Student experiences of a return to practice programme: a qualitative study.

BACKGROUND: Nurses, midwives and other health professionals who return to practice come from a range of backgrounds and return for a variety of reasons. Much of the research on return to practice concerns programme provision rather than returnee experience. AIM: This qualitative study focused on the experiences of nursing, midwifery and allied health students undertaking a return to practice programme at a higher education institute. It interpreted the perceptions of the student experience of returning to clinical practice following a lapse in professional registration. METHODS: Data collection methods were qualitative and involved focus groups. Findings were analysed using thematic analysis. FINDINGS: Several themes and subthemes emerged from the data, including 'the importance of returnee identity' and 'challenges and barriers'. Findings demonstrated different approaches to and influences on returnees' learning journeys. CONCLUSION: Previous knowledge, skills and experience were often hidden from view and hard to explain although crucial to returnee success.

Specialist community public health nurses: readiness for practice.

This article outlines the perceptions of specialist community public health nurses (SCPHN) (health visitors, school nurses and sexual health advisors) on their readiness for practice as a qualified health visitor, school nurse or sexual health advisor entering part 3 of the Nursing and Midwifery Council register. It discusses overall development of students who have completed the BSc(Hons)/Postgraduate Diploma SCPHN programme using the medium of art to depict students' thoughts on readiness to practice as a SCPHN. A thematic approach was taken to identify that a transformative change had taken place for students as a result of completing a 52-week SCPHN programme. Discussion included return on investment for the NHS organisation and student, alongside the development of the SCPHN attributes. The article concludes that SCPHN students had subtly transformed their perception of their future role and there was a difference between SCPHN perceptions of the role at the beginning of the programme in comparison to that at the end of the programme.

The role of specialist community public health nurses: students' perceptions.

The article outlines the initial perceptions of student specialist community public health nurses (SCPHN) (health visitors, school nurses and sexual health advisers) on the role of the qualified health visitor, school nurse and sexual health advisor. It considers how students undertaking the BSc (hons)/Post Graduate Diploma specialist community public health nursing programme conceptualise their future public health role. The paper identifies themes drawn from a class-based teaching session with a large group of SCPHN students using the medium of art and student drawings. This was followed by classroom discussion and a subsequent mapping exercise. Several themes emerged with emphasis on the personal attributes and role of the public health nurse. The paper concludes that SCPHN students have a relevant knowledge base upon which to develop their future public health roles, as well as identifying clear gaps in their knowledge base at the early stage of the SCPHN programme.

Flexible education for new nursing roles: reflections on two approaches.

Using reflection within a metacognitive model this paper aims to explore and discuss two recently developed approaches to flexible education. The increasing number of new nursing roles coupled with a dramatically changing health care environment determines the need for educational approaches that recognise and value learning in daily practice. By presenting a lecturer's and a student's reflections of two such approaches (accredited work-based learning at level 2/3 and the MA Advanced Practice) within one paper we have sought to capture the essence of learning that occurs at the interface between patient care and nurse education at three different academic levels and from two different perspectives. From the lecturer's perspective, the pivotal role that work-based learning approaches can play in the ongoing development of health care is identified. The importance of collaboration in developing and delivering accredited work-based learning is recognised and the value of reflection in and on practice when facilitating the learning of work-based students has been demonstrated. The lecturer's development of a facilitative teaching style is argued to be as important as the student's development of reflective skills in order that education and practice can grow together. From the students perspective, completing the MA Advanced Practice fostered integration between theory and practice, alongside the opportunity for cross-fertilisation of ideas between two traditionally different practitioners of nursing and medicine. This exposed several benefits within clinical practice for the client group that the practice project was aimed at and the development of a more holistic understanding of the clinical experience as it related to individual learning, self-reflection and self-awareness.