Just me and my waffle: Beaches :)

I actually got up and went to my biology lecture this morning, it was good as I got to catch up with my mateys who are studying for the adult branch nursing,its the only time we really get to see each other now as most of our lectures are concerned with either mental health or preparation for practice and they are branch specific. It was good to see them as I am aware there is a bit of a divide developing between the different branch cohorts and us mental health nurses have started to resent the way the uni is gearing everything towards the Adult branch. Its not the case across the board but there is one element of our training that just plain sucks. As mental health students a lot of the cohort want extra support with the biology lectures but as disorganised uni goes they forgot to timetable the mental health cohort for the small group study sessions. We kept raising it with our personal tutors that we weren't happy with the way biology was being taught to us and kept getting told it was our fault for not accessing our small groups. Well three months in they have finally realised that they just completely forgot a whole group of students ! So where we've have just the lectures where there are 100+ students, they just speak the information at us, and run. In comparison the other nursing cohorts get these lectures, small groups where they can ask the questions, and then extra back up from the tutors. But come July we have all got to pass the same exam, fair I think not! They have been really apologetic about the mess up but three months into the course is a bit late. Its not even as if we can organize these sessions now as we are on holiday in a week, then straight out onto placement then when we come back we have something like two weeks before the exam. Thanks uni!

We have also been having the same trouble with the clinical skills side of the course, after placement we all have to pass an practical exam in taking clinical observations. However as a branch we have had one lesson that was cut short by two hours, when the adult nurses have had more than one lesson to make sure they nail the observations. We have pointed out that we have to pass the exact same exam as them after placement but as mental health nursing students we have less chances of practising these skills out on placement. Crazeeeeee or what!!!! We are lucky in the sense though that the adult nurses seem to complain about their module tutors quite a lot, so far I think there has been one mental health lecture that I wish I had stayed away from, they are generally really interesting and the lecturers are supportive of our cohorts inquisitive nature.

Anyways I had lunch with some of my friends from the adult branch today and it was nice as I am actually working a shift with one of them on the weekend at amazing job that I love very very much :) We then spent some time in a local park that has fondly become known as the garden or by some in my groups as the magical park opposite the uni :)

My matey CG passed her driving test a few days ago, well done CG:) And has bought her own car, as its maiden voyage, we decided to head out of hilly city to a local beach, well its actually an estuary but its as close to the beach hilly city will really get. It was absolutely amazing though quite sad as this town used to be a bustling seaside resort with funfair, swimming pool, and regular train service. I think now it gets a train 4 or 5 times a day and its sadly not well connected to the hilly city's bus services the fair and swimming pool have been replaced by flats and the whole town has one shop and a cafe. We sat on the rocks watching the sun set and I was taken aback, at how amazingly beautiful it was.