Black History Month 2020: Marcea's story
Marcea Green-Williams with her son Dantaé)
"My mum always tells me 'you go MAD', especially if I have a shift the next day, and it means 'you go and Make A Difference'. I love her as my mentor; she's my world. She's the one that literally makes me feel every day when I wake up that I can go through that day. She tells me from a little girl growing up that you can become anything you want and you can be the best person in the world. I have a wind beneath my wings and that's my mum."
This October, University Hospitals Dorset are celebrating Black History Month. As part of this, the BAME staff network will be sharing staff stories to raise awareness of the diversity in our NHS family.
Marcea Green-Williams, deputy sister on the treatment and investigations unit and works in the deep vein thrombosis clinic at Royal Bournemouth Hospital, talks to us about her job, her inspiration, her family and what she wants to celebrate this Black History Month.
"Maya Angelou is one of my heroes. She is very inspiring. There are things that she speaks about that pick me up from a dark place. She always encourages me to rise and not to stay down. With her past and who she became, she is really inspiring to me.
I am very family orientated, I love my family. I speak to my mum every day. She lives in America. She is the last person I speak to every night before I go to bed.
My mum thinks this job is my 'calling'. As a child she qualities in me that made her think I would become a nurse. She is also proud of me as my dad died when she was pregnant with me. He died in a motorcycle accident. My dad was a principal for a high school in Jamaica and she thinks that my aspirations, and the fact I am very academic and always striving to achieve, reminds her of my dad and I am the closest she can get in memory of him.
At the age of 11 years I took home the gold medal for singing the hymn "Amazing Grace" at a speech, singing and drama festival. This would be the beginning of the many awards I would be blessed with. I migrated to the UK and after a few months, I enrolled on a fashion course at Southgate College in London. At the completion I was awarded the Eastman Award for Excellence. I then went on to the London College of Fashion, now The University of Arts, where I achieved a Bachelor of Arts degree in Fashion Design and Technology. While at the London College of Fashion I also won an award for the best design for Teenage Cancer Trust. After graduating I went on to work in bridal wear.
After a few years working as a designer I felt the need to return to what I called 'my calling'. Following my interview I then enrolled on a nursing degree program. After three years of studies I was received a first class honours in Adult Nursing and had the honour of giving the valedictorian speech at the graduation ceremony. Post registration I worked in Oncology at both Royal Marsden and Princess Grace Hospitals in London. I also have palliative care experience working at the North London Hospice for 18 months. I moved from London down to Bournemouth for my son, Dantaé, in 2014.
Working in this hospital I have suffered a lot of indifferences and some of them have been because of racism and unfair treatment. I spoke at our Black Lives Matter forum about some of them. In other areas of this hospital I have had people who have been extremely supportive of me. Certain people have been a tower of strength to me and helped me to stay here and not run back to London.
When I was at the Marsden Hospital in London I didn't see myself as a black nurse. London is so multicultural and everyone is open-minded. But down here I see myself as a black nurse. It's different living down here. I won't change where I live though, because I love the countryside - it's the closest I can get to Jamaica with the beach. We grew up in central Jamaica, but my mum is from the Western side near Montego Bay. Every Sunday we would go to the beach at home after church, so the beach is a constant for me. I used to enjoy evening time at the beach, watching the sunset.
Within a year I lost three family members. When I started here in this Trust I started as a nurse practitioner in Urology, then in about 2017, I was redeployed. During that time, I lost my grandmother to heart attack – she was 97. Right after that I had to fly over to America to an emergency surgery for my step-dad; he had a craniotomy. Then coming back here two weeks later, I lost an aunt – my mum's sister, who was my favourite, due to Leukaemia. I came back home from seeing her in America on a Friday and came back to work on the Monday. My aunt had died on the weekend. I struggled. That was the time everything was going bad.
I thought I was healed, but just recently I realised I wasn't. This year my mother lost another brother to prostate cancer at end of August and then all those bad memories just came flooding back. It just hit me again. I was covering a grievance hearing as a Royal College of Nursing rep – it was because of unfair treatment and it was upheld. I was so happy something good came out of that I broke down in tears. Then I just opened up and told my story; they couldn't believe I was still standing. I feel better now that I have spoken about it.
During the time I was grieving, there were colleagues who gave me support. In the middle of it all I have had days when I could smile.
Just last Thursday we lost someone from the unit and the daughter came in with flowers and a card for me. I was like 'I should be taking this to you; you've lost your mummy'. She said: 'No, my mum used to look forward to coming here and she talked about you every day. She said: 'I know this is personal, but this is a scarf that you said she was always happy in when she wore it. She wanted you to have it."
All the people that gathered around when she said that – they were all moved. I said I was very sad, because I had just lost someone as well, but I wasn't at the point when I wanted to cry, because the last time I looked after her she was the happiest I have ever seen her. She was glowing. Something said to me 'she looks so well' and I blew her a kiss and said told her to take care. I said my goodbyes without knowing. That was the last I saw her.
It showed me my purpose is beyond how I feel about how people treat me. It's beyond that. It's getting to the point where you can overlook it or you can get over it and think this is my purpose. I have a wind beneath my wings and that's my mum. I feel I have a job to do and that's not to let my dad down, even though I never met him. And to let me mum feel I am carrying on his legacy.
People think Black History Month is all about slavery, but for me it is about achievement and how far people have come. It is about being different and the best and being forgiving. To celebrate it, you look back at history and you could get angry. You could hate. But I look beyond that and look at what has been achieved; what has come out of the bad. From people who were once enslaved to those who have risen to high positions, like Barack Obama or examples such as Oprah Winfrey and Maya. I have seen nurses in this country who have achieved so much; Donna Kinnair who is RCN president as example.
People should not be judged by the colour of their skin, but the content of their character and the difference they want to make to the world.
I am very ambitious and a very proud mother, daughter, sister and black woman. I endeavour to continue to strive for excellence which is the essence of my existence. I aim always to be a role model and a good example to everyone I meet. I endeavour to stand up always for justice, brotherhood and peace; that this universe my always increase in beauty. I also endeavour to play my part in advancing the welfare of the entire human race."
Marcea with Cecilia Anim, who served as president of the RCN in 2015.
Marcea has also completed the Advance History Taking and Physical Assessment and the Non-Medical Prescribing course at Masters Level. She is an accredited representative for the Royal College of Nursing in the capacity of a Steward and a Learning Representative.
