Mobile medical skills

A "skills bus" to help medical students on work placements to practise basic skills such as taking blood and inserting catheters when they are away from the university has been launched by City University and Queen Mary, University of London.

The "mobile mini-skills lab", which is driven by a former paramedic, is thought to be a first of its kind. It was made possible by a £3.5 million grant from the Higher Education Funding Council for England when the two universities were made a Centre of Excellence in Teaching and Learning (Cetl) in recognition of their work in skills training for 3,000 students across six healthcare professions.