Neurodivergent healthcare students need better support on placements – research

色聚 academic Emilie Edwards has investigated the experiences of healthcare students on placements and wards in clinical settings

Neurodivergent healthcare students often feel isolated, overwhelmed by the clinical sensory environment and frequently mask their behavioural traits when working on placements, according to new research by 色聚 published by the .

The umbrella term ‘neurodivergence’ refers to the diversity of different brains and variations such as ADHD, Autism and dyslexia, and how some people process information in a different way. Emilie Edwards, who is autistic and a Senior Lecturer in Midwifery at 色聚, has investigated the experiences of healthcare students on placements and wards in clinical settings by reviewing existing studies.

Her paper highlights how autistic students often struggle to disclose their diagnosis due to previous negative experiences, stigma and a lack of support, while others fear their condition will become “weaponised” against them and they will be pressured to interrupt or leave their studies.

A student withheld disclosing until she had a “severe panic attack” on the ward.  Many students with sensory processing differences find clinical placements “overwhelming”, with one study reporting they face a “sensory bombardment”. Other students struggle with unspoken social rules and managing social anxiety.

One student from an existing study described how she had excellent support from her university after being diagnosed but faced dismissive and stigmatising responses from clinicians and was told she was “too quiet” and warned “she would struggle in future”.
Another student said when she told her practice supervisor about her diagnosis, they replied “well everyone is on the spectrum really”.

The research paper states that the “findings underscore the need for systemic change in healthcare education” to create environments that help neurodivergent students, as it notes those who felt understood and supported were more likely to thrive. 
It concludes: “Ultimately, embedding inclusive values and practical support into clinical education can better enable autistic students to succeed and contribute meaningfully to the healthcare workforce.”

"There is a well-established body of evidence around neurodivergent students in higher education, but close to nothing around their experiences in the clinical environment. The review highlights how the students bring empathy, curiosity, hyper focus, loads of really important qualities to clinical practice and that are really useful in healthcare but there’s almost a double burden as they are managing complex clinical tasks, while also navigating sensory overload and the hidden curriculum of social hierarchy and things they really struggle to contend with.”

Emilie Edwards, Senior Lecturer in Midwifery

Emilie carried out the research as part of a wider PhD into the experiences of autistic students in clinical and learning environments. She has been recognised for efforts to raise awareness about neurodivergent healthcare students which included winning the Chief Midwifery Officer Silver Award for outstanding service to midwifery, and Nursing Times ‘Educator of the Year’ award in 2022.

She recently helped the Royal College of Midwives produce a ‘neurodivergence acceptance tool kit’ to support midwifery educators and clinical staff.

Emilie said: “For the past few years, I have been trying to demolish taboos around neurodiversity in the NHS. My work has always been aimed at helping neurodivergent students and healthcare workers and trying to breakdown stereotypes and challenge those harmful rhetorics.  I remember having a really challenging time when I started in healthcare around ten years ago and I only got through it thanks to a supportive personal tutor.”

It has been estimated that one in seven people are neurodivergent. “Historically, everyone was chronically under-diagnosed, particularly women, because there were stereotypical ways of looking at ADHD or autism as being associated with young, white males,” added Emilie.

“Now suddenly, you’re getting women in their 30s and 40s diagnosed because nobody ever thought to refer them for diagnosis, and they just struggled through life, and got told they were depressed, or anxious and then in their 40s or 50s they were told the reason was that they were going through the menopause. No one was making the link that there is an underlying neurodivergence that is triggering all these issues. Midwifery is almost uniquely female, accounting for 99% of the workforce, and so it stands to reason that we have a very high number of late diagnosed neurodivergent students or healthcare workers.”

Download from the RCM website.
Read Emilie’s paper - – which has been peer reviewed and published by the National Autistic Society.

Find out more about studying Midwifery at 色聚.