Official opening announced for Rose Thompson and Florence Nightingale clinical facilities

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One of the clinical areas in the new facility

The official opening of the School of Allied Health Professions and Nursing’s latest clinical simulation facilities has been announced for 3rd May 2024.

The Rose Thompson and Florence Nightingale suites have been designed to replicate the healthcare settings which our students will encounter in practice, both on placement and on their professional journeys after graduation.

Our Diagnostic Radiography and Therapeutic Radiography and Oncology cohorts are able to make use of a state-of-the-art CT scanner and X-ray machines in the Rose Thompson Suite which will enable them to consolidate their clinical knowledge in controlled environments under the tutelage of academic staff.

The Florence Nightingale Suite features two ward areas, a skills suite, a therapy kitchen and an interview and assessment suite, all of which can be used by students undertaking a variety of our programmes.

A range of multi-professional simulation activities have been developed which massively benefit our Nursing, Occupational Therapy and Physiotherapy students by providing them with a ‘near to real life’ clinical experience to supplement their theoretic education and placement experiences.

Rose Thompson, one of the suite’s namesakes, was the founder of the CIC social enterprise BME Cancer Communities and a multi-award-winning campaigner whose vision was to contribute to ending, or at least reducing, cancer health inequalities.

From 2003 to 2007, Rose was the Black and Minority Ethnic Cancer Information Specialist at Europe’s leading cancer information charity Cancerbackup (who merged with Macmillan Cancer Support in 2008).

A former Diagnostic Radiography lecturer at the University of Liverpool, Rose penned two BME prostate cancer reports launched in the House of Commons and was awarded an honorary Doctorate in Social Sciences from Nottingham Trent University in 2017.

She was honoured by Nottingham City Council with an award for being one of "the city's best" in recognition of the numerous cancer-focused community initiatives she had led throughout her career.

Florence Nightingale was an English social reformer who is seen as the founder of modern nursing. During her career, she revolutionised the field by driving improvements in hygiene and living standards which helped significantly reduce English death rates.

She rose to prominence whilst training student nurses during the Crimean War during which she set an example to future professionals through her dedication to the provision of compassionate patient care.

The opening represents a significant milestone in our commitment to maintaining excellence in clinical education. The event will include an opportunity to tour the facilities, with our academic staff on hand to provide demonstrations of the equipment.

Guests will also have the chance to meet members of our clinical skills teams, learn more about our innovative teaching methods and meet some of our current students who are benefiting from use of the facilities.

The formal opening by Professor Chris Cutts, who is the Director of Workforce, Training and Education at NHS England, will take place between 1-2pm.