Page 8 - QARANC Vol 14 No 8 2014

6 QARANC THE GAZETTE
all go through a program, which covers birthing process. The staff assured us that they aimed this at emergency situations however wanted their students to have an element of understanding of the process and demonstrated the birthing simulation.
The University arranged for us to shadow various staff nurses from a variety of different specialties. This was the most interesting of the experiences as the privatisation of care has given rise to contrasting methods of practice. As aforementioned technology is streamed into everyday activities, some wards have smart rooms, which through the use of wristbands track the number of times a member of staff attends to a patient. Robots roam the hospital halls delivering linen or meals, which patients can order at their convenience from a complex menu.
Wards are specialised and patients would often be transferred across state/s to receive the specialised care they require, and a network of intermediary care facilities to accommodate individuals who can be medically discharged from the specialist wards. It was suggested by one member of staff that due to insurance policies that American’s perhaps have more ownership over
their care. Also, the structure of funding means that individuals perhaps have a higher expectation of their experience, each patient either received a private room or double room with their own phone, which they can call their nurse from. Those who currently (pre Obama care) do not have insurance are not turned away from hospitals if they require care, however we didn’t get to see their emergency room which has its own security before entry is allowed.
The nurse’s who were kind enough to become my preceptor informed me that there staff ratios were at a maximum 1:6 however the maximum I observed was 1:4. The traditional drugs round I train for in my course is replaced by an individually tailored patient envelope with 24 hours worth of medication. After the patient has
been entered onto the computer using a scanner and the medication entered via the same method, the system will alert the nurse to any discrepancies. This was presented as a positive intervention reducing error and waste.
It would be easy to make conclusions about these few observations; that private funding allows an improved quality of care however even in my short exposure to healthcare systems there is no universal answer. However there is always two side to every coin the America healthcare system does have its limitations which can have crippling affects to an individuals finances. This has been a fantastic opportunity to broaden my professional horizons, and with the changes the NHS is currently undertaking from primary care trusts to clinical commissioning groups perhaps a glimpse of possible changes to come. I would like to thank Birmingham City University for the opportunity and Queen Alexandra’s Royal Army Nursing Corps Association and Defense School of Healthcare Education for their support and encouragement.
J Hain Pte, BSc Student Nurse Department of Healthcare Education Birmingham City University
The new Director at The Army Medical Services Museum
Becks Skinner is the new Director at the Army Medical Services Museum. She joins from the Airborne Assault Museum based at the Imperial War Museum in Cambridge. At the Airborne Assault Museum, she worked as part of the busy Curatorial Team, receiving over 100,000 visitors a year, covering many areas such as Museum Accreditation, education, outreach, volunteer management and collections. Whilst there she completed her QCF Level 5 in Cultural Heritage through the V&A Museum.
Prior to this, she achieved her Post Graduate Certificate
in Education at the University of Worcester in 2009. Whilst studying for her BA (Hons) in Religious Studies, she was a member of the Territorial Army with the Royal Signals Corps.
Becks Skinner
The link for the AMS Museum facebook page. www.facebook.com/AMSMuseum
Army Medical Services Museum, Keogh Barracks, Ash Vale, GU12 5RQ Tel: 01252 868612 www.ams-museum.org.uk • www.ams-shop.org.uk