Successful OU Nursing Associate partnership continues in Norfolk

Following the successful start of an exciting new partnership in Norfolk and Waveney, the Open University continues to work with The Queen Elizabeth Hospital King’s Lynn to train new Nursing Associates.

The Norfolk and Waveney Health and Care Sustainability and Transformation Partnership (STP) is made up of health and care organisation from across the area, with the aim of building healthier communities and providing high quality health and care services.

Through the OU’s flexible Nursing Associate Higher Apprenticeship programme, The Queen Elizabeth Hospital have been able to support a number of Trainee Nursing Associates (TNAs) to develop their workforce and to support these partnership goals.

Following The Queen Elizabeth Hospital’s 2018 cohort of seven OU Nursing Associate Apprentices, a further twelve OU apprentices started in 2019.

At the end of 2019, the OU attended the Norfolk and Waveney STP Trainee Nursing Associate event, which provided an opportunity to welcome the new TNAs onto the OU’s Apprenticeship programme, along with those studying with other university partners.

Sandra Bingham, Development Manager for Clinical Bands 1-4 at The Queen Elizabeth Hospital, comments:

'It’s a pleasure to be at the Trainee Nursing Associate launch event representing the QEH King’s Lynn Hospital and our cohort of TNAs who have just commenced on programme with the Open University.

As an acute trust, but one of the smaller in the region, I am proud to say we have almost 40 TNAs in learning.  Some of our wards have been able to accommodate 4-5 TNAs and one of the main factors that makes this possible is the flexibility which the OU programme offers to be able to support all the learners’ individual needs.'

Katy Whicker, a Ward Manager at Queen Elizabeth Hospital, adds:

'I have been supporting TNAs through the OU over the past year and it has been a great process. The flexibility of when they can have study days is the key to our ability to have three on our ward at once, as it means patient care is not compromised by them all having to be away from the ward together. The support we have received to guide us through the process has also been excellent and really helped our TNAs get through the first year smoothly.'

Read more about The Queen Elizabeth Hospital’s 2018 Trainee Nursing Associates here.

Find out more about the OU’s Nursing Associate Higher Apprenticeship here.