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May.Chen

Miss May Chen

With her focus on human flourishing, May Chen, an educator and researcher within the FMHSC aims to inspire and empower others.

My first entry into nursing was in 1994, and I have worked in both China and England. With a keen interest in surgery and perioperative nursing care, I concentrated on the cardiothoracic area for a considerable period of my clinical career. Then research caught my interest, so I joined the team at Newcastle University in the Aging and Vitality centre, working under Professor Roy Taylor. Here I was involved in several diabetes studies as well as being responsible for bringing one to fruition. The mentoring of students has always been an integral part of my role.

Alongside my professional career, I also volunteered for several projects: helping disadvantaged children in the community with their literacy and numeracy skills, assisting with the chlamydia screening programme, and aiding people with learning disability to live as independent a life as possible.

After securing a Senior Lecturer post at Canterbury Christ Church University, I became keen to promote sustainability and to embed it in the nursing curriculum. In collaboration with an external non-profit social enterprise, I directed a project on energy saving with the ethnic minority community in a local town. On an academic level, I led a diabetes module of the CPD programme for mature postgraduate students. For three years I was also a Cohort Leader, supporting personal tutors in their roles and working with students to enhance their study experience and resolve issues and complaints. I am currently the Deputy Course Director for the BSc Adult Nursing course. 

I firmly believe that every student has potential to be unlocked and deserves an equal opportunity to succeed regardless of background. This aligns with my focus on inspiring and empowering people to thrive, not just to survive. To this end, I was successful in securing the School Lead role for addressing the degree awarding gap, and created a REACH community (Race, Ethnicity and Cultural Heritage) for Global Majority Students. I also won the prestigious RCN Foundations Impact Award 2024. 

I have taught various areas of BSc (Hons) Adult Nursing such as clinical science, academic skills, professional development, interprofessional collaborative practice, evidence-based nursing care, foundations of nursing, health promotion, and research. I have also supervised MSc students. Inclusive practice is always an important principle in my teaching.

Regarding my research interests, I have branched out from clinical research in diabetes at Newcastle into pedagogy, student engagement, and personal engagement at work.