First student graduates from the University of Worcester pre-registration childhealth/neonatal route

The Southern West Midlands Newborn Network, in association with the University of Worcester, has developed an innovative neonatal route through a pre-registration Child Health nursing programme as part of their strategy to address neonatal nursing recruitment deficits in the region. The exposure to neonatal experiences during initial student nurse training we seen as an opportunity to encourage more nurses to take up a career in neonatal nursing. The first graduate successfully completed the course in July 2009 and has since taken up a post as a staff nurse in a level three neonatal unit within the region. This article explores the background surrounding these events and shares this nurse's experiences of undertaking the programme.