We’ve Been Shortlisted for 2 Student Nursing Times Awards!

We’re delighted to announce that our Children and Young People’s Neurodevelopment service has been shortlisted for 2 Student Nursing Times Awards!

These shortlists are in the categories ‘Placement of the Year (Community)’ and ‘Supervisor of the Year’.

The nominations were sent by Sam Kitchen, Trainee Specialist Nurse, who was a final year Learning Disability Nursing student from the University of Hull on placement at our Trust from June to November 2022.

The Student Nursing Times Awards will reveal the award winners at their glittering annual ceremony, celebrating the best of the next generation of nurses and their educators. This year, it will take place on Friday 28 April at the JW Marriott Grosvenor House Hotel in London. 

Student Placement of the Year: Community

Our Student Placement of the Year nomination focused on the transparency and flexibility of the student placements offered within our Neurodevelopment service.

In advance of their placement, students were provided the opportunity to disclose the need for any reasonable adjustments, beyond health or learning needs. This facilitated open and honest conversations to happen before the placement commenced, identifying mutual expectations. During the placement, protected time for personal and clinical supervision was allocated. Professional and personal boundaries were acknowledged, and a trauma informed approach was consistently used throughout the placement.

Sam Kitchen, Trainee Specialist Nurse at our Trust, said:

“I thoroughly enjoyed the placement. It helped to identify my strengths and challenged me to work at a higher level than I knew I was capable of. This resulted in significantly improved practice and self-belief as a nurse.

The team actively recognised that neurodiversity and improving outcomes for service users were things I was really passionate about. I was grateful for their encouragement and support in developing my knowledge in these areas throughout my placement.

I am incredibly proud to now be a Registered Learning Disability Nurse, working as a Trainee Specialist Nurse within the team. I look forward to continuing my preceptorship journey with the Trust and can’t thank the team enough for the brilliant experience they provided me.”

A special thanks to Sarah Millar, Advanced Nurse Practitioner, who was the fantastic Team Lead at the time of placement.

Practice Supervisor of the Year

Eleanor Williams, Specialist Nurse, was nominated as Supervisor of the Year as she consistently prioritised the learning and development needs of the student. Despite clinical demands, Eleanor recognised the importance of her role as someone who could contribute to the development of a future nurse.

Her students state that she not only encourages reflective practice, but actively provides consistent opportunities for it, and most of all, she helps students to recognise their potential.

Eleanor Williams, Specialist Nurse at our Trust, said:

“I joined the Learning Disability Nursing profession because I am incredibly passionate about person centred practice and advocating for patients who cannot advocate for themselves.

Through my years of being a Registered Learning Disability Nurse, I have witnessed how easy it can be to lose passion and the strive for excellence within certain work cultures. I have fought hard to maintain my values and principles throughout my training and career.  These same values are consistently held by students I work with, and I recognise how important it is to prioritise and preserve this in our current and future nursing colleagues.”

The Student Nursing Times Awards are designed to bring together the nursing community, to shine a light on the brightest talent making their way into the profession, and to highlight excellence in all specialties of student nursing. The awards also provide the opportunity to congratulate the lecturers, practice supervisors, universities, Trusts and private organisations providing the best support for student nurses during their studies.

We’re very proud of everyone who on our Children and Young People’s Neurodevelopment Service, who have been working hard and are the reason these nominations are possible. This is a fantastic recognition of your efforts, and you should feel very proud of yourselves.

Please join us in wishing the best of luck to our teams and all our fellow nominees at this year’s Student Nursing Times Awards!

To find out more about the awards and see the full shortlist, visit: https://studentawards.nursingtimes.net/snta23/en/page/home