Nottingham College will be adding a simulated hospital ward to its facilities as it continues to prepare students for the world of work, including for jobs that don't even exist yet. The college's City Hub is already home to an operating restaurant run by students and an airline standard cabin, but in September 2023 almost 500 health and social students will be benefitting from a simulated hospital ward.
Zoe Scott, faculty area manager of Health and Social Care, said: "We have been given just over £600,000 to develop what will be a simulated fully functioning adult care ward." There are currently 480 health and social care learners at the college, but in September Nottingham College will be starting the first year of it's Health T-Level programme, which offers the adult nursing pathway.
Zoe added: "Students will be able to practice in a simulated environment, such as the physiological measurements, blood measuring and other skills, and then they can take all of that experience to the NHS. It will bridge that gap between them learning it in the classroom to having the skills to go into the real world.
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"We are just working with our local NHS team to develop it at the moment." The facility will be built over the summer, and students are already looking forward to it as it will help them with the 320 hours of experience they need to gain over their two year course.
Nihmanah Ahmed, a level 3 Health and Social Care student, said: "I’m really excited about the next steps in my healthcare study at the college. The adult ward that will be open in September will have real hospital beds, real hospital equipment and will give us the opportunity to learn in an environment as close to real life as it can get. It’s what makes college study different so I’m really looking forward to it."
Nottingham College currently has more than 20,000 students studying hundreds of different courses, and is one of the ten largest colleges in the country.
Regarding it's new hospital ward and other immersive facilities, a College spokesperson said: "It's as much about teaching a lesson as allowing students to make those connections with the industry. What we try to do is see what's happening in the area locally and take that to the classroom.
"We are not only looking at what is out there now but what might be coming in the next three or four years time, so jobs that don't exist yet." Phil Tomlinson is the faculty area manager for catering, hospitality, aviation, travel and tourism, the departments which oversee the college's airline cabin and restaurant, Fletchers.
Speaking of the cabin, Phil said: "The cabin is airline standard and East Midlands Airport came over a couple of weeks ago as we are working with them, and they were very impressed with it. It get's the students ready for what they will be doing when they go to an airline.
"The curriculum is not just the course but what we add on to that, such as experience and links with industry. We do the whole evacuation system as well for the curriculum and EMA are now sending us some of their equipment over to create some security lanes so we can start teaching students about the security lanes, what to look out for and certain points that the airport would like them to learn about as well."
When asked his favourite part about the course, third year aviation student, Henry Icke, said: "It's just doing all of the different scenarios and everything, it just gives us all the experience we will need for when we go out to work and do it ourselves." He added that the course is "great" and they recently had a trip to East Midlands Airport. Along with some of the other aviation students, Henry is also part of a focus group for a study being done regarding the environment and aviation.
Phil explained that giving students the correct industry standard equipment is essential, as it will not only save them training when they begin their careers, but allow them to begin their jobs with confidence. Regarding Fletchers, He said: "We give our students the really good experience of industry standard teaching and the equipment to go with it.
"If we were teaching them on domestic kitchen equipment when they go into work where they are using industrial equipment they would have to learn it all again."
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