Alumnus of the month: Ingela Lundquist
In august you meet Ingela Lundquist. She thinks it is important to keep developing in your professional role. Now that she has completed her education she works as a specialist nurse with specialisation ophthalmological care.
Name: Ingela Lundquist
Current profession and city: Eye nurse in Kalmar.
What did you study at Linnaeus University and when did you graduate?
– I studied on a specialist nursing programme, with specialisation ophthalmological care, and graduated spring 2017.
What do you work with now?
– I work as an eye nurse at the eye clinic in Kalmar.
What is most fun about your job and what are the biggest challenges?
– I truly love the surgery part. In Kalmar we carry out a number of different types of eye surgery and treatments. It’s also fun to work at the reception where you can gain insight into many different types of eye diseases, which is also a challenge in itself – to put what you have learned in theory into practice. For instance, when meeting a patient at the on-call reception, to get a feeling for what diagnosis the patient’s symptoms can result in.
How did you establish yourself on the labour market after completing your studies?
– The pace of study was part-time so I worked extra at the eye clinic during my studies.
What was your student life like?
– I studied on a distance education that was, to a large extent, web-based. I often studied late at night and didn’t really dedicate any time to an active student life. It’s quite different o study know, compared to what it was like before I had my children.
What do you bring with you from your studies at Linnaeus University? Is there anything in particular that you have been able to do thanks to your studies?
– The education was very rewarding, I learned so much. What I learned about the eye, its anatomy, physiology, and eye diseases is something that I take with me to work. The knowledge gives me a greater understanding of how the human eye functions.
What is your relationship with Linnaeus University today?
– A course mate and I made a study in which we studied the eye pressure in different yoga positions. We still have some contact with our supervisor since the study may be published.
Can you offer any career tips?
– I think it’s important to feel that you continue to develop at work and that you’re given the opportunity to learn new things – that you don’t stagnate. At the eye clinic, there are many different fields that you can learn more about; for instance, surgery and photography, so there is opportunity for personal development if you are interested.