More than 1,000 nurse-training places will be available this year, the Minister for Health and Children announced yesterday. These comprise 781 general nurse-training places, 210 psychiatric nursing and 160 mental handicap places.
If last year's competition is any guide, then there will be little difficulty in filling the general nursing places, but school-leavers and others would not seem to be equally impressed by the career prospects afforded by psychiatric or mental handicap nursing.
Of the 117 mental handicap places last year, only 72 were filled while 92 of the 201 psychiatric nurse-training places were filled. As a result no psychiatric courses were run in Letterkenny IT, Waterford IT or Limerick IT last year. It is hoped to address this regional imbalance by putting on post-registration training courses in Limerick IT and Waterford IT.
So, why is there a problem recruiting students into the psychiatric and mental handicap programmes?
Ms Peta Taaffe, chief nursing officer with the Department of Health and Children, suggests that many of these places were traditionally filled by mature students who were paid as they trained in the old apprenticeship-type model. Many of these mature students simply cannot afford to participate in the new college-associated diploma where they are paid a non-means-tested maintenance grant.
Other reasons may include the perception of psychiatric nurses being stuck in large institutions. Ms Taaffe says this is a misguided perception as care is increasingly being delivered through community-based programmes and many of the psychiatric units are small units attached to general hospitals.
She says school-leavers may be under the mistaken impression that general nursing is a more "glamorous" profession. Psychiatric and mental handicap nursing can offer students a "very interesting and rewarding career and I think it will be much more varied than in the past". There is a lot of rehabilitation work involved, she adds, and there are opportunities for promotion and specialisation.
Announcing the details of this year's nurse-training competition, the Minister, Mr Cowen, said he would be providing £350,000 to An Bord Altranais and to various schools of nursing for a promotional campaign, at local and national level, aimed at attracting more young people to nursing.
The non-means-tested maintenance annual grant has been increased from £3,000 to £3,250 this year. Mr Cowen noted that this is almost double the maximum third-level maintenance grant and is a recognition of the long-time commitment required of nursing students who put in a 48-week year.
Meanwhile, An Bord Altranais has taken over the management of general and psychiatric nursing applications under the guise of the new Nursing Careers' Centre. As mentioned in last week's column the educational requirements for nursing have changed somewhat from last year in that a foreign language is no longer a requirement for entry to the programmes operated by the nonNUI colleges. The minimum educational requirements specified by An Bord Altranais remain in place for all courses (as outlined in last Friday's column).
While the Institute of Guidance Counsellors has welcomed the removal of the NUI requirement by four of the five accrediting bodies, individual counsellors continue to express concerns.
Mr Dominic Rooney of the Holy Rosary College in Mountbellew, Co Galway, rang College Choice to say this still means that students applying for eight out of 18 general hospitals, three out of 10 psychiatric and two out of 10 mental handicap hospitals are being "held to ransom". He was equally annoyed that one of the two honours must come from five specified subject areas, Irish, English, any other language, maths, or a lab science. Why should a student who gets two honours in the Leaving Cert in areas other than the five specified above be any less suited to nursing? he asks.
In the past, candidates' interview score was increased by 10 per cent if they gained the educational requirements in one sitting of the Leaving Cert. This has now been discontinued for entry in 1999.
Applying for nurse training in 1999
All of the 1,000-plus available places are on the new three-year college-associated diploma which has replaced the old apprenticeship-type training.
To obtain an application form and information booklet: telephone 1890 251025 or write (postcard only) to The Nursing Careers' Centre, PO Box 6703, Dublin 2.
Information on how to apply is also available on the web at www.nursingboard.ie
The recruitment advertisement for general and psychiatric nurse training will be in the national newspapers today, tomorrow and Sunday. The closing date for receipt of applications is February 19th.
Assessment tests will be administered on April 17th in Dublin, and April 24th in a number of venues throughout the State. Successful applicants will be called to interview in July and places will be offered following the issuing of the Leaving Cert results.
Promotional posters and leaflets have been sent to schools and a number of health boards will be organising a range of local initiatives to promote nursing as a career.
The Mental Handicap Nursing Application Centre (PO Box 3017, Dublin 15) will advertise on April 11th.
Nursing Education Forum
The Minister also announced the establishment of the Nursing Education Forum, as recommended by the Commission on Nursing. This forum, which will be chaired by Dr Laraine Joyce, deputy director of the Office for Health Management, will prepare a strategy for moving nurse education towards a four-year degree programme by 2002. The forum is expected to complete its work by the end of 2000.
The Commission on Nursing has recommended that the recruitment process be handled by the CAO in future. But places will not be allocated on the basis of Leaving Cert points.
Mr Eugene Donoghue, chief executive officer of An Bord Altranais, said it is likely that the Nursing Careers' Centre will continue to administer assessments tests and interviews as part of application process. Mr Cowen added that nursing was "at the centre of the caring professions" and it was essential to maintain the personal characteristics and qualities that are the hallmark of the profession in the Republic.
This is, of course, a moot point as the efficacy of assessment tests and interviews (which by their nature are subjective) as a screening process for an increasingly academic programme must be queried. The issue of increased weighting for achievement in the Leaving Cert is under discussion.
The current model uses the assessment tests as an initial screening procedure. Those who are successful are called to interview. Candidates are then ranked on the basis of their interview results. They must also fulfil the minimum educational requirements to be offered a place.
The report of the Nursing Education Forum will be awaited with interest by guidance counsellors, prospective nurses and others.
Demographics and nursing
Mr Donoghue said "future demographics indicate that recruitment of school-leavers into nursing will become increasingly difficult. It is projected that the current number in the 15-19 age group of 340,000 will reduce to 245,000 by 2011.
"This obviously means that the number of school-leavers available for the labour market and education will be declining progressively during the next 10 years. These problems are already evident in Britain and the US. In view of this there is a clear role for the Nursing Careers Centre to promote nursing to ensure that it will continue to be a popular career choice in its own right for Irish school-leavers."
Diary date:
DIT is holding an information day on Saturday in DIT Bolton Street. All 75 courses offered by the DIT will be covered. There are four sessions: day: 9.30 a.m., 11 a.m., 12.30 p.m., and 2 p.m. The admissions office asks that Dublin students attend the early session.
The three City of Dublin Vocational Education Committee colleges in the Crumlin area of Dublin are holding a joint open day on February 3rd from 1 p.m. to 7 p.m. The colleges - Crumlin College, Pearse College and St Kevin's College - offer a range of courses from post-Leaving Cert to adult education to second-chance education, VTOS and repeat Leaving Cert.
Milltown Institute and mature students
The Milltown Institute contacted College Choice to say that the college welcomes mature students, who constitute a high proportion of their student body. Their life experiences make a significant difference in their study of theology and philosophy, says admissions officer, Ms Sally Ui Chiardha.
"We offer three degree programmes and one national certificate, as well as two graduate awards, all of which qualify for free fees and/or grants and are NCEA-validated. The other programmes we offer cater exclusively for mature students. These include the diploma in pastoral studies and the certificate in theology and spirituality," she said.
Mature applicants should apply directly to the Institute by May 1st, 1999.