nursing studies volunteer work

geraldine70

hi, im planning to attend a nursing studies fetac level 5 course, i have not been accepted as such but i am high on the waiting list. i was wondering if i could get some volunteer work at a hospital to gain some experience, and how do i go about asking? who do i ask?

katiebelle

geraldine70 wrote: »

hi, im planning to attend a nursing studies fetac level 5 course, i have not been accepted as such but i am high on the waiting list. i was wondering if i could get some volunteer work at a hospital to gain some experience, and how do i go about asking? who do i ask?

Well you will have to organize your work placement anyway for this course. When my son did this course he worked in a local A&E department and literally just walking in off the street and asked. Do it WELL in advance if you can because all the best placements will be taken fast. You will probably have more luck if you try a nursing home though. Remember you will need your CRB to be back before you can work anywhere so do that asap. Good luck, both my older kids did this course and one is now training to be a paramedic and the other a nurse.

geraldine70

and does it take long to get my crb? is it the school that has to send off the form as i am only on the waiting list and not yet accepted. would i just go in and ask at a main desk for volunteer work at a hospital or do i need to ask for someone specific?

katiebelle

The crb does take a few months and you wont be accepted into any hospital for voluntary work without it. For your work placements the school may help you out . They may have agreements with certain hospitals and nursing homes and places like that. My son just walked off the street and spoke to the sister in charge. I dont think you will be accepted without a valid crb though . Thats a basic requirement. If I were you I would consider joining voluntary organizations like the Red Cross , Order of Malta and Civil defence. You can do lots of related courses and you can get experience in patient handling , patient transfer , first aid etc. The courses are really good like Cardiac first responder and so on. You can see about getting garda clearance yourself if you wanted. My kids always kept their crb's valid for job opportunities while waiting to get into their chosen field. They also had a ton of extra courses done and lots of experience with the organizations mentioned. All this REALLY helps if you are looking to go on and do nursing. Its competitive but the more you do in the area the better shot you have.

geraldine70

Thankyou for all the information. i am getting my crb sorted out today and i have got in contact with the order of malta, so fingers crossed for me!!!!:)