Developing and evaluating a new nursing student placement in public health teams
Intended for healthcare professionals
Evidence and practice    

Developing and evaluating a new nursing student placement in public health teams

Pam Hodge Lecturer in practice learning, School of Health and Education, Middlesex University London, London, England
Helen Donovan Professional lead for public health nursing, Royal College of Nursing, London, England
Clare Slater-Robins Senior children and young people commissioner, London Borough of Barnet, London, England

Why you should read this article:
  • To improve your knowledge of public health and the determinants of health

  • To understand how practice learning can assist nursing students to engage with public health

  • To familiarise yourself with the factors that contribute to an effective public health placement for nursing students

At the point of qualification, nursing students need to be prepared to work in local population health and be aware of the wider determinants of health. The Nursing and Midwifery Council standards of proficiency for registered nurses require them to understand and engage with public health, specifically health promotion and illness prevention. In 2019, representatives from Barnet Clinical Commissioning Group and Middlesex University London, alongside the Royal College of Nursing’s public health lead, developed a public health nursing student placement. To date, two child health nursing students in their final year have completed a placement with the public health team. This article examines their experience of the placement, as well as detailing an evaluation of the project.

Primary Health Care. doi: 10.7748/phc.2021.e1716

Peer review

This article has been subject to external double-blind peer review and checked for plagiarism using automated software

Correspondence

P.Hodge@mdx.ac.uk

Conflict of interest

None declared

Hodge P, Donovan H, Slater-Robins C (2021) Developing and evaluating a new nursing student placement in public health teams. Primary Health Care. doi: 10.7748/phc.2021.e1716

Acknowledgement

The authors would like to thank Rachel Wells, consultant in public health, Barnet Public Health, London, England, and Kathy Wilson, head of practice-based learning at Middlesex University London, London, England, for their contribution to this article

Published online: 21 July 2021

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