"The ceremony is always a very special and important event for everyone who works at The Royal Marsden, and in particular the School’s team. It is an opportunity to recognise the dedication and hard work of all who are graduating, and to acknowledge their families and friends’ support.
However, today is a particularly special occasion; due to COVID-19, it has been three years since we last held an awards ceremony. Consequently, some of you have waited a long time to be here today to receive your award. Importantly, all of you graduating today should be extremely proud. Studying while working is always challenging but you have gained your award during an unprecedented time - it is a remarkable achievement.
The awards being presented today are also a testament of the hard work of the RMS’s team. They are a team whom I am very proud to lead and who without doubt have typified, over the last three years, the Royal Marsden Values. They have been innovative, collaborative, pursued excellence in everything they have done, and importantly have always endeavoured to be kind to our students, our colleagues, and each other.
COVID-19 has, without doubt, changed everyone’s lives, including those of us who work at The Royal Marsden School. While our primary function is to provide excellent cancer education, we work within a hospital. At the beginning of the pandemic, we needed to adapt very quickly, to focus on the Trust’s core business, by supporting our clinical colleagues to deliver patient care. The team worked extremely hard with many of the Lecturer Practitioners working clinically while others worked behind the scenes supporting the hospital’s management of COVID-19.
However, in line with many other higher education institutions we also needed to adapt to ensure we continued to deliver our portfolio of education and support our students. Consequently, nearly all our modules can be delivered on-line, which means that health professionals from much further afield can now access our services. Importantly, the RMS continues to be the leading national provider of specialist modules, degrees, and post-graduate awards in cancer care.
There are many people who should be acknowledged and thanked, without whom we would not be able to do what we do. I want to thank our colleagues at University of East Anglia (UEA) for their support, generosity, compassion, and guidance throughout the last three years. We are delighted that UEA will continue to be our academic partners for the next five years. I also want to thank our colleagues who work across the Trust, to those who teach in the RMS and to those who support us behind the scenes in marketing, communications, finances, administration, and workforce. We also have incredible support from the Royal Marsden Charity and the David Adams Leukaemia Trust.
Finally, I must also acknowledge our patients and their carers, who provide our students and the RMS team with the most important learning. We are privileged to have so many come to share their experiences and expertise, helping us to develop, deliver, and improve the education we provide.
At this ceremony we are also launching the start of our 20th year celebrations. The Royal Marsden, since it first opened its doors in 1851, has recognised the importance of education to ensure excellent patient care. The School in its current form was created in 2002. Its primary function was to share and develop the knowledge and expertise of Post-Qualification Nurses and Allied Health Professionals working in cancer care. An important objective for the coming year is that the Royal Marsden School continues to develop professional networks and evaluate the impact of the education we deliver.
The School has achieved much since our last graduation ceremony, but our greatest achievement is every student who is graduating today. We are very proud of you. You may not recognise this yet, but you are the next generation of leaders in cancer care who will have the ability to shape services and improve cancer outcomes. I wish you every success.
I hope you and your guests enjoy today; you all deserve to."
Dr Rebecca Verity
Director of School, David Adams Library and Conference Team
Honorary Professor – University of East Anglia
7th October 2022