Senior Lecturer in Children's Nursing and Course Coordinator

I qualified as a Registered General Nurse in the mid 1980's and following a short period working with patients with medical conditions moved into paediatric nursing and qualified as a Registered Sick Children's Nurse in 1988. Following several years working in general paediatrics, paediatric intensive care and paediatric surgery, trauma and orthopaedics I trained as a health visitor. The training was due to my interest in health promotion.

After five years working in Kent I moved to Bedfordshire where I have lived since 1996. As a health visitor in Bedford I also had a role in working with a multi-disciplinary team around accident prevention and was the liaison health visitor at Bedford Hospital. In 2000 I took a post in the Emergency Department at Bedford Hospital as an Emergency Nurse Practitioner following which I moved into practice development in the paediatric and neonatal unit at the same hospital.

In 2003 I moved into higher education at Homerton School of Health Studies (later Anglia Ruskin University) before returning to practice as a health visitor in 2010. My last position took me to the east end of London working in Newham.

I am studying towards a PhD at Dublin City University where my research question is 'Does the presence of visible body ornamentation (tattoos and piercings) on nurses have an effect on the caring (nurse/patient) relationship'.

I play hockey and squash regularly and cycle to keep fit. I have led a number of expeditions to mountainous areas including the Himalayas, the Atlas Mountains and South America. I try to walk regularly in the Lakes, Snowdonia and the Peak District.

Qualifications

• Registered General Nurse - Medway School of Nursing, 1986
• Registered Sick Children's Nurse - Medway School of Nursing, 1988
• Teaching and Assessing in Clinical Practice - Medway School of Nursing, 1990
• Registered Health Visitor - Mid Kent College of Further Education, 1991
• BA (Hons) in Health Care - University of Luton, 2000
• Developing Autonomous Practice - University of Hertfordshire, 2001
• Mountain Walking Leader - Summer, 2001
• MSc in Nursing - City University, London, 2004
• Post Graduate Certificate in Medical and Health Care Education - Anglia Ruskin University, 2007
• Fellow of the Higher Education Academy - 2007
• Community Nurse Prescribing - University of Bedfordshire, 2012
• Rescue Emergency Care - REC Provider, Snowdonia, 2013

Teaching Role

• Health care in communities and people through the lifespan
• As a new member of the teaching staff I am developing my teaching portfolio

Research Interests

• I am fascinated by the way we perceive the world around us and how as individuals we develop our perceptions of individuals and groups.
• I want to explore different ways of finding out about the world we live in and what makes us tick.
• Why do we do what we do?

Recent Research Projects

• 2011 - Evaluation of the role of Registered Nurses working in Health Visiting Teams in Milton Keynes (local evaluation project)
• 2007 - Evaluation of IMPACT service. Cambridgeshire Social Services

Service to the Academic/Professional Community

• Peer reviewer for the Journal of Mixed Methods Research

Recent Conference Presentations

• 2009 – Bilham, S. The perception of visible body modification in healthcare: Are nurses with visible tattoos perceived differently to nurses without visible tattoos? European Doctoral Conference in Nursing Science, Medical University of Graz, Austria (18-19 September)
• 2009 – Bilham, S. The perception of visible body modification in healthcare. Post Graduate Research Conference, University of Sheffield (3 June)
• 2007 – Bray, J & Bilham, S. Utilising a solution focussed model when interviewing vulnerable individuals. Third International Congress of Qualitative Inquiry, University of Illinois, Urbaba-Champaign (2-5 May)
• 2006 - Bilham, S. An investigation into the motivations of registered nurses and midwives to participate in post registration education and development: A novice researcher's reflections. Mixed Methods Conference, Fitzwilliam College, Cambridge (8-11 July)
• 2006 - Bilham, S. An investigation into the motivations of registered nurses and midwives to participate in post registration education and development. Making Research Accessible, HSHS, Fulbourn (26-27 April)
• 2006 - Bilham, S. An investigation into the motivations of registered nurses and midwives to participate in post registration education and development: A novice researcher's reflections (poster). 12^th Qualitative Health Research Conference, Edmonton (2-5 April)
• 2003 - Bird, D., Barchard, F. and Bilham, S. - Innovations in learning - towards an erudite culture. 5th RCN Joint Education Forum's Conference - Partners in Practice, Bournemouth (13-15 February)
• 2002 - Barchard, F., Bilham, S. and Bird, D. - Intranet learning - Has it a place in a DGH? The reflective practice, practice development and action research 2nd annual joint conference, Keele University (11-13 September)
• 2002 - Barchard, F., Bilham, S. and Bird, D. - The evolution of a practice development team in a medium DGH. The reflective practice, practice development and action research 2nd annual joint conference, Keele University (11-13 September)

Recent Publications

• Bilham, S. (2014) 'Using Developmental Theories to Enhance Holistic Care', in Thurston, C. (ed) Essential Nursing Care for Children and Young People Theory, Policy and Practice Oxford: Routledge pp.40-60.
• Bilham, S. (2014) 'Cultural Aspects for Children and Young People', in Thurston, C. (ed) Essential Nursing Care for Children and Young People Theory, Policy and Practice Oxford: Routledge pp.81-96.
• Bilham, S. (2000) 'Boy story'. Nursing Times, 96(11), pp. 30-31.

Contact Details

Butterfield Park campus
Unit 260-270
Butterfield
Great Marlings
Luton LU2 8DL

E: stephen.bilham@beds.ac.uk