[Hannah'x]

(Original post by jodiedoodles)
hey just wondering if anyone has any suggestions on what books to read to get a basic insight into Radiotherapy? I'm hopefully starting the course in September so would like to get a bit of background reading done.

Thank you, x

did you find any information on books, if so could you let me know?
also have you had a placment anywhere because i'm struggling to find anyone that will have me before the interview :] x

[jodiedoodles]

I contacted the Radiotherapist who was looking after me whilst I was on placement and she recommended 'Radiotherapy in practice - external beam therapy' ( http://www.amazon.co.uk/Radiotherapy...8551400&sr=8-1 ) I haven't purchased this yet though as I cannot find it at a decent price, and it is no longer being published so I can't find it in any libraries either

I've been on placement at Cumberland Infirmary in Carlisle for a day, was a good experience Which universities have you applied to? x

[Hannah'x]

(Original post by jodiedoodles)
I contacted the Radiotherapist who was looking after me whilst I was on placement and she recommended 'Radiotherapy in practice - external beam therapy' ( http://www.amazon.co.uk/Radiotherapy...8551400&sr=8-1 ) I haven't purchased this yet though as I cannot find it at a decent price, and it is no longer being published so I can't find it in any libraries either

I've been on placement at Cumberland Infirmary in Carlisle for a day, was a good experience Which universities have you applied to? x

yeah, its a lot of money to spend if i dont get a conditional :/
i think i'll end nup doing an access course because i only have bcu left the rest have been unsuccesful :/

ve managed to get some work experience for friday in birmingham which is good though, just trying to get some more

[Ideeva]

(Original post by Cup of Inspiration)
Anyone think its a good idea to produce a wiki for healthcare students about placements- ie tips on how to survive etc?

Im happy adding some tips to nursing, but any physio, ot, S&L..midwives et fancy helping out? Plus nurses from mental health, child etc?

Or we can just do a stickied thread!

Edit: Ok I've added my tips for adult nursing, PM me those who have spoken up to do tips for their area, and i'll add it to this thread, and do a wiki on it aswell! If anyone wants to add tips aswell, post on here!



Surviving a placement on Adult Nursing

Spoiler:

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1. Be prepared, one week before you're due to start come and introduce yourself- find out shift times of atleast 2 weeks, and make sure you know what to do when you arrive for your first shift. Also, for brownie points if its a specialist ward, ask if there is any reading you can do to prepare?

2. Always ask questions- even if you think they're stupid

3. Don't always rely on your mentor- other members of staff enjoy teaching too, use the team on the ward, doctors, OT's, physio's if you're stuck!

4. Never undermine HCA's- always be friendly with them! Same goes for the cleaners!

5. Its ok to make mistakes- don't beat yourself up, learn from them instead. Its very hard getting put on a ward, and if you mess up its easy to feel you've let people down, but you're there to learn!

6. Get your basic care sorted- your first year is all about refining basic nursing care, so definately spend a lot of time with HCA's, remember your limitations- don't do things you've not been taught at university, ie if you've not been taught injections etc yet- definately use your first placements to understand the workings of a ward, and delivering care such as personal hygiene, bed changing, observations- they're vital and make sure they don't get missed out. Many students came back from placement bragging about things they'd got to do like catheters, injections, etc- but if you ask them to change a patients bed, and give them a wash, whilst asessing a pressure sore they won't know how too!

7. If a procedure is being done- ask to observe! Things such as operations, angiograms, lumbar punctures- ask to observe, you wouldn't get the opportunity as a registered nurse, and it can help you understand the MDT more as well as what the procedure actually entails when explaining it to patients!

8. Keep a reflective journal- soo very important, a small notebook is very useful, seperate your pages into 3, what happened, how i felt, and what I am going to do in the future, this will help you a lot with portfolio evidence and writing reflections

9. Non branch placements are common in your first year, many people find them tedious and don't want to do them- but try and get the most out of them! Ask questions, and reflect back as to what you've learnt and how you can take this into your own branch!

10. "Am I dying" or "Am I going to be ok?" are very hard questions to answer, I always use 'what makes you think that" it steers the conversation away to how they're feeling, and instead of giving a direct answer it can help them breakdown their emotions aswell, also 'Would you like a staff nurse come to speak to you about this instead?' is a good one if all else fails!

11. Make sure you know EXACTLY what you're doing, if you're being asked to carry out a procedure for the first time- even if you've done it in uni make SURE you are supervised, and know how to carry it out, don't ever second guess

12. Tea- I spent one shift on placement making the HO (house officer) about 10 cups of tea during the night, and topping up- he ended up explaining hypoglycaemia to me, and letting me observe ward rounds the next shift AND taught me about blood transfusions- I got a great learning experience from him just through cups of tea! Plus its good for the nursing staff too, its a good way to bond with a mentor aswell

13. Be professional- but don't forget you're human. Crying, showing emotions, discussing personal issues and making unprofessional comments are not meant for a ward, but its ok to feel things, if a pateint has frustrated you- go in the staff room and growl a bit, or go home and scream! Its ok to get worked up and upset, just remember you have a duty aswell.

14. Don't forget your friends and fellow students when on placement- they're a good source to vent and cry too if you need it

15. Other students on a ward, can be a valuable learning tool. Third year students are expected to be able to teach things, one such 3rd year once taught me how to do a bladder scan. Its good for you, and them! Plus if you're stuck on portfolio work they're a great tool to help you along

16. Confidence is a good thing to have, but remember there is a fine line between confidence and arrogance

17. Accept feedback and criticism- its not personal, but professional and needs to be producted by you the student

18. If you have nothing to do and feel a bit lost, nothing wrong in skimming through the ward and doing fluid balance charts, they're often forgotten!

19. ALWAYS speak up about bad pratice you witness, even if you're unsure over what constitutes over bad pratice- ask, whether this be your mentor, sister or ward manager. Its nice to get on with staff, but even better to put patients safety first.

20. Make sure you have a decent fob watch, scissors, black pens and a notebook in your pockets always!

21. Many students worry about their first crash or arrest, important thing to remember is to stay calm and in control. If that means all you do is pull the buzzer, than that's fine. Be aware of your limitations, what you can and can't do, observe if you can- and if you get the opportunity to get involbves take that chance as it is a way to learn. Reflect afterwards!

22. Following on from crashes the issue over death is also a tough one with new students, only volunteer or agree to conduct last offices or even see a dead body when you feel ready- however be aware you will have to deal with death as a student, and the earlier your exposed to it, and understand it the better

23. Get an early night!

24. Don't let anyone ever make you feel bad, ever- its easy to feel like the worst nurse ever, and many people will show you lack of respect. Just on tsr people have told me i'd make a bad nurse, and lack nursing skills- but the only thing i need to know, which they don't is that I try my best for each of my patients

25. Remember you're human- a lot of the general public expect nurses to be perfect robots, you're not- I get told because im a nurse i'm meant to be caring all the time, truth is i'm not, If anything out of the ward I can be selfish, but just remember you're human and not perfect, you will make mistakes!

Surviving a Placement on Mental Health Branch

Spoiler:

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1. Be prepared. Do a teeny bit of research into your current placement. There are so many bits and bobs you can start to grasp even before you start placement.
2. Enter the ward with a sense of humour. This will help, you with the staff and the patients. Some staff are very sarcastic so be aware, they don’t mean to insult you.
3. Don’t take anything negative to heart. Over the rest of you career you are likely to come across patients who will swear, punch, kick, insult you. It’s them or their diagnosis. Just take it with a pinch of salt and report it.
4. Following on...REPORT IT. If it’s not reported, it didn’t happen, and everything needs to be documented.
5. Be prepared to meet some characters. You will not like every patient you ever meet. You may have major problems with their character but remember you are a nurse; you cannot treat them any differently.
6. Physical health is you know is very important as you know. Carry a fob watch for the all important respiration rates and a note book so you can jot things down.
7. The HCAs are your friends. They are often more helpful than the actual nurses who are swum of their feet, who despite their best intentions cannot always supervise you. The HCAs are also very friendly and will watch out for you.
8. Ask questions, you are there to learn and do not feel ashamed pronouncing some of the drug names wrong. Believe me, the staff will help you through it and my current ward manager cannot say Haloperidol to save her life. To her it’s “Halodelalol”.
9. Go observe and sit in groups. Even if it isn’t branch specific, you may never get another chance. Also it uses up time if you are THAT bored.
10. You will learn about so different drugs. Keep your eye on the BNF, after all the medic may miss something and if that’s not important, you may save a patient.
11. Doctors can be your friend, make yourself available and ask questions. Some may ignore you; some may want you there and will teach you about any topic you ask.
12. Feel free to question diagnoses and other parts of a patient’s treatment if you feel like it is ignored or may be wrong. As long as you can back up your questions there is no harm done.
13. Smile. Patients respond well to a smile on your face and a cheesy Grin.
14. If there is no work in the office that needs doing, go into the day room. You learn so much from talking to patients, or even observing them watching the TV.
15. Enjoy it. You are only a student for three years; enjoy learning and the supernumerary status. You won’t ever get it back.

Surviving a Radiotherapy Placement

Spoiler:

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* On the first placements the staff will just be looking for you to get used to what happens in the department, what equipment is used and chat to patients, do any ID procedure and bring them through into the room, communicate well with other members of staff etc

* They will probabaly start you off participating in treatment set ups by moving the gantry, learning the controls for the bed without a patient in the room, getting the room ready for the next patient by getting the correct equipment ready and so on. They will go through the local rules on radiation protection and you may also have an induction package to complete from your uni, this will help you settle into the department.

* If you dont understand anything-ask a member of staff! You will have a mentor for your placement so ask them if you are unsure. They will be supervising you all the time when you begin to set patients up and they wont let you do anything wrong so dont panic about that! Towards the end of the placement staff will probably let you get involved more in the treatment set up by moving the patient etc, dont panic about this you will be fine

* You will be on your feet for most of the day going in and out of the treatment room - wear comfy shoes!

* Make sure you have a pen and a notebook to go in your tunic pocket - i feel lost without my notebook now! Also try to get hold of some skin marker pens, we have them provided in department but i also have a collection of ohp pens too. Bring a small ruler as these are often needed.

* Remember some terms that will be used in department - these will help you become familiar with treatment set ups:

Patient supine - the patient lies on their back
Patient prone - the patient lies on their front

Look up meanings for anterior, posterior, inferior, superior, sagittal etc as you will need these terms daily!

Wow
Thank you for this....... Loads of info

[pansypotter]

Hello,

This sticky is great and could be transferred to most specialties. However, does anyone have any more info on speech and language placements? If I get on the course, the practical side is what I am most looking forward to! Thank you

[PhoenixFortune]

(Original post by pansypotter)
Hello,

This sticky is great and could be transferred to most specialties. However, does anyone have any more info on speech and language placements? If I get on the course, the practical side is what I am most looking forward to! Thank you

What advice are you looking for? I've just finished my second year of SLT.

[pansypotter]

(Original post by PhoenixFortune)
What advice are you looking for? I've just finished my second year of SLT.

Hello,

I don't know really, just what to expect? I did a shadowing experience and was wondering if it was similar on placement, i.e. the therapist wanted me to play with the children so that they could discuss things with their parents/carers. I am happy to do that but I really wanted to listen to what was being said too! (it was in a hospital setting)
Thank you

[lausa22]

This is so great! I finish my first Adult Nursing placement in 3 weeks and literally everything on that Adult Nursing placement info is what my mentor told me. The things I see as most important are;

1. Get to grips with basic care. Seriously, this is mostly what your first placement should be about.
2. If there's ever a quiet moment, go and talk to the patients and get to know them. They really appreiciate it, afterall theyre stuck in hospital all day with only 2 hours a day to see family and friends.
3. If there are any procedures taking place on the ward, ask to observe. I've watched tons of lumbar punctures!
4. Ask other staff questions, not just your mentor. They're really helpful.
5. Never under-estimate HCA's. They're great and you'll be spending most of your first placement with them.
6. Try to keep fluid charts up to date, Nurses appreiciate it.
7. Try to follow at least one ward round on your placement, they're very interesting.
8. Always carry a notebook. Just incase you hear a phrase that you're unsure of, or something that you'd like to look into later.


Also just remember that no one is expecting you to be perfect, and as long as you can go home at the end of the day and think that you've done your best then that's all you can do. Always reflect on your day, because it seriously helps you plan out what you can do better next time.

[amyholic]

Thank you all for the tips, I feel much better about starting placement now I'm quite excited for it hehe

[skribble]

Anyone have any insights into Dietetics placements? Would be great, thank you

[mvashton]

(Original post by pachey)
Info on ODP would be really helpful too. Thank you all information appreciated x

I am 10 months into my first year ODP course.

Every day I set off and to placement I feel really happy that I can make changes in peoples lives. I feel privileged to be learning within the operating department and seeing and learning from a great team.

Depending on what specialty your placement is in you can do some prior research. Your mentor will help you with things and we have work books to tackle throughout the year which raise questions and topics which we have to demonstrate an understanding of to pass the year.

Treat the patient as you would want your friends/family to be treated.

Ask questions. You have three years to get a grasp of the job and the role. Don't worry about asking questions. After you qualify you will still continue to learn but would want a good foundation from your three years pre registration study.

Get involved. Don't be overly confident but push yourself within the boundaries of your scope of practice. I have scrubbed for fairly big procedures that on day 1 i would have never believed I would but it has been achieved in progressive steps.

Try not to de-sterilise stuff on your first day
Don't drop something if it looks expensive/technical
Don't do anything you are not sure about (just politely say that it is not in your scope of practice..your mentor should back you up)

[froggpondde]

This is a great thread! Thanks!!


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[newtonoakley]

(Original post by PhoenixFortune)
What advice are you looking for? I've just finished my second year of SLT.

Also interested in the expectations within SALT placements: I'm coming from an education sector background so my experience is mostly working with children and families in partnership with SALT professionals, paediatricians, etc. I also have work experience within care homes and settings working with stroke patients. Mainly, I want to know the intensity of most university-linked placements, is it similar to volunteering but with the added expectation that you will be reflecting on it within your theory work?

Sorry if this seems a silly question, throughout my first degree I was working as a Senior Early Years Practitioner so I was already working within the applicable sector - it's all quite new!

[PhoenixFortune]

(Original post by newtonoakley)
Mainly, I want to know the intensity of most university-linked placements, is it similar to volunteering but with the added expectation that you will be reflecting on it within your theory work?

It depends on what your year you're in, and what competencies your particular university expects you to fulfill by the end of your placement. In Year 1, you would probably be expected to mostly observe, then answer questions from your clinical educator. As the years go on, you are expected to do clinician-directed work, then the next year to make your own clinical descision making.

[newtonoakley]

(Original post by PhoenixFortune)
It depends on what your year you're in, and what competencies your particular university expects you to fulfill by the end of your placement. In Year 1, you would probably be expected to mostly observe, then answer questions from your clinical educator. As the years go on, you are expected to do clinician-directed work, then the next year to make your own clinical descision making.

Thank you for replying so quickly!
Does the BSc roughly mirror the MSc in terms of placement then? (Applying for MSc) I know it's a year shorter but it covers a similar syllabus.

[PhoenixFortune]

(Original post by newtonoakley)
Thank you for replying so quickly!
Does the BSc roughly mirror the MSc in terms of placement then? (Applying for MSc) I know it's a year shorter but it covers a similar syllabus.

I have no idea, sorry. My university doesn't offer the masters so I don't have a clue what the requirements are. I would hazard a guess that the placement competencies will be much more demanding from the offset.

[newtonoakley]

Makes sense, trying to cover things in less time. Thank you for your reply! Starting to get more of an idea now.

[Vishakha82]

I am a first year LD nurse and although I am really enjoying the course and doing well academically and scoring highly in my PAD I keep getting the criticism in each placement area that I am over confident. I agree that I am confident and being slightly older than some of my colleagues (30) I feel comfortable approaching new areas and I am not nervous. My first mentor was positive about it but explained that it can rub people up the wrong way but my second mentor didn't like it at all and even said I was pushy!!!

It's really getting me down as I am now constantly aware of it and feel I can't be myself. I personally don't feel I am pushy or arrogant, I am just keen to get on, show my enthusiasm and hit the ground running as we are only in each placement area form5 weeks. I know how I work effectively and try to express this to each mentor at the beginning in what I feel is a polite and professional manner.......

None of the mentors have ever criticised my care of service users its more about my relationship with them and other staff. Any advice would be much appreciated as it is now making me paranoid and I feel like I am constantly stepping on people's toes and rubbing them pm the wrong way

[louloubella]

My biggest tips are-


1. Mind your mental health- try to maintain as normal and un-crazy a life as possible on placement and don't introduce any unnecessary changes like in my experience I was on certain medication for a chronic health problem and decided it was THE BEST TIME (not ! ) to start coming off this medication and it caused so much stress and made my time on placement very difficult- I was anxious and unwell and in hindsight I could have waited until I was finished the course to do this.

That said- Life goes on when you are on placement, relationships may begin or may end, may go through rocky patches, you may be totally strapped for cash and under other horrible pressures so...

2. Know where you can get support.Are you able to find low cost counselling? Is there someone really decent in your class who you might go to? Your family and non OT mates may not 'get' why you are finding placement difficult...the pressure can exacerbate the natural nervousness and you can feel like you are losing the plot ( at the worst end of the spectrum )and speaking to either a lecturer you trust or something is essential Often just being told " you are not crazy" or " lets plan how to fix this problem" may be all you need to get through.

3. So as soon as you have fears or something goes wrong - TELL SOMEONE! Its sounds obvious but often you can feel so much pressure to just do well you cannot get out of your head and admit that you are a little or alot freaking out/you have a ****ty Practice educator etc

4. Just because you don't like your P.E does not mean you will fail or have to fail- your university contact should be able to help you around this and help you through. It happens to most students at some point and its not your fault!!

5. Don't under estimate how exacerbated your normal stress levels can get when you are being scrutinised 8 hours a day 5 days per week. It is not a normal set up and you should not be able to glide by un effected... that is impossible.

6. Speak OUT to classmates about difficulties. On the MSC program I was on it sometimes felt that people did not do this alot and I personally felt some shame to admit that I had to for example, leave a placement early for personal reasons....or I had a tough time or something...one person in your class may have no probs on placements but thats it, everyone else does at some point.

7- I would say out of four placements all of them involved some levels of stress or self doubt and its only with the final one I learned how to manage my own needs and unfortunetly that only sort of comes with time- you cant be expected to be perfect or near it as you are still a student!!!!

[louloubella]

(Original post by rosemary22)
Hi any info on occupational therapy would be really helpful. There seems to be very little information around. thanks

Hi Rosemary 22 I have just posted on this. Hope it helps.