Clinical learning for pre-registration nursing students: a viva voce approach during COVID-19.

The COVID-19 pandemic restricted face-to-face contact between students and educators, limiting continual assessment of student's clinical skill development. This led to rapid transformational online adaptations to nursing education. This article will present and discuss the introduction of a clinical 'viva voce' approach, which has been used at one university to formatively assess students' clinical learning and reasoning skills using virtual methods. The Virtual Clinical Competency Conversation (V3C) was developed using the 'Think aloud approach' and involved facilitated one-to-one discussion based on two questions from a bank of 17 predefined clinically focused questions. A total of 81 pre-registration students completed the formative assessment process. Overall, feedback from students and academic facilitators was positive and facilitated both learning and consolidation in a safe and nurturing way. Further local evaluation is continuing to measure the impact of the V3C approach on student learning now that some aspects of face-to-face education have resumed.

Managing infection prevention and control in the emergency care setting: an overview for emergency nurses.

The control and prevention of infection in emergency departments (EDs) remains challenging because of the complexity of the environment and the consistently high attendance in many EDs. Emergency nurses play an essential role in infection prevention and control in this clinical area. The COVID-19 pandemic has refocused the need for emergency nurses to have a good knowledge and understanding of infection control processes and the clinical skills to protect themselves and patients alike. This article provides an overview of UK epidemiological perspectives, the main pathogens associated with healthcare infections, the importance of reducing pathogen transmission and the emergency nurse's role in antibiotic stewardship.

Advanced practice and clinical supervision: An exploration of perceived facilitators and barriers in practice.

AIM AND OBJECTIVES: The aim of this study was to investigate current advanced practice Masters students' experience of clinical supervision, to explore how clinical supervision works in practice and to identify students' perceptions of the facilitators and barriers to clinical supervision in their workplace. BACKGROUND: Advanced practitioners, and in particular nurses, play a pivotal role in delivering health care across acute and primary care settings. These non-medical professionals fulfil a rapidly expanding proportion of roles traditionally undertaken by medically qualified staff within the National Health Service in the United Kingdom and often lead specialist clinics and services. To prepare for the advanced practice role, individuals are required to undertake a Master's in advanced practice to develop the required skills and knowledge and work in clinical practice with a clinical assessor/supervisor to demonstrate competence and performance. DESIGN: A mixed method study using an online descriptive cross-sectional survey and qualitative data were collected via focus groups and has been reported using the Good Reporting of a Mixed Methods Study checklist. RESULTS: A total of 79 students completed the online survey (from 145 AP students), a response rate of 55%. Most respondents were nurses (n = 73) with 49 (62%) in a formal advanced practice trainee role, and the majority believed their clinical supervisor had a good understanding of advanced practice and the advanced practice role. Two focus groups were held with 16 participants in total. Thematic analysis revealed five themes: (a) perceived level and amount of support from clinical supervisors, (b) skill level of clinical supervisors, (c) physicians and their perceptions on supervising, Advanced practitioners (d) clinical supervisors' preparation for the role and (e) transition from trainee to qualified advanced practitioner. CONCLUSION: The survey revealed that advanced practitioner students perceived that clinical supervisors and workplace colleagues had a good understanding of the advanced practice role with good levels of support in practice. A more coherent approach is required for clinical supervision and an implementation framework that can be formally evaluated. RELEVANCE TO CLINICAL PRACTICE: Several significant barriers to clinical supervision for advanced practitioner students were identified, and there are currently more barriers (including COVID-19) than facilitators.

Some lessons from COVID: science and communication.

Biomedical challenges such as the present COVID-19 pandemic require both good science and excellent communication between scientists and the general public. This underscores the importance of presenting our science in innovative ways that make it accessible to all.

Biopsychopharmacosocial approach to assess impact of social distancing and isolation on mental health in older adults.

It is impossible to predict or comprehend the impact of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. The UK Government's advice for vulnerable people, including older adults, to move towards self-isolation and social distancing is likely to reduce rates of transmission, the risk of severe illness and the impact on the acute health services. Although justified and necessary, this process of isolation is likely to have a negative impact on the mental health of these vulnerable groups, especially older people. It will become increasingly important for community health professionals to assess subtle changes in older persons' mental health, as the duration of this period of isolation remains unclear. The biopsychopharmacosocial model provides one method of assessing mental health and planning health and social care needs. This article hopes to guide community health professionals through the specifics of this assessment model in relation to the growing COVID-19 pandemic.