3 Preparation for placement learning
Introduction
Practicalities
First of all, when you find out the name of the ward and the location, the Website at your university will probably have placement profile information. This may contain information about the ward, who to contact, phone numbers, shift times and general advice. Do they advise any special preparation activities? It is important to contact the ward at least 2 weeks before your placement to ensure that you know when to start and, even better, if you can arrange to visit the ward before you start (Sharples 2009).
Box 3.1 What are the practicalities of this placement?
Look up the ward profile on the student Website:
1. Is there any information about your learning outcomes for this placement on the student Website?
2. Who can be your mentor? If you are a final placement student you will need a sign off mentor (NMC 2008b).
3. What shifts does the ward work?
4. What shifts do you need to work to meet the university’s expectations.
5. Do you have any special off duty requests?
6. How do you get to the placement – what are the transport links like?
7. Is there a lecturer from the university who links with the placement?
8. Is there an induction planned?
9. Do you have any learning needs that require discussion with the placement before you arrive?
10. What were the strengths and areas for development highlighted in your previous placement?
11. Do you have transferable skills?
12. What do you want to achieve in this placement?
13. What is the uniform policy?
14. Who do you inform at the university if you are sick or absent from placement?
15. Do you need to make arrangements to see your personal tutor while you are on placement?
16. Are there any university lectures, exams or assignments that you need to plan into your time?
17. Have you attended all the mandatory training at the university prior to your placement?
18. Are you pregnant? If so, have your read the university maternity policy and understand that you will require a risk assessment?
Professional standards and behaviour
As a student nurse you will not only be expected to develop clinical skills but also a certain level of professional attitude and behaviour (Parker 2009). These attributes will be assessed as part of your course and your mentors in the clinical environment will play a key part in your assessment in this area.
It is expected that, as a student nurse, you will act in a professional manner at all times. This means not just within the clinical area but in public places as well. It is essential that people feel they can trust nurses, and any behaviour which may damage the respect and credibility of the profession in the eyes of the general public could be detrimental to how safe patients feel when they are admitted to hospital (Levett-Jones & Bourgeois 2009). This may sound daunting but there is plenty of guidance and support available to help you. This chapter aims to help you understand what is expected of you and how to use the support of your mentors in the clinical area to help you develop your professional behaviour.
Good health, good character and fitness to practise
The NMC sets out what they expect from student nurses in their Guidance on Professional Conduct for Nursing and Midwifery Students (NMC 2009). At the end of your nursing course your university is required to inform the NMC that you have not only met the educational and clinical requirements of your course but also that you are in good health and are of good character. It is essential that you read this and adhere to it, and discuss it with your mentor at the start of your placement learning experience.
1. What do members of the public think when they see a nurse in uniform smoking a cigarette in a public place?
2. What do they think about a nurse doing their shopping in the local supermarket in their uniform?
3. What do they think when they overhear nurses giggling and laughing about their patients?
The areas of concern highlighted in Box 3.2 are also cited by the NMC as aspects of your personal life that may influence your ability to be judged as having good health and good character.
Aggressive, violent or threatening behaviour.
Criminal conviction or caution.
Dishonesty, e.g. misrepresentation of qualifications, fraudulent CV.
Health concerns, e.g. putting others at risk by not seeking help for medical problems or not recognising own limitations.
Persistent inappropriate attitude or behaviour.
Accountability
Accountability can be described as (Thompson et al 2006, p. 84):
Registered nurses are accountable in four ways:
Professional accountability
The NMC Code (2008a) states that:
So what should patients expect from a registered nurse? This is a good starting point:
• To know who is looking after them each shift.
• To know when the shift changes.
• To know what’s happening to them and when.
• That care is evidence-based.
• That nurses work to policies/guidelines.
• That nurses are not afraid to challenge poor practice.
• That nurses work in a team for their benefit.
• That nurses monitor the standards of care ensuring quality, safety and efficiency.
The roles and responsibilities of those who can support you doing your medical practice placement
The mentor
During your practice placement, your learning outcomes will be assessed by a registered nurse who is a qualified mentor who has undertaken a specific course that is recognised by the NMC (NMC 2008b). The mentor who assesses you must be registered within the same field of practice as you and have attended a mentor update within the last year. The placement holds registers of mentors and their updates and is expected to be able to produce this evidence for the NMC. Each mentor also has a triennial review to ensure that they are meeting the NMC Standards and a record of this is kept by each placement. Your curriculum documentation will often have a section that requires the mentor to print and sign their name, year of registered mentor course and the last update they attended to ensure the validity of your assessments.
You are expected to work with your mentor for 40% of your placement time and this must be evident through the duty roster (NMC 2008b, 2011). Your mentor may work weekends, nights, 7.5-hour or 12.5-hour shifts and your allocated duties should follow this. Mentors will also have annual leave and study days themselves, so sometimes this will be difficult to achieve and you may be allocated more than one mentor. Sometimes a team of mentors will support you and this may also include co-mentors or associate mentors who have not undertaken the recognised mentor course but are expected to contribute to your learning (NMC 2008a). Associate or co-mentors are registered nurses who you will often work with and learn from, and they will often provide feedback on your performance to your main mentor. They may do this verbally or by writing in your record of achievement, for example in a mentor comment page. However, they will not be able to assess you until they have undertaken the recognised mentor course.