The London Healthcare Education Group (LHEG) and London Medicine (LMED), key divisions of London Higher, have distributed £35,000 of project funding to London higher education institutions and their partner organisations.
The NHS is currently under great pressure and in a period of change. London has experienced significant shortages of key staff, particularly nurses, in recent years. Three projects will be funded this year, covering a range of medical and healthcare topics in the capital. Between them, they will support London students and staff in healthcare and medicine to develop their skills in clinical reasoning and social impact alongside benefiting from the expertise of internationally educated nurses.
A project co-run by Brunel University of London and Queen Mary University of London aims to improve clinical reasoning skills among medical students using technology-enhanced team-based learning. By combining simulation, virtual reality glasses and artificial intelligence (AI), students can get more experience practising their clinical reasoning in a wider range of settings.
BPP University and London South Bank University will collaborate on placements for nursing students which will incorporate real world and AI-supported activities to improve social impact. Nursing students will work together with law students to work on real-world examples and improve their confidence and understanding of social determinants of health.
A partnership project from the University of West London, the University of Roehampton and King’s College London, will focus on the development of materials to help internationally educated nurses and midwives to support students in their practice. It aims to bridge gaps between their home countries’ curricula and the London environment they are teaching in, improving the experiences of both the teaching staff and the students.
These projects will increase the skills and confidence of London’s future medical and healthcare staff, helping the NHS in the capital meet the challenges of the future. The previous round of funding, distributed in 2023, supported projects covering inter-professional reflective practice, virtual environments for pre-preceptorship, and support for disabled students in health and social care courses. We are looking forward to seeing the continuing impact of this funding in an ever-widening set of areas.
Jolanta Edwards, Director of Strategy at London Higher, said: ‘I am delighted to announce the LHEG and LMED funding winners today. These projects are exciting and innovative, addressing core issues. We know from previous funding of projects, they have the potential to bring about real change in the capital and beyond’.
Professor Nicki Cohen, Dean of Medical Education at King’s College London and Chair of London Medicine, said ‘The LHEG/LMED project funding is an important initiative which enables London institutions to collaborate on shared areas of interest and make a difference in London healthcare education. I am eager to see their results’.
Professor Karen Buckwell-Nutt, Associate Pro Vice-Chancellor for Student Experience, Director of Institute for Health & Social Care at Buckinghamshire New University and Chair of LHEG, said ‘I am delighted with the quality of bids and delighted we are able to support three excellent bids. Previously funded projects have been discussed in our group, they have made a real difference to how we operate, we have been able to share learning and improve practice. These have the potential to make a real impact, and I am already excited about their potential and the difference they can make’
