Any nurses who work on the wards? Do you really need an influx of students?

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I'm waiting to hear where I'm being placed.
I'm a final year children's nurse.

The September cohort have already gone in.
And we're next.

And then the second years are being placed. We are basically HCA's until we qualify (December for us).

I can't speak for adult wards but the children's wards are quieter than ever. I can't help but wonder what they are going to do with all these HCA's.

And since we have already peaked, it's unlikely (although not impossible) to spiral out of control.

Do they really need a shed load of students on the ward like they lead us to believe?

Our hospital haven't said no.

Students have already started.

I think we’re going to need a lot more staff.

When we start to do limited “normal”
work will will need to have longer appointments, run clinics in longer hours, we might need to run a full 7 day service.

Yes I fully appreciate that .Nurses have a difficult role and it is made worse ATM .See my previous reply .Surely some sort of help due to the difficult circumstances should be given?

JacobReesMogadishu student midwives are being paid a band 4 wage and will not be supernumerary but will have a manager to report into. That’s interesting that your trust doesn’t want any students working on the wards, we’ve been told that the trusts very much want 3rd years.

Surely some sort of help due to the difficult circumstances should be given?

Nope.

dottiedodah the only option that had been given to students is to defer and go back to uni once the crisis is over.

And if they choose that, they have no idea when they will qualify. But it will be much later than first planned.

I’m expecting to qualify late as no doubt I’ll have resubmissions of uni work to do 😭

I’m a nurse. I have a part time perm job in a day case setting so often do agency shifts to keep my skills on acute wards. The last few agency shifts I’ve done have been so quiet. I’m use to having 10 patients, but I’ve only been having between 4-6 I’m sometimes stuck for something to do. We fight over making patients hot drinks etc

When surgery restarts it’s going to be a nightmare as it will also be heading towards winter. Plus so much training will be out of date. I don’t know how we will catch up.

With regards to catching up, won't it simply be a case of people having different dates for their surgery and simply having to wait longer?

Sorry if I'm being daft!

The waiting lists will be even longer now due to the people already waiting for surgery.

Normally if you cancel surgery it has to rescheduled within a month or the hospital eventually gets fined. They’ll be trying to catch up at the worst time of year when beds are short.

I doubt she will be on a covid ward

Our hospital have 3rd year student nurses on ICU nursing covid patients. They were interviewed on the news.

I believe there are some of ours that are about to qualify and had secured jobs in ICU that can work there or are working there.

Our lecturers touched on the rest of us (later 3rd years and second years) are told we'll be on green and amber wards.

That’s interesting that your trust doesn’t want any students working on the wards, we’ve been told that the trusts very much want 3rd years.

Sorry, I was talking nursing students not midwifery students. The hospital do want nursing students who have agreed to doing this being a HCA being paid at a band 4 thing. What they don't want is supernumary students who need nurses to set objectives, sit down and do their paperwork with them, etc.

2nd and 3rd year midwifery students are still coming to placement as usual. 1st year midwifery students are not allowed as it was felt they'd be more of a hindrance than a help.

@JacobReesMogadishu thats in-line with what the NMC have stated, if second and third years don’t want to or can’t opt in they are having to defer from their courses as there’s not the capacity for them to be supernumerary.

We are still having to set objectives and do paperwork with ours.

I can understand 3rd year nursing students being frustrated that they are expected to either pause studies or work but still have to do their dissertations when I believe final year medical students have just qualified without sitting final year exams.

@JacobReesMogadishu 3rd year student midwives also have the same issue. The NMC will not waiver any of the academic work, we also still have our essential skills clusters that need singing off and need our labour & birth/PN/AN numbers ect before we can qualify....

Oh.. and student midwives also have the added stress of having to apply for and prepare for jobs....

Bumping just in case anyone wanted to add the view from the perspective of their ward.

I'm a first year student children's nurse, so we haven't been sent to help and my placement was due to start monday (obviously postponed).
I'd say the main children's hospital in my area is Alder Hey, so they may have sent alot of students there, but not sure what it's like at the moment.

.

Last bump

We have another student on the night shift tonight. 3 staff and a student for 3 patients. Glad I'm not working tonight!