Rosemary Rennie

17/12/2008

I have always wanted to be a nurse and finally in my maturity when the time was right for me, free from the constraints of young children I applied and was accepted onto a course in 07. However, nearing the end of my 2nd year and with all the financial and social sacrifices entailed due to living on the meagre NHS Bursary provided, I am sadly having to seriously consider walking away from my dream because I absolutely financially cannot afford to continue. I have had some help recently from the Access to Learning Fund, but since the government has cut the budget for this two years running, the amount they were able to assist me with \(although grateful to them for that help) was by no means enough to make even a dent in the debt that I have accrued. I am so stressed with worrying about keeping a roof over my head, paying essential utilities and putting food on the table that I feel the decision to leave and find full time work is the only solution open to me. Perhaps if student nurses were paid a trainee wage of around £14K, instead of a bursary of £6.5K \(even with additions for being a mature student and single parent) this only brings the total amount to £10.5K it would have been enough to keep me going. I fear unless the government addesses this financial issue, a lot more student nurses will have to give up their dreams also.

carole Knight

17/12/2008

Here in Australia it is the same, I believe that partly it is because it is now a university course, and if you are going to spend 3 years of your life, there are better paying options at the end.

3 years of podiatry and you get a very similar job with no shiftwork, and twice the wage. 3 years of accountancy, 3 years of physiotherapy, 3 years of population health and become a hosppital administrator for 3 times the wages.....