Abstract
In their article (JRSM 2007;
I expect linguists, historians, and philosophers to be educated. However, I expect pilots, nurses, and doctors to be trained. The latter are skills. It matters not a jot to me whether or not a pilot is highly educated: I just want one that is highly competent and skilled.
About Health Care Assistants, Shields and Watson state ‘While these workers may be able to, for example, make the bed of, and feed, a stroke patient, they cannot assess skin condition, or the effects of facial paralysis while they are so doing, nor assess the effects of the person's illness on the family. A RN does all these, and plans care from this information.’
I spend a lot of time with my patients, and glean a lot more information than these academically-oriented colleagues seem to appreciate. I can't help feeling that some academics should listen more and lecture less.
Competing interests ND is a Health Care Assistant.