Practicals a true picture of how practical you are???

Re: Practicals a true picture of how practical you are???

Sammyannieantha — Sat, 27 Feb 2010 17:38:24 GMT

PS hope you have a safe journey up but can i suggest that you try to go down the night before and stay at a b n b if it is you that will be driving. It will be impossible for you to drive down and sit and exam then drive back or better still get someone to drive you but then again its still a long journey x

Re: Practicals a true picture of how practical you are???

Sammyannieantha — Sat, 27 Feb 2010 17:33:32 GMT

Hi emily im sitting mine exactly same date and time as yours!im so nervous now and i just have to do it. I need to pass.This is classed as my 2nd time but its actually my third time because they messed u at bracknhurst the 1st time so just hope that I have that on my side. I just hope that were in separate rooms too. Realy realy nervous, it really hit me when I got my letter!

Re: Practicals a true picture of how practical you are???

Ceri Boyd — Fri, 26 Feb 2010 23:09:02 GMT

Ahhhh what a nightmare!

Good luck, hope it all goes well! :D

Re: Practicals a true picture of how practical you are???

gill — Fri, 26 Feb 2010 23:05:02 GMT

I was originally thinking of doing the practical last yearbut put them off to the december one so I could do it in Glasgow but had a nightmare time with my portfolio getting lost in the post so couldn't sit it! Portfolio was recovered thankfully but it's just my luck that when I am ready there's no centre in Scotland. Think I'm going to get a travelodge for the night before, unfortunately my practical is at 5pm tho so will be a lot of hanging around for it (study time!) then a late drive up

Re: Practicals a true picture of how practical you are???

Sarah Cahill — Fri, 26 Feb 2010 22:05:40 GMT

It's pretty poor that there's nowhere in this country to sit practicals this time round and everyone has to travel down to England!

Re: Practicals a true picture of how practical you are???

Phrin Vernon RVN — Fri, 26 Feb 2010 21:22:35 GMT

[quote user="gill"]

I'm sitting my practicals for the first time on the 20th March @ 5pm at Myerscough and i'm so nervous! Have a long drive ahead of me too seeing a nowhere in Scotland is doing them

[/quote]

could you stretch to a b&b the night before? or would your practice help pay?

can't imagine driving from scotland to myerscough and then doing an exam! eek!

could you get the train and revise en route?

Re: Practicals a true picture of how practical you are???

Emily Hibbs — Fri, 26 Feb 2010 21:21:18 GMT

Good luck with your travelling then! I pushed myself to do the December ones last year as they were in Scotland, just crap I failed and having to do re-sits so far away!!!

Re: Practicals a true picture of how practical you are???

gill — Fri, 26 Feb 2010 19:16:48 GMT

I'm sitting my practicals for the first time on the 20th March @ 5pm at Myerscough and i'm so nervous! Have a long drive ahead of me too seeing a nowhere in Scotland is doing them

Re: Practicals a true picture of how practical you are???

Heidi O'Toole — Fri, 26 Feb 2010 18:12:04 GMT

[quote user="Stuart McQueen"]

I always liked the idea of having the RCVS examiners come out to every individual practice to watch the student work there... its there own enviroment which would take the edge off the nerves a little!

[/quote]

sorry was supposed to quote this!!! :P

Re: Practicals a true picture of how practical you are???

Heidi O'Toole — Fri, 26 Feb 2010 18:10:57 GMT

This, i feel is a better method of examining! I totally agree that you do need to have some sort of examination in this area, but the practicals have become so bloody stringent they have stopped even being about being practical. Its more about can you remember everything in order...

They are pointless in this format.

Re: Practicals a true picture of how practical you are???

Maisy — Fri, 26 Feb 2010 17:59:04 GMT

Good Luck Emily!

Re: Practicals a true picture of how practical you are???

Nick Shackleton — Fri, 26 Feb 2010 17:49:11 GMT

[quote user="Emily Hibbs"]

Finally got my letter today - Sat 20th March at 10am at Myersough (was hoping for morning time too as had to wait til 5.10pm last time!!!)

[/quote]

Wish my diploma practicals were at Myerscough!!! I've gotta trek to bloody bristol!

Re: Practicals a true picture of how practical you are???

Emily Hibbs — Fri, 26 Feb 2010 17:29:19 GMT

Finally got my letter today - Sat 20th March at 10am at Myersough (was hoping for morning time too as had to wait til 5.10pm last time!!!)

Re: Practicals a true picture of how practical you are???

Fiona Leathers — Wed, 24 Feb 2010 16:26:14 GMT

Actually if you timed yourself in practice, you would find that most of the practicals are done in less than that time, its just cos you think "OMG its only 6 minutes!!!!" instead of just getting on with it! I panicked in my practicals cos I had a couple of minutes left in every task & I was certain I'd missed something cos of it! All in all, in was because I was used to doing the tasks!

Re: Practicals a true picture of how practical you are???

Vicky RVN — Sun, 21 Feb 2010 23:51:40 GMT

[quote user="Claire BearRVN"]

[quote user="Fluffy"]

[quote user="samz60020@hotmail.com"] im just very jittery when in a unfamiliar place and have to travel long distances while nervous[/quote]

Here's a thought that may help you next time. As a locum you don't get time to settle and feel 'comfortable' - you go from job to job and have to be very adaptable to different ways of doing the same thing, in different and unfamiliar and sometimes fairly unfriendly surroundings - you can't get the things you should be competant wrong because of these factors - so next time you go to your practical exams imagine yourself qualified (which should help your confidence) and just going to a new locum position and do your job as you always do and to the exacting standards that you have been trained for - it might help.

I wish someone had given me that advice when i went to mine as i was a bag of nerves too - as are most. Good luck

[/quote]

That's a great idea! and I agree as a locum, you don't have time to worry, so just imagine you're in a new practice with new staff. Fantastic idea Fluffy

[/quote]

I must remember that when i come to do my pracs!

Re: Practicals a true picture of how practical you are???

Claire Cameron — Thu, 18 Feb 2010 08:23:28 GMT

[quote user="Fluffy"]

[quote user="samz60020@hotmail.com"] im just very jittery when in a unfamiliar place and have to travel long distances while nervous[/quote]

I wish someone had given me that advice when i went to mine as i was a bag of nerves too - as are most. Good luck

[/quote]

That's a great idea! and I agree as a locum, you don't have time to worry, so just imagine you're in a new practice with new staff. Fantastic idea Fluffy

Re: Practicals a true picture of how practical you are???

Laura Ringsell — Thu, 18 Feb 2010 07:53:24 GMT

[quote user="samz60020@hotmail.com"] im just very jittery when in a unfamiliar place and have to travel long distances while nervous[/quote]

I wish someone had given me that advice when i went to mine as i was a bag of nerves too - as are most. Good luck

Re: Practicals a true picture of how practical you are???

Emily Hibbs — Mon, 15 Feb 2010 18:28:10 GMT

Don't get me started on this one! Failed my first attempt at practicals in December too, think it's all a load of rubbish how you're examined! Who seriously in practice does anything within 6 minutes??! I was a nervous wreck for mine, hands shaking all over the place, don't think it helped having to wait until the end of the day to sit them either so hoping I get an earlier slot for the March ones!!

Best of luck to all those re-sitting next month

Re: Practicals a true picture of how practical you are???

Claire Cameron — Mon, 15 Feb 2010 12:20:01 GMT

[quote user="sal the 1st"]

but at least a practical in the exam means that everybody sitting the exam at that time is evaluated in the same way? and the practical exam shows that the student is able to perform the task in unfamiliar surroundings (which is what will happen anyway if the student/ nurse changes jobs/practice at any time)

How long would it take for RCVS examiners to get round all the practices (nobody would ever qualify!) and who would pay for it

[/quote]

I agree with Sal, not only is in time consuming and would cost a small fortune.

The practicals are a controlled environment and the same environment so that everyone undertakes the same exam in the same conditions.

I agree it would be nice, but totally unpractical.

Re: Practicals a true picture of how practical you are???

Sal the 1st — Sun, 14 Feb 2010 21:56:57 GMT

How long would it take for RCVS examiners to get round all the practices (nobody would ever qualify!) and who would pay for it

Re: Practicals a true picture of how practical you are???

Stuart McQueen RVN MBVNA — Sun, 14 Feb 2010 21:41:26 GMT

Re: Practicals a true picture of how practical you are???

loobylou — Sun, 14 Feb 2010 21:10:13 GMT

I agree! It makes me so mad that I'm a trained assessor, I have to have my work checked, have to attend regular meetings to ensure my assessing is fair and to current standards and have to be assessed assessing and yet I cant say that my student is capable of completeing task x or y!! Surely if they can complete the portfolio they should be competent at all the practicals they may get in the exams?!

Re: Practicals a true picture of how practical you are???

Maisy — Sun, 14 Feb 2010 21:04:59 GMT

I think the practicals are nerve wracking, and many students who fail do so just because of nerves! However they still have their place in exams as they are showing some degree of competency and safe practice - remember the grey areas are often there to indicate you are performing a task safely (to yourself and others and especially the patient).

Good luck for next time!