Page 30 - QARANC Vol 16 No 2 2018

28 QARANC THE GAZETTE
Military Nurse Practitioners’ Inaugural attendance on the Post Graduate Medical Officer Course
In January 2018 six well-seasoned Military Nurse Practitioners with more than 120 years combined service joined 33 Medical Officers at DMS Whittington to complete the Post Graduate Medical Course [PGMO]. Historically the course aims to prepare Medical Officers to carry out their duties worldwide. Essentially it is phase three training for Army doctors prior to them embarking on their General Duties Medical Officer [GDMO] roles, focusing on three equally important domains, clinical, military medical and military.
With the implementation of the MNP pathway for QARANC Nursing Officers, the PGMO course was identified as a way of obtaining a standardised level of training encompassing the military medical aspect of the role. So, it was a real privilege to be nominated to complete a course held in such high regard by the AMS and wider army, preparing to deliver gold standard care to our soldiers and populations at risk. However, with that comes pressure to perform well with a perception big brother is watching. As a cohort, the MNPs were easily detectable. When not wearing our grey berets, or displaying TRFs, the extra wrinkles and some with less hair were additional combat indicators of our identity so it was best behaviour all round.
The course content has been honed and developed by experiences of senior personnel and feedback from other courses. As a snapshot, we covered military ethics, medical treatment of captured personal, travel medicine, forensics, obstetrics and gynaecology, care of paediatric patients, wound care, primary healthcare, occupational health, pre-hospital care, aviation medicine, MSK, infectious diseases, pain management and sexual health. It was a chance to revise and recertify on courses such as BATLS, MIMMS, MPHEC and CBRN EMT, with the option of applying to sit the Diploma in Medical Care Catastrophe [DMCC] exam in London which three of the MNPs experienced. So, all in all a real test of the grey matter but a valuable learning opportunity that filled the
The five QARANC MNPs who attended the PGMO course
military / clinical gap.
There were highlights such as the
chance to sit in the cockpit of an apache helicopter at Middle Wallop, receiving military, clinically focused teaching by SMEs and rehearsing delivering babies with Lieutenant Colonel Appleyard’s infectious teaching style. It also provided a platform for MNPs to come together to share knowledge and help create momentum for MNPs of the future by demonstrating our capabilities to a network of junior doctors who may well be the DCAs of the future.
Personally, I felt integration and acceptance by our Medical Officer colleagues had the potential to be one of the greatest barriers towards a positive learning experience. However, our previous military, operational and clinical experiences were embraced
and by and large our anecdotes served to enhance the learning of others.
Moving forward, the new learning is already being implemented in firm base settings within Emergency Departments [EDs] and DPHC. Opportunities now exist to prove the concept of the MNP capability with employment roles on exercises and deployments. I now look forward to filling the MNP lead of the pre-hospital treatment team [PHTT] for Exercise Trident Juncture in Norway later this year. It’s a real exciting time for advance practice roles within the QARANC and a key lesson learnt from the PGMO was to recruit and promote your own speciality. Therefore, please do get in contact with any of us or SNA (A) MNP if you have any queries or questions.
Major Paula Pearce