Future-proofing the workforce: flexible training for nurses
Sally Boyle, Head of School in the Faculty of Health, Wellbeing and Social Care at The Open University, discusses recruiting and retaining more nurses through flexible training… The UK needs more nurses; this is a simple fact. Despite the number of nurses on the Nursing and Midwifery Council (NMC) register increasing by 20,000 over the past five years, there are still 11,000 advertised vacancies for full-time nurses in the NHS in England – and while healthcare providers are understaffed, patient care is at risk. Uncertainty around nurses’ right to remain post-Brexit has seen new registrations from the EU fall from more than 10,000 in 2015/16 to just 800 in in the year 2017/18*, so it is essential we look to cultivate a more sustainable pipeline of nursing talent both within the UK itself as well as from wider sources of international recruitment. Breaking Barriers Important steps have been taken to increase the number of places available to study nursing in the UK over the past five years, but now, research in The Open University’s latest report, Breaking Barriers into Nursing, reveals that six per cent of those places went unfilled in the last current academic year. This equates to 1,450 nurses each year who could have been fully trained and ready to support the NHS within three or four years. Three in 10 young people considered studying to become a registered nurse – so it is clear that there must be significant barriers acting to deter many from doing so. Removing these barriers, or helping people to overcome them, could encourage more people to enter the profession and have a significant positive impact on the NHS. With the introduction of student loans to replace bursaries for nursing study in England, cost is undoubtedly a major disincentive to many, particularly mature students – but the associated costs (course materials, commuting, living) also pose a problem for prospective students across the UK. Along with cost, there are a number of other important issues to consider: travel, entry requirements, workload, and even the advice made available at school or college. Thankfully, however, there are a number of potential solutions to these that higher education providers and NHS employers could consider in order to improve both recruitment and retention in the sector. As a result of these barriers, many people who may be passionate about entering the profession are unable to study to become nurses, which is adding to the current crisis in nursing. It is time to reconsider the traditional idea of a ‘one size fits all’ approach to nurse education, which lacks the requisite flexibility that many of those interested in pursuing a career in the profession need. Resultantly, access to learning is limited and participation decreases. What can be done to help student nurses? It is important that we give people more options as to how, when and where they study – so that everyone who has the aptitude and values to become a registered nurse has the opportunity to do so. Currently, most higher education Institutions in the UK have entry requirements above the minimum criteria set out by the NMC. These requirements restrict access for many who want to join the profession but who may not have received good educational opportunities in the past. At The Open University, we use a robust open selection process, adhering to requirements specified by the NMC only, which means we’re able to offer places to a much more diverse range of students. With apprenticeships in England, we are starting to open up new routes into the profession, which can help to widen participation and offer continuous professional development opportunities to support staff members that aspire to become registered nurses. Enabling students to earn while they learn, apprenticeships also remove financial barriers, appealing to those concerned by the cost of study or those who would prefer to go straight into the workforce without a three or four-year period needed for study. Similarly, by embracing new technology we can deliver more flexible learning methods. Technology-enabled learning, such as that already offered by The Open University, can remove barriers for many people who would prefer to remain in their home locality to study or who are juggling other commitments. If more providers offered this, it would not only encourage more people to study nursing, it would also reduce the number of nurses who relocate back home following qualification, depriving the town or city which hosted their education of their skills and expertise. The fact that numbers of EU nurses coming to the UK to work has dramatically dropped gives us no option but to act now – we need to remove the barriers reducing our access to homegrown talent. At a time when the NHS is facing a nursing supply and demand problem, it is devastating that places remain unfilled or so many of those studying feel unable to continue, when relatively straightforward solutions could help. *The Nursing and Midwifery Council (2018) The Big Picture
5 Ways Nurses Can Empower Their Patients
Patient empowerment is part of a process to help people who have gone through care take ownership of their healthcare journey. According to the World Health Organisation, empowerment is a process which allows patients to gain greater control over decisions which affect their health. Of course, what taking ownership means will vary from patient to patient depending on their needs. A change in an aspect of a patient’s lifestyle, like their diet or an exercise regime, might be the trigger that results in a significant change. Alternatively, the support they need might be specific to their condition. Whatever the case, frontline healthcare staff, like nurses, can play a central role in this process. After all, they do the majority of the daily work, and they’re also the people patients have the most contact with. Given this fact, let’s take a look at the role nurses can play in empowering their patients. Help Creating New Routines Education is absolutely fundamental to patient empowerment. However, it comes in a number of varieties. The first thing that nurses can teach their patients is the role they can play in their own healthcare journeys. This is an important first step. Buy-in is crucial for patient empowerment whether someone is managing a chronic illness, require complex care or recovering from an operation. The next level of education that nurses can provide is actual knowledge of the patient’s condition. This can be impromptu, in the form of responding to questions and queries. Alternatively, nurses can provide more structured learning by providing briefings at important stages in the patient’s care. In either case, the goal is to bring the patient’s knowledge of their condition up to a level where they are able to engage with care providers on a meaningful level, and then decide what the best options are for them. Then there’s education about practical skills. There are innumerable techniques and exercises that nurses can teach patients to help them achieve the best possible level of health. Again, these might be condition-specific exercises like stretches, or they may be more general lifestyle skills, like meal planning. Nurses can also help patients to practice such techniques until they are confident in their ability to continue on their own. Providing Access to Reputable Resources Once patients have acquired a certain amount of knowledge about their condition, they’ll more than likely want to start doing their own research. In the internet age, more and more people are learning about their medical conditions online. While it is positive that patients seek to acquire a greater understanding of their condition, it can be a source of confusion and misunderstandings. Nurses can assist in this process by pointing patients in the right direction when it comes to looking for learning resources. We all know that not everything we read online is true. Nurses can offer valuable insights, recommending forums and reputable websites with information relating to specific conditions. Of course, there’s a world beyond the internet too. Nurses generally also have good knowledge of the literature in their field. They can aid the process of patient empowerment by offering one to one feedback to patients. Similarly, they might be aware of any groups or sessions that patients can join in their local area. As a Source of Empathy and Support Receiving healthcare is often stressful and upsetting. Nurses know this. One of the main skills of their profession is empathy. In this way, nurses can alleviate the negative emotions that might crop up during the care process. For patient empowerment, some of the main emotional barriers include stress, fear, anxiety, and lack of confidence. Simply feeling that someone understands these feelings will go a long way to helping patients overcome them. This can take many forms. In particular, nurses are usually skilled in active listening, which allows patients to find solutions to their own emotional problems. This is naturally, very powerful in helping the patient to feel empowered. Nurses can also relate to patients by drawing on their own experience, both as healthcare practitioners and personally. The key is to make sure that the patient knows that they are not alone, and the emotional barriers to their empowerment can be overcome. As a Friend and Person to Confide in One of the best ways to achieve patient empowerment is by building long term relationships. Obviously, this is especially applicable to chronic conditions. This works in a couple of ways. Firstly, when nurses have an ongoing relationship with their patients, it fosters a sense of trust. People know in their heads that they can trust their care providers, but in practice, they might not always be forthcoming with important information. Building a trusting relationship can help patients accept the recommendations of a medical professional. A person is more likely to be open and honest about their condition with someone they’ve come to know. This can be important in empowering patients as it means that, when necessary, they can express whatever concerns or questions they might have. Additionally, building good relationships between nurses and patients makes the experience of a medical appointment that little bit more pleasant. As we know, one of the benefits of patient empowerment is reducing the need for in-person appointments, but it doesn’t eliminate them altogether. And when the time comes, we want them to be the best experience they can be. Flexibility A large part of patient empowerment is helping a person decide which healthcare options are right for them. It is common for practitioners and patients to have a much more open dialogue about healthcare options. As part of this, a nurse can show flexibility and creativity in coming up with a care package that will suit the individual needs of the patient. Any number of things which must be taken into account for this, including cultural differences, or more practical elements like what at times the patient works. Showing flexibility in these regards is vital, as they can often prevent patients from receiving the care they need otherwise. As well as
Nurses past and present honoured on International Nurses Day
NURSES past and present were honoured at a North East care home for International Nurses Day. Staff and former nurses who now live at The Oaks Care Home, on Durban Street, Blyth, Northumberland, were recognised for their hard work throughout their careers. Resident Elsie Scattergood was a mental health nurse in Aberdeen. She said: “I loved being a nurse and worked really hard.” Pat Whyatt was a paediatric nurse who worked in South Africa in her early twenties as well as the UK. She said: “I am very proud of this time in my life. I loved working with the little children. They were really beautiful. “It’s lovely to honour all the nurses at The Oaks on Nurses Day as they all work so hard and care a lot about others.” Residents handmade cards and gave boxes of chocolates to their carers, including management staff. Clare Robson, deputy manager at The Oaks Care Home, said: “I have never received a gift for Nurses Day, so it was lovely to be recognised for my job. “Being a nurse is important to me as I love to help people. I am passionate about ensuring that everyone is cared for with dignity in a person centred way, especially those at end of life.” Among the other staff members to receive gifts were nurse Desiree Sampson and visiting community matron Yvonne Harrison also received chocolates. Desiree said: “I especially loved the chocolates. It was lovely to get cards from the residents.” Yvonne said: “I’m over the moon to be thought of. I have never had anything before for Nurses Day. It was very kind of everyone to think of me.” Staff also surprised the home manager, Ann Mielnik, with a gift. She said: “I was surprised to receive my gift as to me it was all about the residents who were nurses and the staff and visiting professionals. “It’s the little things that mean a lot and the staff remembering me as the nurse I am was humbling.” International Nurses Day was also celebrated at The Beeches Care Home, on Green Lane, Stockton-on-Tees, where district nurses and community matrons who visit the home were recognised. The afternoon tea, held in the home’s bistro, included sandwiches, cakes, lattes and cappuccinos, as a thank you for the nurses hard work. Residents also gave their carers gift bags containing chocolates and mini bottles of wine. Jessica Brown, home manager at The Beeches Care Home, said: “We wanted to show our thanks to all the hard working nurses, including staff and visiting professionals, who care for our residents at The Beeches.” The Oaks Care Home is part of the Hill Care Group. For further information visit www.hillcare.net.
Northampton General Hospital to welcome nurses to recruitment open day
Nurses looking for new career opportunities in 2019 are invited to attend a recruitment open day at Northampton General Hospital (NGH) on 2 February 2019 from 10am to 2pm. The hospital has opportunities for nurses and midwives to work in Medicine, Paediatrics and Theatres. NGH is proud to be the first hospital in the UK to have achieved Pathway to Excellence® accreditation, an internationally-recognised programme which validates workplaces where nurses are supported to develop and flourish. Sheran Oke, Director of Nursing Midwifery and Patient Services says, “We have also invested in new facilities, including our emergency centre and a new chemotherapy suite, offering a great work environment for our healthcare teams. At the open day nurses will get to meet some of our nursing team, take a tour of the facilities and find out about more the roles available. We will be hosting job interviews and awarding conditional job offers on the day, so nurses should bring their CVs.” “There are many benefits of a nursing career at NGH, including our fantastic training and development opportunities, which are second to none. Not only have we successfully completed the Pathway to Excellence® programme, we offer a highly supportive culture and environment for nurses with programmes in place such as our Everyday Hero and Daisy award schemes to reward and recognise nursing and non-nursing staff. Professional development is a priority for us. Leadership and development opportunities abound and our nurses participate in courses run in partnership with The University of Northampton and access the RCN leadership programme.” “I would encourage any nurse looking for a fresh challenge in 2019 at a hospital recognised as a centre for excellence for career development to attend our open day. We offer wonderful clinical and non-clinical training facilities and have state of the art equipment in many of our departments. A key focus for us is the education, training and development of nurses. Our nursing team is looking forward to meeting like-minded nurses at the open day and letting them know about the exciting opportunities on offer.” For more information on the vacancies visit: http://bestofbothworlds.uk.net
How can nurses and carers progress their careers?
Michael Johnson-Ellis, one of the managing directors of Healthier Recruitment – an agency that fills vacancies for NHS, private and third sector healthcare organisations with permanent staff only – discusses career development… With services under pressure, tighter budgets and a lack of staff and resources, many nurses and carers report feeling stunted with regard to professional development. However, there are a number of things you can do to progress your career regardless of the external situation.Here are some potential pathways to development: Setting Goals Setting goals orients you towards a certain outcome. Scheduling time to sit down and think about your career, options and aspirations and setting a goal with a deadline when you do so is a great start towards development. Having a long term strategy, such as a five year plan, where you not only identify what you’d like be doing, but also the type of organisations you’d like to work for, will also help guide you towards your larger goals. Networking The importance of networking cannot be understated when trying to progress your career. There’s no holy grail when it comes to networking, but some examples are: – Attending events, job fairs, and recruitment open days.– Using LinkedIn and reaching out to fellow healthcare professionals.– Joining professional networks.– Speaking to colleagues, friends or family about potential opportunities. For nurses, networking is also vital for completing revalidation. As 20 hours of your CPD must involve ‘participatory learning’, activities such as attending conferences can be instrumental in completing this. Furthermore, networking helps with other areas of revalidations, such as obtaining five pieces of ‘practice related feedback’ and reflective discussion. The appraisal system Put time aside in advance of your next appraisal and think about development opportunities you can discuss with your appraiser. You could do this three months ahead of your interview by drafting a Personal Development Plan (PDP). If you make it clear with your appraiser how you wish to develop, it will put you in good stead with those senior to you, making it more likely you’ll be considered for future opportunities when they arise. See what’s out there Searching for vacancies on job websites or social media and signing up for job alerts from agencies and employers is an important step to take. Doing so will help you learn which roles are in demand, what the pay, hours and conditions are like, and the requirements that employers are looking for. Also, following potential employers on social media and keeping up to date with the latest news and developments will provide key information on opportunities and expand your market knowledge. See healthierrecruitment.co.uk for more details on CPD for nurses and carers.
