In this week’s blog, Dr. Lisa Whiting, Associate Dean Research and Associate Professor (Research), Dr. Julia Petty, Associate Professor (Learning and Teaching), and Professor Natalie Pattison (Professor of Clinical Nursing) from the School of Health and Social Work at the University of Hertfordshire share their thoughts on the Nursing Research Internship at the University of Hertfordshire.
Background:
In 2021, the Chief Nursing Officer for England (NHS 2021) published a key document (Making research matter, Chief Nursing Officer for England’s strategic plan for research) that aimed to enable nurses to become empowered to lead, deliver and be involved in research. The NHS Long Term Workforce Plan (NHS England, 2023) has placed a high priority on the development of a workforce that has the necessary skills to enable them to actively engage in research. In addition, The NMC code (2018: 9) states that nurses should: “Always practise in line with the best available evidence” – there can be no doubt that research plays a substantive role in terms of the provision of that evidence. Therefore, it is essential that undergraduate student nurses engage with a research informed learning/teaching approach that enables them to work towards meeting these goals
The internship:
The BSc Hons Nursing programme at the University of Hertfordshire has been designed to encourage our future practitioners to connect meaningfully with nursing research and evidence. It is guided by the four aspects of the Healey and Jenkins (2009) Research Informed Teaching perspectives. The curriculum promotes the student’s independent learning, problem-solving skills and reflective ability.
In order to further enhance this experience, in August 2018, 2019, 2022 and 2023, we have offered a bespoke 4-week student research-focussed internship; this experience was shared between local NHS Trusts and the University of Hertfordshire.
The internship has been advertised internally in the January of each academic year and has been open to 2nd year BSc Hons Nursing students from across the four fields (adult, mental health, children’s and learning disability). Students have been invited to submit an expression of interest, that includes their personal details as well as a statement of up to 250 words, explaining why they are applying for the opportunity and what they hope to gain from it. Each year we have received a high number of applications, demonstrating student interest. These applications are screened using a pre-designed grid; students with the highest scores are offered the internship opportunity (that has traditionally taken place during August).
The interns have had the opportunity to gain research experience within both a clinical and academic setting – each aspect normally being of a two-week duration. The idea has been for them to gain experience of research from the inception of ideas, through to delivery in the NHS, seeing clinical application of research during the patients’ journey. We have arranged a bespoke timetable of activities that provides students with a comprehensive insight, both practical and theoretical, into nursing research. Throughout the internship the students have been fully supervised by us; we have met with them a minimum of once a week (but normally 2-3 times) to reflect on the activities that they have undertaken as well as their associated learning; everything has been recorded in their Practice Assessment Document. Whilst in a University environment, students have been able to immerse themselves in research within an academic context; this has included meeting a range of experts (both staff and service-users), learning about different research methods applied to clinical practice, participating in systematic reviews, having 1:1 support from Professors/Associate Professors as well as the Schools’s Learning Resources manager, learning about patient public involvement, undertaking relevant online modules, having individual internship-related sessions with us (such as different research approaches and their relevance to nursing).
Whilst in the NHS Trust setting, the students have primarily been mentored and supervised by the clinical research nursing team (but support from us has also continued and has been further facilitated as one of the team has a joint appointment with the University and a local NHS Trust as a Professor of Clinical Nursing). This aspect of the internship has been particularly well received as the students have been able to apply their university-based learning to practice as well as see the direct impact of research on patient care. They have been involved in a range of activities, such as patient assessment, and observing the first delivery of a novel therapy in theatres. They have acquired a practical insight into each stage of the research process; key aspects such as the gaining of informed consent have prompted much discussion in our reflective meetings, with students exploring some of the ethical issues involved.
Challenges:
As with any new project, there have been challenges in terms of the implementation of the internship. Not least is the time commitment required to support the students and organise the bespoke timetable (which is partly dependent on the available activities each year); however, this time investment has reaped dividends in terms of the positive feedback that we have received from both staff and students. The Covid-19 pandemic meant that we needed to temporarily pause the placement, but since resuming it, the initiative has gone from strength to strength – for the last group of students, we increased the number to six and worked with four different NHS Trusts.
Benefits:
A total of 11 students have now participated in our internship; the work has been extremely successful and very positively evaluated. One former intern had her passion for research ignited leading her straight into a research career; since then, she has had a Chief Nurse Fellow (research) Band 6 secondment, chaired the research Shared Professional Decision-Making Council, and has been awarded a Royal College of Nursing Fellowship impact award in recognition of her work. She demonstrates the positivity and opportunities presented by research internships. Another student was recognised in the Dean Awards as Student of the year. Others have presented at our university-wide Learning and Teaching conference and had reflective accounts of their experiences published (for example: Elugbaju and Elemnr [2019]; Sikapite [2022]). All of the students, without exception, have commented on how the opportunity has facilitated their professional development, provided new knowledge that they have been able apply to their third-year modules, and most importantly enabled them to apply their learning to the enhancement of patient care within a range of contexts.
Conclusion:
Whilst all the 11 students who have undertaken our internship have been very positive about it, they all applied for the opportunity and had a prior interest in research; other students may not have found the experience so enriching. Despite this, it is essential that we all strive to enable undergraduate nursing students to engage with research and develop the necessary underpinning knowledge and skills. Our students are the future NHS workforce, and we know that research can not only lead to the improvement of “patient care and health outcomes, but also increased workforce satisfaction and retention and patient and carer experience” (NHS England, nd). We must therefore rise to the challenge.
References:
Elugbaju, B. and Elemnr, N. (2019) Why clinical research can be a rewarding setting for your elective. Nursing Standard. Available at: file:///C:/Users/hthqlw1/OneDrive%20-%20University%20of%20Hertfordshire/Desktop/Why%20clinical%20research%20can%20be%20a%20rewarding%20setting%20for%20your%20elective%20_%20RCNi.pdf (Accessed on 31st August 2024).
Healey, M. and Jenkins, A. (2009) Developing undergraduate research and inquiry. York, HEA.
NHS England (nd) Embedding research in the NHS. Available at: https://www.england.nhs.uk/aac/what-we-do/embedding-research-in-the-nhs/ (Accessed on 31st August 2024).
NHS England (2024) NHS Long Term Workforce Plan. Available at: https://www.england.nhs.uk/long-read/nhs-long-term-workforce-plan-2/ (Accessed on 31st August 2024).
NHS England (2021). Making research matter: Chief Nursing Officer for England’s strategic plan for research. Available at: https://www.england.nhs.uk/publication/making-research-matter-chief-nursing-officer-for-englands-strategic-plan-for-research/ (Accessed on 31st August 2024).
Nursing & Midwifery Council (2018) The code: professional standards of practice and behaviour for nurses, midwives and nursing associates. Available at: https://www.nmc.org.uk/globalassets/sitedocuments/nmc-publications/nmc-code.pdf (Accessed on 31st August 2024).
Sikapite, G. (2022) Newly registered nurses are a resource for the profession to tap into. Nursing Times. Available at: https://www.nursingtimes.net/opinion/newly-registered-nurses-are-a-resource-for-the-profession-to-tap-into-04-02-2022/ (Accessed on 31st August 2024).