Childhood inspiration leads Coventry student nurse into career dream
Coventry University graduate overcame major health challenges to pursue nursing
A woman who was inspired by the nurses caring for her during childhood has taken her first steps into a nursing career after graduating from Coventry University.
Sehanaj Kaur, now 37, spent much of her early life in and out of hospital after being diagnosed with Graves’ disease at the age of three, a condition that affected her growth, eyesight and heart rate.
She later moved to Coventry and was also diagnosed in adulthood with Type 1 diabetes, Autism Spectrum Disorder and ADHD.
Despite knowing from the age of eight that she wanted to be a nurse, Sehanaj spent years believing the opportunity had passed her by.
At 33, she returned to education, completed an access course and secured a place on a Children and Young People’s Nursing degree at Coventry University, turning a lifelong ambition into reality.
Now newly qualified, Sehanaj has gone straight into a job at University Hospitals Coventry and Warwickshire (UHCW) NHS Trust.
Sehanaj said: "I can understand what these children are going through because I’ve been there. Sometimes just feeling understood makes all the difference.
Reflecting on her childhood experiences in hospital, Sehanaj recalls the compassion shown to her by nurses during frightening and confusing moments: "It was the nurses who inspired me. My parents couldn’t always be there and it was the nurses who stayed with me, listened to me, comforted me and helped me feel safe.
"I saw them as the unsung heroes and I wanted to give back even a fraction of what they gave to me.
"When I didn’t understand what was happening, they showed me kindness and patience. Even when I was pulling out my cannula or wandering the ward, they never got angry - they just took care of me.
"They’d take me to the playroom in the middle of the night and made me feel cared for, never like a burden. That stayed with me and that’s the impact I want to have on children."
Sehanaj continued: "I wasn’t very good at school but that didn’t mean I wasn’t capable - I just needed the right environment and support. University was different.
“Nursing is practical, hands‑on and compassionate, and having such a large teaching hospital on Coventry’s doorstep gave me invaluable exposure to children’s nursing."