Tom Walters

"Since graduating with a degree in adult nursing at Kingston I decided to take on the challenge of specialising in intensive care, studying further courses in critical care and physiology at Kings College.  Employed at one of the top intensive units in the country has provided me a wealth of experience in terms of ethical dilemmas that continue to astound me, even to this day.  Working in an environment dominated by critically ill patients, where focus under pressure is paramount, team work is vital, and where knowledge and understanding of morality and the law is absolute.

I have always been fascinated with the law and how it intertwines in a kind of symbiotic relationship with ethics.  It is not only highly pertinent to my own profession, but to health professionals and patients as a whole.  By studying the MA in Medical Law and Ethics I intend to use the knowledge gained to enhance my understanding on the fundamental complexities that continue to exist within the clinical setting, to bolster my influence as a patient advocate, and to attempt to evolve and shape the way other people view ethico-legal dilemmas in the future.

Choosing to study this course at Queen Mary was always my first choice in terms of academic reputation, research facilities, teaching quality, as well as offering, in my view, the best medical law and ethics masters’ curriculum available.  The completion of my first year has proven to me that my choice was indeed the right one.  What amazed me was how passionate, intellectually stimulating, forward thinking and open the teaching staff actually are.  I found other students on the course to be both friendly, warm, and supportive, each offering their own individual professional expertise into the fold, adding to great class debates.

Studying this course involves a lot of reading, commitment, focus, and above all devotion to the course, which to me is exactly one of the reasons why I chose to study this degree in the first place".