Bournemouth, Education | Posted on March 27th, 2025 | return to news
Alien invasion tests Bournemouth nursing students to the limit
Nursing students from Bournemouth University were on high alert when they dealt with a (simulated) alien invasion.
Bournemouth University (BU) nursing students faced a crisis in March when they had to care for casualties caused by an alien invasion.
Not a real one, of course. The alien invasion was the theme for a two-day major incident simulation event that took place in an underground car park at Bournemouth University.
Students volunteered to play the part of casualties with realistic-looking injuries that were created and applied by a team of makeup artist students from Arts University Bournemouth (AUB).
On the first day, paramedic science students were challenged to deal with the scene of a developing emergency and given the task of stabilising the casualties.
On day two of the event, the underground car park had been turned into a field hospital, where 300 third-year nursing students were able to practice their skills at continuing the casualties’ treatment.
Una Brosnan, lecturer in paramedic science at BU and organiser of the event, said: “By creating a controlled environment in the form of a simulated multiple casualty event like this, we can allow students to experience what it’s like to work in a traumatic and stressful scenario, but in a safe space.
“The ‘alien invasion’ theme is to add a bit of light-heartedness to the event, but the processes and systems of triaging and treating patients is the same as in a real-life situation.”
The range of simulated injuries that students treated varied from fractured bones, crush injuries, catastrophic haemorrhage and more complex injuries that required students to work in teams.
Many of the students were being assessed on how they used the ‘A-E’ method of treating acutely ill patients and their vital signs. Third year BU nursing apprentice Dan Willis said: “Our A-E skills have been assessed under quite a lot of pressure and noise, so we’re having to think on our feet and use the training we’ve gained over the last three years.”
As part of the simulation, an actor played the part of a patient who was having a psychotic episode. Mental health nursing students were then given the chance to interview the patient to assess and diagnose the severity of their condition.
Stuart Richardson, clinical educator at University Hospitals Dorset (UHD), one of BU’s partner agencies, who helped the students during their clinical assessments said: “This simulation event is something that I didn’t have as a nurse. Having the noise and the element of chaos, which you wouldn’t normally get if you were treating a mannequin adds a whole element of realism to it for the students. It will be good practice for when they start working at other hospital trusts, like UHD.”
Please share post:
LATEST NEWS:
CHARITY OF THE YEAR 2025
Subscribe to the online magazine news letter
