Polly Bartlett

Nursing Associate (NMC 2018) Apprenticeship (Level 5)

My journey to becoming a Nursing Associate

For as long as I can remember I have had a passion for helping other people, as a teenager I had no idea what career I wanted to pursue but I knew I liked helping people. I studied Health and Social care and Sociology as my chosen GCSE subjects and thoroughly enjoyed them. After leaving school and college, I worked in a nurserry for a while, then as a waitress on the beautiful island of Zakynthos; although I loved my job and loved getting to meet all the different people that came into the restaurant, when I had my daughter I knew I wanted to pursue a career which felt more meaningful to me.

In 2018, ten years after leaving school, I applied to study Psychology at university. I feel as though I found a new passion for life when I started studying Psychology and thrived throughout the three years. Subsequently, I started working as a health care support worker on an acute mental health ward which broadened my experiences within the mental health world. I then applied for a job which was titled ‘Trainee Nursing Associate’ within CAMHS in a community setting; if I am being honest, when I first applied I did not really understand much about the Nursing Associate role but I knew from my previous experiences that I enjoyed working with children and young people and decided to go for it.

I started working for CAMHS Liaison and intensive support team in April 2022 and started studying for my Nursing Associate degree in September 2022. I feel as though I was very lucky to have the opportunity to study as an apprentice and therefore I was receiving a wage whilst studying however, being an apprentice also comes with extra demands.

My first assignment was due in just before our Christmas break and we had our first placement in January, I believe that this is when my anxieties really settled and I started to find my stride. Every placement I went on was scary to begin with, the thought of meeting new people and learning new processes was extremely daunting to me but I soon realised that most nurses are really lovely and want to help you achieve. Pebblepad, Nile and Safe Medicate soon became second nature to me and my lessening anxiety was shown through positive feedback on my assignments.

As the end of my Nursing Associate course drew closer, I started thinking about what I wanted to do next. We had a Nursing Associate conference at university and we got to speak to many qualified Nursing Associates who have all taken their degree in different directions. I remember meeting a Theatre Nursing Associate and as I was watching Grey’s Anatomy at the time I nearly decided to pursue a career in theatres! However, I wanted to stick to what I knew and decided that I wanted to top-up my Nursing Associate degree to become a registered mental health nurse. After discussions with my peers and colleagues I realised that as I have a Psychology degree, I was eligible to apply to study a Masters; I have since applied and am waiting to begin studying next January. Studying for the Nursing Associate degree has equipped me with all the skills I need to flourish in my Masters; I have a better understanding of proficiencies, I understand how Pebblepad and Safe Medicate work and I have a better understanding of completing assignments from a nurse’s perspective. Furthermore, I have learned and developed valuable skills over the past two years that will equip me in the future to be an excellent a mental health nurse.