This morning we returned to Birmingham City University for a long day of lectures and our presentations. We met downstairs in the lobby of our hotel at 8:30 this morning, and then walked over to the BCU campus. We had some time to spare before our lecture, so some of us got some refreshments to prepare for our day. I went to the BCU market and got a peanut butter KIND bar for breakfast, and I also got a dragon fruit VITHIT drink. I studied abroad in Ireland during the second semester of my high school senior year, and while I was there, I had so many VITHIT drinks because they are just so good, so when we got to England, I immediately began my hunt for a VITHIT. Every other time I have checked the BCU market, they have had VITHIT, but only today did they have the dragon fruit flavor, which is my favorite. Finding this delicious beverage for only 2 pounds absolutely made my morning. 

We headed upstairs to a large room where two primary care specialists gave us a lesson about how primary care and health services work here in England and the rest of the United Kingdom. I actually really enjoyed the style of their lesson. It was more of an open discussion rather than a straight lecture. We were able, and encouraged to ask and answer questions about the differences of health care back home in the United States compared to over here in the United Kingdom. The speakers were very surprised to hear how our insurance system works in the United States. Back home, if someone does not have good health insurance, they are likely unable to receive the primary and specialized care that they may be in need of. Here in the United Kingdom, everyone has access to the National Health Service (NHS). They also talked a bit about quality control and how healthcare workers can go to the Integrated Care System/Board, known as the ICB, and ask questions about care to make sure they are meeting the health standards for their area. We also learned that the Quality Care Commission (CQC) does visits to healthcare facilities to ensure they are up to date with the quality of their care. The ICB works with facilities to help them prepare for their CQC visits to ensure they are able to keep practicing, and to keep their patient care to the highest quality it can be. 

We also talked about vaccines. I had previously heard of the article linking the measles, mumps, and rubella (MMR) vaccine to childhood autism, but had no idea of its global impact. In the United States, or at the very least in southeastern Pennsylvania, where I am from, there is quite a large population of people against vaccinations. I knew there were lots of anti-vax people in our country, but did not know that there were also quite a bit of them over here in England. The one speaker was talking to us about how she worked at a vaccination clinic, and gave a vaccination to a man who told her he was only getting vaccinated in order to visit his mother in the hospital. He said he was nervous about getting the vaccine because he did not know what was in it. She then asked him if he knew what was in Kentucky Fried Chicken, and he said no, but he still ate it. Making that comparison allowed him to have a laugh, but also put things into perspective for him, and he ended up getting the vaccine. I think this patient story stuck in my memory because it reminded me how even though we are patient advocates, we are also patient educators. It is our job as nurses to provide our patients with the proper information needed for them to make their own decisions regarding their health. 

We then got the chance to talk to Katie and Leanne, who are General Practice Nurses who graduated from Birmingham City University, and were offered jobs at facilities they did some training at. They do work with long term patients, respiratory care, wound care, child immunization, hypertension management, and so much more. They also work alongside general practitioners and pharmaceutical teams to provide care to their patients. The practice has an entire team of everyone needed to provide care to any sort of patient that comes into it to be treated. Students that come to the primary care for training begin with a few weeks of observation, and once they are ready, they can be set up with a clinic to take blood pressure, do ECGs, or other similar tasks. In order to become practice nurses, Katie and Leanne first became Adult Nurses and then went back to BCU to do a foundations course that taught them all of the skills they would need to know. Upon completion of the course, they had to be approved by the practice assessors to make sure they know everything they need to. Both of them mentioned that they enjoy the extended connection that general practice nurses get to make with patients and their families. 

We also did an escape room activity to review everything we learned today! My group was able to open all of the puzzles and it was fun! I liked that they made it a hands-on activity so we could stay engaged. We also had our presentations today, and luckily they all went splendidly! There were a lot more people than I had been expecting, so I was really nervous. All of the groups did so well presenting and answering questions. It is so relieving to know that our presentations are done and now we get to enjoy the rest of our trip!