Too posh to wash? Reflections on the future of nursing

Edited by Gail Beer

This report has contributions from a former nurse of the year, first president of the Nursing and Midwifery Council, International award winning Professor of Dementia, charities, educators, and members of the public with a foreward by the Staffordshire MP Jeremy Lefroy.

Through commissioning a number of articles from a range of practitioners and experts in the delivery of healthcare we have explored some of the issues nurses and nursing currently face. This includes the future of nursing and nurse training, the cultural perspective, and what nurses and their leadership need to do to respond to the changing and challenging healthcare environment.

We asked contributors to address a series of questions:

1. Why do we have lapses in nursing care and what needs to be done to prevent the continuation of unsafe care?
2. In striving for professionalism have we over-qualified yet undertrained today’s nurse?
3. Are they ‘too posh to wash’? What mechanisms and support systems need to be in place to ‘bring excellence’ back into the profession?
4. Has the role of the nurse leader been devalued? Has respect for their knowledge and expertise and a desire to emulate them decreased?
5. Why have boards within both NHS and non-NHS organisations appeared to have failed to deliver the expected improvements in quality of care? Are board members unaware of the standards on their wards or in their care settings?

The publication’s solutions include:

• Families and friends to expect to be needed in hospital to care for relatives
• Transformation of attitudes in wider society and in nurse training for older people
• Registration and training accreditation for Healthcare Support Workers
• Halt to the denigration of the educated nurse – and expand the practical training 

The aim of the research:

To bring together a range of commentators, from a former nurse of the year, first president of the Nursing and Midwifery Council, International award winning Professor of Dementia, charities, educators, MPs and members of the public to discuss the issues facing nurses and the future of nursing. Published ahead of the Francis Report, it included ideas such as nurse and Healthcare Assistant training, the cultural perspective, the role of friends and family, and what nurses and the leadership need to do to respond to the challenging healthcare environment.

Impact:

• Commended at Prospect Magazine Think Tank ‘Best Publication’ awards 2013
• Front page of Sunday Express & national TV interviews
• Basis of a discussion event with NHS England; Peter Carter, General Secretary and Chief Executive RCN; Stafford MP Jeremy Le Froy, Harry Cayton OBE Chief Executive, Council for Healthcare Regulatory Excellence; Kay Fawcett, Chief Nurse, University Hospital Birmingham NHS Foundation Trust.
• Contributors went on to be involved in the Cavendish Review.