The Releasing Potential programme was first commissioned by the NHS Research and Development (R&D) North West team in 2012. Initially this programme was informed by a programme developed by Mark Brandreth, the Managing Director of Trafford Provider Services at NHS Trafford to provide an in-house approach to developing talent amongst clinical and managerial staff at Band 7.
Recently tariff monies have been released with the intention of maintaining existing standards of learning environments (Tariff clarification letter, Health Education Yorkshire and the Humber July 2013) for pre-registration nursing students. This presents Sheffield Health and Social Care NHS Foundation Trust with an opportunity to build on and develop current good practice initiatives as well as introduce innovative strategies to support and facilitate the learning of student nurses.
The North West Simulation Education Network was established in 2010, and with support from NHS North West (now Health Education North West) has steadily grown, so that it now has 950 people registered on its site.There have been numerous national drivers for the increased use of simulation, including Liam Donaldson’s report which highlights the need to further develop simulation and simulation faculties.Therefore the network seeks to increase the capacity and capability of simulation throughout the region, with an overall aim of improving patient outcomes and experience.
In 2012 a peer assisted learning programme was set up for student dietitians at the Royal Liverpool University Hospital, which is part of the Royal Liverpool and Broadgreen University Hospitals NHS Trust. This is an in-house training programme which was first run in September 2012 and is student self-directed learning with support from supervising dietitians.Topping and Ehly (1998) defined peer assisted learning as ‘the acquisition of knowledge and skills through active helping and supporting among status equals or matched companions’.
Central Manchester University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust (CMFT) has always offered work experience for school and college age learners, but in addition, since March 2010 a staff volunteering programme has been in place, designed to help inspire young people and to open their eyes to the career opportunities in healthcare.This not only broadens their horizons but serves to nurture the next generation of NHS staff and gives existing staff the opportunity to mentor and support the learning of these young people, which can be a very rewarding experience.
Cheshire and Merseyside Partnerships (ChaMPs) for Health is a dynamic, award winning public health network that has commissioned the development of an e-learning programme, designed to support ‘Making Every Contact Count’ (MEEC). This is a long-term national public health strategy that aims to help create a healthier population and to reduce NHS costs through changing the behaviour of all frontline NHS staff, not just those that are medically trained or public health professionals.
In 2013, the Clinical Skills and Simulation team at Pennine Acute Hospitals NHS Trust (PAHT) recommended that a patient-centred approach to care needed to be reinforced much earlier in health education.The purpose of this pilot study was to introduce simulation into the education of the multidisciplinary cadet scheme, currently run by the Skills for Health Academy.
Pennine Care NHS Foundation Trust (PCNHSFT) is committed to developing inter-professional learning (IPL) opportunities within clinical practice to enable learners to better understand individuals and situations, adapt to changes, maintain and develop the future of client/patient care.A study day was planned for undergraduate health care students who were placed within a community setting across PCNHSFT to promote the concept of IPL.
The NHS North West HR Graduate Training Scheme gives its trainees the opportunity to spend two months working on flexi-placements in organisations that are external to the NHS. Such placements are a great opportunity for trainees to gain experience and share good practice. This develops their skills and confidence, whilst also benefiting the NHS through the knowledge they gain.
Mid Cheshire Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust introduced training for healthcare assistants (HCAs) in April 2011. The initial drive for an improvement in the training of HCAs arose from recognition that this workforce received very little tuition prior to working on acute care wards.The programme is a mandatory three-day training programme for all newly recruited HCAs. It covers a range of topics across nine core clinical skills, and includes both theoretical and practical teaching sessions.