Specialist community public health nurses (SCPHNs)—who provide universal health promoting services to all families with children in the 0–19 age range—are particularly well placed to influence lifestyle-related health behaviours at an early stage. To undertake this work effectively a toolkit of health promotion strategies is required. This paper reports the findings of a small study which aimed to examine student perspectives about if, and how, education in behaviour change skills impacts on the nature and effectiveness of consultations with clients. It was undertaken at a university in the north of England which has pioneered the teaching of motivational interviewing and behaviour change skills within the SCPHN curriculum. The study took place in 2017. Focus groups, attended by 11 SCPHN students examined students' views and perspectives about engaging with clients and utilising behaviour change skills in practice. Key themes arising from the data were: changing approach, skills and techniques, education and learning, use in practice, and time. Findings indicate that SCPHN students had begun to apply an approach based on Motivational Interviewing to consultations in practice as a result of their education. This is likely to have a substantial impact on practice and client outcomes.

The use of interprofessional simulation training to enhance nursing students' performance of technical and non-technical clinical skills is becoming increasingly common. Simulation training can involve the use of role play, virtual reality or patient simulator manikins to replicate clinical scenarios and assess the nursing student's ability to, for example, undertake clinical observations or work as part of a team. Simulation training enables nursing students to practise clinical skills in a safe environment. Effective simulation training requires extensive preparation, and debriefing is necessary following a simulated training session to review any positive or negative aspects of the learning experience. This article discusses a high-fidelity simulated training session that was used to assess a group of third-year nursing students and foundation level 1 medical students. This involved the use of a patient simulator manikin in a scenario that required the collaborative management of a deteriorating patient.

Becoming a newly qualified nurse can be a daunting prospect and leadership may appear to be a quality that only experienced nurses and managers should be concerned with. However, leadership is a requirement for all registered nurses and inquiries into cases of suboptimal care have often identified inadequate leadership as a major contributor. In the past, leadership was defined as an innate characteristic or trait, but over time concepts of leadership have evolved and it is now recognised as a set of skills and behaviours. There are many different leadership styles, qualities and behaviours, but these should not be confused with the role of management. It is important for newly qualified nurses to develop their lead Newly qualified nurses may regard leadership as a quality that only experienced staff and managers should be concerned with. However, leadership is a requirement for all registered nurses. In the UK, the Nursing and Midwifery Council (NMC) (2018) standards of proficiency divide nursing proficiencies into seven platforms. The fifth platform describes the proficiency of 'leading and managing nursing care and working in teams', and includes acting as a role model, managing nursing care and being accountable for appropriate delegation and supervision of care provided by the team. Working in a team requires active and equal collaboration, and communication, which are essential nursing skills. Defining leadershipLeadership is a term that is challenging to define. Most definitions agree that it is concerned with a shared aim, vision, purpose or goal and the ability of the leader to persuade others to work towards

In 2020 many healthcare students lost placement hours due to COVID-19. In response to this crisis, simulated placements were implemented to ensure students were able to achieve their practice hours. A pilot project was undertaken in November 2020. This was then developed at pace into a simulated placement module that could accommodate around 3,500 students by the start of January 2021. Nursing and Midwifery Council guidance was updated in February 2021 The study aimed to enable nursing students to maintain their hours as required by the NMC, and provide evidence to demonstrate achievement of their competencies. It also aimed to ensure patients and service users from all fields were represented within the activities.A module blackboard site was developed online to house the materials. Each activity was mapped to the cohort-specific proficiencies which needed to be achieved for that particular level of study (BSc and MSc). A wide range of activities were included such as Oxford Medical Simulation, detailed case studies and scenarios including ‘talking head’ style videos and patient documentation, service user interviews, analysing Care Opinion patient feedback, and 360-degree tours of a patient’s home to undertake a risk assessment.Students were able to access the simulated placements if waiting for a clinical placement due to lack of availability, if course completion was delayed due to ‘opting out’, or if the student was self-isolating or shielding. Students received comprehensive guidance as well as regular YouTube updates to walk them through the process. A mixture of live online sessions and self-directed activities were included and engagement was logged on a placement timesheet. There were also activities and live sessions focussing on student well-being and preparation for placements. It was also important to include activities focussing on other fields of nursing such as mother and baby or learning disabilities. A reflection was then uploaded to the digital placement assessment document so that it could be accessed virtually by the practice assessor and academic assessor. The simulated placements have since expanded into the Allied Health Professional courses within the university and it has been valuable to undertake interprofessional resource sharing to further enhance the simulated placements experience.