Development of a simulation placement in a pre-registration nursing programme

Strategies to attract school-leavers to nurse education programmes: an integrative literature review

The shortfall of nurses in the UK has led to concerns that there are insufficient staff to ensure safe and high-quality care. To address this shortfall, one group to focus on for recruiting nursing students is school-leavers. This article reports on an integrative literature review that was conducted to explore the educational strategies used to attract school-leavers to undergraduate nurse education programmes. The review identified that a variety of educational strategies were used, and all of the included studies reported positive effects on school pupils' intention to undertake nursing studies. These strategies often included interactions with nursing staff and/or nursing students, as well as observing and practising clinical skills, for example via simulation. However, most participants likely had a pre-existing interest in healthcare or nursing, the interventions were delivered predominantly to young women, and the included studies lacked longer-term follow-up. This highlights a need to conduct further research to assess the longitudinal impact of recruitment strategies aimed at broader audiences.

The measured impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on nursing students' wellbeing, clinical placement and learning experiences: a cross sectional study

Background: The epidemiological patterns of COVID-19 varied across Australia and differed from most other countries. Few studies describe the impact that the pandemic had on nursing student wellbeing, education and career.Aim: This study aimed to investigate how the COVID-19 pandemic impacted on nursing students' well-being, clinical placement and learning.Design: Cross-sectional survey.Setting: Sydney, Australia.Participants: Second- and third-year nursing students.Methods: Second- and third-year nursing degree students were asked to participate in an ethically approved study during March to May 2021. The de-identified on-line survey consisted of 63 closed end question and one open ended question. On completion, the dataset was exported from Redcap and imported into SPSS for analysis. Open ended text data were analysed by two researchers.Results: Of the 105 participating nursing students, a third (n = 26/83, 31%) thought about changing their degree to a non-nursing degree. The acknowledged risk of caring for a COVID-19 patient incrementally increased stress (β-coefficient = 0.6, p value = 0.009, 95% CI 0.2-0.9). Conversely students who intended to complete their degree were less likely to report stress. Students who had prior nursing experience were three times more likely to report an increased generalised anxiety level (OR 3.8, p-value = 0.02, 95% CI 1.2-12.2), yet they were less likely to experience personal accomplishment burnout compared to other students. Nursing students who contemplated a change of degree to a non-nursing degree were 15.7 times more likely to experience emotional exhaustion and were 3.5 times more likely to be report a risk of depersonalisation (p = 0.03, 95% CI, 1.3-11.5).Conclusion: The COVID-19 pandemic compromised nursing student well-being, and theoretical and practical learning. Findings have implications for healthcare and academic staff who teach nursing students. Implementation of student-centred evidence-based strategies to manage stress, burnout and anxiety, and to sustain a healthy student cohort is essential to retain the future nursing workforce.

Developing online simulated practice placements: a case study

The Nursing and Midwifery Council recognises that using simulated practice learning within the pre-registration nursing curriculum is a valuable way for students to develop nursing knowledge and skills. The University of Huddersfield developed simulated placements in the pre-registration nursing curriculum in 2021. Simulated placements are now embedded within all fields of the BSc and MSc programmes, providing structured, innovative learning experiences that embrace online technology in supporting the development of skills and knowledge relevant to all fields of nursing. Developing these placements has provided an opportunity for faculty staff to work collaboratively with clinical colleagues, service users and carers, academics and technologists. This article offers an overview of that work, addressing challenges, operational issues, and insight into some of the activities developed to support students' learning.