Team

Greta qualified as a nurse in 1983 and a midwife in 1987. She completed an MSc in Health Psychology in 1996 and a PhD in Nursing in 2010. Greta was one of the first genetic counsellors for the Wessex Clinical Genetics Service from 1987-2007 and was part of the team who established the Association of Genetic Nurses and Counsellors (AGNC). She held a joint Clinical Academic post with the University of Southampton from 2000-2005. From 2008-2012, she established, and then led, the National Institute of Health Research (NIHR) Hampshire and the Isle of Wight Comprehensive Local Research Network (now NIHR Wessex CRN). Greta held a joint post (2012-2017) with Portsmouth Hospitals NHS Trust (PHT) and the University of Southampton as Director of Clinical Academic Practice for the university and NIHR Collaboration for Leadership in Applied Health Research and Care (CLAHRC) Wessex. She led the university’s clinical academic training programme for nurses, midwives and allied health professionals and was promoted to Professor for this work. Greta joined the Florence Nightingale Foundation in 2017 as the Chief Operating Officer and has been the CEO since September 2019. Greta is a proud Registered Nurse and a Florence Nightingale Foundation Alumna (2012 Leadership Scholar).

In December 2020, Greta was awarded a CBE in the New Year Honours List 2021 for services to Nursing and Midwifery.

Dr Gemma Stacey is a Mental Health Nurse and, prior to joining the Florence Nightingale Foundation, was employed as an Associate Professor at the University of Nottingham. Her research and practice is underpinned by a critical consideration of the organisational, relational and professional factors which influence the expression of values in healthcare practice. She is committed to the premise of education as a vehicle to promote the emancipatory practice and has developed a program of externally funded applied healthcare research focused on approaches which enable transformational learning and psychological safety for staff.

As Director of Public Engagement, she offered strategic leadership in this area at an executive level and motivated diverse teams to implement significant programmes of work aimed at enriching and animating the work of the University to improve its accountability, relevance and responsiveness to wider society. Her commitment to creating relationships with a vast range of partners in diverse sectors has resulted in co-designed knowledge exchange, research and educational innovation which has impacted on curriculum, policy, professional regulatory guidelines for nursing at a national and international level. Her credibility and influence is externally benchmarked by her accreditation as a Principle Fellow of the Higher Education Academy and Visiting Professor at the University of Derby.

She is currently Director of the newly formed Florence Nightingale Foundation Academy where she is leading a strategy to establish the Academy as an independent ‘go to’ service for leadership development opportunities, identifying and exploiting evidence, and the provision of expert, well informed opinion and advice on issues that impact on patient care and experience.

Lucy started her nursing career at Guys and St Thomas’ specialising in Paediatric Intensive Care before moving to Australia where she worked in the Royal Childrens Hospital in Brisbane. While in post Lucy joined the paediatric retrieval service working alongside the Royal Flying Doctors service and also completed her MSc winning an award for her thesis on reducing the risks of barotrauma in the PICU patient. This also gained her a place with the Golden Key International Honour Society where only the top 15% of global academic students are invited to join.

Lucy joined Bupa on returning to the UK working in a numerous clinical leadership roles. Lucy designed and developed the Leading Clinical Excellence programme for Bupa receiving a global award for her work.

Most recently Lucy has been working for Circle Health group as a Director of Nursing supporting the NHS resilience work on the frontline.

Sheila has over 32 years’ experience in nursing, leadership, operational management and clinical governance.  She has been an Executive Nurse Leader for the last six years within acute, specialist and mental health trusts.  Leading nurses and Allied Health Professionals (AHPs) in the delivery of quality patient care and experience.

Sheila assists the CQC (Care Quality Commission) with inspection of hospitals and is a member of the national Black, Minority, Ethnic (BME) Executive Director of Nursing and Midwifery Group working with peers and supporting leaders ready now, and of the future.

Sheila is an active mentor and coach to NHS staff.

Gary joined the Florence Nightingale Foundation Academy in January 2021 and has worked in leadership learning and development for over 30 years both in the UK and internationally, coaching and training leaders at all levels from supervisor and first line manager up to senior executive/director level. He has designed, developed and delivered programmes across the full range of leadership and management development spectrums for both small and large organisations both as a member of internal training teams and external consultancies.

Gary has led and facilitated programmes across a wide range range of industries including environmental services, science, technology and manufacturing sectors. He has acted as programme director and centre manager for both the Chartered management Institute, Institute of leadership and Management and City and Guilds. He has programme managed, delivered and assessed under-graduate and post-graduate leadership, management and marketing programmes for a number of British university business schools. Qualifications wise, he has an MA in Human Resource Management, is a Chartered Member of the CIPD, holds a Post Graduate Certificate in Education (adult education) along with post-graduate qualifications in management and psychology. He is also a qualified Myers Briggs practitioner as well as a vocational training assessor and internal verifier.

Sharon comes from an occupational psychology background and has previous experience of working in the mental health sector and case management, in addition to writing reports and facilitating the process of psychological treatment for patients/clients and monitoring the progress made through the course of their treatment. She has an understanding of employee relations, leadership, organisational development, selection and assessment. Sharon’s role at the Foundation is to manage all scholarships and leadership programmes and to ensure a seamless scholar journey. Alongside this, Sharon manages all scholarship processes end-to-end, including finance management, as well as relationship management with our applicants, scholars, sponsors and mentors.

Adam Rabinowitz is our Alumni and Membership Manager and wants to bring to this role the very best of his previous experience in the not-for-profit sector.

When Adam has had to rely on the nursing profession, he feels his experience has always been extremely positive, and regards the professions with great respect and admiration. Everyone is always very approachable, supportive, with smiling faces and, importantly, with genuine cheery dispositions. Adam is really looking forward to reciprocating his wonderful experience of nursing and midwifery by, hopefully, putting a few smiles on the faces of those he endeavours to represent, and by sharing our Alumni and Scholars’ amazing achievements through their case studies.

Jess is a newly registered adult and mental health nurse with a passion for enhancing and broadening the knowledge, opportunities, and experiences of all members of the nursing family. In her last year of her nurse education, Jess was Chair of the Royal College of Nursing Students Committee and encouraged collaborative working not only within the College but with key stakeholders such as the Nursing and Midwifery Council, Health Education England, and the Council of Deans – challenging hierarchy and ways of working. In addition to this, alongside her Chief Nurse and Senior Regional Nurse, Jess established the Hampshire and Isle of Wight Student Nurse Council – ensuring the voice of nursing students was heard at a strategic level within her local system.

She is co-lead of the RCN Newly Registered Nurses Network, and also holds a governance position on the South East Board as Vice Chair. She has recently commenced a MSc in Global Health with Health Professions Education specialist pathway, and continues to support the European Nursing Students Association. Jess’ first post as a registrant was a split one, enabling her to advance her clinical skills in Older Persons Mental Health as well as her experience as an educator in the Trusts Educators in Practice team. Her special interests include clinical supervision, professional use of social media, and advocating for the nursing profession on a global scale.

Carmel is a qualified teacher and mental health nurse with a passion for research and academic writing. Her research and practice are underpinned by a desire to provide a platform for the voices of underrepresented groups. She is also eager to engage nurses in research that can influence future policy, practice, and education.

Prior to becoming a registered nurse, Carmel was employed as a tutor in the higher education sector. However, she chose to join a Graduate Entry Nursing Programme, because of her lifelong interest in mental wellbeing and caring for others. In her final year of nurse education, Carmel became involved in a national research project and has since worked to blend her love of education, nursing, and research. Carmel is currently completing an ESRC-funded PhD at the University of Nottingham, which explores the concept of compassion in mental health nursing.

Carmel is thrilled to be part of the Florence Nightingale Foundation team, and to be contributing to activities that uphold Florence’s legacy to shine a light on the voices of nurses and midwives.

Teresa is our Executive Assistant and Office Manager and uses her skills to keep everyone and everything as organised as possible.

Teresa started her administrative career in local government, before moving into the private sector some ten years later.  Having spent another ten years in PA and Office Manager roles within specialist engineering companies, she is now delighted to bring her experience to the team and hopes to give back to the nursing and midwifery professions, who took such great care of her at birth.

Outside of work, Teresa loves to spend her time cooking and walking her rescue dog in the great outdoors.

As a member of the Princess Mary’s Royal Air Force Nursing Service (PMRAFNS), Jo has worked in numerous locations all over the world, providing nursing care to both military and civilian personnel. Her enthusiasm for unpredictability and high tempo demands, saw her specialise as an emergency nurse and complete multiple Operational tours in this role.

Her passion for developing others supported a move into a clinical educator’s role. Not only was she involved in mentoring and coaching a variety of healthcare professionals in the clinical environment, her experience of working in positions of leadership and management allowed her to develop a bespoke leadership programme for individuals who aspired to progress in this manner.

During this time, Jo completed her PGDip in Teaching and Learning in Higher and Professional Education and Practice and has since commenced study on her MA Education, with a keen interest in human factors and SpLDs. Working at Birmingham City University as a lecturer and tutor has assisted in honing these skills while developing the healthcare professionals of the future. Currently seconded to the Florence Nightingale Foundation as an Educator, Jo is continuously inspired to develop and promote leadership to the Nursing and Midwifery cadre through these fantastic scholarships and programmes.