Now it's my turn to help other people

Rutherglen woman inspired to become a nurse

- ROBERT MITCHELL

A Rutherglen woman who feels she was given a second chance at life after contracting the "flesh-eating bug" necrotising fasciitis, has devoted her future to helping others by becoming a nurse.

Ashley Sneddon, 32, is one of more than 500 newly-qualified nurses and midwives to have joined NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde this year.

She has just started a job at the Queen Elizabeth National Spinal Injuries Unit and is loving her new role-but she's aware her life could have been very different.

Ashley, who is a single parent to a 10-year-old son, left school and went to college to study social care, but at the time the course wasn't for her.

"At 18 I got a job at retail chain Iceland and worked there for 10 years, and while I enjoyed it, there was always a feeling I could do more with my life," she said.

In March 2020, just before lockdown, Ashley fell ill. She was diagnosed with necrotising fasciitis and spent three weeks in hospital, much of that time in critical care.