Latest graduates praise District Nurses’ boot camp
Date of release: 1 November 2023
A bootcamp for budding District Nurses in Wolverhampton has celebrated its first anniversary with its largest intake yet – 16 new recruits.
New District Nurses
Nurses Baljeet Kaur, Claire Tooth, Tim Clarke, Natoya Bigby, Suelen Singh, Rebecca Worrall, Ashleigh Bates, Risper Mboga, Chenenye Amadi, Karen Smith and Promise Ebire are the latest to pass the fast-track five-week training course with The Royal Wolverhampton NHS Trust (RWT).
Initially set up to improve recruitment and retention in Planned Care District Nursing and launched November 2022 by Hayley Law, Matron – Planned Care Adult Community, it is now offered to all newcomers to community Nursing. Some departments just dip in to access the most relevant training session for their area.
Based at RWT’s headquarters for Adult Community Services at Wolverhampton Science Park in Bushbury, completion of the fourth boot camp means a total of 34 District Nurses have graduated from the boot camp in the first year.
Sue Houghton, Community Practice Education Facilitator (PEF), and lead for the boot camp with Helen Esty, said: “Feedback from the new recruits so far has been very positive.
“The group enjoyed the supportive atmosphere to learning. The new programme is still five weeks but, more concentrated into the first four weeks.
“The final week has been generally kept for staff to experience clinical team shadowing in Adult Community that is not in its own work area. We hope this will encourage networking.”
The programme includes sessions from different teams such as Tissue Viability, Palliative Care, Bereavement Service, Virtual Ward, Care Co-ordination and Ambulatory Clinics to expose the District Nurses to all aspects of the job.
Over several weeks they see delegates from all divisions of Nursing, PEFs and Adult Community Service Leads, as well as spending time with their allocated buddies to start to achieve their competencies, and a variety of company representatives.
Sue added: “We really appreciate the time and effort speakers have made to return for a fourth time, but feedback from them has too been very positive about the groups they have met.”
Of the latest group, nine will work in Planned Care, five in Care Co-ordination and two in Ambulatory.
Erique said: “It’s been hugely useful. It gave me the opportunity to get to know new people I’ll be working with. I also feel secure knowing I can approach Sue and Helen if I need to.”
Baljeet added: “It was really beneficial. I got a lot of information about health teams, how they work and how to contact them. I got great exposure to other areas during shadowing days.”
Suelen said: It was very helpful, especially for newly-qualified Nurses who didn’t previously have exposure to Planned Care. It was a great way to learn the assessments and meet the other teams. I feel welcome and like I belong.”
ENDS
- For further information, please call Tim Nash on 07714 741097 or email tim.nash2@nhs.net
