Using a nurse leads team to spearhead workforce change

Abstract

Most clinical commissioning groups (CCGs) in England have a primary care nurse lead to focus on education, supervision and support. Lambeth CCG has tried a new approach involving a team of nurse leads Primary care is at the heart of health care but there are not enough well-trained nurses and health care assistants (HCas) to cope. This study describes how the first ever practice nursing workforce team in England was set up to tackle this in Lambeth, London. Rather than having one nursing lead, the CCG employs a group of nurses who also work day-to-day in clinical practice. A cross-sectional research design was used to collect information about the nurse leads group. Data were collected retrospectively to compare before and after this model was introduced. Information was collected using a survey with 43 practice nurses and 21 HCAs, group discussions and reflections from the nurse lead group and comparison of statistics before and after the nurse lead group was in post. Over a 2-year period, the nurse lead group has increased the number of HCAs in Lambeth, increased the training and supervision available to HCAs and practice nurses, and increased satisfaction with training and support. Before the team was in place there was no register of nurse mentors. Now there is a register with 38 trained mentors. Previously, only one practice took student nurse placements, now four do. Ten clinical supervision groups run at different times during the week, with 80 nurses taking part (80%). The number of HCAs has increased by 25%. All HCAs have attended an upskilling course and seven out of ten attend regular supervision. Other areas could also have a team of nurse leads rather than relying on one person. Making sure that nurse leads are part of the clinical workforce helps to promote empathy and credibility. Having a team helps to share the workload and means that nurses can divide their time between clinical practice and workforce development activities.