8pm tonight NHS appreciation

I like your family members are probably more concerned with the crisis we now find ourselves in: save the recriminations for later.

 

Slightly puzzled now. I thought you were inferring that nursing staff are well rewarded for the risks they take.

 

A few questions about bursaries that you may know the answer to.
Can literally anybody get one if they are accepted on to a course that counts?
Are they completely free and without risk or would you have to pay it back if you failed to complete the course? What about if you completed the course and then got a completely unrelated job?

I'm just nosey

 

I didn't say well rewarded though did i?
I said much better rewarded than our conterpart's in the private sector. In fact i never mentioned wages: i mentioned the overall package. I would argue everyone under band 6 is under-paid but you can't fault the other benefits mentioned. I feel you've widely misundestood my intentions.

 

Not bad rhand t Well.

 

I think the argument about privatisation is dead & buried. Least I hope so.

Even the most far right Tory government has underlined this.

I'm not doing politics at the moment. Just saying as i see it.

Look at the USA. Who wants that?

 

Read an article in the new york times yesterday. It said the american healthcare system was much less able to deal with the virus than those countries that had universal healthcare. Watching a state governer too painfully pointing out that they did not have enough beds or ventilators. Hopefully this crisis will help safeguard the nhs for generations.

 

Bursaries are not means tested. If you are accepted on programme, you get one (last 3 years of students didn't get one). Students can also claim travel expenses which is paid as the difference between the cost of getting to placement over travelling to uni (this remained available to all students even with no bursary).

None of it is paid back if they fail the programme or if they don't work in the NHS. That said I'd say if we had 100 nurses completing the programme (usually it's more than this but the September 2019 intake is *just* 100 students compared to 180 starters in circa 2016) then all but a few of them would end up working for the NHS. Some years I'd say it's every single one of them. If you complete the course you'll walk into a job because there's such a shortfall of nurses.

Unlike other courses there's very little leave. Students are on placements over the entire summer and/or are handing in coursework. They also pay £27k in fees for 3 years and accommodation, food etc. Once they are 2nd years they can do some limited work. Many do it for the money, juggling it with uni work, placement at hospitals/health centres etc. Mental health issues and students dropping out temporarily or altogether is a constant and sadly growing issue - one that's uni wide.

The starting wage for a band 5 qualified nurse is £24k IIRC.

The NMC are currently deciding on what grounds 2nd and 3rd year nurses can work in hospitals to assist with Covid if they choose to do so. I genuinely fear for some of their welfare as they're already under lots of pressure and they're only what, 19-20 years old. Now they're given a poisoned chalice (but will be paid work if you're a 3rd year - as it stands).

You don't choose to be a nurse, it chooses you.....

 

I didn’t mention wages either. Out of interest, given the number of vacancies in the NHS, why would anyone work in the private sector anyway if the rewards are so inferior?

 

Budgets have been cut significantly over the last 8 years or so so that means less nursing staff to manage our wards so i'm not sure how vacancies fits in with that. When i first started the ward where i currently work would have been budgeted for 7 on days, 5 on nights. Now it's 5 and 3. You can only have the staff to fit the budget so many people go into private. I can't remember the last time our hospital employed an experienced nurse through recruitment either. All our new nurses are newly qualified out of university (a much cheaper option). So numerous reasons i guess.

 

“Clap for Carers” though - marketing didn’t think that one through.

Possibly the last thing they need at a time like this.......

 

Correct.

 

Great thread unfortunately 'polluted' by the usual handful of pillocks (they know who they are) determined to make political points.
FFS! give it a rest. Now is REALLY not the time.

 

Pretty poor show round where we live, us and next door were out, not a lot more. Next door went back in and we couldn't hear any other clapping. I banged a pan with a wooden spoon for a while....

 

Just a quickie to put the lady on TV this morning who said that clapping was the only way to show appreciation for the NHS straight. NO IT ISN’T,
THERE’S THE BALLOT BOX!!

 

Think we were all out more or less and have been from the first one where I was all prepared to be the only ones! Mostly claps but a couple of pans. And then the fireworks ( not our street). I know it cheers my friends in the NHS up and that's all that matters .

 

Interesting tweets here....

 

Ridiculous. Police should be stopping that, not joining in.

 

Yet some are kicking off because kids are playing in their front garden?!? The mind boggles.

 

The mind boggles doesn’t it.

Clapping for the NHS while not doing the one very simple thing that is designed to ease the strain on the NHS.