Embedding nursing and therapy consultantship: the case of stroke consultants

Abstract

As the basis for the design of career development opportunities for current and aspiring nursing and therapy consultants, we aimed to explore the factors that shape how these roles have embedded in UK stroke services. The non-medical consultant role has been introduced into UK health care services to provide opportunities for experienced practitioners to progress their careers in clinical practice. Whilst there have been evaluations of the impact of the role on service delivery, little attention has been paid to the pathways towards consultantship. An exploratory design, incorporating focus group discussions, was used to address the research questions. Participating consultants, both nurses and allied health professionals, worked in stroke services, although it is anticipated that the results will have wider application. Two focus groups were held with non-medical consultants in stroke from across the UK. Participants had the opportunity to comment on an interim paper prior to publication of the results. Thirteen consultants took part in the study. A lack of consensus about the nature of clinical expertise and a diverse range of pathways towards consultantship were identified. Health care policy had presented the opportunity for consultants to be entrepreneurial in the development of stroke services, although this had limited the scope for the development of professional knowledge. Inflexible programmes to support aspiring consultants may limit the opportunities to develop these entrepreneurial skills. This study challenges health care organizations and the education and research departments that support them to think creatively in the way that the non-medical consultant role is embedded, and that this should draw on the commitment of existing consultants to support succession planning. The identification of those aspects of career pathways that current consultants have found to be helpful will be useful in designing opportunities for aspiring consultants.