31.07.17
NHS England reveals £15m plan to entice nurses into general practice
A 10-point plan has this week been launched to develop the role that general practice nurses play in the NHS workforce.
The £15m strategy will target and prioritise where improvements are needed most, and also set out key milestones which will allow progress to be measured across GP nursing for the first time.
Measures in the strategy include increasing uptake and promote nursing in general practice, whilst providing support for existing GPNs with an induction programme and training and mentoring services.
It will also make GPNs a part of the national return to practice programme, and Regional GPN Boards will provide a platform to share best practice.
“As the NHS transforms the way that we deliver care, treating more patients in the community, the importance of our general practice workforce will only increase,” said Professor Jane Cummings, chief nursing officer for England.
“Nurses working in general practice may not have always received the recognition they deserve in the past but they are central to our plan to improve care for patients and ensure the NHS is fit for the future.
“That is why I am determined to ensure that there is a proper career development programme for those who choose this vital path and make it an attractive first choice for newly-qualified nurses as well as helping experienced staff take advantage of the flexibility it offers to re-enter the workforce.”
Professor Helen Stokes-Lampard, chair of the Royal College of GPs, added that practice nurses were incredibly important members of the practice team, and highly valued by GPs and patients alike – but as patient demand has soared, numbers of practice nurses, like GPs, have not kept pace.
“The college has been calling for elements of this plan to be introduced for many years, so we’re really pleased to see wheels being put into motion,” she continued. “We now need all aspects of this plan to be implemented in full and as swiftly as possible – and we will play our part in ensuring it is a success.”
And Wendy Preston, head of nursing practice at the Royal College of Nursing, commented: “It’s time to raise the profile of primary care. This framework for action recognises the tremendous contribution and challenges faced by general practice nurses and their teams, and highlights their pivotal role in delivering care closer to home.
“With large numbers of the workforce set to retire in the next few years, we must not delay making general practice an attractive career for nurses,” Preston argued.
“General practice nurses are well placed and indeed deliver high-quality services, meeting the needs of their practice populations every day. We need to prioritise general practice and make it the ‘place to be’.”
The news also follows doctors today stating that ambitions to add 5,000 more GPs to the roster by 2020 were now “unachievable”.
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