My missus is currently undertaking a mental health nursing degree through Lincoln University. Part of the course entails work placements.
She has received an email to say regardless of the lockdown they are still expected to do their placement.
They have advised that for this initial placement they will no longer being assessed on it, they are halving the amount of time required to 22 hours per week and reducing the overall length of the placement to 5 weeks from 6.
I foolishly thought under a duty of care for their students that these non essential placements would be put back.
I am concerned that at a time when we’re being asked to stay at home she is being asked to travel into an area with higher infection rates and then risk bringing it home for me and the kids to possibly catch. This is causing a bit of tension. Understandably my better half feels stuck between a rock and a hard place.
Am I being unreasonable?
Any advice?

Think the first port of call would be the Advice Centre at the Students’ Union. Although not assessed, I imagine her placement might have further impacts on her Fitness to Practice - i.e. if she refused to do it she may have issues in gaining professional accreditation or registration in the future.

Given that the issue will be the same for all her course mates, I imagine the SU would be able to bring it up with the Course Leader/Head of Dept and find a suitable workaround. If not, they would be best placed to advise on her position re: extenuating circumstances.

Failing that, is she registered with a union at all?

The circumstances that student nurses have to work under are a National scandal. They are expected to pay to work, then study on top of that. The govt are using untrained, unqualified student staff as free labour to top up staffing caused by their cuts.

Quoted from ska face

Think the first port of call would be the Advice Centre at the Students’ Union. Although not assessed, I imagine her placement might have further impacts on her Fitness to Practice - i.e. if she refused to do it she may have issues in gaining professional accreditation or registration in the future.

Given that the issue will be the same for all her course mates, I imagine the SU would be able to bring it up with the Course Leader/Head of Dept and find a suitable workaround. If not, they would be best placed to advise on her position re: extenuating circumstances.

Failing that, is she registered with a union at all?

Thanks for the reply.

No she’s not part of a union.

Apparently I am not the only other half to raise concerns and some of her mates on the course are also very worried themselves.
They have banded together and sent in some joint queries (some specifically around whether this is essential or not) to the course leader for more clarity and they’re awaiting a response.

Tough one as I know people working in frontline services as well and they have no option but to work. They get regularly tested and hopefully your wife is doing that as well.

She choose a laudable profession and  risks come with that.

Quoted from Rick12

Tough one as I know people working in frontline services as well and they have no option but to work. They get regularly tested and hopefully your wife is doing that as well.

She choose a laudable profession and  risks come with that.

For this particular placement there doesn’t need to be any risk. I think that’s more my point. It’s a 3 year course and it can easily be put back.
If she was adding anything or fully qualified already I’d be less inclined to take issue but her mum and sister are nurses and they agree that student nurses will be a hinderance when they are so stretched already.
I’ve already resigned myself to the fact she will be going out and I just have to cross my fingers she doesn’t get it.

Quoted from Rick12

Tough one as I know people working in frontline services as well and they have no option but to work. They get regularly tested and hopefully your wife is doing that as well.

She choose a laudable profession and  risks come with that.

lmao, no. Good of you to send Sandford’s wife off into a needlessly dangerous environment with a slap on the back and your best wishes though.

You said “frontline workers have no choice but to work”. This isn’t the case for the OP’s wife, who is a student. Thanks for your ill-informed and typically tone-deaf response though.

Quoted from ska face

You said “frontline workers have no choice but to work”. This isn’t the case for the OP’s wife, who is a student. Thanks for your ill-informed and typically tone-deaf response though.

Yes I made a mistake .Perhaps you can work on your choice of language though and not denigrate people  as you often tend to do. Kind of lowers you as a person.

Hence everytime you make a mistake and we all make them  do you want me to call you out and knock you calling you a t** etc etc. Isnt a good vibe. I rather try encourage and support someone.

Quoted from Sandford1981

Thanks for the reply.

No she’s not part of a union.

Apparently I am not the only other half to raise concerns and some of her mates on the course are also very worried themselves.
They have banded together and sent in some joint queries (some specifically around whether this is essential or not) to the course leader for more clarity and they’re awaiting a response.

Obviously it depends on the Course Leader, but if going direct doesn’t get the desired effect she should pick it up with her Course Rep or Academic Rep. These reps have slightly more weight and support in cases like this than students going directly/informally to course leaders.

Course Leaders, in my experience, will only really change their plans when leant on by those further up in the Faculty. With universities getting slated from all angles at the minute, and with student numbers (income) set to drop, someone a bit higher up might decide they could do without a “students forced into Covid wards” headline.

Quoted from Rick12

Yes I made a mistake .Perhaps you can work on your choice of language though and not denigrate people  as you often tend to do. Kind of lowers you as a person.

Hence everytime you make a mistake and we all make them  do you want me to call you out and knock you calling you a t** etc etc. Isnt a good vibe. I rather try to encourage and support someone.

Telling it how it is.

Quoted from ska face

Telling it how it is.

Likewise

Quoted from ska face

Obviously it depends on the Course Leader, but if going direct doesn’t get the desired effect she should pick it up with her Course Rep or Academic Rep. These reps have slightly more weight and support in cases like this than students going directly/informally to course leaders.

Course Leaders, in my experience, will only really change their plans when leant on by those further up in the Faculty. With universities getting slated from all angles at the minute, and with student numbers (income) set to drop, someone a bit higher up might decide they could do without a “students forced into Covid wards” headline.

They’ve had their meeting and to cut a long story short, been told they have to do their placement as it’s always been that way. Hard to argue with logic like that.
The response I’m getting from the missus now, is I have to do it or I’m off the course.

Awesome job.

Thanks for help Ska but it appears I’ll just have to cross fingers and hope for the best (a bit like Boris Johnson’s approach to the pandemic).