1. Dr Lou Hunt Lou.hunt@dmu.ac.uk
Developing a Core of Steel: The key attributes of effective practice assessors
Dr Lou Hunt

2. Failure to Fail What we know
Nurse mentors are reluctant to fail students who are not up to the required standard.
Duffy 2003 & 2006
Students are five times less likely to fail in practice than in theory.
Hunt, 2012

3. is to ensure that no-one who shouldn’t be there.”
Anne Trotter Assistant Director for Education and Standards, NMC 24th September 2018
“The business of the
new NMC Standards
is to ensure that no-one
gets onto the register
who shouldn’t be there.”

4. Practice Assessor Role
“Practice assessors
assess and confirm the student’s achievement
of practice learning...”
– NMC 2018

5. “You have to have a core of steel.”
What does it take for a mentor to fail a student?
“You have to have a core of steel.”

6. The Core of Steel
Hunt, 2014

7. Loyalty to their professional standards;
“I’m failing you because I don’t think you’re up to joining my profession. It’s not because I don’t like you and it’s not because I don’t have time to spend with you and it’s not because of this, that or the other. There’s only that reason and we’ve tried and we can’t put it right.” MA012
Loyalty to their professional standards;
Allegiance with patients interests;
Willingness to uphold shared values;
Strong commitment to high quality care;
‘Buy in’ to the gatekeeping role.

8. Tenacity Focussed persistence;
“The official line [from the University] is that we all should be working collaboratively to fail students. But then when you’re actually faced with the reality, the response that you get, unless you are particularly tenacious and confident, is don’t fail people.” MA07
Focussed persistence;
Perseverance in difficult circumstances;
Would not relinquish their principles when put under pressure;
Prepared to ‘fight to fail’.

9. Audacity Bold and courageous;
“they said ‘Will you change your mind Sister?’ And I said ‘No, I will not! I will not change my mind’.” MA12
Bold and courageous;
Willing to speak up to authority figures;
Prepared to challenge convention;
Handled opposition assertively;
Undaunted when threatened.

10. Integrity Worked to a clear, strong set of principles;
“You’ve got to have strong values to fail someone and say these are your issues.” (MA03)
Worked to a clear, strong set of principles;
Remained focussed on what was right;
Expectations did not fluctuate;
Consistent in their decision making.

11. Dependability Composed and committed; Acknowledged their obligations;
Interviewer: “So your previous experiences …”
MA04: “… have bolstered me I think for this so I’ve got no hesitation in doing it again if I have to.”
Composed and committed;
Acknowledged their obligations;
Made their meaning clear & unambiguous;
Followed processes & procedures reliably;
Resilient.

12. Self Assessment: Will you be a robust practical assessor?

13. Question?
Should all current mentors become practice assessors when we know that many of them are reluctant to fail underperforming students? OR
Should we be selecting practice assessors who have a core of steel?

14. Thank You for Listening
“The finest steel has to go through the hottest flames.”
Thank You for Listening
Hunt,L. (2014) Failing Securely: Enabling Mentors to Fail Underperforming Student Nurses in Practical Assessments. PhD Thesis. [Online] Birmingham City University. Available at: [Accessed ]
Hunt,L.A., McGee,P., Gutteridge,R., Hughes,M. (2016) Failing Securely: The processes and support which underpin English nurse mentors' assessment decisions regarding underperforming students. Nurse Education Today, April 2016 (39) p