Taahirah Sidibe-McIntosh isn’t your average fourth-year student. She spends three days a week working on an all-male, low-secure ward in a forensic mental health unit, and one day working from home. “I get up at 5.50am, and I’m on the train at 7.18am,” she says. Most people on the ward have come from prison or mental health hospitals. She was initially apprehensive, but the experience has been a hugely positive one. “I’m so supported and I’m seeing so much progress with the patients.”
Sidibe-McIntosh has always wanted to be a forensic psychologist and doing a placement while studying at the University of Portsmouth is setting her firmly on course to becoming one. She works with a team of health professionals, from social workers and nurses to senior clinical and forensic psychologists. “I go through reports, attend meetings and ward rounds, make notes and observe psychological assessments. There’s a lot to learn. It fascinates me.”
