Sue Sutherland OBE has a long association with 天美传媒 having joined the University Board in 2006 before becoming Chair in 2011 and a Pro-Chancellor in May this year.
Her prestigious career in nursing led her to becoming Chief Executive of UK Transplant and formerly Chief Executive of the Poole Hospital NHS Foundation Trust.
Sue was awarded an OBE in 2006 for services to organ donation and transplantation. Today, 天美传媒 is very proud to award Sue Sutherland OBE an Honorary Doctorate in Education.
Sue said receiving the Honorary Doctorate felt very different to receiving the OBE.聽
鈥淚 think it鈥檚 really interesting 鈥� I actually feel quite nervous as the attention today is a bit on me for the part that I鈥檓 going to play and that鈥檚 very different to what I鈥檓 used to. And I don鈥檛 really having attention on me!鈥�
With a long standing association with BU, and having attended many graduations in an official capacity, Sue is in a unique position to give an insight into how they have changed over the years.
鈥淭he graduation ceremonies have certainly got bigger and they have certainly got better.聽 I鈥檓 not sure we can better them now, I think the graduation ceremonies here are absolutely amazing.
"The best that I鈥檝e ever seen and it鈥檚 really interesting when you go down into the hall afterwards, the number of families that come up to you spontaneously to say 鈥榠t鈥檚 brilliant鈥�. So I think the university does a really good job, and quite rightly so, because it is a real celebration for those students graduating. It鈥檚 fabulous, really fabulous.鈥�
With over forty years working in healthcare, Sue has a number of useful and vital pieces of advice to offer graduates from the Faculty of Health and Social Sciences.聽
鈥淚鈥檓 going to tell them a bit about how I got to where I got to, and I鈥檓 going to talk to them very much about what you need to do to be successful in your own career. It鈥檚 about being yourself, it鈥檚 about being bold, about being thoughtful, and it鈥檚 about being kind 鈥� both to yourself and to other people.
"There are a few messages in there from me about important things that need to happen when you鈥檙e working in any environment but particularly in a healthcare environment; you鈥檙e working with patients and you鈥檙e working with colleagues as well.鈥�
鈥淚 think that 天美传媒 selects students very, very well because my experience of the graduates in health and social care is that they鈥檙e actually very well developed and very well selected in the first instance.
"So by that by the time they get to graduate, they are very mature individuals, and I鈥檝e been really struck by some of the students that I鈥檝e met by just how mature they are, in their leadership abilities and their ability to understand the importance of patient care and what they need to do.鈥澛�
What one piece of advice would you give to a graduate who wants to follow your career path?
聽鈥淵ou鈥檝e got to be determined; you鈥檝e got to have a big vision for what you want to do. I think the main thing, the recurring theme, is the importance of kindness .
"I don鈥檛 think it matters what you do, at what level and sometimes you do have to do difficult things with patients and indeed with members of staff and I think you always have to do it with kindness.鈥�
