HCAs and APs at RCN Congress

Congress 2012

RCN Congress 2012 will take place at Harrogate International Centre from 13-17 May 2012 and we hope to see as many of you there as possible.

The HCA/AP Committee has been planning the programme and it is all change for 2012. Instead of having one dedicated day for HCAs and APs, we will be running a programme of activities repeated over three days (Monday to Wednesday). We hope this approach makes it easier for you to negotiate time off work and gives you the opportunity to spend more than one day at Congress.

The programme will be a mixture of plenary sessions, listening to the keynote speeches in the main hall and the opportunity to attend workshops in the afternoon. All our HCAs, APs and students are invited to join us at the end of each of day (4.30pm - 6pm) for coffee and cake to celebrate good practice. This will be a great opportunity for you to network with colleagues and meet the RCN team. There will also be a poster exhibition and a fun competition with a prize draw to round up the day.

Poster exhibition

Nursing has had some bad press recently, but we want to celebrate the good work that you all do every day. All you need to do is tell us about your good news stories – examples of good practice that you have been involved in that celebrate nursing and caring as a career, and celebrate team work. Just write no more than 150 words and add some pictures if possible, without compromising confidentiality of course.

Please send in your posters on an A4 sheet  by Friday 13 April 2012 – we will enlarge them and display them for everyone to see and enjoy. Please email your posters to hca@rcn.org.uk or send in the post to Lisa Cork, Nursing Department, RCN, 20 Cavendish Square, London, W1G 0RN.

You can register your interest now using the Congress website and there is also information on booking accommodation in Harrogate if you plan to stay for a few days.

We look forward to seeing you in Harrogate and if you need further details please contact hca@rcn.org.uk

Congress 2011 – HCAs' Day highlights

More than 170 health care assistants (HCAs) and assistant practitioners (APs) attended the third HCAs' Day at RCN Congress in Liverpool last year. Read about HCAs' Day on the Congress page.

Stephen Jobling from Lincoln said: "I’ve never been to Congress before so it was a little daunting to start off with. Everyone has been so friendly though and the things we’ve talked about at HCAs’ Day so far have been really useful."

Sabiha Diwan from Preston said: "One of my colleagues encouraged me to come to HCAs’ Day and I’m glad that I came. I’m the only HCA in my role where I work so this has helped me understand the importance of what I do and how valued it is. It’s opened my eyes a lot. The RCN offers so much support for health care assistants."