Dame Elizabeth Nneka Anionwu (born Elizabeth Mary Furlong; 2 July 1947) is a British nurse, health care administrator, lecturer, and emeritus professor of Nursing at the

University of West London The University of West London (UWL) is a public research university in the United Kingdom with campuses in Ealing, Brentford, and Reading, Berkshire. The university has roots in 1860 when the Lady Byron School was founded, later Ealing Colleg ...

. In 1979, Anionwu became the United Kingdom's first

sickle-cell Sickle cell disease (SCD), also simply called sickle cell, is a group of inherited haemoglobin-related blood disorders. The most common type is known as sickle cell anemia. Sickle cell anemia results in an abnormality in the oxygen-carrying p ...

and

thalassemia Thalassemias are a group of Genetic disorder, inherited blood disorders that manifest as the production of reduced hemoglobin. Symptoms depend on the type of thalassemia and can vary from none to severe, including death. Often there is mild to ...

nurse specialist, helping establish the Brent Sickle Cell and Thalassaemia Counselling centre with consultant haematologist Milica Brozovic. In 1998, by then a professor of nursing, Anionwu created the

Mary Seacole Mary Jane Seacole (;Anionwu, E. N. (2012), "Mary Seacole: nursing care in many lands". ''British Journal of Healthcare Assistants'' 6(5), pp. 244–248. 23 November 1805 – 14 May 1881) was a British Nursing, nurse and Women in business ...

Centre for Nursing Practice at the

. She holds the

Order of Merit The Order of Merit () is an order of merit for the Commonwealth realms, recognising distinguished service in the armed forces, science, art, literature, or the promotion of culture. Established in 1902 by Edward VII, admission into the order r ...

, was appointed a

Dame Commander of the Order of the British Empire The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding valuable service in a wide range of useful activities. It comprises five classes of awards across both civil and military divisions, the most senior two o ...

and is a

Fellow A fellow is a title and form of address for distinguished, learned, or skilled individuals in academia, medicine, research, and industry. The exact meaning of the term differs in each field. In learned society, learned or professional society, p ...

of the

Royal College of Nursing The Royal College of Nursing (RCN) is a registered trade union and professional body in the United Kingdom for those in the profession of nursing. It was founded in 1916 as the College of Nursing, receiving its royal charter in 1928. Queen Eliz ...

(RCN). She retired in 2007, and in 2016 she published her memoirs, ''Mixed Blessings from a Cambridge Union''.

Early life

Elizabeth Nneka Anionwu was born Elizabeth Mary Furlong in

Birmingham Birmingham ( ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, city and metropolitan borough in the metropolitan county of West Midlands (county), West Midlands, within the wider West Midlands (region), West Midlands region, in England. It is the Lis ...

, to an Irish mother and a

Nigeria Nigeria, officially the Federal Republic of Nigeria, is a country in West Africa. It is situated between the Sahel to the north and the Gulf of Guinea in the Atlantic Ocean to the south. It covers an area of . With Demographics of Nigeria, ...

n father. Her mother, Mary Maureen Furlong, was in her second year studying classics at

Newnham College Newnham College is a women's constituent college of the University of Cambridge. The college was founded in 1871 by a group organising Lectures for Ladies, members of which included philosopher Henry Sidgwick and suffragist campaigner Millicen ...

Cambridge Cambridge ( ) is a List of cities in the United Kingdom, city and non-metropolitan district in the county of Cambridgeshire, England. It is the county town of Cambridgeshire and is located on the River Cam, north of London. As of the 2021 Unit ...

. Her father, Lawrence Odiatu Victor Anionwu, was studying law, also at the University of Cambridge. Her upbringing had been heavily affected by moving between institutions and family. She spent just over two years living with her mother, a relationship that ended when her stepfather, who did not accept her and drank heavily, started to physically abuse her. She was placed in a Catholic

children's home Residential child care communities or children's homes are a type of residential care, which refers to long-term care given to children who cannot stay in their birth family home. There are two different approaches towards residential care: The fam ...

where she was cared for by nuns, including several years in the Nazareth House convent in Birmingham. Often harshly punished and humiliated for wetting the bed, she remembers being made to stand with a urine-soaked sheet over her head as a punishment for wetting the bed. In the book she recalls, that later in life when working as a health visitor, "I made sure to keep up-to-date with more humane treatments for bedwetting". Nonetheless, she grieved leaving the convent to go and live with her mother. Every period of relative stability in childhood ended in sudden collapse. Following an unsettled childhood she qualified as a nurse, then health visitor. Shortly before her 25th birthday she suddenly found her father: barrister and former Nigerian Ambassador to Italy and the Vatican, Lawrence Anionwu. She was to visit Nigeria frequently and later changed her surname to Anionwu.

Family

Anionwu has credited her father, Lawrence Anionwu, a

barrister A barrister is a type of lawyer in common law jurisdiction (area), jurisdictions. Barristers mostly specialise in courtroom advocacy and litigation. Their tasks include arguing cases in courts and tribunals, drafting legal pleadings, jurisprud ...

and

diplomat A diplomat (from ; romanization, romanized ''diploma'') is a person appointed by a state (polity), state, International organization, intergovernmental, or Non-governmental organization, nongovernmental institution to conduct diplomacy with one ...

, as the first person to provide her with career advice. Anionwu has a daughter, the actress Azuka Oforka.

Career

Anionwu began her nursing career inspired by a nursing nun who cared for her

eczema Dermatitis is a term used for different types of skin inflammation, typically characterized by itchiness, redness and a rash. In cases of short duration, there may be small blisters, while in long-term cases the skin may become thickened ...

at the age of four. At the age of 16, she left school with seven O-levels and started to work as a school nurse assistant in

Wolverhampton Wolverhampton ( ) is a city and metropolitan borough in the West Midlands (county), West Midlands of England. Located around 12 miles (20 km) north of Birmingham, it forms the northwestern part of the West Midlands conurbation, with the towns of ...

. She continued with education to become a nurse, health visitor, and tutor. She travelled to the United States to study counselling for

and

centres as courses were not then available in the UK. In 1979, she worked with Dr Milica Brozovic to create the first nurse-led UK sickle-cell and thalassemia screening and counselling centre in

London Borough of Brent Brent () is a London boroughs, borough in north-west London, England. It is known for landmarks such as Wembley Stadium, the BAPS Shri Swaminarayan Mandir London, Swaminarayan Temple and the Kiln Theatre. It also contains the Brent Reservoir, W ...

. This was the first of over 30 centres in the UK using the Brent Centre as a model. From 1990 to 1997, worked as a

lecturer Lecturer is an academic rank within many universities, though the meaning of the term varies somewhat from country to country. It generally denotes an academic expert who is hired to teach on a full- or part-time basis. They may also conduct re ...

at the Institute of Child Health,

University College London University College London (Trade name, branded as UCL) is a Public university, public research university in London, England. It is a Member institutions of the University of London, member institution of the Federal university, federal Uni ...

, and was later promoted to senior lecturer in Community Genetic Counselling. With the help of Professor Marcus Pembrey, Anionwu taught a course at University College London for

National Health Service The National Health Service (NHS) is the term for the publicly funded health care, publicly funded healthcare systems of the United Kingdom: the National Health Service (England), NHS Scotland, NHS Wales, and Health and Social Care (Northern ...

(NHS) staff members who worked with communities affected or at risk of

sickle-cell disease Sickle cell disease (SCD), also simply called sickle cell, is a group of inherited haemoglobin-related blood disorders. The most common type is known as sickle cell anemia. Sickle cell anemia results in an abnormality in the oxygen-carrying ...

cystic fibrosis Cystic fibrosis (CF) is a genetic disorder inherited in an autosomal recessive manner that impairs the normal clearance of Sputum, mucus from the lungs, which facilitates the colonization and infection of the lungs by bacteria, notably ''Staphy ...

Tay–Sachs disease Tay–Sachs disease is an Genetic disorder, inherited fatal lysosomal storage disease that results in the destruction of nerve cells in the brain and spinal cord. The most common form is infantile Tay–Sachs disease, which becomes apparent arou ...

and thalassaemia. Anionwu was appointed the dean of the School of Adult Nursing Studies and Professor of Nursing at

. Here, she created the

Centre for Nursing Practice at the University of West London, retiring in 2007. In 2001, Anionwu, along with Professor Atkin, wrote ''The Politics of Sickle Cell and Thalassemia''. In 2003 she became a Trustee and subsequently vice-chairperson of the Mary Seacole Memorial Statue Appeal and in 2005, she wrote, ''A Short History of Mary Seacole''. Following the unveiling of the

statue A statue is a free-standing sculpture in which the realistic, full-length figures of persons or animals are carved or Casting (metalworking), cast in a durable material such as wood, metal or stone. Typical statues are life-sized or close to ...

St Thomas' Hospital St Thomas' Hospital is a large NHS teaching hospital in Central London, England. Administratively part of the Guy's and St Thomas' NHS Foundation Trust, together with Guy's Hospital, Evelina London Children's Hospital, Royal Brompton Hospita ...

in June 2016, she was appointed a Life Patron of the Mary Seacole Trust. She chaired several projects for the NHS Sickle and Thalassaemia Screening Programme, including the development of "Caring for people with sickle cell disease and thalassaemia syndromes: A framework for nursing staff" that was accredited in 2010 by the Royal College of Nursing, and "Understanding the contribution of sickle cell and thalassaemia specialist nurses" (2012), funded through a grant from the Roald Dahl's Marvellous Children's Charity. Anionwu is also a Patron of other charities: * Sickle Cell Society * Nigerian Nurses Charitable Association UK * Vice President of Unite/ Community Practitioners and Health Visitors Association * Honorary Advisor to England's

Chief Nursing Officer Nursing management consists of the performance of the leadership functions of governance and decision-making within organizations employing nurses. It includes processes common to all management like planning, organizing, staffing, directing an ...

's Black & Minority Ethnic Strategic Advisory Group

Publications

In 2016, she published the first edition of her memoir called ''Mixed Blessing from a Cambridge Union'' (). In 2021, her updated memoir, ''Dreams From My Mother'', was published by Seven Dials, an imprint of The Orion Publishing Group. In her book, she reveals the many layers of her life, from a childhood marked by hidden truths to uncovering her father's identity, experiencing a political awakening, and emerging as a leader in Black health advocacy. She sheds light on the profound health disparities affecting ethnic communities, spanning issues from sickle cell disease to the inequalities exposed by the

COVID-19 Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a contagious disease caused by the coronavirus SARS-CoV-2. In January 2020, the disease spread worldwide, resulting in the COVID-19 pandemic. The symptoms of COVID‑19 can vary but often include fever ...

pandemic.

Awards and honors

Anionwu was appointed

Commander of the Order of the British Empire The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding valuable service in a wide range of useful activities. It comprises five classes of awards across both civil and military divisions, the most senior two o ...

(CBE) in the 2001 Birthday Honours for her services to nursing. In 2004 she was awarded the Fellowship of the Royal College of Nursing (FRCN) for developing the

and

counselling centre. In 2007, following her retirement, she was appointed

Emeritus Professor ''Emeritus/Emerita'' () is an honorary title granted to someone who retires from a position of distinction, most commonly an academic faculty position, but is allowed to continue using the previous title, as in "professor emeritus". In some c ...

for Nursing at the

. In 2010 she was inducted into the ''

Nursing Times ''Nursing Times'' is a website and monthly magazine for nurses, which is published in the United Kingdom. It covers original nursing research and best practice for nurses at all stages in their career, as well as daily news, opinion and other inf ...

'' Nursing Hall of Fame for the dedication to the Development of Nurse-led Services. She also received the 2015 Lifetime Achievement Award on ''Divas of Colour''. Anionwu was appointed

(DBE) in the

2017 New Year Honours The 2017 New Year Honours are appointments by some of the 16 Commonwealth realms to various orders and honours to recognise and reward good works by citizens of those countries. The New Year Honours were awarded as part of the New Year celebrati ...

for services to nursing and the Mary Seacole Statue Appeal. Anionwu was awarded a Fellowship of the Queen's Nursing Institute in October 2017. In 2019, in recognition of Anionwu's major contribution to nursing, research and campaigning, the

University of St Andrews The University of St Andrews (, ; abbreviated as St And in post-nominals) is a public university in St Andrews, Scotland. It is the List of oldest universities in continuous operation, oldest of the four ancient universities of Scotland and, f ...

conferred on her the degree of Doctor of Science, ''honoris causa''. Also in 2019 she was awarded an honorary doctorate from

Birmingham City University Birmingham City University (abbrev. BCU) is a university in Birmingham, England. Initially established as the Birmingham College of Art with roots dating back to 1843, it was designated as a polytechnic (United Kingdom), polytechnic in 1971 an ...

, in recognition of her major contribution to the nursing profession. At the Pride of Britain Awards in October 2019, Anionwu received the Lifetime Achievement Award, "in recognition of her passion for nursing and dedication to reducing health inequalities", the presentation being made

Janet Jackson Janet Damita Jo Jackson (born May 16, 1966) is an American singer, songwriter, actress and dancer. She is noted for her innovative, socially conscious and sexually provocative records, as well as elaborate stage shows. Her sound and choreogr ...

. On 31 May 2020 Anionwu was the subject of an episode of ''

Desert Island Discs ''Desert Island Discs'' is a radio programme broadcast on BBC Radio 4. It was first broadcast on the BBC Forces Programme on 29 January 1942. Each week a guest, called a " castaway" during the programme, is asked to choose eight audio recordin ...

'' on

BBC Radio 4 BBC Radio 4 is a British national radio station owned and operated by the BBC. The station replaced the BBC Home Service on 30 September 1967 and broadcasts a wide variety of spoken-word programmes from the BBC's headquarters at Broadcasti ...

. She was on the list of the BBC's

100 Women (BBC) ''100 Women'' is a BBC multi-format series established in 2013. The annual series examines the role of women in the 21st century and has included events in London and Mexico. Announcement of the list is the start of an international "BBC's wome ...

announced later that year on 23 November. She was made a member of the

in 2022. In May 2023, she carried the

Sovereign's Orb The Crown Jewels of the United Kingdom, originally the Crown Jewels of England, are a collection of royal ceremonial objects kept in the Jewel House at the Tower of London, which include the Coronation of the British monarch, coronation regalia ...

in the Royal procession at the

Coronation of Charles III and Camilla The Coronation of the British monarch, coronation of Charles III and his wife, Queen Camilla, Camilla, as Monarchy of the United Kingdom, king and List of British royal consorts, queen of the United Kingdom and the 14 other Commonwealth re ...

References

External links

*
"Professor Dame Elizabeth Nneka Anionwu"
@ NHS Curator Archive
"Professor Dame Elizabeth Nneka Anionwu"
Women in the Humanities (WiH), Oxford University. {{DEFAULTSORT:Anionwu, Elizabeth Academics of the University of West London Academics of the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine English nurses Nigerian recipients of British titles Dames Commander of the Order of the British Empire Members of the Order of Merit Living people Fellows of the Royal College of Nursing 1947 births English people of Nigerian descent English people of Irish descent Black British women academics British women academics Black British academics Academics from Birmingham, West Midlands Health professionals from Birmingham, West Midlands Black British health professionals British nurses Black British women scientists 21st-century British women scientists Black British scientists