21. Equity for nurse mentors
Education Forum
(R) That this meeting of RCN Congress urges Council to lobby for all mentors to have protected time, as is standard across other professions
Result
The resolution was passed.
For: 98.31% (408)
Against: 1.69% (7)
Abstain: 4
Debate report
In this debate, proposer Moira Davies from the Education forum called for one hour per week of protected time for sign off mentors, saying the significance of this role “cannot be underestimated.” This role, she asserted, is responsible for judging whether a student is safe and effective to practice, yet many were undertaking it in their own time with limited support.
“Let’s give mentors the tools and the time to do their role,” she urged, reminding delegates that this is also a recommendation from the Willis Report.
Her views were echoed by many speakers. Mary Johnes from Manchester Central, a recent graduate, described the mentorship she received as often “rushed” or “crammed in” and expressed concerns over mentors’ ability to fail candidates under such circumstances.
Some widened the debate to point out concerns with requirements for preceptorship programmes, and suggested value in making mentorship a part of every nurses’ role. Ian McGregor from the Older People’s forum expressed concerns that the resolution would not necessarily work in all settings, such as the independent sector.
Overall however, support for the resolution was overwhelming: “The right support, at the right time, in the right place will develop the workforce of the future.” said Jean Rogers, from Cheshire East.
The resolution was passed, with 98.31 per cent voting in favour.
Background
Mentoring as a means to facilitate professional learning in health care has evolved consistently since the 1970s, and was formally implemented in pre-registration nursing and midwifery education in the 1980s.
In 2007, the introduction of the Nursing and Midwifery Council’s (NMC) mandatory Standards to support learning and assessment in practice (NMC, 2007) established the specific role of the sign off mentor, whose main responsibility was defined as: “to make judgements about whether a student has achieved the required standards of proficiency for safe and effective practice for entry to the NMC register”.
The NMC’s Standards for pre-registration education (NMC,2010) stipulates that sign off mentors are required to have “allocated time to reflect, give feedback and keep records of student achievement in their final period of practice learning, equivalent to one hour per student per week”. However, there are additional role criteria for which there is no protected time. Equally, mentors who do not have the added responsibility of sign off, have no protected time.
The Report of the Willis Commission identified that students believe that their placement experiences are directly related to the quality of their mentorship, and recognised the difficulties mentors were facing in having time to support students effectively.
It is commonplace in other health care professions for mentors to use protected time to facilitate their roles. Mentoring in physiotherapy has been formalised through the Accreditation of Clinical Educators (ACE) scheme, in which time-off for clinical educators is protected. Doctors, midwives, occupational therapists and speech and language therapists also have protected time off for mentoring.
In Northern Ireland, the Department of Health Social Services and Public Safety has invested £2.4 million in a co-ordinated structure to provide quality practice learning experiences. Practice education co-ordinators and facilitators provide support to mentors through assessment and co-ordination of placements. Evaluation has been positive, although students sometimes report they are not consistently rostered with their mentors, and there are challenges around the logistics of organising appropriate placements.
The Chief Nursing Officer in Scotland has recently undertaken a review of pre- and post- registration nursing and midwifery education, including mentorship. The report (which was in draft at the time of writing) identifies that “the mentor role is one for which appropriate preparation, update and performance review and governance are critical”. This builds on the existing infrastructure of support to mentors which includes Practice Education Facilitators (PEFs), Care Home Education Facilitators (CHEFs) and Practice Educators.
The Fitness for Practice – All Wales Initiative, Mentor Preparation (2002) states that; ‘Health care providers should have mechanisms in place to support mentors, these should include designated senior nursing staff to facilitate support and development for existing and new mentors and allow them ‘time’ to carry out their mentor role’.
References and further reading
Nursing and Midwifery Council (2010) Standards for pre- registration nursing education, London: NMC. Available at: http://standards.nmc-uk.org/PublishedDocuments/Standards%20for%20pre-registration%20nursing%20education%2016082010.pdf (accessed 18/03/13) (Web).
Nursing and Midwifery Council (2008) Standards to support learning and assessment in practice: NMC standards for mentors, practice teachers and teachers, London: NMC. Available at: www.nmc-uk.org/Documents/StandardsnmcStandardsToSupportLearningAndAssessmentInPractice.pdf (accessed 18/03/13) (Web).
Sellars J and Clouder L (2011) Impact of the Accreditation of Clinical Educators Scheme: reflections from one higher education institution, Physiotherapy, 97(4), December pp.339-344.
