When she gave birth to quads 21 years ago, Joby Shibu Mathew was naturally proud of her little angels.
Now her four daughters have given the nurse even more joy, by following in her footsteps and working for the NHS.
Aneetta, Anjel and Aleena truly are sisters – they joined the wards at the Royal Papworth Hospital in Cambridge this week after qualifying as nurses.
Aneesha took a physiotherapy course and began work at Kettering Hospital in Northamptonshire two weeks ago.
Fantastic four, from left: Aneetta, Anjel and Aleena, 21, who are now nurses at Royal Papworth Hospital in Cambridge, with physiotherapist Aneesha
Mrs Shibu Mathew, who works in the oncology department of Ipswich Hospital, hopes her daughters will inspire others to consider a career in the NHS.
‘They said to me they saw my passion for caring and being a nurse and that they wanted to do it too,’ said the 52-year-old from Woodbridge, Suffolk. ‘It’s just how it worked out that they all wanted to do the same thing.
‘They have always been very close and love each other very much. It was so emotional to say goodbye when they moved out.
‘This is an amazing opportunity for all of them and I know they will love it.
New arrivals: The quadruplets’ mother had been working as a nurse in Oman when she fell pregnant naturally with the non-identical quadruplets
Pictured: The sisters with mother Joby before she and her husband moved to the UK in 2007, leaving the girls with relatives in India for two years
‘My husband Shibu and I are very proud of all of them.’ Mrs Shibu Mathew was working as a nurse in Oman when she fell pregnant naturally with the non-identical quadruplets.
She and her husband moved to the UK in 2007, leaving the girls with relatives in India for two years. She was unable to use her overseas health qualification so worked in nursing home and studied at the University of Suffolk.
Mrs Shibu Mathew qualified in 2017, the year before her daughters began their studies – Aneesha at the University of East Anglia in Norwich and her sisters at the University of Suffolk.
All four completed training placements at Ipswich Hospital.
All dressed up: Aneesha studied at the University of East Anglia in Norwich and her sisters studied at the University of Suffolk. Pictured: The sisters at home in Suffolk
Such proud parents: Their father Shibu Mathew, 53, a maintenance engineer, believes they must be the only quadruplets who are all working for the NHS. Pictured: Shibu and Joby with their daughters
Aneesha said of her mother: ‘When she completed her degree it was a huge inspiration for us all. We saw how hard she worked and why she loved it.
‘It’s challenging and you work long hours but that feeling that your skills are making a difference to people is really rewarding. It is funny my sisters and I have gone into the same career but I think we often try to be different and we seem to end up choosing the same thing.’ It was a ‘bit strange’ branching out from her siblings as they had never been apart.
Aneetta said: ‘I want to do something in my career which is challenging, interesting and, most of all, making a difference to people’s lives on a daily basis.’
Mr Mathew, 53, a maintenance engineer, said: ‘They must be the only quadruplets who are all working for the NHS. As a family, we are all very proud of the NHS.’