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Daniel (pictured), who is in the second year of a nursing degree at the university, has autism – something which his practice assessor Richard says is ‘not his disability, it's his superpower’.

The inspiring post describes how Daniel’s incredible skills give him the potential to be an amazing nurse, and encourages others with autism to believe in their dreams and abilities.

Daniel said: “I’m really shocked that the post has been shared so much. Not many people know much about autism, so raising awareness is really important to me. I want to prove to everyone that just because I’m autistic, doesn’t mean I’m less intelligent; don’t think of autism as a disability, think of it as a different ability. People with autism just learn differently. 

“It's really good to get the recognition from the team I work with on placement as well, it shows to patients that as an autistic student nurse I am compassionate and caring, I can provide the care that they need, and I’ve got the skills to do it correctly.”

Richard’s post said:

“This is me and Dan. Dan is a student nurse, and one day I hope he'll make a great nurse. Here's why.... Dan is autistic, and as I've told him, his autism is not his disability, it's his superpower. His mental maths is great so he'll never get your meds wrong. He'll never forget things on his 'to do list' as his memory is ridiculous. He's always happy, and the world needs more happy nurses. Sure he may need some help sometimes, but who doesn't? Please like or share this to raise awareness and to inspire other people with autism to believe in your dreams and never let anyone tell you that you can't achieve them ❤ (also, I think Dan's head will literally explode if he went viral!) #autism #nursing *update - this has clearly gone viral and I can confirm that Dan's head thankfully hasn't exploded 🤯 🤣”