Stateside students reveal ‘humbling’ experiences during placement at Hailsham care home

A group of six North American university students joined staff and residents at Hailsham House care home in East Sussex as part of their Bachelor of Health Sciences degree at Balder College, Herstmonceux.

The 20-year-old students, who are looking to pursue a career in either medicine, physical therapy or health policy spent one morning a week for two months at the home, which provides nursing, residential and specialist dementia care to older people in the community.

Speaking on behalf of the students, Vanessa Morris said, “A number of us have never had the chance to learn about health via an immersive community placement, so we are extremely grateful to the team at Hailsham House for enabling us to spend time in the home.”

As part of the course, the students are encouraged to gain hands on experience within a care home setting to understand the needs of the residents and learn more about life at the home and the team’s visions for the future. This is the first time Halilsham House has welcomed a placement of this kind.

Vanessa added. “The personal care team at the home have been amazing at supporting us as well as the residents during this ongoing partnership, demonstrating the passion for their work.

“They allowed us to assist with a number of activities, including live music and arts and crafts which we could see had a huge impact on their wellbeing and overall mood of the residents.”

“One of the activities we supported the residents with was colouring – by the end of our placement at the home, we had created our very own ‘colouring club’ – a lovely memory I will take away from my experience.”

Deputy care home manager Rui Santos, said, “it’s been wonderful having the students on board. They are all so caring and compassionate towards the residents and have been a fantastic support to the activities team.”

Vanessa continued, “We have had the freedom of experiencing meaningful conversations with the residents and staff where we have learned more about life at the home and what their visions are for the future – it’s been a really humbling experience.

“I can say on behalf of all of us that our time spent at Hailsham House has proven to be extremely fulfilling, educational and more importantly, exceptionally fun!”

Rui added, “Whilst many homes face staffing challenges, it is really positive to see a younger generation passionate and excited about caring for older people – we are extremely grateful for their time here at the home - they will be missed!”