Please briefly describe your clinical/medical experience to date?
I have been a registered nurse for almost 17 years now. While I got my degree abroad, over 7 years of it was practised here in the UK.
I am a paediatric nurse with experience delivering safe, compassionate, and family-centred care across a range of clinical settings. I collaborate effectively within the multidisciplinary team, advocate for my patient’s and their families best interests, and I do my best to maintain high standards of safeguarding, infection control, and professional practice.
In my current role, I make sure that I provide specialised and evidence-based care to premature and unwell babies within the neonatal setting.
What motivated you to enter paediatric care in the first place?
I was inspired to be a paediatric nurse because of my youngest sister who has cerebral palsy. None of my family was in the medical field. I saw this profession more like a calling than just a career one wants to achieve. My sister was in and out of the hospital a lot when we were growing up and I wanted to be able to take good care of her properly. I decided to be a paediatric nurse so that I can provide care to others the way I want my sister to be cared for.
How will the funding from The Evie Dove Foundation help you to advance your career and your impact/services to children?
This funding will support my access to specialist neonatal and infant-feeding education, which will enable me to strengthen my knowledge and clinical skills in supporting breastfeeding babies and their families. Through enhanced training, I will be better equipped to promote, protect, and support breastfeeding, particularly for premature and vulnerable infants. The learning I will gain will allow me to provide more effective guidance to parents, address feeding challenges early, and to contribute to consistent, high-quality infant-feeding practices within our neonatal team. This will support my professional development while improving breastfeeding outcomes, parental confidence, and the health of babies under my care.
How did you find out about The Evie Dove Foundation?
I first found out about the Evie Dove Foundation through my colleagues.
Tell us about yourself!
My first name is Kristine but I prefer to be called Abby. I am a mother of two (twins) toddlers, they are my world outside work. But whenever I get some time to myself, I like doing yoga. I also prefer beach holidays to city breaks. I also enjoy watching theatre shows. Lately, I love food, I love everything about it- making it, preparing it and eating it. It’s an effective stress reliever for me when I get to do it without interruptions (ie. my kids).
Anything else you would like to tell us about your experience, future aspirations and motivations?
I have been a paediatric nurse for over a decade, but my understanding of mother-baby bonding and breastfeeding deepened significantly after becoming a mother myself. Despite being a children’s nurse when I gave birth, my knowledge of the benefits of skin-to-skin contact, colostrum collection, breastfeeding, and postnatal health was limited to what I had read or observed in practise. It was only through my own first-hand experience that I came to truly appreciate the value of these practices. Since returning from maternity leave, I have made a conscious effort to support mothers not only in their breastfeeding journey but also in their physical, emotional, and mental well-being -particularly drawing on what I have personally experienced. Gaining a deeper understanding of BFI principles will help me further advocate for, and empower, mothers (and their partners) as they embark on this new chapter of their lives.
I am deeply grateful to everyone who supported me and my husband throughout our journey. Moving forward, I hope to give back by extending that same compassion,knowledge, and encouragement to the families I care for
