Nurses given ‘range of leadership opportunities’ in NHS 10-year plan

Nurses will be given ‘a range of opportunities to lead’ under the government’s plans for a Neighbourhood Health Service, according to a new blueprint for the NHS.

The long-awaited NHS 10-year plan, published today, has pledged to introduce new nursing leadership roles to ‘represent the community’s voice’ and ‘coordinate local strategy’.

It comes as part of the government’s ambitions for a Neighbourhood Health Service which looks to bring together various health professionals at a local level ‘under one roof’.

The Prime Minister last night revealed that nurses would be among those staffing new neighbourhood health centres – set to be open 12 hours a day, six days a week and based within local communities.

Today’s plan goes further, suggesting nurses could lead some neighbourhood services.

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‘There will be a range of opportunities for nurses to lead in the Neighbourhood Health Service,’ the plan said.

For example, it said: ‘We will introduce neighbourhood nursing and midwifery leads who will act across multiple neighbourhoods to coordinate local strategy, convene partners and represent the community’s voice.’

In addition, it suggested nurses would ‘play a central role’ in a new ‘genomic population health service, including by providing genomic counselling and support’.

While Nursing in Practice is seeking further information on the genomics service, the plan suggests that by 2035, the government anticipates ‘half of all healthcare interactions will be informed by genomic insights and other predictive analytics’.

The plan also said it would ‘build collaborations with industry and researchers to generate the evidence we need to inform commissioning decisions’ for a genomic population health service, and use studies run by GP practices and pharmacies to ‘help shape service models’.

Commenting on the plan, chief executive of the Royal College of Nursing (RCN) Professor Nicola Ranger said: ‘The government and the NHS must bring about a reset with the nursing profession.

‘Nursing staff are identified today as the expert leaders to deliver a neighbourhood health service and that should be truly empowering.

‘As the professionals delivering the vast majority of care, we know what keeps patients safe and well.’

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However, she also stressed that nurses needed reassurance on how care will be delivered away from hospital settings.

‘Nursing staff are crying out for change and we stand ready to get behind this plan. Modernising services, bringing care closer to home and helping people to lead healthier lives couldn’t be more necessary.’

But she added that ‘we need the detail on exactly how this will be achieved and for commitments on transparency to be honoured’.

In a video shared by NHS England (NHSE), chief nursing officer for England, Duncan Burton, said the 10-year plan was an opportunity to improve health services for both staff and patients.

‘It’s an opportunity to improve the experience of people using our services and also the experiences of our staff working in our services who want to come to work, and come to work every day, to do the best that they can, and this is about actually making it better so they can do the things that they do best,’ he said.

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Speaking in parliament earlier today the Prime Minister said each neighbourhood health service will ‘work in partnership with the people that it serves’.

‘Millions of people across Britain no longer feel that they get a fair deal, and it’s starting to affect the pride, the hope, the optimism that they have in this great country. And our job is to change that, and the NHS is a huge part of it,’ he added.

The government has also committed to developing ‘advanced practice models’ for nurses that align to its three big shifts for the NHS, as part of the plan.