Using more healthcare areas for placements

The need for private, voluntary and independent placements in nursing programmes has become more important in recent years due to changes in where health services are delivered. These placements can be used effectively within nursing programmes to show students the realities of healthcare, and to challenge myths and attitudes. Dedicated time and resources need to be provided to discover and maintain these placements, and to ensure appropriate, high-quality learning opportunities. This article presents the findings of a national Higher Education Academy workshop, held at the University of Derby in November 2012. It explores three key issues discussed at the workshop: current practice and opportunities for learning; myths, attitudes and solutions; and maintaining the quality of placements. The use of PVI placements is seen as valuable and a set of recommendations are provided to assist in their use

Collaborative development of an accelerated graduate entry nursing programme outside of traditional funding mechanisms

Financial support for students entering nurse education programmes has typically been the responsibility of Governments who make a substantial contribution to tuition and/or living costs. However, where programmes are not funded by Government bodies, students must make alternative arrangements for financial support. This paper explores how a university worked with local employers to design, recruit and deliver an accelerated graduate entry nursing programme and how this philosophy of collaboration ultimately led to local health employers providing sponsorship for students. Therefore, we offer for debate the benefits of collaborative curriculum design and future considerations of attracting employer funding for graduate entry nursing programmes.N/