Service User and Carer involvement at the School of Nursing, Midwifery and Physiotherapy
Who is involved?
It could be anyone – nearly all of us use health services sometimes!
People who have used all types of health services, their carers, and families.
Usually, people who have had quite a bit of experience of being a patient in or out of hospital, using health services, or looking after a family member who is sick.
People who are involved live in the East Midlands.
Meet some people who are already involved.
What do they do?
Lots of different things!
Speak to groups of student nurses and answer questions about their experiences.
Learn to teach, then plan and teach sessions for students.
Perform plays, poetry, or music for students to learn from.
Help assess students’ presentations or how well they do their work experience.
Take part in consultations about what students should learn.
Come to open days and meet people who want to become students and take part in recruitment and selection.
Particpate in research projects, conferences and publications.
Come to meetings about how to involve patients, service users and carers.
Why?
To help students 'see the whole person', and respect people as individuals.
To help students bring together theory and real life.
So students learn directly from people who have been patients or used health services, as well as learning from books and teachers.
Student nurses and midwives spend half of their courses in real work settings, where they spend time with service users, patients, families and carers – this is really important, but it’s also important to learn from service users and carers who are not ‘their’ patients, and who have had a chance to think about their experiences.
So students get used to working with service users and carers on an equal basis, and get used to members of the public being involved in their own healthcare.
Service users and carers are now involved with health services in lots of different ways, and involvement in nursing education is part of this bigger picture – start as you mean to go on!
Most of all, to help students to become good nurses and midwives, and to make health services better for all of us.
When and where?
Usually at School of Nursing Education Centres in Boston, Derby, Grantham, Lincoln, Mansfield or Nottingham.
Sometimes in other places such as schools, clinics, residential homes, prisons, day centres, at home, places of worship, or anywhere else where groups meet…
Some things are just once in a while – like asking what students should learn about a particular subject.
Most teaching sessions with students happen once or twice per year.
The Service User and Carer Advisory Group meets 6 – 8 times per year Teaching sessions and most meetings are in the daytime on weekdays.
Practical things
The School of Nursing, Midwifery and Physiotherapy pays fees and travel expenses for people who are involved.
We try to make meetings accessible for anyone who wants to be involved.
We have meetings in places accessible for people who use wheelchairs.
Sometimes we run training courses for people who would like to be involved.
We try to give people whatever support they need to be involved.
More information
If you would like more information, please contact:
Joan Cook
User Involvement Development Worker
Self Help Nottingham
Ormiston House
32-36 Pelham Street
Nottingham
NG1 2EG
Phone: (0115) 911 1662 at Self Help Nottingham, (0115) 823 0974 at the School of Nursing, Midwifery and Physiotherapy
Textphone: (0115) 911 1655
Mobile: 07946 372246
Email: joan@selfhelp.org.uk, joan.cook@nottingham.ac.uk