Study Trip to the PITT School of Nursing
Thanks to the long-term cooperation between the Faculty of Health, Education and Life Sciences and the University of Pittsburgh, USA , 14 BCU nursing students were, once again, offered an opportunity travel to Pennsylvania for complete study and observational clinical placement experience at the PITT School of Nursing and its partner hospitals, including UPMC Presbyterian, Children’s and Magee Women’s Hospitals.
This is an annual opportunity offered to second year undergraduate students from all fields of nursing.
Highlights
“I enjoyed talking to different staff and students and gaining an insight as to what it was like to study and work in America. I also enjoyed learning about the American culture, and realising we have both similar and different cultures. Lastly, I enjoyed seeing different tourist attractions as the country had a lot a lot to offer from a historical and visual aspect.” Francesca Williams
“Pittsburgh was a great experience, mixed with the opportunity to experience life at university and experience the hospitals and learn how they differ from here in England. As a student children’s nurse, one of the highlights for me was the tour of the children’s hospital and then having an observational experience there. The children’s hospital is relatively new; it has small but effective features, which stood out. These included a fantastically deigned MRI room and scanner, which encourages the children to feel more relaxed and have a better experience. Sedation medication had dropped by around 75% since designing the room in this way, which was a massive shock! The TV’s at the bed space could be set up with child friendly features explaining about their condition - this is to help children to not feel as scared and have a greater understanding about why they are in hospital. There were special areas for siblings and parents to go - this could be to relax or speak with a psychologist.” Stephanie Lavan
Differences in professional practice
“The sorts of lectures and educational training that the American students receive differed quite heavily from us. We go straight into learning the physiology of children and adults whereas they start with learning compounds and gases in chemistry for understanding the basics of human beings. Also on the wards, the students travel in larger groups accompanied by lecturers from the university. Their clinical level is much lower than what we are used to as we go out onto a clinical placement after 10 weeks at university, whereas they do not go into clinical situations until their second year." Lucy Taylor
“I noticed that there was a lot more emphasis on academic work and less on the practical element. Though there is an academic element in the UK, practical and academic work are split equally. When shadowing a qualified nurse, it was apparent that the technology was state of the art, as a lot of the equipment was electronically based. Their system seemed a lot less chaotic and more organised. However, there could be room for improvement when comparing nursing practice. This included bed side manner, effective use of resources, manual handling and infection control.” Francesca Williams
Key Achievements
“I would still very much like to consider nursing in America as part of my future as a nurse. I now feel very much more aware of the differences in healthcare services, standards and stigma compared to that of the UK. I feel I have learned a lot from spending time with our own students during this experience by discussing their roles within their fields of general and paediatric. Sharing our own experience and knowledge in our fields with each other throughout our time, I believe to be of much value within my learning as mental health nurse.” Claire Rutland
“I feel that the experience in America has given me a different perspective to health care. It was eye opening to see how different countries practice. It has made me reflect on my own practice and realise how the fundamentals of nursing is so important. It has given me the opportunity to explore different fields of nursing which I wouldn’t have done in the UK. Finally, it has sparked my interest to explore different countries around the world and discover different ways of life.” Francesca Williams
Future advice
“I would recommend Pittsburgh to future students. We had an amazing and busy timetable planned for us, we were able to experience and learn so many things we would not have the opportunity to here. We spoke to and learnt from American students in the university and nurses on the wards. You also have the chance to get to know students from Birmingham studying different fields of nursing and we learnt so much from each other. I am very grateful I had the opportunity to experience Pittsburgh and strongly recommend applying!” Stephanie Lavan
“The advice I would give to other HELS students, is to take the opportunity and embrace the culture that you’re going into. This should include keeping an open mind, asking loads of questions and having fun as not everyone gets this opportunity” Francesca Williams
