Radiographers at the trust have been given top marks after their support for students was ranked first in the UK.

The team in our Radiology Department work in conjunction with the University of Leeds to train 45 student radiographers in a clinical setting every year.

Now, they’ve learned the BSc (Hons) Diagnostic Radiography course has been ranked first in the UK for medical technology by the Complete University Guide.

Educational Lead Radiographer Shelly Rice said: “It’s fantastic to see our staff getting this recognition because they work so hard to help the students.

“It’s not easy, balancing their everyday responsibilities with the responsibility of teaching the next generation of radiographers, so it’s a great achievement which means a lot to us.”

The trust has been training student radiographers since the late 1990s.

Now, the students come for 19 weeks’ training in the first year of their course, 16 weeks in the second year and 14 weeks in their third year before qualification.

With practical experience making up 40 per cent of their three-year course, the students work at Hull Royal Infirmary, Castle Hill Hospital, East Riding Community Hospital and the Urgent Treatment Centre at Bransholme under the supervision of fully qualified staff.

They are placed on the clinical rota and work shifts to gain experience in all aspects of the job, from emergency x-rays and CT scans to theatre work, learning how to position patients correctly.

Second and third-year students also work evening shifts in the Emergency Department.

Shelly said the support given to students often sees them choose to come to Hull University Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust once they are qualified because of the support they have received during their training and the relationships they already have with the teams.

She said: “As Leeds is our closest university to train radiographers, it’s a good way of us growing our own staff and we work hard to retain them in the area.

“We have also had some success in attracting students from further afield, with one student joining us from Birmingham.”

Here’s some of the feedback from students in their evaluation forms after their training at the trust:

‘Learnt a lot in busy environment and under pressure’ – Emergency Department X-ray

‘I cannot commend the team more. An extremely friendly team who were inviting and made me feel at home’ – CT Castle Hill Hospital

‘I engaged with staff I had never worked with before including a team of Resus staff, ICU staff and Clinical Support Workers’ – CT Hull Royal Infirmary

‘The staff were really friendly and helped to aid my learning and made it a really enjoyable. I feel like I was able to aid in the team’ – Fluoroscopy Hull Royal Infirmary

‘This was my favourite week of placement to date, I felt as though I was a part of the team’ – East Riding Community Hospital

‘Most staff were very friendly and welcoming and more than happy to answer any questions I had regarding various examinations, equipment, technique etc.’ – MRI Castle Hill Hospital