The University Diaries

Here are some of the most frequently asked questions that I received in the academic year 2018/19. I am so lucky to have such an interested and enthusiastic Instagram follower base, so this is where these questions come from as it is the best way to get hold of me! If you have any questions, please always feel free to send me a message! What year are you in and where do you study? Originally I was going to keep this on the down-low, however as every university is different it is probably quite helpful to let you guys know. I study at Anglia Ruskin University and I am now in Year 3, although these questions were asked when I was in Year 2! How do your ambulance placements work? Do you get paid? With the university route, you do not get paid unless you do a sandwich (placement) year, and I am not sure if any universities do that anymore (I know University of Hertfordshire used to but does not anymore). As you may not have your blue-light driving qualification and you are not employ...

I am now Year 3, and about to go into my penultimate ambulance placement block. Preparation for placement is important for making your life much smoother whilst on shift! A smooth home life definitely takes the stress off placement. Fortunately, I live with my boyfriend, so although we live in a house (with a garden which requires maintenance) and we are always busy keeping it ship-shape, we are able to share some of the housework. My boyfriend does a lot in the house, especially when I am on placement, so I am very lucky! Food Preparation In the couple of weeks prior to placement, I cook larger meals than my boyfriend and I can physically eat. I portion them up, label them and put them in the freezer so that we both have meals if we are both busy when it comes to cooking dinner. My boyfriend is a teacher, so most of his evenings are taken up with lesson planning so we have more time together at the weekend. This is far cheaper than take-aways and ready-meals, and much healthier...

I've now had two years to badly prepare myself for night shifts. I have done it lots of different ways rightly and wrongly, but this is the way that works best for me! On my days off I try to bulk cook some food and portion it up so I always have a food option for me. I currently do not have much money and picking up unplanned snacks can really break the bank. I also try to get up on laundry, but I only wash laundry at night as we have an economy 7 meter which means I pay less for electric overnight. This makes it difficult as I do not spend a whole day doing laundry... It is a constant slog! 6am I get up nice and early normally anyway, but definitely on night shifts when I am aiming for an afternoon nap. I get up, get dressed (this is so, so important to set yourself in the mood for a productive day!) and have breakfast. Then I will wash up and make sure the house is in order. 7.30am Time to write a to do list! My most productive days are where I write lists that have smal...

Left to right: ID badge, stethoscope, radio clip, shears/tough cuts, lip balm, tourniquet,  alcohol gel and clip, pens and pen torch. Here are my uniform essentials! Read on for where I position these items and the bits I did not include on the photo. ID Badge I put this on my collarbone where the loops are, you need your ID badge as ID (obviously) but also to get into the buildings. On your first shift you will need to tap it against the keypad and it will beep to let you in! Just a side note, some ambulance stations have really funny locks on them, so to get out, you may have to turn a grey knob to get yourself out (better to know than not!). Stethoscope I use this  Littman III Cardiology stethoscope (in orange, as you can see) and it is great because it's head twists to hear more sensitive sounds. I generally keep my steth in my knee pockets, however I have two points to make. Firstly, keeping it in your pocket can slightly disfigure it or it can get caught on t...

Interviews can be very daunting! The pressure mounts proportionally to how much you want the job too, not helping interview nerves! Here are the things I have found to help me be successful during job and educational interviews. Dress for the job you want I am sure that some people will disagree with this, however I wholeheartedly believe this to be essential. If you want a job as a professional, you need to dress like one. The interviewers first impression is likely to be of how you look, and the way they respond initially will set the mood. This means, if you are interviewing as a healthcare student, student nurse, student paramedic you need to dress as though you are. Some interviews can bring unexpected segments, so you may need to demonstrate CPR, and that does not look great in a skirt. Obviously wear what you look comfortable and smart in and what makes you feel confident, however if your potential job is going to require you to roll around the floor, you may want to demons...

Hi, just as a little intro I am a second year Paramedic Science degree student, currently on my first placement of Year Two. The featured day is a brisk Saturday in November on a placement shift with a crew that I have not worked with before. Most of my shifts are either earlies (starting between 6 and 7am for 12 hours) or lates (starting between 6 and 7pm for 12 hours). This was a weird shift time of 1100 to 2300, which is annoying as it straddles two meal times as you only get one meal break. Surprisingly enough, I actually quite liked this time, however I do prefer really early shifts as you still have a bit of the evening when you get home. This account is completely true! The variety of patients fluctuates day to day, and this was one of the more interesting ones, but this may also be as it was a Saturday. The times are as close to accurate as possible. We had fewer patients than a usual shift, but travelling times and patient contact time was greater than normal. We did no...

So, I am half way through my first trimester and I thought it would be a good idea to give an update because I have had quite a few fellow students ask how I have been finding it! I am glad I am actually helping others with my experience! The first month in second year was a ball.  I felt on top with everything. I was working full time and managing a couple of days in uni and everything was grand. I wrote up my lecture notes before the lecture so I could sit, annotate and absorb during the lecture. I found the information and understanding it was stretching me, but in a good way. I kept up! Even in the labs I seemed to be doing pretty well, especially in comparison to the previous year. I was answering questions that others were getting wrong, and I took part in one scenario (with another person as a crew on a truck) where my lecturer said we did the best out of everyone he had seen. I definitely needed this confidence boost as I was feeling a bit deflated as I always felt beh...

So in the first term of the first year at my university, we are required to complete a Skills Passport as part of our Preparation for Clinical Practice module. This was a pass/fail document which was required to pass for you to be able to pass the module alongside an essay and presentation. I do not know if every university completes this module in the same way, but feel free to comment below either way as it is interesting for me and other people! So the passport included various basic skills assessed by peers, such as taking temperatures, manual blood pressures, blood glucose readings (BM) and various manual handling techniques. It also comprised of slightly more serious basic skills assessed by tutors, such as adult and paediatric airways, c-spine immobilisation and basic life support and automated external defibrillator (BLS and AED). There were also requirements to complete the online training modules for areas such as safeguarding and data protection. There were lots of oppor...

Placement is such a hectic place! Due to my shift schedule I am five weeks in but have done 4 blocks due to the four days on, five days off schedule. Somehow I am currently working almost full time over the placement block. I will finish at 6.30am on my last night shift, come home and head to sleep until 12pm, wake up and head to work. This is a great way for me to be able to afford placement, but I don't have a life! It is very difficult acting this way, especially as I am either on placement or asleep the rest of the time. Fortunately due to the crews I am working with, I am enjoying the shifts so much it feels less like a job and more like a lifestyle. Update on my First Five Weeks I have had such a variety of shifts. I am placed on the border of London, but as we do not respond to London Ambulance Service (LAS) calls, we can only head out in one direction, which means we regularly finish (very) late. On the plus side, you must have 11 hours between shifts, so usually if yo...

My placement schedule is usually 2 days, 2 nights, 5 days off (which is really good). One in every 4 shifts there is an extra day shift in there as this is the pattern my mentor has on her line, which I follow. With this placement I have been really lucky to get a mentor who is on a line at a station as this means that my shifts are set (basically a year in advance) and I only have one mentor (unless I have to make up any shifts as I cannot do them). On placement, I am one of the lucky ones! Lots of people have multiple mentors and stations, and I am very lucky that I have been given consistency as I do get quite anxious at not being in control of the situation and not knowing what the outcome will be. This week went from being a long, 3 days and 2 nights, week, to a 3 days and 1 night. I have had a shift moved, which my mentor kindly discussed when we could both do this shift as she had to change it due to her mentoring course (to mentor me). Some mentors are willing to be flexibl...

My First Week Experiences I was terrified before my first day on placement (which was clear if you have read my last post). I got up at 4am to get to the station at 6am (as you always ought to get to station at least 15 minutes early). I met my mentor who was lovely (and probably nearly as nervous as I was) and the shift begun! My mentor and I discussed what I felt comfortable with and what I wanted to do. I was her first student as she was a mentor in training so we were both in the same position to start off with. I chose to take a back step to begin with, but quickly she encouraged and helped me to get more involved. My main concern is doing things wrong, however in the service there are plenty of ways to do things - all paramedics do things differently - so it is important to have a go so long that it is safe. All mentors are different, but communication is key. I found that everyone I encountered was helpful and friendly to me. People were happy to show me what to do and guid...

'Twas night before placement when all through the house, I worried and I packed, fluttering nervously like a mouse. Kit bag was packed by the front door with care, Waiting for 5am when I would be leaving there. (adaption from 'Twas the night before Christmas') Tomorrow, bright and breezy I start my placement. I am very nervous obviously. I have never been on an ambulance before and having not been at uni for the past 5 weeks, I feel as if I know nothing! I am excited though! This is what I am expecting for tomorrow: 4am ~ Wakey wakey rise and shine! Breakfast time and time to get ready. 5am ~ Leaving the house, sat nav and coffee at the ready. 6am ~ Arrive at the station with enough time to get myself sorted out. 6.30am ~ Shift starts! Beginning with a station induction for approximately 1 hour then off on the road. 6.30pm ~ (Hopefully) shift finishes on time and off on my way home I go! Obviously this depends on if we are on a call or not. My pockets content...

Textbooks can be very expensive, however they can be really valuable if you have the correct ones! In my first term, we completed two modules: Preparation for Clinical Practice (Prep for Prac) and Skills for Study. I only bought textbooks for Prep for Prac, and if I had bought them early I could really have got ahead of the game. Obviously some universities use different textbooks, however I found these the most useful in my first term. JRCALC Clinical Practice Guidelines 2017 Pocket Book This is probably the most important book you will ever buy, lecturers say it is your bible... It is! And it is so incredibly important that you have this! It fits perfectly in your trouser pocket (when you have your uniform) and loves your annotations and dog ear marks. They update every year around October time (but you will probably want it before then), and do not worry about having an old version if the new one is not out yet. You will find the list of updates online and it is usually only one...

Many reasons can determine your decision for living away or at home as a student. I am a 'Living at Home' medical student with placements, and here are the reasons behind my choice and also an evaluation of my circumstances. I hope this is able to provide some clarification, as when I was choosing a university I did not really know what I was looking for. Making Friends Those living in halls have a head start when making friends. Generally they move in about a week before term, take part in all the freshers events and get to know everyone they are living with. Making friends this way is really easy, especially as halls tend to mix courses, so you do not spend all day in lectures with people you are living with. If you do not live at uni, on your first day it can be a bit daunting as you may not know anyone there. Fear not! So many other people are in the same position as you! The nice thing about uni is that everyone talks to each other and it is really easy to make frie...