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Exploration of student nurse experiences of being mentored by practice supervisors/assessors in placement settings
Abstract
The Nursing and Midwifery Council changed its standards in 2018 regarding student learning and assessment on placements. Previously, students were allocated a mentor with whom they spent at least 40% of their time and who also assessed them; the new standards brought in the separate roles of practice supervisor and a practice assessor and abolished the 40% minimum, with the student being supported by a wider range of practitioners. While extensive literature examines the experiences of qualified staff supporting students, there is little evidence on the student experience. A qualitative approach using semi-structured interviews with student nurses from two universities in the south of England was used to explore their experiences. The students reported benefits of being supported by the wider healthcare team, said being taught and assessed by different people was beneficial and that they felt better prepared for assessments.
Nurse education in the UK involves a combination of campus-based learning in higher education institutions and practice-based learning in clinical settings. Practice placements, where students spend time learning and working alongside qualified practitioners, form an integral and mandatory part of the nurse curriculum (Nursing and Midwifery Council (NMC), 2023a). Practice-based learning on placements forms 50% of the nursing curriculum (Jack et al, 2018). Despite this, there is a dearth of research in the area of student experiences of being supported in practice (Foster et al, 2015). In contrast, a larger body of literature has examined the views and experiences of the qualified staff undertaking the mentoring role (Duffy, 2013; Foster et al, 2015; Clark and Casey, 2016; Christiansen et al, 2020; Wynn et al, 2021).
The change of standards for supporting practice-based learning introduced by the nursing regulator in 2018 (NMC, 2023a) provided an excellent opportunity to carry out research in relation to the student experience. Under the new standards, the previous single role of mentor was replaced by two new roles – practice supervisor and practice assessor (NMC, 2023b).
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