Week 3

Well that is another week that has seemingly flew by. 

After all them days, weeks and months of waiting and being so excited to start the course it really is going so quick!

We learn something new every lecture, if not every week.

I feel like the library is my new best friend for the next 3 years and that we will be in a love / hate relationship for the duration. 

This week has been interesting.  We have learnt a lot about the law and ethics in relation to nursing and what it means to be a nurse in making decisions for those who are vulnerable. This all related to capacity and consent.

So a lot of reading articles and journals this week.

We also had a self directed learning assignment (not marked) to do for our tutorial.

This was to enable us to realise what we had learnt over the past three weeks and what we need to improve on. So that was very helpful. Now we have a group presentation and an exam in three weeks so i need to get myself organised and revision notes sorted for that. Its going so quick its unbelieveable when it feels like i waited so long to get here after finding out i was accepted.

I am hoping this blog is helping people who are applying for Sept 2015 entry.  

I would never want to put someone off nursing as it is an amazing career to enter into.  However, i know not everyone is suited to it or can handle the sights you may see, the decisions you may have to make or the hours you may have to do.

Nursing is a tough, challenging and extremely rewarding career. As it has been said many times before, it is a vocation, a profession and 'a calling' for most people. Unfortunately we have had people drop out of the course already due to struggling with family issues or other problems,  Luckily the university is very understanding (as most will be) due to the nature of the course. Some of these people are hoping to start back next year if circumstances are better.  You do get up to five years to return to the course so it is flexible. 

I am have been thoroughly enjoying the course so far.  I will admit though, parts have felt a little tedious. If you have worked in healthcare before, the first few weeks may seem a little repetitive.  You have to cover the basics before you move on, so this means more first aid, moving and handling and infection control training. This means that you are now covered by the university to go out on placement. 

I did get my name badge this week so i was rather excited at that! It has my name on and then 'Nursing Student' underneath. Feels very surreal! We collect our uniforms at the end of the month in time for placement too. Cannot wait to put it on and get out there.  We also have our portfolio to collect around the same time.  This has to be completed during our placement to say we have covered certain topics and then be signed off. 

I do apologise if i go off on a tangent but there is so much to cover and try and tell you all! 

Especially with learning disability nursing.  There is not a lot out there, yet there are a lot of people out there with learning disabilities that need support guidance and qualified and knowledgeable professionals to enable them to be all that they can be. 

Learning Disability Nursing is a fabulous and very rewarding career, and i cannot imagine myself doing anything else.