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Why choose the School of Society, Community and Health


Our Public Health courses rank 1st in their subject table for graduation prospects – outcomes (CUG, 2024)

The majority of our students graduate with an additional professional qualification that will gain them entry to an allied health or social services profession

Gain an accredited qualification in a sector where qualified professionals are in high demand

About the course

This Foundation degree in Assistant Practitioner (Health) is designed for healthcare workers currently working in an assistant capacity in a range of healthcare settings. The course builds on your practice experience by offering a range of learning opportunities to ensure you develop the skills employers are looking for.

The work-based course will set you off on a journey of active independent learning with appropriate support from academic and clinical staff. The knowledge and skills you acquire will equip you to become a reflective compassionate healthcare practitioner able to promote provide and maintain safe effective care of the highest quality within a multidisciplinary context and in multicultural settings.

Areas of study may include values-based practice; healthcare policy and quality; person-centred care; enhancing care in practice; and safeguarding health and wellbeing.

Why choose this course?

  • Experience practice-based learning with a skills focus in a friendly and supportive environment
  • Understand the theory and evidence that lie behind healthcare decisions
  • Enjoy our flexible work-based approach to teaching and learning which encourages reflective practice and confident skills development
  • Access state-of-the-art facilities to tackle real-life scenarios in a safe and supported setting
  • Benefit from our strong links with industry offering plenty of opportunities for real-life work placements
  • Be able to plan implement and manage tasks under the supervision of a registered practitioner
  • Be aware of the standards of behaviour expected in the workplace and take personal responsibility for your conduct
  • Develop a range of subject-specific and transferable skills in team-working; communication; critical thinking; and analysis
  • After completing this Foundation degree you can take a one-year top-up course to complete a full Honour’s degree

with Professional Practice Year

This course has the option to be taken over four years which includes a year placement in industry. Undertaking a year in industry has many benefits. You gain practical experience and build your CV, as well as being a great opportunity to sample a profession and network with potential future employers.

There is no tuition fee for the placement year enabling you to gain an extra year of experience for free.

*Only available to UK/EU students.

with Foundation Year

A Degree with a Foundation Year gives you guaranteed entry to an Undergraduate course.

Whether you’re returning to learning and require additional help and support to up-skill, or if you didn’t quite meet the grades to pursue an Undergraduate course, our Degrees with Foundation Year provide a fantastic entry route for you to work towards a degree level qualification.

With our guidance and support you’ll get up to speed within one year, and will be ready to seamlessly progress on to undergraduate study at Bedfordshire.

The Foundation Year provides an opportunity to build up your academic writing skills and numeracy, and will also cover a range of subject specific content to fully prepare you for entry to an Undergraduate degree.

This is an integrated four-year degree, with the foundation year as a key part of the course. You will need to successfully complete the Foundation Year to progress on to the first year of your bachelor’s degree.

Why study a degree with a Foundation Year?

  • Broad-based yet enough depth to give you credible vocational skills
  • Coverage of a variety of areas typically delivered by an expert in this area
  • Gain an understanding of a subject before choosing which route you wish to specialise in
  • Great introduction to further study, and guaranteed progression on to one of our Undergraduate degrees

The degrees offering a Foundation Year provide excellent preparation for your future studies.

During your Foundation Year you will get the opportunity to talk to tutors about your degree study and future career aspirations, and receive guidance on the most appropriate Undergraduate course to help you achieve this; providing you meet the entry requirements and pass the Foundation Year.

 

Course Leader - Dr John McCarthy

I started out as a registered (NMC) nurse specialising in Intensive Care and Cardiothoracics before moving into exercise physiology as an academic and practitioner.

I became an accredited Exercise Physiologist and Laboratory Director at the National Sports Medicine Institute (NSMI) of the UK (London) where I worked in both applied sports and clinical domains. These roles involved me working with elite sports, Olympic athletes as well as on medical research projects (chronic fatigue, ankylosing spondylitis, etc).

I joined the University of Bedfordshire in 2005 to focus on education and research.

Course Leader - Dr John McCarthy

I started out as a registered (NMC) nurse specialising in Intensive Care and Cardiothoracics before moving into exercise physiology as an academic and practitioner.

I became an accredited Exercise Physiologist and Laboratory Director at the National Sports Medicine Institute (NSMI) of the UK (London) where I worked in both applied sports and clinical domains. These roles involved me working with elite sports, Olympic athletes as well as on medical research projects (chronic fatigue, ankylosing spondylitis, etc).

I joined the University of Bedfordshire in 2005 to focus on education and research.

What will you study?


  • ASP006-1 Academic Skills for Assistant Practitioners
  • ASP008-1 Health and Well-Being: Fundamentals
  • ASP009-1 Foundations in Values-Based Practice (WBL)
  • ASP010-1 Person-Centred Holistic Care
  • ASP018-1 Professional Identity (Assistant Practitioners)
  • ASP006-2 Safeguarding Health and Wellbeing
  • ASP007-2 Health Care Policy and Quality
  • ASP018-2 Collaborative Therapies (Assistant Practitioner)
  • ASP019-2 Enhancing Care in Practice

How will you be assessed?


The course assessment strategy is closely aligned to the teaching and learning strategy which is designed to have: immediate relevance to practice; draw on expertise-by-experience; foster active learning and be leaner-centred in approach. A distinct feature of the course is the range of assessment tasks, including those that allow you to undertake workplace relevant assessments that can have an immediate impact in practice. Examples include: written assignments ranging from reflective pieces to academic essays, assessed practice within the student’s workplace; computer-based examinations and oral presentations.

Your use of professional and theoretical literature will increase in complexity, depth and breadth as you progress through the course. In the first year, you will be expected to demonstrate knowledge and understanding of the evidence-based literature and apply this to practice. In contrast, the second year will demand deeper analysis and evaluation of the literature and its applications. For example, you will develop your ability to study and practice more independently. You will be expected to identify a subject that particularly interests you based upon the NHS values, and conduct an audit on your workplace that could potentially develop into a service improvement project.

Assessments of your clinical skills will begin with observation of the care you provide to patients/service users during work-based learning experiences. Expectations of the levels of skill demonstrated by students will increase over time and by the final assessments you will be expected to manage more complex and challenging encounters in a non-judgemental, empathic manner in accordance with NHS values.

Formative assessment is used within units to enable you to gain feedback from your lecturer, and on occasion peers, to support and enhance your development and progress towards the summative assessments. A variety of strategies at the formative stage will be employed, tailored to best suit the summative assessment. An example of a formative assessment used within the course includes a discussion in class with peers and lecturer based on an anonymised case study which will be developed later within an essay for the summative assessment. In another unit you will engage in a formative in-class reflection on the communication methods you have employed within your workplace. The reflective model or framework used during this exercise is relevant to the summative assessment.

Careers


If you are undertaking this course you are already employed in a healthcare role so after completing it is most likely you will continue to work as an assistant practitioner within your place of current employment with enhanced opportunities for additional responsibilities and advancement.

Students who wish to continue their academic studies and top up their Foundation degree to a full Honour’s degree can do so via the University of Bedfordshire’s Healthcare Practice (Top up) BSc (Hons). You will also be eligible to apply for direct entry to year two of a pre-registration Nursing course which leads to registration with the Nursing & Midwifery Council (NMC).

Other courses at the University of Bedfordshire that might interest you include:

  • BSc (Hons) Operating Department Practice
  • BSc (Hons) Midwifery (3-year course)
  • BSc (Hons) Paramedic Science
  • BSc (Hons) Psychology
  • BA (Hons) Health and Social Care

Entry Requirements

48 UCAS tariff points including 32 from at least 1 A-level or equivalent
    GCSE grade 4/Functional Skills Level 2 Maths
    GCSE grade 4/Functional Skills Level 2 English

Entry Requirements

48 UCAS tariff points including 32 from at least 1 A-level or equivalent
    GCSE grade 4/Functional Skills Level 2 English
    GCSE grade 4/Functional Skills Level 2 Maths

Entry Requirements

48 UCAS tariff points including 32 from at least 1 A-level or equivalent
    GCSE grade 4/Functional Skills Level 2 Maths
    GCSE grade 4/Functional Skills Level 2 English

Entry Requirements

48 UCAS tariff points including 32 from at least 1 A-level or equivalent
    GCSE grade 4/Functional Skills Level 2 Maths
    GCSE grade 4/Functional Skills Level 2 English

Fees for this course

UK

The full-time standard fee for a Foundation Degree for the Academic Year 2024/25 is £9,250. These are the full course fees covering each year of study.

Alternatively if you have any questions around fees and funding, please email admission@beds.ac.uk

International

International students cannot apply for Foundation Degrees.

Alternatively if you have any questions around fees and funding, please email admission@beds.ac.uk

Fees for this course

UK

The full-time standard fee for a Foundation Degree for the Academic Year 2024/25 is £9,250. These are the full course fees covering each year of study.

Alternatively if you have any questions around fees and funding, please email admission@beds.ac.uk

International

International students cannot apply for Foundation Degrees.

Alternatively if you have any questions around fees and funding, please email admission@beds.ac.uk

Fees for this course

UK

The full-time standard fee for a Foundation Degree for the Academic Year 2024/25 is £9,250. These are the full course fees covering each year of study.

Alternatively if you have any questions around fees and funding, please email admission@beds.ac.uk

International

International students cannot apply for Foundation Degrees.

Alternatively if you have any questions around fees and funding, please email admission@beds.ac.uk

Fees for this course

UK

The full-time standard fee for a Foundation Degree for the Academic Year 2024/25 is £9,250. These are the full course fees covering each year of study.

Alternatively if you have any questions around fees and funding, please email admission@beds.ac.uk

International

International students cannot apply for Foundation Degrees.

Alternatively if you have any questions around fees and funding, please email admission@beds.ac.uk

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