Claire Billington

Claire started working within NHS hospitals in 2012, beginning as a healthcare assistant (HCA), supporting nurses to care for patients who are acutely unwell. In this role she often asked questions, wanting to understand more about her patients and their circumstances for being in hospital. She was encouraged by nursing staff to pursue a career as a registered nurse. She qualified as an Adult Registered Nurse in January 2017, after studying a BSc (HONS) in adult nursing at the University of Central Lancashire (UCLAN).

Claire's interests and experience within nursing practice are acute and high dependency care. She has worked within acute medical units (AMU), neonatal intensive care (NICU) and coronary care. Therefore, has a breadth of experience caring for the acutely unwell and deteriorating patient. During her practice, Claire was always passionate about teaching, whether that be learners in practice or her patients about their condition and treatment. This is when she knew starting a career in nursing education would be the right professional pathway for her.

Claire started at the University of Bolton in 2021. She has been a personal tutor, module lead and taught on numerous modules on the pre-registration adult nursing programme. Claire plans to complete her PGCert and HE fellowship to aid her in meeting professional goals and supporting learners within The University of Bolton, with a view of completing a professional doctorate in the future.

Research Interests and Research Subject Specialisms:
Claire aims to continuously develop OSCE assessments. This led her to develop a standardised rubric for OSCE and VIVA assessments, to help support staff in the marking and feedforward process. She has also helped to support ongoing research within the university, such as evaluating service users’ experiences and their involvement in supporting the assessment of learners in OSCEs.

Teaching specialisms:
Claire teaches on the pre-registration nursing program. Her specialist area is teaching on the Enhancing clinical skills and providing evidence-based care module.