Trisha nominated in Most Inspirational Student Nurse category
Students and staff in our School of Health & Social Care have reached the final of the prestigious Student Nursing Times Awards 2020.
Edinburgh Napier has been nominated in the ‘Most Inspirational Student Nurse of the Year’ and ‘Teaching Innovation of the Year’ categories.
Trisha Jeram scooped the shortlist nomination for ‘Most Inspirational Student Nurse of the Year’ for her work creating the play, ‘Cracks’.
The play tells the story of Bob and Debbie, whose lives gradually interweave to show stark differences in health outcomes due to inequitable access to health and social care services.
Written and directed by Trisha, a third year Masters in Nursing student, Cracks stars a volunteer cast of collaborative amateur actors including nursing students, community actors and staff from the School of Health & Social Care.
Student nurse actor Siobhan Bourke said: “Trisha has inspired me to realise that we can achieve anything with drive and determination. If you bring your idea to the right people (in this case the lecturers at Edinburgh Napier University) it can reach its potential. Trisha is a huge inspiration and an amazing person all round.”
BA (Hons) Film students from Edinburgh Napier’s School of Arts & Creative Industries produced the film Cracks, which was directed by film student Leonardo D’Andrea and is now part of an undergraduate nursing module on health and social care integration.
It is for this use of drama in nursing education that a team of School of Health & Social Care staff including Catherine Mahoney, Fiona Bastow, Bruce Harper-McDonald, and Richard Kyle have been shortlisted for ‘Teaching Innovation of the Year’.
It is the second year in a row that Edinburgh Napier staff have been in the running for this award.
Speaking of the impact of drama in the classroom, student nurse actor Nicola Jamieson said: “Cracks has been really good at generating discussion. Interagency working and integration don’t sound like the most interesting topics but the film has given them a human face through Debbie and Bob.”
Using drama has helped students to understand the complexity and reality of health and social care integration. On-going research led by the Cracks team is evaluating the impact that using drama has on students’ learning.
Cracks was performed live at the Summerhall in Edinburgh to a packed public audience in June 2019 using a novel combination of live action and recorded footage from the film. Development of the play and film were supported by funding from Teaching Fellow and Public Engagement Grants from the University.
Professor Alyson Tobin, Vice Principal of Learning and Teaching, said: “I’m absolutely delighted that Trisha and colleagues in the School of Health & Social Care have been shortlisted for these prestigious awards.
“It recognises the talent and creativity of our students and staff, and just shows what can happen when we work together to push boundaries to create innovative teaching and learning approaches. Trisha’s nomination will inspire others to pursue their own passions to support student learning. I wish her and my colleagues in the School every success on awards night.”
Winners of the Student Nursing Times Awards will be announced at an awards ceremony at London’s Grosvenor House Hotel on Park Lane on Friday 24 April.