University takes aim at nursing ‘myths’ in student video
A university in East Anglia is aiming to attract more student nurses onto its courses by challenging “the stereotypes of nursing”.
Anglia Ruskin University has said it wants its new recruitment video to “bust myths around the profession” that may prevent some people from considering nursing as a career.
“There’s a real stigma about men in child nursing that I’m keen to challenge”
Sean Haskell-Mills
The myths the video targets include that nursing is only for women, that nurses only work in hospitals and do not need a degree, and that lecturers do not understand frontline nursing.
Dr Melanie Bird, the university’s head of school for nursing and midwifery in Chelmsford, said: “Nursing is a wonderful and rewarding career option.
“We want to challenge the stereotypes of nursing as we know they can be a barrier to attract people into the profession.”
She continued: “Many people think nurses just work in hospitals but in England there’s 86,000 community nurses, who provide support in a variety of settings from homeless health to prison outreach.”
Among its nursing courses, the university offers a ‘primary care as first destination’ adult nursing programme that is focused on preparing nurses for delivering care in the community rather than acute settings.
The recruitment video features current Anglia Ruskin University nursing students including Sean Haskell-Mills, 31, who is studying to become a children’s nurse.
He said: “I want to shine a light on male nursing. I’m the only male on the child nursing course and there’s a real stigma about men in child nursing that I’m keen to challenge.”
Watch the video here.
