Overview
The National School of Healthcare Science (NSHCS) exists to secure for the NHS, and any partner healthcare organisations it engages with, excellent and relevant education and training for the healthcare science (HCS) workforce of today and tomorrow. We are part of NHS England and have national responsibility for the management of the educational framework for training and development of healthcare scientists across more than 40 specialties in the NHS, from apprentices to consultant grade. Training and education is delivered by scientists and academics working across the NHS, the higher education sector, and beyond. We have pioneered national scientist training in the UK, producing scientists who are benefitting patient care and clinical outcomes, contributing to multi-professional working, and leading in many areas of innovation and translational research in the NHS.
Responsibilities
In ensuring that the delivery healthcare science education and training is delivered to the best possible standards, we take direct responsibility for the following:
- Accreditation of training sites and Higher Education Institutions. We are responsible for the accreditation of work-based providers for the STP and HSST programme, and the endorsement of work-based providers for the ETP programme. We are also responsible for the accreditation of the higher education institutions that deliver the academic component of PTP, ETP, STP and HSST programmes. This ensures that all our training partners are delivering to agreed standards and enables us to have oversight of the quality of education and training delivered.
- Recruitment to the programmes. We are responsible for the management and recruitment to the STP and the HSST programmes. Recruitment to the ETP is local recruitment, led by the employing Trust, in line with NSHCS guidance, overseen by NSHCS. Recruitment to the PTP is managed by universities.
- All trainees on the ETP, STP and HSST are invited to attend a school-led induction.
- Training support for trainees on programmes. We work collaboratively with training and education partners to ensure that trainees are supported throughout their period of training, with employers and universities applying their own support processes and policies and NSHCS providing oversight. Where issues impacting on a trainee’s ability to progress and/or complete the programme are identified, we provide a support framework to offer advice and to implement changes where required to facilitate successful completion of programmes where possible.
- Training Programme Directors. We provide regional and national leadership of training programmes through the Training Programme Directors (TPDs). Having both a regional and professional focus, these senior scientists provide professional and scientific leadership for the NSHCS and have a specific remit to support the successful delivery of our programmes.
- We deliver training and support to STP and ETP Training Officers and HSST Supervisors. We have a growing collection of online guidance and resources for Trainers, Training Officers, and Supervisors. We provide a framework for the delivery of workplace-based assessment on our programmes.
- We set the expectations for the curriculum ensuring that programmes meet the relevant Professional, Statutory and Regulatory Body (PSRB) frameworks. We completed a full review of the STP curriculum and programme structure in 2021 and these amendments were approved by the Health and Care Professions Council (HCPC). We manage and update our curriculum through systematic review to continuously enhance the quality of learning for our trainees.
- We are responsible for providing an electronic portfolio to capture workplace training for each programme.
- We are responsible for assuring all completion requirements are achieved, including the Final Assessment for the STP and the IAPS for the HSST, before awarding the Certificate of Completion for each programme.
- Apprenticeships and Apprenticeship End-Point Assessments. We have a bespoke division focusing on developing and providing apprenticeship routes into Healthcare Science. We act as a focus for the Healthcare Science Apprenticeship Programme by coordinating communications and information.
- We produce data that relates to our work and publish programme outcome information on our website.
- Professional Developments. We have a unique position in the Healthcare Science landscape and recognise our role in shaping the education and training framework for the Healthcare Science workforce of the future through partnership working and bespoke project work.
Programmes
We support the community of healthcare scientists (HCS) delivering education and training in the UK and work with them to produce HCS who are changing patient and clinical outcomes, contributing to multi-professional working and new ways of integrated working, and are leading in many areas of innovation and translational research within the NHS. The healthcare science training programmes hosted by the School are:
- Scientist Training Programme (STP)
- Higher Specialist Scientist Training (HSST) Programme
- Echocardiography Training Programme (ETP)
- Practitioner Training Programme (PTP)
- Clinical Data Science Programme
- Respiratory and Sleep Training Programmes
One of our major responsibilities is in managing the education and training on our Scientist Training Programme (STP) and Higher Specialist Scientist Training (HSST) Programme.
Fellowships
Healthcare Science Innovation Fellowships
We work across the healthcare science education and training system to support initiatives linked to national programmes such as cancer or workforce shortages – we are changing cancer care through medical devices, apps and other healthcare technologies to benefit people living with cancer in primary and secondary care.
Team contacts
All general enquiries should be sent to nshcs@hee.nhs.uk. To contact one of the teams directly please visit our contact us page for further details. You can find out who is in each of the teams, in our ‘who we are’ section.