For the first trimester of the programme, students are entirely university based in order to build up the core skills and knowledge needed to hit the ground running when out on practice placement. Preparation for going out into practice takes place in our Clinical Skills and Simulation Centre, which includes life-like hospital wards, a home setting and a midwifery suite.
Experiences in a practice learning setting really help students to identify how the theory they have learned at university links to the work of nurses and midwives in everyday clinical practice.
The kind of practice placements students undertake differ according to their field of practice. Settings can include schools, hospitals, community teams, specialist nursing services, hospices and third sector organisations.
Students are expected to work the same core shifts as the team with which they are working, and this can involve weekend work and night shifts. Practice placements may not always be in Lothian so some travelling should also be expected.