Stellenbosch University
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First clinical placement a milestone for undergraduate nursing students
Author: FMHS Marketing & Communication / FGGW Bemarking & Kommunikasie – Sue Segar
Published: 09/04/2021

​​The undergraduate nursing programme at Stellenbosch University (SU) recently reached an important milestone. For the first time in about 15 years, third-year nursing students at the Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences (FMHS) started their clinical practice placement at various hospitals and clinics in the Cape Town area. 

Dr Janet Bell, senior lecturer in the Department of Nursing and Midwifery described the students' entry into the clinical sites as “a big day in our programme's history". 

In 2019, a group of 41 students were the first to enrol for the new undergraduate nursing programme offered by the FMHS. And it is this group, who are in their third year now, that have just started with clinical placement. 

The FMHS previously offered an undergraduate nursing degree that was moved to the University of the Western Cape when the higher education landscape was reshuffled by the then Education Minister Kader Asmal. The last group of nursing students to complete the previous programme graduated in 2007. 

Bell said the absence of a nursing programme at the FMHS had created “a real gap, a lack and a space in the undergraduate offering. 

“This programme has been missing from the undergraduate programme offering at the FMHS. The faculty offers medicine, physiotherapy, speech, language- and hearing therapy, dietetics and occupational therapy, but the group of healthcare professionals which is, in fact, the largest in the country, and in the world, was just missing from the faculty," said Bell. SU's undergraduate nursing programme was reinstated in 2019. 

“Now we are where we belong and this new programme offers us the opportunity to take a different perspective on how nurses are educated and how we can facilitate their becoming good nurses and midwives. It is a huge privilege for me to be involved and I am grateful to be part of this programme. 

“When the regulatory space for nursing education changed, it offered us an opportunity to change the way nursing is taught in South Africa. SU was the first university to be accredited to offer this new version of the nursing programme. Our students are not only the first ones from Stellenbosch University, but also the first in the country in the context of this new programme to go into clinical spaces. So it's a steep learning curve and an interesting and dynamic space to be part of. It is both exciting and emotional," Bell said. 

According to Bell, the students will do their clinical practice in four clinical clusters – in the Paarl, Stellenbosch, Khayelitsha and Mitchells Plain areas. 

Bell said the past few years with the new programme have had their challenges.

“In 2019 we were all finding our feet and the students were selected very late into the programme because of the accreditation processes. So all of us were put on quite a dynamic learning curve. 

“Last year – 2020 – was just baffling because of Covid-19. We had to go from seeing each other every day to a completely online learning space. It took a great deal of adjustment from all of us. We had to work very hard to stay connected. A golden thread of our programme is person centredness. To live up to that we had to become quite creative about staying connected with our students and each other online. Then obviously when the students were online they couldn't go to hospitals, which they would have started doing last year. 

“Every year has been different. When you do something for the first time, you learn hard and fast together. It has been a true example of reciprocal learning where we have learnt from the students while they have learnt from us."

Nursing students had the following to say about their first experience of clinical practice:

​Aneeqah Adonis: “I was working in family planning in Mitchell's Plain CHC and I was working with a sister who has been a nurse for many decades. We were doing a procedure and she found an abnormality. She told the client that she would be back, that she was just going to fetch her colleague for a second opinion. What stuck with me is that you're never too old to ask, even after being in the profession for decades she never failed to be humble and that is only one of the many highlights I have had working at the health centre."

Jessica Marshall: “I was initially terrified of doing a bed bath, but after my first experience, the patient was extremely grateful and just kept thanking us. It was so amazing to be able to give someone the type of comfort and dignity that most of us take for granted. It is a feeling that I will never forget." 

Lume Koorts: “For the past two years I never truly felt like a nurse. But now, putting on my uniform, walking into the facility, and being able to care for people, give me a sense of belonging and purpose." 

Chene Senekal – “It was the moment I've dreamt of my whole life to finally help people. The most daunting experience of my life realising I have a much bigger responsibility than just myself and that I have the privilege to start making a difference. It has definitely been a life-changing experience and I will never be able to look at the world in the way I have been for the last 20 years of my life. There is so much more to life than just living." 

Nabila Salemohammed: “It's been an interesting experience as an international student to see what nursing in South Africa entails. The platform has motivated me to strive to do the best and be the best at what I do." 

Suzanne Hugo: “The smile on his face when I told him that he was doing an incredible job and that I was proud of him for taking charge of his health and starting HIV treatment. There is no better feeling than knowing you made someone feel acknowledged and validated." 

Shanay de Kock: “What an incredibly humbling experience. Hearing about South Africa's healthcare system is one thing but experiencing it hands on surpasses all expectations. I feel extremely honoured to be a Stellenbosch University Nurse in South Africa. I love walking into the facilities and seeing smiles in eyes that are in a lot of pain. I love the fact that my occupation is one of reward and making a difference - even if it is only through a conversation. I will be fighting until I am the best, competent and compassionate nurse I can possibly be! And clinical practice for learning is a strong contributing factor to this goal." 

Mika Marnitz: “Going into clinicals, I didn't really know what to expect. I can however say that having experienced what I have in the past five weeks, has taught me so much, has helped me grow emotionally and mentally, and has shown me how to love and care for those who need it most. There has been tough times, but also encouraging times and I believe this is all part of our growth into becoming the great nurses we are ought to be."​