Service user and carer participation in an endoscopy nursing programme

Area of Science:

• Medical Education
• Patient Experience
• Disability Studies

Background:

• Endoscopy services require improved patient-centred care, particularly for individuals with severe disabilities like spinal cord injury.
• Enhancing healthcare students' understanding of service user and carer experiences is crucial for delivering sensitive and effective care.

Purpose of the Study:

• To improve endoscopy students' insight into the experiences of service users and carers, with a focus on patients with severe disabilities.
• To evaluate a novel teaching strategy for integrating lived experiences into the curriculum.

Main Methods:

• Implementation of a teaching and learning strategy involving service user and carer perspectives.
• Classroom encounters designed to foster student engagement and reflective practice.

Main Results:

• Positive feedback indicated the strategy's success in enhancing student understanding.
• Students demonstrated increased sensitivity and developed reflective skills regarding patients with complex needs.

Conclusions:

• The initiative successfully improved students' insight into patient and carer experiences in endoscopy.
• The approach is suitable for integration into future medical curricula to promote person-centred care for disabled patients.