Health Action Training

Health Action Training, Ulster University

Who we are

Health Action Training, or HAT for short, are a newly formed company based in the Derry/Londonderry area of Northern Ireland in the United Kingdom. HAT brings experts in the fields of nursing and applied drama together to provide unique, exciting and effective interpersonal training for healthcare students and professionals. HAT’s evidence-based approach and unique methodology focuses on enhancing staff’s ability to identify and work with human factors involved during interactions in healthcare settings. Our approach incorporates applied drama facilitation, actor training, applied puppetry, simulated role play, and more in order to deliver ground-breaking training. 

HAT is a company formed by CEO Pat Deeny, a senior nurse and nurse educator and Dr Matt Jennings a professional actor, community facilitator and drama lecturer. Their previous work was at Ulster University, where they collaborated to deliver training to undergraduate and postgraduate nursing students using applied drama methods. After seeing the large untapped potential of this work first-hand, Pat and Matt decided to form a company to deliver this methodology to as many areas as possible. 

What are our aims

HAT aims to provide this training to as many healthcare areas as possible, as well as to train others to deliver that training in their own specific contexts themselves. The desired outcome is to build a sustainable international model of practice steered by HAT. In the long-term HAT hopes to be a global leader in healthcare training, providing training which develops healthcare staff’s ability to be compassionate and effective communicators in whatever role they undertake in the care field.

Our impact

Although we have only recently been formed as a company, we already successful collaborated with the Western Health Trust in Northern Ireland and the Burdett Trust with the intention to deliver workshops and training courses to nursing staff in the Western Health Trust. 

We also have PhD candidate at Ulster University Karl Tizzard-Kleister onboard, who’s study focuses on the collaboration began by Pat and Matt. His study will highlight the unique impacts that this work has had, particularly in a Person-Centred Nursing environment.