A nursing associate is a healthcare professional who has an associate degree in nursing, or an ASN or ADN. They are registered nurses who have the educational qualifications to work in a healthcare setting like a hospital or doctor’s office. Nursing associates have basic nursing skills, but they do not have specialized training or experience. They work with healthcare support workers and registered nurses to deliver care for patients and the public.
To become a nursing associate, one needs to complete an associate degree in nursing, which typically takes 2-3 years to complete. The degree is usually awarded by community colleges or similar nursing schools. Students enrolled in an associate of science in nursing program would take a variety of nursing courses in medical and surgical nursing, labor and delivery, pediatrics, psychiatric nursing, emergency medicine, orthopedics, and many others. The curriculum will also require supervised clinical experience in multiple specialties. Many associate of science in nursing programs require a series of courses to be completed prior to enrollment in clinical classes, including science-based classes such as chemistry, anatomy, physiology, microbiology, or general biology, and mathematics courses such as statistics or math for health sciences.
To begin training as a nursing associate in the UK, one needs GCSEs grade 9 to 4 (A to C) in maths and English, or Functional Skills Level 2 in maths and English. Some employers will also ask for a level 3 qualification. Trainee nursing associate places are usually advertised on NHS Jobs but some places are available through direct application to universities. Applicants accepted onto university courses will need to fund their own training. Once the training is completed, nursing associates have the knowledge, understanding, skills, attitudes, and behaviors to work as a nursing associate. Qualified nursing associates can also go on to train as a registered nurse by putting their training towards a shortened nursing degree or registered nurse degree apprenticeship.
