thinking of dropping out of uni

[roxie_09]

I am currently studying mental health nursing at uni, aswell as studying I work as a part time nursing assistant in a mental health hospital. I really enjoy working as an NA and considering dropping out as I prefer the hands on 'nursey' bits rather than the culture of qualified nursing these days, which is spent infront of the computer and form filling etc. It's a big decision that I don't want to take lightly. I just don't want to waste another year if it's not what I want to do :(. Can anyone give me any advice on making the best decision for me? x

[lcg]

oh, btw...yes there is a lot of paperwork/computer stuff, but i like doing things like the meds rounds, obs, injections (especially on reluctant customers), physical care (there's always lots), 1:1 time (involving dbt, cbt, motivational interviewing and counselling techniques which i have all learnt as extra skills from cpd etc.) and the usual disaster management! the last one was on sunday - a laddie from the picu downstairs decided to climb up a wall (don't ask me how, his middle name must be spiderman!), get stuck on a ledge 20ft up and was clinging on for dear life. the lazy idiots from downstairs (who i used to work with) hadn't noticed, so i had to call the fire brigade and police, send staff from my ward all over the shop to coordinate the incident, find the senior manager on duty, attend the incident and do things like put mattresses underneath him (as others stood by and gawped). all in a days work! so, really there is far more than paperwork...you have to be superwoman as well x

[roxie_09]

Haha never a dull moment I can imagine. Thank you very much, it's nice to hear/read of nurses that do do the hands on stuff aswell as so often I see them hide away in the offices. Which I have noticed a main cause of incidents happening on the ward as clients are always told "I'm busy" x

[lcg]

yup...never 'promise' anything, admit when you don't know something, and instead of saying in a minute...tell the patient what you are in the middlef and that you will come and seek them out next. also...never say 'good' morning - because for them it usually isn't! there are loads of little things like that which you will learn by trial and error on the way. those nurses who only do paperwork are being lazy - you simply don't have to document that much stuff. i manage to fit in 16-25 hours of overtime a week as well and usually do this as a hcsw...perhaps you could do so in order to get more 'hans-on' time - i know my patients appreciate it x

[LoftyLottie]

For goodness sake, if you are a mature 18 you wouldn't be using text speak on this website (which is for adults). Punctuation would be a good idea too.

[roxie_09]

Yes LCG I've learnt not to promise anything and also not to use "I know how you feel" I will always admit that I don't know and I probably couldn't begin to understand it, which I usually find people accept. Rjsmc, yes it sounds straight forward, but why waste my time and governments funding if it's not what I want to do? X

[boxtops]

But.... if I am looking at it purely financially, if you drop out, you have already "wasted" two-thirds of the course fees and bursaries which are funded by your Strategic Health Authority through their contract with the Universities, and in the extreme, we could say that if you drop off, you have used a place which can't be filled, which someone who really wanted the MH pathway could have taken two years ago. Attrition is taken very seriously by both the SHAs and the Universities, since the course is all funded from the public purse.

[roxie_09]

Yes Boxtops I agree with you. That's why if I do drop out, I want to make sure it's definitely the right decision for me, as I know what a priviliged position I am in and will probably not ever be in again. As I've onny got another 18months left on the course I may well stay and make the changes that I would like to see (well at least try) x

[boxtops]

I think you have a really good grasp of all the factors you need to consider - let us know what you decide!

[Barquentine]

If you stick it out and get qualified then you still ought to be able to do the type of nursing you want. Your cover letter when applying for posts will reveal that you have clear ideas of what you really want to do. Also maybe you can get involved in whatever nurse associations/regulatory bodies there are and you can begin to change things from the inside. Maybe in ten or twenty years and with your determination things will change for the better again?

[tigwig]

Definitely stick it out. I would love to train to become a midwife but cannot possibly afford to with 2 kids and having to pay for childcare. Ive been told I would receive no financial help for this and only a very small bursary so its an impossibility.

[boxtops]

Tigs, you would need to contact the student support dept at the university, but I know that some pre-reg students are eligible to claim benefits for child care etc because of the low income on the bursary. Worth looking into.

[whiskeryron]

roxie,as many A/Bers have said stick with it.Once you have your degree there is nothing to stop you moving up the scale when you may be able to help with decisions to alter situations that are at the moment bugging you about the system.My daughter was in nursing until she was made redundant recently,after she graduated she kept up her studies got diplomas in Midwifery,Health Visitor,Nurse Practitioner & finally Assistant Director of Health Education in Walsall where she was made redundant this year in the NHS cuts & also took early retirement.The point I am making is that she became involved quite a bit in decision making & I would like you to think very seriously before you decide to give up what I have no doubt will be a very rewarding & interesting career.
Ron.♥

[roxie_09]

Yes Tigs, Boxtops is right if it's something that you really want to do, (not sure if it's the same in England, as I study in Wales) but a few people on my course receive extra financial help that need it due to children x

[roxie_09]

Thanks Ron, I completely agree, I guess if people like me drop out because of what nursing has become, it's never going to change. A few nursing assistants that I've worked with have told me the reason they do not want to do their training is because they do not want to be in front of the computer all day. I really do thank you all for your support :) x

[tigwig]

I need to do an additional course before I can even do the degree though thats another problem. This costs around £1400 that I am expected to fund myself and the college told me I would get no help with paying for it or childcare. I think I will just have to wait a good few more years til both my kids are alot older and at school full time.

[joko]

i dropped out of 2 degree courses because i realised they were just not what i wanted...but that was because the courses werent right for me - but these were art based subjects and therefore i was doing them solely to learn what i wanted to learn...rather than what i need to - such as with nursing.

i have not regretted doing that...i was glad i didnt waste my time, and went back to it at a later date.

will your college allow you to have a year out and go back to it next year? that way you can have some time to 'try out' your plans and see if they work out...
it seeems silly to waste all that time of study on a whim that you may come to regret

i would aggree though that you need to complete the course at some point - because nursing is a 'solid' subject, and has to be measured and controlled...and you may find yourself suffering due to lack of qualifications...

i know myself i would always choose the qualified person over the not, especially in something like nursing

[boxtops]

The system in England is changing and the curriculum will no doubt change next year when all-degree nursing comes in. I wouldn't suggest you don't, but it might be more difficult to APL back in if you take a year out - and when you come back, you would be in a different cohort. Could be a good thing, could be a less good thing - cohort relationships are important, I work with nurses who still have annual reunions with nurses they trained with, forty-odd years ago. Future funding is a real issue at the moment, we don't yet know what it will look like - at least now you know you have funding for the final year!