Untitled

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Learning Disability Nursing

Learning disability nurses play a significant role in the lives of persons with learning disabilities. They work in many different settings where they support patients to maintain healthy lives. They are the only nurses who have the privilege of working with people with physical, mental, psychological and emotional health problems from birth to old age. They work with a range of professionals across health and social care.

Learning disability nursing as a profession has been in existence for over a century. It has evolved through the decades and today, many people with a learning disability are living longer and healthier lives. Mencap reports that there are 1.5 million people with a learning disability in the United Kingdom yet there are currently just under 17 000 learning disability specialist nurses on the NMC register in the UK. For many years, academics, experts and advisors have warned that there is an urgent need to increase this number.

In the past 100 years right up to this very day, new concepts, inventions and professions  have gained popularity worldwide. Universities have been offering brand new courses that have attracted large numbers of students globally. Yet when it comes to learning disability nursing, the numbers tell a different story. While the numbers of people with a learning disability rise, the same cannot be said for learning disability nurses. Traditional nursing courses such as adult nursing continue to attract many applicants whilst learning disability nursing struggles to raise enough numbers and most recently we have seen some courses close down because of lack of applicants.

In England, there are hundreds of learning disability nurses who are very passionate about the future of learning disability nursing. In the last ten years we have seen excellent initiatives implemented to help sustain the profession. This has led to competition for places in some institutions and this has worked out for the profession as a whole. However, the reality is that we still do not have enough nurses. So it leaves us thinking, What do we do to improve this situation?

Some applicants have reported that they were not aware of learning disability nursing at the time of applying. Clearly there is scope here to increase publicity and awareness of the course. This responsibility lies with universities. We rarely see adverts for learning disability nursing nationally although there are local adverts that have worked previously.

In the press, we sometimes watch programmes and read articles about people with a learning disability. Half the time these are about abuse and very few have celebrated the work of learning disability nurses. In the same programmes and articles, people with learning disabilities have been identified as having learning difficulties which then sends mixed messages. There is a difference between the two.  Just recently, the Antiques Roadshow on the BBC featured an episode entitled The History of Nursing which did not even once mention Learning Disability nursing. What a missed opportunity!

What does this all mean? Clearly we have to have some conversations around this topic. It is not a very complex issue, yet a deeper exploration is certainly required imminently. This post just scrapes the surface but there is a glimmer of hope that it ignites more conversations around the necessity of spreading awareness about learning disability nursing . Hopefully it can spread more awareness and spark healthy discussions not only between individuals but within organisations and higher education institutions too. Even schools and colleges should join in too. How can we, therefore improve awareness of learning disability nursing in the general population?

Do you like helping others? Does teaching others new skills appeal to you. Are you a cool and calm person? Are you the effervescent type; the type that can change the complexion of a shift as soon as you walk into the building? Have your previous life experiences taught you humility, advocacy, to challenge injustice, to celebrate success or to build self-esteem and belief. Are you funny, full of life and like talking? Do you like to see others receiving services that are suited to their needs, preferences, and cultural beliefs? Do you despise discrimination of any kind? Do you believe in protecting people who are vulnerable, supporting them with their day to day requirements with kindness, patience, and compassion? Do you like singing, playing instruments, painting, drawing? Do you like knowing about different syndromes and how they impact on a person’s life? Are you versatile? Are you flexible? Are you creative? Are you a human?

Are you that special kind of person our profession is looking for? Do you want to talk to someone about becoming a learning disability nurse? Come to Twitter and follow us @weldnurses. Make enquiries from your local university. We need you because we know you will make a difference to the lives of people with a learning disability. I am convinced that learning disability nursing, though small, is mighty, though invisible, is fully present, though seemingly hidden, is in plain sight, though quiet, is not silenced, though misunderstood, is not mysterious and that is why l am a learning disability nurse and a proud lecturer in learning disability nursing

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Making leaders out of student learning disability nurses

Academics and lecturers have a mandate to develop future leaders in nursing students. The role of the educators is not only about producing graduate nurses but to inspire them to be leaders of the services, services which, as the current pandemic has shown, are evolving every day. The pandemic itself has taught humanity so many lessons, both good and bad, depending on where one is standing when they decide. When lecturers do their job, they are confident that their goals come to fruition when students graduate and go on to become caring and responsible nurses with clinical reasoning skills who can improve outcomes in complex healthcare systems.

At this time of significant service change, as dictated by the evolution of humanity, advancement of technology and a new generation of student nurses in the classroom it is vital that the learning disability nursing profession stays ahead of the game as well and not lag behind the other three fields. We need to ensure that our field has strong and visible leaders who will continue to address health inequalities among people with learning disabilities. Streamlining services, designing them to be fit for purpose and to meet the needs of an   ever- growing population, albeit within one of the smallest fields is a top priority. The pandemic has had a final word about the service delivery that has been the norm for many years. Before lockdown in March 2020, there were many plans to start more services based in buildings and other structures. Little did we know that social distancing rules, isolation, shielding, wearing masks and other forms of personal protective equipment would have reverberations across our service delivery. These have impacted on people with learning disabilities in a very profound way.  Jukes and Aspinall (2015) propagated that the current emphasis on leadership in learning disability care could be seen to be on the rise owing to the increasing number of critical incidents in recent history. Although the serious case review of Winterbourne View Hospital now seems years away, we have had other scandals that have continued to rock our filed to the very core, one recalls Whorlton Hall in County Durham and more recently Yew Trees Hospital in Essex in which the systematic abuse of people with learning disabilities seems to be pervasive.

Some steps have been taken to take Learning Disability nursing forward through the implementation of leadership strategies. This article aims to highlight how we can as academics and lecturers inculcate in our student nurses an attitude and desire for leadership.  Undergraduate learning disability nursing should also be about developing a higher level of knowledge, and acquisition of skills that demonstrate excellence through an ability to translate and apply evidence-based practices yes but in this day and age where Covid19 has thrown us a curve ball, the responsibility of utilizing evidence based practices and translating them now more than ever no longer lies in what was done pre pandemic but in how we are adapting to the brand new untried and untested way of life. Student nurses have the opportunity now to capitalize on maximizing these opportunities and develop new interventions to support people with learning disabilities stuck at home, feeling lonely, deprived of their usual activities, and missing their friends. If people with learning disabilities are not offered sufficient and accessible information about Covid19 and how it has now altered their lives, then they cannot make appropriate decisions about what is important in their lives. One of the ways of addressing this is to share knowledge and experiences via real-time platforms such as Twitter. Twitter, has, of late, been the best platform that has in the past ten years or so, united some of the high-profile learning disability nurses and leaders whose contributions have transformed service delivery. At some point, they have to pass the baton to future nurses and what better ways and platforms to do that. A social media platform in which student nurses, nurses, academics, and lecturers share best practice including leadership post pandemic.

Jukes, M. and Aspinal S-L. (2015) Leadership and learning disability nursing British Journal of Nursing (24) 18

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MAKING LEADERS OUT OF STUDENT LEARNING DISABILITY NURSES

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Becoming a learning disability nurse

In their study of 20 learning disability nurses, Genders and Brown (2013) identified that there has been a steady decline in the number of learning disability nurses registering with the Nursing and Midwifery Council (NMC). There are many reasons why this is the case, however, there are numerous publications that have explored attrition rates in nursing in general. The focus of this blog is to convince you why you should become a learning disability nurse.

You may have heard it said or read it before that it takes a special kind of person to become a learning disability nurse. Conversely, nurses from other fields will tell you the same; you must be a special kind to become a children’s nurse or a mental health nurse or an adult nurse. Ok, so what type of person becomes a learning disability nurse?

I am a learning disability nurse. Always have, always will be. It is a vocation that came late to me. I come from a country and continent where learning disability nursing either does not exist or if it does then it is still a profession in its embryonic stage. My mother worked as a nurse for many years and after her, my big sister followed in her shoes. Never did l ever consider becoming a nurse, let alone a learning disability nurse. As well as her nursing job, my mother is a staunch Catholic, a prayerful woman who raised us to be kind, generous and compassionate. When I was growing up, l only ever came across one person with a learning disability (this is me redefining things now as a nurse). He was a very nice man, very friendly yet vulnerable. I realized that some kids on the block used to take advantage of him, sometimes mock him and other times call him names. He never answered back or tried to defend himself. He did not know how to. However, my brother and I used to ask ourselves why people had to be so unkind and we made a pact to befriend him. And we did; what a fabulous friend he was!

Fast forward to just after the turn of the century, I am a young man living in England, with remote access to my mother’s guidance and inspiration. A friend of mine tells me about a children’s home nearby and asks if l fancy doing some shifts there during the summer holidays. Well that was the beginning of a lifelong career. A vocation. A calling. So, people back home start asking me why l became a learning disability nurse. My answer to that, well it takes a special kind of person to become a learning disability nurse. What kind of person is that, l still hear them ask! Am l the apple that did not fall far from the tree or is this a God -given gift, was the path laid out for me?

Having been taught the fundamental human values of respect, kindness, protecting the vulnerable, helping the needy and basically being nice, it was an easy transition for me. It can be easy for you too. Do you like helping others? Does teaching others new skills appeal to you. Are you a cool and calm person? Are you the effervescent type; the type that can change the complexion of a shift as soon as you walk into the building? Have your previous life experiences taught you humility, advocacy, to challenge injustice, to celebrate success or to build self-esteem and belief. Are you funny, full of life and like talking? Do you like to see others receiving services that are suited to their needs, preferences, and cultural beliefs? Do you despise discrimination of any kind? Do you believe in protecting people who are vulnerable, supporting them with their day to day requirements with kindness, patience, and compassion? Do you like singing, playing instruments, painting, drawing? Do you like knowing about different syndromes and how they impact on a person’s life? Are you versatile? Are you flexible? Are you creative?

Are you that special kind of person our profession is looking for? Do you want to talk to someone about becoming a learning disability nurse? Come to Twitter and follow us @weldnurses. Make enquiries from your local university. If you are in the North east of England, I urge you to come to Teesside University. We need you because we know you will make a difference to the lives of people with a learning disability

D:\phd\Genders and Brown Who chooses to be a nurse (3).pdf

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The Life of a lecturer in lockdown

A few weeks ago, l wrote a blog about my experiences in the first few weeks of lockdown. I say a few weeks, it was nine weeks. Today, nearly three months down the line, life as a lecturer in lockdown must be more positive, productive, and promising. Yes, l talked about missing my workspace, colleagues, students and most importantly, the support and company of people. Granted, there are the home comforts such as having my nine year old daughter for company on most days who is either interested in Adopt Me and Roblox or joining me as soon as she can tell l am on a Microsoft Teams meeting. Oh the joys!

Talking about Microsoft Teams, ZOOM and other platforms people use these days, l thought I would focus on these today. Before lockdown, I had been mainly using Blackboard which is my university’s virtual learning environment. Of course, we have many other systems in use that are readily available to staff and students. So, when the country was shutdown in March, these sleeping giants arose, as if from a century long slumber during which they had evolved specifically for lockdown.

Now when a new technology or system arrives, we have the early adopters, late adopters etc. when it comes to using it. My workplace being a future facing environment has got brilliant colleagues who learn these things quickly and then roll out some training and support packages for the staff team. Remember when l said l miss these people? This is exactly what l meant. I needed them when Microsoft Teams arrived. However, soon, one realizes that one must move sooner or later or get left behind. So, there it was, the birth of self-teaching at home.

Before one can teach others, they must learn how to teach. So as quickly as lockdown started, there I was practicing using the new ways the future would soon look like as far as WFH was concerned. It is like you worry about how you look, you change your top five times in case it clashes with the background and screen resolution in your home office/space. Some people have got massive bookshelves and l must say it does make them look clever and well-read with them in the background. I have seen all sorts of wallpaper. I now know most pets by their first names. I know all the lampshades in people’s studies and front rooms. Well the list is endless including waving after an online meeting.

What l have learned mostly, joking aside, is that ability to bounce back which l have observed in my colleagues. I think somebody referred to three different stages we have all gone through because of lockdown: emergency, regression, and recovery (Somebody, 2020). Yes, the shock stage is so three months ago for me (but not everyone). Contingency plans were made, blues and twos in our lives for a good few weeks. Although the future was uncertain, and we were losing our way, waking up at 1am and remaining awake until 7am, I am confidently starting to sail away from the regression phase now and gathering my sense of purpose. I am  convinced that the mist is clearing albeit slowly and I am redefining my life goals again, my new  ways of working, I am confidently navigating my way around Microsoft Teams, I am starting to feel like the real me and this includes not talking to myself and not looking forward to baking or watching Netflix all day on Sundays.

I am mostly grateful for the new friendships started on Microsoft Teams with colleagues l would never have met in the corridors. Zoom has presented me with like-minded human beings with whom l now share a memory bank of the last three months, and when we live to be old and wise, we will raise a glass to the next generation of lecturers who, without a doubt in my mind, will be Zooming and Teaming from home because believe it or not, this is here to stay. Working from home is the new not-going-to-work from now on. Here is to the new normal. I thank you. (waving).

[christopher72-cd]

The Making of #KeephoLDiNon, The Project

In early May 2020, during a #weldns chat on Twitter, and after feeling overwhelmed by the current pandemic, an idea came to my head, you know the kind that you cannot shake off. All it was, was a suggestion of doing a tribute video to all Learning Disability Nursing Students in the UK, appreciating their efforts and commitment during placement. It was never about who opted in or out, it was just to say Thank you for choosing this profession.

A little more than ten years ago I sat in lecture theatres and classrooms, attended placements and eventually graduated as an RNLD. Five years later l returned to academia as a senior lecturer and it soon became clear that seeing others from the front of the room is different to seeing someone from the back of the room. I knew then that then I had made the made the best choice. As a lecturer, you get to witness passion, determination and dedication from hundreds of students. However, when the virus struck and divided us, separated us, isolated us and changed our ways of working, I felt my motivation plummeting. I imagined what it must be like being a student during these trying times and so that tweet that night served to spark a fire that from now on will forever burn in my heart and the hearts of those with a vested interest in learning disabilities nursing.

Within two days, we had a ZOOM meeting, total strangers united by one thing; our DNA coursing through every fibre of our beings as learning disability nurses. There were a few others who for one reason or another could not be in that meeting yet were happy to cheer us up as we started the journey into the hearts of our students.  As you can tell by now, l was a good storyteller at school; so l will just cut to the chase now.

We agreed on a song Keep Holding On by Avril Lavigne, and that day Project #keephoLDiNgon was created. Gwen Moulster, Sue Bridges, Daniel Marsden, Heidi McKay, Liam Freeman; all LD nurses joined by a Godsend Jon Bryant our producer got together for the next three weeks putting together video clips, sometimes filming them ourselves and pouring them into Jon’s reservoir to let him do his own thing. Following further support from experienced colleagues in media and of course with contributions from Sally Philips, Sir Norman Lamb, Xenia Horne, Stephen Dixon, Dance Syndrome and The Baked Bean Company our masterpiece was ready for take-off. Last Monday at 8pm, we launched the video on Twitter, (where we all first met and how fitting). Those who have watched it reported a whole range of emotions during and after.

I am happy to say that Team #KeephoLDiNgon is not a one hit-wonder type of team. Since completing Video 1, we have Video 2 due to be released this month. There are already more projects in the pipeline. We are here for our student nurses, we are here for people with learning disabilities. If ever there was a time l felt renewal and satisfaction about being an RNLD, then now is the time. Never felt so much a part of something so wonderful, a community, a family, a kindred spirit, where being different is actually a strength and sameness an identity. I am convinced that learning disability nursing, though small, is mighty, though invisible, is fully present, though seemingly hidden, is in plain sight, though quiet, is not silenced, though misunderstood, is not mysterious and that is why l am a learning disability nurse and a proud lecturer in learning disability nursing #keephoLDiNgon

[christopher72-cd]

The life and times of a lecturer in lockdown

There have been pandemics before our time, we have read about them, we have taught about them, we have all the statistics and new measures taken to get rid of them. I remember as a young boy, my grandma used to tell me about a terrible disease called Frazer which killed so many people across the universe. It was not until l was older that l realized she was talking about Influenza. You see, in Africa, some foreign words elude our ability to pronounce them, as a result our tongues reduce them to something more comfortable. My grandma did not go to school so this word would have reached her via word of mouth, something like Chinese whispers (in Africa). It is timely that having just mentioned China, where Covid19 is believed to have started, that l got inspiration to write my blog. I have not blogged before so l took a few moments before writing it. And here goes.

I am a lecturer in learning disabilities nursing. This month (May), I should have been celebrating my fifth anniversary at work with my colleagues around me. Five years ago, l said goodbye to my colleagues in CAMHS. Before that I had done several jobs which always put me in direct contact with human beings. Over the years, l have learnt to work with people, be surrounded by people, to be supported, sometimes supervised, sometimes supervising, I spent many hours working with children and their families. Basically, I have done people-facing jobs.

Today I find myself #WFH (working from home). Yes I have had one or two days here and there in the last five years having to do this. Usually when l have some marking to do or a time limited piece of work. It works when everyone else is out. When the children are at school, when it is not bin day, when the neighbours are at work too. Yet I remember when I received an email that said from the 23rd March you must stay at home and work from home until further notice. I understood the reasoning behind it because we all know what happened in China, Italy and Spain. What I did not foresee was how, after nine weeks in this new way of working, this would start to affect me.

The first week was fine. I still had a backlog of emails and bits of work to mark. Then slowly but surely, meeting requests online, tutorial requests, questions about placements, students requiring support, phishing emails and everything else that I would not get in my inbox started coming in. For five years I have been relying on my colleagues; fellow lecturers, student records team, assessment team, IT department among others for support. Whenever I am asked a million-dollar- question, they are always my phone-a-friend, depending of course, on the nature of the question. I have them all on speed dial. However, lately this has not been the issue. Believe you me, I have some of the best team around me who would do anything they can to help but they have not been here in the last nine weeks. They have not been here because where they are right now is where l am too. ALONE is the place.

This of course has been a big blow to me and l am sure most lecturers, teachers, academics, faculty are on the same boat. Of course, #WFH has introduced us to alternative ways of working, about the possibilities out there that have always existed parallel to our world of teaching. Not that we have never been aware of it, it was not what we chose to do. We are people-facing. We like to stand with our students, challenge them, see them work together, see them thinking, ease their anxieties face to face, send them away knowing that they are satisfied because we have looked into their eyes and got the conviction that things will be ok.

Today all that has changed. Has Covid19 inspired us to work differently? Will things ever be the same post Covid19? I do not have the answer. All l know is that I miss my colleagues, their kindness, their advice, their inspiration, their knowledge; not to mention the social aspect, the cups of tea/coffee, cakes in the office, the sights and sounds of the school. I miss the ladies in the cafes. I miss the cleaning team who always greet me with a friendly Hello. The IT guys. The LAB Techs. The guys in the assessments’ office. Student records team. The team meetings. The banter. Our school slimming world club (I am 9pounds older). The list goes on. Most of all I miss the students, the very reason I wake up and go to work. Today I wake up and come to my laptop which l must admit is asking itself what on earth hit this man’s head.

So as for my well-being, well it has taken a big hit. I am ok in myself. But the paragraph above should summarise the impact of #WFH. These are the (un)joys I have experienced and if l do not relearn how to function from home, at least l hope the next generation of colleagues may have to incorporate this into their normal routine. As for the next generation in Africa, thanks to social media, education and the simplicity of the foreign word, 'Covid19' will be pronounced much easier than Frazer the Influenza

Thank you

[christopher72-cd]

There have been pandemics before our time, we have read about them, we have taught about them, we have all the statistics and new measures taken to get rid of them. I remember as a young boy, my grandma used to tell me about a terrible disease called Frazer which killed so many people across the universe. It was not until l was older that l realized she was talking about Influenza. You see, in Africa, some foreign words elude our ability to pronounce them, as a result our tongues reduce them to something more comfortable. My grandma did not go to school so this word would have reached her via word of mouth, something like Chinese whispers (in Africa). It is timely that having just mentioned China, where Covid19 is believed to have started, that l got inspiration to write my blog. I have not blogged before so l took a few moments before writing it. And here goes.

I am a lecturer in learning disabilities nursing. This month (May), I should have been celebrating my fifth anniversary at work with my colleagues around me. Five years ago, l said goodbye to my colleagues in CAMHS. Before that I had done several jobs which always put me in direct contact with human beings. Over the years, l have learnt to work with people, be surrounded by people, to be supported, sometimes supervised, sometimes supervising, I spent many hours working with children and their families. Basically, I have done people-facing jobs.

Today I find myself #WFH (working from home). Yes I have had one or two days here and there in the last five years having to do this. Usually when l have some marking to do or a time limited piece of work. It works when everyone else is out. When the children are at school, when it is not bin day, when the neighbours are at work too. Yet I remember when I received an email that said from the 23rd March you must stay at home and work from home until further notice. I understood the reasoning behind it because we all know what happened in China, Italy and Spain. What I did not foresee was how, after nine weeks in this new way of working, this would start to affect me.

The first week was fine. I still had a backlog of emails and bits of work to mark. Then slowly but surely, meeting requests online, tutorial requests, questions about placements, students requiring support, phishing emails and everything else that I would not get in my inbox started coming in. For five years I have been relying on my colleagues; fellow lecturers, student records team, assessment team, IT department among others for support. Whenever I am asked a million-dollar- question, they are always my phone-a-friend, depending of course, on the nature of the question. I have them all on speed dial. However, lately this has not been the issue. Believe you me, I have some of the best team around me who would do anything they can to help but they have not been here in the last nine weeks. They have not been here because where they are right now is where l am too. ALONE is the place.

This of course has been a big blow to me and l am sure most lecturers, teachers, academics, faculty are on the same boat. Of course, #WFH has introduced us to alternative ways of working, about the possibilities out there that have always existed parallel to our world of teaching. Not that we have never been aware of it, it was not what we chose to do. We are people-facing. We like to stand with our students, challenge them, see them work together, see them thinking, ease their anxieties face to face, send them away knowing that they are satisfied because we have looked into their eyes and got the conviction that things will be ok.

Today all that has changed. Has Covid19 inspired us to work differently? Will things ever be the same post Covid19? I do not have the answer. All l know is that I miss my colleagues, their kindness, their advice, their inspiration, their knowledge; not to mention the social aspect, the cups of tea/coffee, cakes in the office, the sights and sounds of the school. I miss the ladies in the cafes. I miss the cleaning team who always greet me with a friendly Hello. The IT guys. The LAB Techs. The guys in the assessments’ office. Student records team. The team meetings. The banter. Our school slimming world club (I am 9pounds heavier). The list goes on. Most of all I miss the students, the very reason I wake up and go to work. Today I wake up and come to my laptop which l must admit is asking itself what on earth hit this man’s head.

So as for my well-being, well it has taken a big hit. I am ok in myself. But the paragraph above should summarise the impact of #WFH. These are the (un)joys I have experienced and if l do not relearn how to function from home, at least l hope the next generation of colleagues may have to incorporate this into their normal routine. As for the next generation in Africa, thanks to social media, education and the simplicity of the foreign word, 'Covid19' will be pronounced much easier than Frazer the Influenza

Thank you

[christopher72-cd]

There have been pandemics before our time, we have read about them, we have taught about them, we have all the statistics and new measures taken to get rid of them. I remember as a young boy, my grandma used to tell me about a terrible disease called Frazer which killed so many people across the universe. It was not until l was older that l realized she was talking about Influenza. You see, in Africa, some foreign words elude our ability to pronounce them, as a result our tongues reduce them to something more comfortable. My grandma did not go to school so this word would have reached her via word of mouth, something like Chinese whispers (in Africa). It is timely that having just mentioned China, where Covid19 is believed to have started, that l got inspiration to write my blog. I have not blogged before so l took a few moments before writing it. And here goes.

I am a lecturer in learning disabilities nursing. This month (May), I should have been celebrating my fifth anniversary at work with my colleagues around me. Five years ago, l said goodbye to my colleagues in CAMHS. Before that I had done several jobs which always put me in direct contact with human beings. Over the years, l have learnt to work with people, be surrounded by people, to be supported, sometimes supervised, sometimes supervising, I spent many hours working with children and their families. Basically, I have done people-facing jobs.

Today I find myself #WFH (working from home). Yes I have had one or two days here and there in the last five years having to do this. Usually when l have some marking to do or a time limited piece of work. It works when everyone else is out. When the children are at school, when it is not bin day, when the neighbours are at work too. Yet I remember when I received an email that said from the 23rd March you must stay at home and work from home until further notice. I understood the reasoning behind it because we all know what happened in China, Italy and Spain. What I did not foresee was how, after nine weeks in this new way of working, this would start to affect me.

The first week was fine. I still had a backlog of emails and bits of work to mark. Then slowly but surely, meeting requests online, tutorial requests, questions about placements, students requiring support, phishing emails and everything else that I would not get in my inbox started coming in. For five years I have been relying on my colleagues; fellow lecturers, student records team, assessment team, IT department among others for support. Whenever I am asked a million-dollar- question, they are always my phone-a-friend, depending of course, on the nature of the question. I have them all on speed dial. However, lately this has not been the issue. Believe you me, I have some of the best team around me who would do anything they can to help but they have not been here in the last nine weeks. They have not been here because where they are right now is where l am too. ALONE is the place.

This of course has been a big blow to me and l am sure most lecturers, teachers, academics, faculty are on the same boat. Of course, #WFH has introduced us to alternative ways of working, about the possibilities out there that have always existed parallel to our world of teaching. Not that we have never been aware of it, it was not what we chose to do. We are people-facing. We like to stand with our students, challenge them, see them work together, see them thinking, ease their anxieties face to face, send them away knowing that they are satisfied because we have looked into their eyes and got the conviction that things will be ok.

Today all that has changed. Has Covid19 inspired us to work differently? Will things ever be the same post Covid19? I do not have the answer. All l know is that I miss my colleagues, their kindness, their advice, their inspiration, their knowledge; not to mention the social aspect, the cups of tea/coffee, cakes in the office, the sights and sounds of the school. I miss the ladies in the cafes. I miss the cleaning team who always greet me with a friendly Hello. The IT guys. The LAB Techs. The guys in the assessments’ office. Student records team. The team meetings. The banter. Our school slimming world club (I am 9pounds older). The list goes on. Most of all I miss the students, the very reason I wake up and go to work. Today I wake up and come to my laptop which l must admit is asking itself what on earth hit this man’s head.

So as for my well-being, well it has taken a big hit. I am ok in myself. But the paragraph above should summarise the impact of #WFH. These are the (un)joys I have experienced and if l do not relearn how to function from home, at least l hope the next generation of colleagues may have to incorporate this into their normal routine. As for the next generation in Africa, thanks to social media, education and the simplicity of the foreign word, 'Covid19' will be pronounced much easier than Frazer the Influenza

Thank you

[christopher72-cd]

There have been pandemics before our time, we have read about them, we have taught about them, we have all the statistics and new measures taken to get rid of them. I remember as a young boy, my grandma used to tell me about a terrible disease called Frazer which killed so many people across the universe. It was not until l was older that l realized she was talking about Influenza. You see, in Africa, some foreign words elude our ability to pronounce them, as a result our tongues reduce them to something more comfortable. My grandma did not go to school so this word would have reached her via word of mouth, something like Chinese whispers (in Africa). It is timely that having just mentioned China, where Covid19 is believed to have started, that l got inspiration to write my blog. I have not blogged before so l took a few moments before writing it. And here goes.

I am a lecturer in learning disabilities nursing. This month, I should have been celebrating my fifth anniversary at work with my colleagues around me. Five years ago, l said goodbye to my colleagues in CAMHS. Before that I had done several jobs which always put me in direct contact with human beings. Over the years, l have learnt to work with people, be surrounded by people, to be supported, sometimes supervised, sometimes supervising, I spent many hours working with children and their families. Basically, I have done people-facing jobs.

Today I find myself #WFH (working from home). Yes I have had one or two days here and there in the last five years having to do this. Usually when l have some marking to do or a time limited piece of work. It works when everyone else is out. When the children are at school, when it is not bin day, when the neighbours are at work too. Yet I remember when I received an email that said from the 23rd March you must stay at home and work from home until further notice. I understood the reasoning behind it because we all know what happened in China, Italy and Spain. What I did not foresee was how, after nine weeks in this new way of working, this would start to affect me.

The first week was fine. I still had a backlog of emails and bits of work to mark. Then slowly but surely, meeting requests online, tutorial requests, questions about placements, students requiring support, phishing emails and everything else that I would not get in my inbox started coming in. For five years I have been relying on my colleagues; fellow lecturers, student records team, assessment team, IT department among others for support. Whenever I am asked a million-dollar- question, they are always my phone-a-friend, depending of course, on the nature of the question. I have them all on speed dial. However, lately this has not been the issue. Believe you me, I have some of the best team around me who would do anything they can to help but they have not been here in the last eight weeks. They have not been here because where they are right now is where l am too. ALONE is the place.

This of course has been a big blow to me and l am sure most lecturers, teachers, academics, faculty are on the same boat. Of course, #WFH has introduced us to alternative ways of working, about the possibilities out there that have always existed parallel to our world of teaching. Not that we have never been aware of it, it was not what we chose to do. We are people-facing. We like to stand with our students, challenge them, see them work together, see them thinking, ease their anxieties face to face, send them away knowing that they are satisfied because we have looked into their eyes and got the conviction that things will be ok.

Today all that has changed. Has Covid19 inspired us to work differently? Will things ever be the same post Covid19? I do not have the answer. All l know is that I miss my colleagues, their kindness, their advice, their inspiration, their knowledge; not to mention the social aspect, the cups of tea/coffee, cakes in the office, the sights and sounds of the school. I miss the ladies in the cafes. I miss the cleaning team who always greet me with a friendly Hello. The IT guys. The LAB Techs. The guys in the assessments’ office. Student records team. The team meetings. The banter. Our school slimming world club (I am 9pounds older). The list goes on. Most of all I miss the students, the very reason I wake up and go to work. Today I wake up and come to my laptop which l must admit is asking itself what on earth hit this man’s head.

So as for my well-being, well it has taken a big hit. I am ok in myself. But the paragraph above should summarise the impact of #WFH. These are the (un)joys I have experienced and if l do not relearn how to function from home, at least l hope the next generation of colleagues may have to incorporate this into their normal routine. As for the next generation in Africa, thanks to social media, education and the simplicity of the foreign word, 'Covid19' will be pronounced much easier than Frazer the Influenza

Thank you