening participants as well as being "involved fully" in all of the research processes.

"I’m so excited about winning this award," she said.

"It shows I made the right decision and I'm passionate about research into mental health and about becoming a mental health nurse."

The Student Nursing Times Awards ceremony takes place in London on 26 April.


https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c14kdlyyj9go

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