Darren Rowell-Burton

Darren is a lecturer in mental health nursing at the University of Suffolk, he joined the nurse lecturing team in May 2021. He previously qualified as a nurse in 2009 while working for Oxford Health NHS Foundation Trust at Bedfordshire University. During his nursing career, he gained professional experience in a variety of clinical settings, including the NHS and the private sector. Some notable work environments for Darren include liaison mental health, specialist drug and alcohol teams and criminal justice mental health. To develop his nursing practice further he went on to study Substance Use and Misuse at the University of West London. Because of his learning, he developed a professional interest in dual diagnosis (co-morbid mental illness alongside drug and alcohol issues). He hopes to support those mental health nursing students he teaches to develop greater knowledge and understanding in this area.

Darren developed an interest in teaching and learning early on in his nursing role. He earned the old mentorship qualification (MSPP) shortly after qualifying in order to support students in clinical placements. Additional to this, he frequently engaged with various external services and organisations to support them in understanding mental health services better. While working in Liaison Mental Health at Ipswich Hospital he would frequently be involved in teaching and learning activities for the general hospital clinicians to further develop their mental health knowledge. For a fixed term, he worked with a large pharmaceutical company to support them in the roll-out of new medicines. It therefore felt like a natural move for him to come into the education sector and teach the next generation of mental health nurses.

Darren has recently completed his Postgraduate Certificate in Academic Practice (August 2022).