Publish date: 21 October 2022
My name is Fatima Babatunde and I'm a staff nurse at North Tyneside General Hospital. My heritage is Nigerian and I am a practising Muslim. I work with the Infection Control Team, having joined the Trust as a healthcare assistant in 2015 and have received a lot of support to develop my professional career.
I was sponsored to do my nursing degree which I completed and started my preceptorship in 2019. With a long-term health condition, the pandemic came at the start of my nursing career and once again, I was supported to be in a Covid-safe work environment which was great.
I joined the Black Asian and Minority Ethnicity Network initially, because I was keen to promote the trust as a great place to work in. At the Newcastle Mela one year, while manning the trust information stand, someone asked me what kind of discrimination I faced working in Northumbria. I was able to answer with confidence that, as a Black woman and a practising Muslim, I have never felt discriminated because of my religion or my dress - I wear a hijab.
I feel enabled to practice my faith even if I am at work as we have faith rooms with ablution facilities. I am supported to fast during the months of Ramadan with no issues.
Being a part of the BAME Staff Network enables me not just to promote the trust, but also to participate in making it the workplace that is inclusive for everyone. The theme for this Black History month is Time for Change: Action Not Words. I feel that it is important that during this month, we think about how as individuals, we can make a change in our workplace to make it a place where everyone feels as welcomed and supported as I have been.