Lena Solanki DipHe Paramedic Practice. Paramedic Clinical Tutor.
Lena’s career began in 1998 with the Lancashire Ambulance Service as a call taker. After a brief spell adjusting to life as a new mum, she started training with the London Ambulance Service in 2010 as a student paramedic. She joined the clinical education and standards department in 2018 and trained as a clinical tutor, achieving her teaching qualification in 2020. Lena has enjoyed her career with the London Ambulance Service and finds it immensely rewarding. Lena likes to help others especially during their times of need and supports them in achieving their goals.
Tanya Somani MSc. Registered Paramedic.
Tanya began her career in paramedicine in 2008 practising in metropolitan and regional NSW Australia. Tanya completed a Bachelor Paramedicine (University of Tasmania) and undertook volunteer work in Papua New Guinea. She developed an interest in infection control, attaining a graduate certificate in clinical redesign (University of Tasmania), with a focus on environmental cleaning of ambulances, and an infection prevention and control qualification from the Australian College of Infection Prevention and Control. Tanya worked as part of the Sydney Metropolitan Ambulance Infrastructure program as program manager for the Make Ready Model and as station officer. Tanya has been the recipient of the Safety Thinker Award 2021 for NSW Ambulance, International Woman of the Year award 2021 from Council Ambulance Authorities and received a Commissioner Citation in 2021. Currently she is health relationship manager for NSW Ambulance. Tanya is passionate about patient and paramedic safety with a focus on systems improvement and project management.
Olivia Thornton BEnvSc, Dip Pre‐hospital Care, MPharm (Dist), AACPa, MSHPA. Pharmacist – Accredited Consultant.
Olivia began her career as a paramedic with the New South Wales Ambulance Service. During her 10 years of service as a paramedic, she worked at multiple sites in NSW, including metropolitan and regional areas. Olivia undertook a master’s in pharmacy through the University of Newcastle, graduating with distinction. Her pharmacy career has included working in community pharmacy, hospital pharmacy, consultancy work and as a clinical associate lecturer for an undergraduate pharmacy program. She has an interest in improving medication safety for people with complex chronic health conditions throughout their medical journey, including during hospital admissions, aged care/disability care or at home. Her clinical interest areas are pre‐ and postsurgical admission, diabetes, Parkinson disease and mental health pharmacology.
Charlotte White BSc (Hons) Paramedic Science and PGCert Medical Healthcare Education. Education Centre Manager.
Charlotte has worked in paramedicine since 2012. Previously, she worked within a learning disability and dementia setting, then moved into clinical settings in numerous hospitals. Charlotte has enjoyed mentoring students during her operational duties, which sparked her passion to move into a formal education working environment, where she is currently undertaking a secondment. Charlotte enjoys the dynamic and challenging work education can bring, always striving for continuous developmental practice.
Dean Whiting RN, BN (Hons), BSc (Hons), PgCAP, PgDip(ACP), MSc, FHEA. Principal Lecturer in Advanced Clinical Practice, University of Hertfordshire. Advanced Clinical Practitioner, Berryfields Medical Centre, Buckinghamshire. Advanced Clinical Practitioner, London Scottish RFC.
Dean began his career in the British Army as a combat medical technician and then studied at the Royal Centre for Defence Medicine and the University of Portsmouth to become a registered nurse. During his time in the military, he mainly specialised in trauma and critical care nursing and was fortunate enough to work all over the UK and around the world. Since 2012, Dean has worked in higher education and pursued a clinical career in general practice and sports nursing. He now leads the MSc in Advanced Clinical Practice at the University of Hertfordshire.
Carol Wills MSc Multidisciplinary Professional Development and Education, PGDip Advanced Practice, Bsc (Hons) Specialist Community Public Health Nursing (SCPHN) (Health Visiting), DipHE Adult Nursing, Registered Nurse (RN), Enrolled Nurse (EN), Registered Health Visitor (HV), Community Practitioner Prescriber (NP), Registered Lecturer/Practice Educator (RLP), Senior Fellow (SFHEA), Subject and Programme Leader Non‐Medical Prescribing at Northumbria University.
Carol began her career undertaking enrolled nurse training in 1983 at Hexham Hospital in Northumberland. She then worked within neurotrauma at Newcastle General Hospital and then for several years in coronary care and intensive care at Hexham Hospital. This experience and additional training to complete registered nurse qualification then stimulated her to focus on primary care and prevention of ill health. Carol worked as a practice nurse and nurse practitioner in Newcastle city centre and as a staff nurse within Northumberland community nursing teams before going on to complete a health visiting degree and working in Newcastle as a health visitor for several years. During this time, she undertook several leadership and teaching roles including immunisation training co‐ordinator, community practice teacher and trust lead mentor. Carol has been a senior lecturer at Northumbria University since 2002 and has led several postgraduate professional programmes including MSc Education in Professional Practice (NMC Teacher programme), PGDip SCPHN and the Non‐Medical Prescribing programme. She has also undertaken national roles including Policy Advice Committee member and Treasurer for the UK Standing Conference SCPHN Education and subject expert for several quality approval panels and external examiner roles. Her key areas of interest and research are around developing learning and teaching and advanced level practice.
Barbara Wimmer BPharm (Hons), MSc (Clin Pharm), PhD. Lecturer.
Barbara brings together experience in community and hospital pharmacy and clinical research in Europe and in Australia. She worked in community pharmacies as pharmacist in charge and is an approved hospital pharmacist. Barbara has experience teaching pharmacology to nursing students and oversaw quality assurance in a hospital setting in Austria. Following on from her master of clinical pharmacy at the University of Strathclyde, Scotland, she returned to Steyr Hospital in Austria to lead the service for drugs information and clinical pharmacy. Barbara’s PhD studies at Monash University in Melbourne focused on factors associated with medication regimen complexity. She joined the University of Tasmania in 2016 and teaches clinical pharmacokinetics to undergraduate students.
Paul Younger MClinRes, PGCert (Medical Ultrasound), PGCE, BSc(Hons), BA(Hons), DipPUC, FCPara. Advanced Paramedic Practitioner. North East Ambulance Service.
Paul joined the North East Ambulance Service in 2002, completing his paramedic training in 2005. He has a master’s in clinical research from Newcastle University, a PGCE, and a postgraduate qualification in medical ultrasound. He studied non‐medical prescribing at Northumbria University, becoming one of the first paramedics in the UK to complete their training. He works clinically as an advanced practitioner for the North East Ambulance Service. A member of the College of Paramedics council and board since 2010, he has held various posts including regional and alternative regional representative for the North East, vice and deputy chair before being appointed as vice president in 2021. For his work with the profession and the college, Paul was made a fellow of the College