Showing resources with Topic: A day in the life of...
A day in the life of a trainee health visitor: Leona Flett, RGU
Conference delegate Leona Flett, offers us an insight into a day in the life of a trainee health visitor. Arrive at the office at 8.30am, greet all the team. We need to answer any voicemails and emails and document them in client notes. I usually head over to the maternity unit for 9.00am to collect information on postnatal discharges and new pregnancy booking information.I return to the health visitor’s office and allocate the new discharges (now primary visits) to the relevant health visitors. We then arrange to visit the primaries within four days at home. My mentor and I have…
Reflection on CLIP Session: Sharon Butler, QMU
What? I was feeling very unsure about CLIP. I find reflection difficult and the thought of writing a critical reflective commentary was frightening me. At the CLIP session Caroline came to talk to us about meeting the outcomes of the module within our critical commentary. I did not understand all of what she said and got myself into a state. My confidence was at a low and I really began to doubt my ability to finish the course. I talked to Caroline about it and she told me where to look for help with study skills and talked me through…
Shadowing on the Isle of Lewis
Clare Cable, Chief Exec and Nurse Director of the Queen’s Nursing Institute Scotland shadows Community Staff Nurse Karen Macleod on the Isle of Lewis. Karen knew she wanted to be a nurse when she was 14; at that age I wanted to join the BBC as an engineer and be on the technical side of broadcasting! But it was not until after Karen had married and had children that the timing was right for her to fulfil her dream, as it became possible for her to train in the Western Isles without having to move to the mainland. The one…
Student Nurse in the Community: Holly Tidmarsh, QMU
After my four years at University I choose a community nursing placement as my final, management placement. Community nursing is something in which I have always been intrigued by; I enjoy the aspect of the possibility of unknown, the everyday different challenges which can occur, and the uniqueness of patients in their own homely setting. Growing up in a rural and isolated location in Scotland has shown me the true importance of being an autonomous nurse and just how significant each person can be in contributing to another’s lives. I have always been interested in public health. I have always…
Student Nurse in the Community: Sarah Wilson, QMU
A quote from a district nurse that I read in an article before starting my management placement in the community inspired me to think about the true meaning of community nursing. Jan Laskey (2014) stated: “I love being a part of a person’s life, supporting them and trying to find solutions to difficult situations. You always get to know patients differently in their own homes. I truly believe that meeting the patients family, especially any pets is really important. I always introduce myself to a cat or a dog to start with, and then I build a bond with the…
Student Specialist Practitioner District Nurse: Leanne Grant, QMU
A day in the life of a Student Specialist Practitioner District Nurse…. …is a day filled with variety and new learning experiences. Making the transition from experienced Community Staff Nurse to novice Specialist Practitioner District Nurse is a challenging and scary prospect, but comes with undeniable perks. I have embraced the opportunities afforded to me through the luxury of being given ‘full time student’ status, not least of which is protected time to attend events such as the QNIS conference. Community nursing as a profession is changing dramatically. We are at the forefront of Government agenda and healthcare reform. It…
Three pieces of advice for a community placement!
Ruth-Ann Welsh, Undergraduate prizewinner for Abertay University offers some words of wisdom. As a first year mental health nursing student I had very little knowledge about the role of a community mental health nurse or the challenges that lay ahead, I would like to start my blog by offering three pieces of advice for students about to venture out on their first community placement: Avoid wearing thin trousers or tights, house cats seem to instinctively identify fabric that ladders with ease. Budgies, although adorable, are prone to bouts of verbal abuse; try not to take it personally. Be flexible- you…
Why I want to be a Community Nurse: Beth Cropley, UG Prizewinner 2015 – University of Edinburgh
My first experience of community nursing was with a health visiting team in an area of socio-economic deprivation in Edinburgh. I’m sad to admit that I initially went into this placement expecting it to be boring and to be ‘just weighing babies’ all day; however I finished this placement with an ambition to become a health visitor. It did not take me long to work out that community nursing was, in fact, challenging and exciting, with the essential requirement to use your own initiative and to adapt to any surrounding on a daily basis. As a student nurse, my eyes…
