LAUNCH OF NEW CAMPAIGN TO ENCOURAGE STUDENTS TO BECOME NURSES

The largest provider of Nursing, Midwifery, Health and Social Care students in England, Anglia Ruskin University, has started a new push to recruit people from Essex to the nursing field.

The majority of the NHS staff is made up of nurses, and they play a significant role in private hospitals as well. In the field of nursing, there are numerous positions and career paths to consider. The Nursing and Midwifery Council (NMC) will allow you to register if you have a nursing diploma or degree.

Louise Jenkins, Head of School for Nursing and Midwifery in Cambridge, Anglia Ruskin University, is leading the effort to increase the number of nursing students. She says: “Nursing offers a job for life, it's a very rewarding career, and with a degree in nursing, you can fulfil so many roles, from community nursing to intensive care as well as become a specialist in key areas, like child or renal nursing”.

There are major benefits to becoming a nurse including:

• Multiple career options
• Knowing you’re helping people
• It’s an internationally-recognised career
• Good salary
• Career progression
• Job security
• Continuous learning
• Flexible hours that you choose

As part of the campaign, ARU Nursing wants to dispel misconceptions about what a nurse does and highlight the range of nursing-related occupations available, like becoming a school nurse and working in mental health nursing. Only 11% of nurses in the UK are men, thus there is yet another prejudice that the campaign is working to overcome.

Newly qualified nurses expect to receiving £27,055 year, whereas the typical graduate beginning wage ranges from £21,000 to £25,000.

In health care and society, providing care is becoming feminised, and the nursing profession has strong female roots. In many high-income countries, this has created a trajectory and culture that has kept the percentage of males at about 10%.

Some men's enthusiasm in nursing as a vocation may be hampered by negative ideas about the prestige of nursing and its perceived status in the community.

Effective role modelling is crucial. Many educational institutions and supporters are working hard to normalise the idea that men can be excellent nurses as well. Many people may underestimate men's ability to perform personal care duties.

The bottom line is: We urgently need more men in nursing. This is sensible not just for health care, as it offers opportunity for interaction with males, but also for our society and economic growth. Improved health outcomes, more global health security, and more inclusive economic growth could result from investments in education and employment creation in the health and social sectors.

Click here for more information about Access to Nursing and Midwifery.