First T-level students on placement at hospital Trust
The first T-level students have taken part in work placements at the Trust which runs the county’s two acute hospitals, and they will hopefully become the next generation of healthcare workers.
All 32 are studying T-levels in Adult Nursing with Telford and Shrewsbury Colleges and took up the placements at The Shrewsbury and Telford Hospital NHS Trust (SaTH). T-levels are an alternative to A-levels and are more vocational.
The new qualification requires them to carry out 315 hours of clinical practice within an adult setting over two years.
All have completed the two-week Health Care Support Worker (HCSW) Academy at their colleges, so they were prepared to join wards at both Royal Shrewsbury Hospital and Princess Royal Hospital.
T-levels are also an alternative to apprenticeships and other courses for 16 to 19 years old. They focus on vocational skills and can help students into skilled employment, higher study, or apprenticeships.
The students spend 20 per cent of their course on placement at the hospitals and the rest is in the learning environment, gaining the skills that they need. All T-level learners work and learn under the direction of a healthcare worker.
Hayley Flavell, Director of Nursing at SaTH, said: “It was fantastic to welcome our first T-level students. It gives the student the valuable experience and an insight into working in our Trust and the NHS.
“Working in partnership with our local colleges, the students get the crucial learning that they need and it gives us the opportunity to work alongside them and hopefully create the next generation of healthcare workers.”
Sarah Davies, Director of Health and Social Care at Telford College, said: “We’re delighted to have received such positive comments from students after their first placement. Eventually, as the T-Level programme progresses, they will be on rotation and get chance to work not only at our local hospitals, but out in the community as well.”
The Trust is also introducing midwifery T-level placements from January next year and Allied Health Professionals (AHPs) from September 2024.
Telford College has invested £430,000 in the creation of a new Clinical Skills Centre at its Wellington campus, to be used by T-Level health students. It gives them experience of a realistic clinical environment and includes two ‘skills rooms’ – a four-bed hospital ward, and a two-bed maternity environment.
