ProNurse

This the place to tell the world why learning disability nursing is THE branch of nursing to be in and to share your experiences.

I know there aren't loads of LD nurses out there as it is a very specialised field. I know there can be a lot of discussion around these areas, such as should LD/MH nurses do a general ualification first? Would be interested in what you guys think about this?

I've been working with Adults with Learning Disabilities in both residential care and domicialliary care for a while now and am hoping to start a learning disability nursing course in september (09). A bit worried about the lack of jobs in the NHS/community in my area though...

Well done. We need more LD nurses. We have a great team in our area.

good for you i to have a sister with learning disabilties profound and the joys and pleasure growing up with her is a reward in itself. im sure youll really enjoy the job and you will see so many personalities and characters through out your career. i wish you the best of luck and im sure youll enjoy working in the learning dissabilties field.  

I am a student RNLD

I worked in a home for adults with LD and challenging behaviour but ultimately I want to work with children with PMLD.

I switched from adult to LD before starting the course after gaining experience both in the home and as a bank HCA

Julia x

Hello!  I've just applied to do LD at Napier & Stirling... looks great!  I'm working in a care home at the moment, but have worked in the past with people with learning disabilities & it was the best job ever! :D   I worked in a few different places, but the one I will always remember fondly was as a support worker for a charity in Preston that bought houses & then rented them out as shared, supported tenancies, to adults with learning disabilities.  It was a great job, where I met some excellent people, both staff and clients.  I felt that the ethos there was brilliant, with a real focus on encouraging the clients to be actively involved in their communities.   I also got to use my own skills creatively, for example, exploring musical instruments & singing, or working on communication.  As a result, writing my Personal Statement was something I could do fairly confidently, & I'm excited so much already, although my application only went in a couple of days ago!  :D

Anyway, I'm really looking forward to it, & hope that more folk decide to join the ranks. 

J.x

(edit) P.S..  another great thing is that the Napier course "includes a one year job guarantee, within Scotland, from the Scottish Government."  Thought I'd throw that in as someone mentioned being unsure as to the availability of jobs post-grad/reg.  Although this is clearly a uni-specific thing, as far I'm concerned it just demonstrates that there are definitely jobs out there.  They wouldn't be able to offer a guarantee otherwise!  ;)

Hi Jules,

As for where we end up, I'm still figuring out all the options myself!  There does seem to be a bit of variety...  Some places are 24/7 care & operate shifts, whereas others are more 9-5.. there's residential or community care among others.. let's see.. it might be a Challenging Behaviour Unit, or a residential place where the people have really complex health needs.  Some prisons have facilities for people with Learning Disabilities, so you could opt for Forensic LD Nursing.. Or you could be visiting folk in their homes... there are epilepsy clinics, centres for people with specific conditions.. or you could act as a consultant to other areas. 

I could go on for ages, really, & I guess it does depend on the facilities in place where you live... I do know that it's a fast growing branch though.   These links might give you a better idea..

www.nm.stir.ac.uk/documents/LDleaflet.pdf 

allnurses.com/developmental-disabilities/welcome-new-learning-7624.html

Your local council might be a good way to find places to gain experience.  If you explain what you're doing & why, they should be able to give you an idea of what services your town/city has for people with Learning Disabilities.  If they can give you contact details, then all the better!  Remember that it doesn't have to be voluntary!  There are often places where you can sign up to their bank & work shifts to suit your other commitments.  The charity job I mentioned earlier was exactly that, last time I was at Uni... .  Frequently the council themselves, or the NHS will have places where you can do the same.  I did quite a few sleepover shifts to earn extra cash.  :)

Hope some of that's been helpful.  :)    What other branches are you considering?

Best of luck with your decision.  The more info you can find, the better, but don't let it swamp you.. You gotta listen to your heart, too.  ;)

Jayne. x

Hi Kristalcookies

I don't know if you have already looked into it but had you thought about trying to get a position as a HCA where you could be seconded to do your training?  I know it is getting harder to get seconded, but some NHS trusts and private companies still do it - I have noticed on the NHS jobs website some secondment opportunities to do training.

I don't know if it is still possible to do nurse training part time but if so you could train and still earn money?

I believe in employing the right person, so to me I would not care if the person had a diploma or a degree only that they would be the right person for the position.

Good luck

Kez x

hi enjoyed reading the comments and i was wondering if you could help with a question i was thinking of reapplying to do nursing at uni again but in ld as iam working in a rebite for ld children with challange behaviour and iam finding it very rewarding, the only problem is would i be eligible for a bursey as i had one last time which was for up to 2008 any advice would be welcome many thanks pat

Hi folks, good to see people interested in the profession.  Just wanted to reply to some of the concerns about employment.  I have been qualfied since 1998, I trained in the days of the large hospitals and thought that the future may be bleak ( that was nonsense ) I have been lucky to work in the NHS and the care provider sector and now manage some NHS LD services in Glasgow.  I think that many nurses are facing some difficult times finding work just now, I have a few friends who are Adult trained and currently doing bank.  Anyway, LD nursing is diverse, we can work in MH, Forensics, Care Manager Roles in social work and of course community teams and providers,  dont worry, go for it, its a demanding career but well worth it.  Good Luck. T pS its my ugly mug on the PDF leaflet for stirling uni...... and I dont get commission!

Thank you for this topic and all this useful replies. Me and my best friend just took our online christian degrees and we were thinking to apply for LD nursing. We would like to do social work after the graduation, in order to help people in need. My question is how much this program costs because we can't afford much and we don't want to take a loan. It is possible to pay after graduation when we will have a full time job?