Healthcare assistant students at the University of Akureyri receive training in blood sampling at Akureyri Hospital.

The students are either in specialist training with a focus on geriatric and home nursing, or in community mental health nursing. The University of Akureyri is the first university in Iceland to offer specialist diploma-level education for practising healthcare assistants. This is a two-year flexible programme, designed to allow students to work alongside their studies.

Representatives from SAk provide lectures and practical demonstrations at the University of Akureyri, and students also attend the hospital, where they observe, learn, and perform blood sampling on individuals who have given their consent.

“It is both rewarding and enjoyable to collaborate with students from the University of Akureyri, including healthcare assistant students as well as nursing students, who also come to us for training in blood sampling,” says Guðný Björg Jensdóttir, a healthcare assistant in the laboratory department at SAk.