Our visit to Birmingham Children’s Hospital and WAITS Charity organization gave us perfect demonstrations of how the country’s systems actually run. A tour is a great way of understanding and viewing everything in the natural way it occurs. Our tour of the hospital was very insightful and had great visuals for us moving forward in our discussions.

Speaking with the nurses in the hospital they were very informative with how to become a nurse and their specialties in the different wards. Our tours in the hospital showed us all the inclusivity the hospital has for its patients. This is represented in multi-religious areas of prayer. During hard times with their family’s health scares, these provide some comfort and sanctuary for the family. This is something that the parents can rely on. I found it very heartwarming for the hospital to have these areas for access. It also represents and shows the mass diversity in the city. Having such a diverse population calls for accommodations like these. The next parts of the tour showed us each wing and explained all that happened in those wards. This was very informative and surprised the nursing students with what is similar in the United States. One was the 5 rights of the patient that they did not expect to see in a different country. 

The part of the hospital tour that interested me the most was the school in the center of the hospital. This is for students who are at the hospital for long periods of time and can not be present in regular schools. In the United States, we have teachers in the districts whose jobs are to go see the students. Sometimes teachers just send the work home with the family so the students do not fall behind. Having a school in the hospital creates a pipeline and personalized experience for the students in the hospital. Discussing our system with the teacher she was surprised that we did not have education and healthcare connected as they do in the United Kingdom. She then went on to explain an EHCP (education health and care plan) which is where the student’s IEP (individual education plan) is also influenced by the health status of the student in the hospital. This is a legally binding document that the doctors and teachers must follow for the well-being of the student in the hospital. As much as it has the same framework, it differs from the States because we over here do not incorporate the health and the doctors. The doctors in the States actually struggle when presented. This is something that will be important to begin to implement in the States. As a future educator, it is important that I remember the ACEs (Adverse Childhood Experiences) going on in the student’s lives. Looking at students holistically will help build rapport and support with my students. Using the implemented school in a hospital is a strong contender in helping SLIFE (Students with Limited or Interrupted Formal Education) students. Their lives have been turned upside down already with their health. Now saying they are not able to go to school can create extra stress. Bringing school to the students can ease this stress and help them continue their education hiccup-free. 

After the hospital, we had a discussion with the  WAITS organization, which is one of two community organizations in the United Kingdom. They work to create refuges for women who are victims of domestic abuse. In addition to their work as social workers, we discussed the signs, impacts, and all the types of domestic abuse. One of the discussions focused on how when in an abusive relationship women are afraid to leave the house or are confined to leaving the house hardly. Once children are a part of the family their education is impacted by this. They are not taken into their nursery programs. This leads to students having an interrupted education. Abuse is a factor that needs to be remembered and taken seriously when students begin to miss a lot of school. As an educator, keeping the student’s home life in the back of your mind is vital if problems begin to arise. They also discussed how they got empathy training for their police officers. Empathy is such an important trait for educators to have in their toolbox. Using empathy with your students is beneficial when needing to have hard conversations with your students. 

To end our night, we had a panel with former BCU students. Two of whom were teachers in local Birmingham schools. They shared their passion for the profession and why they continue to work for the students. This was such an inspiring and relatable section. I share so many of the similar feelings they had. I enjoyed hearing all their opinions and beliefs that I shared with them.