Paulson Baby Arancheril: The diverse culture in India has helped me adapt to life in England

Paulson Baby Arancheril, a Deputy Ward Manager at the Agnes Campbell Ward at Bridgnorth Community Hospital, talks about his background in India and how that has inspired his life in England.

Paulson qualified as a nurse in India and worked in a hospital for two-and-a-half years. He completed a masters in nursing and MBA in Hospital Management and went on to become a lecturer at a nursing college.

He was brought up in Kerala, south India, but his marriage to Liya Jacob brought him to England in 2013. Both he and his wife are from the same area in Kerala and Liya had arrived in the UK in 2010. 

The couple first lived in Croydon, London, where Paulson worked in a nursing home and as a senior healthcare assistant. He then worked on passing his English test and gaining his PIN number to become a nurse.

Paulson said: “Croydon was multi-cultural but there were high living costs and there wasn’t so much of a community spirit – it’s not like Shropshire where you can easily chat with a neighbour as everybody is too busy to stop.”

They now live in Shawbirch, Telford, with their four-year-old daughter. 

Paulson first worked in a nursing home when they moved to Telford.  Once he passed his nursing qualifications he started working in the Stroke Rehabilitation Unit at Princess Royal Hospital and later moved to Bridgnorth Community Hospital.

“Working in the nursing home helped me develop my nursing skills and development. I moved to Bridgnorth Hospital to give me more experience in community settings,” he said.

“We looked at Wellington, Telford because there was a shop to buy Indian food and a real community spirit,” said Paulson.

He and his wife, who works at the dialysis unit at Princess Royal Hospital, quickly became part of the community in Shropshire.

They joined the Shropshire Malayalee Cultural Association (SMCA) and took part in festivals including Onam and organised other events including charity work.

As Roman Catholics, the family also attended mass in their own language at Wellington Catholic Church Hall once a month before COVID. 

But, he said that one of the things he misses from India and living in Croydon is the range of restaurants serving South Indian food.   

His love of Indian food and the fact that his wife is an extremely good cook has also helped him forge good friendships with his colleagues. 

“My colleagues love South Indian food and I would take in food that my wife had cooked.” said Paulson.

 “I feel very lucky working for the NHS. The amount of support I have been able to get with my career development and help with work/life balance is good.”

“The diverse culture in India has helped me adapt to life in England. I find it quite easy to mix with people and this helps me with my work.”

Paulson is involved in the Black, Asian and minority ethnic (BAME) network in Shropshire Community Health NHS Trust.

He is also working with the Royal College of Nursing (RCN) as RCN Representative (steward) and he is attending meetings on behalf of Shropshire Community Health Trust. 

“Currently we are planning for a nurses forum for international nurses. It is for international nurses in Shrewsbury and Telford Hospital Trust (SaTH) at the moment but they are hoping to expand it to Shropshire Community Health Trust and The Robert Jones and Agnes Hunt Orthopaedic Hospital (RJAH).

“It is providing me with a link to support them as working in healthcare is very different here to India. In India, they do not look at your social background with healthcare and it is all very private sector.

“My experience as a healthcare assistant helped me quite a lot as I gained knowledge of how the health system worked before I became a nurse.

“My current role as a Deputy Ward Manager has really helped me understand what the issues are and my BAME background can help the BAME network understand what needs to be done. I can act as a mediator.

“During COVID I was able to support those from a BAME background within the trust and reassure them over any concerns they had”.

Paulson’s family now live in Florida and Dubai and his wife’s family are still in Kerala, but they try to go back to Kerala for family celebrations.