The Integrated Placement Experience Project: developing practice learning opportunities in integrated care for Nursing Associate students in England

Background: Integrated health and social care services typically comprise a variety of professionals, including nursing, allied health and social care roles, practising in collaborative and aligned inter and intra-organisational structures. In England, the Nursing Associate is a comparatively new, interdisciplinary role designed to bridge the gap between support workers and registered nurses. Nursing Associates are trained generically to work across all fields of healthcare, making the position an ideal addition to integrated care teams.

 

The Integrated Placement Experience Project sought to develop an integrated health and social care practice learning experience for student Nursing Associates, developing a new understanding of:

(1) the requirements and experiences of healthcare learners within integrated care-based placements,

(2) the operational requirements of achieving integrated placement experiences,

(3) how use of integrated care settings can enhance graduate prospects of working within these environments following qualification.

 

Approach:The project was co-produced through an event involving stakeholders from local health and social care providers, services users and academics, leading to development and confirmation of the project methodology. In addition, the provider of the placement experience, an integrated discharge team, was involved throughout the delivery of the project, to ensure congruence and alignment between the project’s objectives, service requirements, and the needs of the local community.

 

A qualitative design was used to evaluate current practices of the integrated discharge team, explore the operationalisation of integrated care placements, undertake focus groups (n=4) with student Nursing Associates to ascertain their understanding of integrated care and completion of interviews with qualified staff within the integrated discharge team to appraise the impact of placing Nursing Associate learners within an integrated placement setting.#

 

 

Results: This presentation will detail the key findings of operationalising the Integrated Placement Experience Project and the experiences of student Nursing Associates and clinicians within the integrated discharge team of the provision of integrated care placements for pre-qualification healthcare learners. The qualitative findings indicated significant value for both learners and staff of practice learning experiences within integrated care settings, including increased understanding of care coordination and inter-organisational collaboration, alignment of provision across geographical regions and different health and social care services, and opportunities for holistic and agile person-centred care.

 

Recommendations for achieving integrated care placements as well as recognition of barriers to their implementation are also identified, including requirements for longitudinal placement planning, upskilling and increasing understanding of the remit of integrated care providers within Integrated Care Systems and overcoming frequent restructuring to integrated care teams in light of shifting national priorities in England.

 

Implications: The project demonstrates how integrated care placements expand capacity for healthcare learners and enhance system-wide understanding of professional practice across disciplines. The findings outline both the benefits and operational challenges of Integrated Placement Experiences, offering practical guidance to strengthen future workforce development and graduate readiness in integrated care—within England and internationally.