Cristian completed his Advanced Clinical Practitioner Degree Apprenticeship at the University of Central Lancashire and now works at Blackpool Teaching Hospitals Trust as an Advanced Clinical Practitioner.
During his studies, Cristian Jesus Figueredo Martinez received a ‘Fab Award’ in 2023 from ‘The Academy of Fabulous NHS Stuff’ for a quality improvement project.
His project, aimed at preventing malnutrition and improving patient quality of life, has been successfully implemented within Blackpool Victoria Hospital. Cristian said, “Originally it was implemented on only the one ward where I work, but what I'm doing now in the background is trying to expand it to other areas, because I think they're going to benefit from it.”
Encouraged by his tutor, Lynne Harrison, Cristian carried out all of the steps required for the project, including analysing data and involving stakeholders. “I had to demonstrate that it was going to be valuable for the patients and the nurses, and that it was going to be valuable for the trust.” Cristian said.
Originally from Spain, Cristian began his UK career at Blackpool Teaching Hospitals after graduating as a staff nurse, gaining experience in endocrinology and geriatric wards. Cristian pursued the Advanced Clinical Practitioner pathway to progress clinically rather than managerially.
He said: “I wanted to go through the clinical pathway instead of the managerial pathway, which I was as a ward manager. I feel that I am more clinical, and I can do more for patients within this role.”
Adjusting from his previous role, Cristian shared, “I used to be very independent in my role as a nurse, so I struggled at the beginning because I wanted to be hands-on and do things on my own. At the beginning, I just had to watch and observe, take some notes, get back home, and read about it.”
"I enjoyed the learning style that was implemented during the lectures."
— Cristian Jesus Figueredo Martinez, Advanced Clinical Practitioner Degree Apprenticeship graduate
In his second year, he took on more responsibility with supervision. He said, “In year two, I felt that I had to take a step forward and try to be more independent, with supervision of course. I had to build my confidence in examinations, so they were allowing me more independence, and a bit more freedom.”
Cristian attended classes at the University of Central Lancashire’s Preston campus one day a week, with some teaching delivered online. Cristian said he enjoyed this mix of learning, “Sometimes we had classes online, which I found very useful because I didn’t need to travel. I was quite happy to have the sessions over Microsoft Teams.”
“If we had to do an examination – a gastrointestinal or respiratory examination, for example - we would do a workshop. That was great, having the opportunity to put hands on a mannequin. We used the clinical skills labs a few times. It was very good for us.”
Cristian advises others considering an apprenticeship to “Go for it. You need to believe in yourself. This is not an easy pathway, but you will see during the course that you're going to find your academic way. You may say: ‘I'm not academic, I'm more clinical.’ But once you have spent a couple of months on the course, you realise that you can do it and it doesn't matter where you're coming from, because I've done it. It's a really good opportunity.”
