Rod's blog
RCN Congress continues to discuss the essential issues for nurses, nursing and UK health care, creating a buzz around Congress and Liverpool. I am so proud to be a part of an organisation that tackles these difficult but necessary issues in an aim to improve patient care.
Yesterday’s impressive keynote speech was made by Dr Peter Carter, RCN Chief Executive and General Secretary. Peter’s speech gained considerable national media attention as he discussed key aspects of the significant Francis Report and how Government can support nurses to do their job well. Peter asserted that nurses should be given tools, instead of obstacles, so that they can provide high levels of patient care. It was made clear that extreme under staffing and large amounts of non-essential paperwork can divert nurses away from their essential duties and can damage patient care.
Yesterday also saw a public debate played out in the media between the RCN and the Government about proposals for nurse education. The Government proposes to make students undertake a year’s experience as an HCA before embarking on pre-registration education. The RCN expressed their concern at these plans, especially due to the lack of available detail. Jeremy Hunt, Secretary of State for Health, criticised the RCN concerns, and the Prime Minister, David Cameron, commented in support of the Government’s proposals. Peter responded to this on national media putting forward the RCN’s concerns that this proposal has huge implications for the current and future nursing workforce, which simply have not been thought through.
Today will see a highly interesting keynote speaker in the form of Austin Thomas. Austin has been the lead nurse for Paralympics GB for the last five Paralympics Games, including London 2012. Austin has had varied and rather unique experiences, in addition to his time as a patient after a serious motor biking accident – further developing his perspective on nursing and nurses.
The RCN continues to attract considerable media attention today through our survey of members. Today’s coverage focuses on the survey results investigating nurse’s experiences of raising concerns and whistleblowing. The survey has found that 24 per cent of nurses have been warned off raising concerns about patient care, with many describing a culture of fear and intimidation. This level of fear persists despite whistleblowing legislation and the issue being highlighted by the Francis Report. 45 per cent of those who had spoken out said their employer took no action. Dr Peter Carter is widely quoted as saying that “many nurses are still experiencing a culture of fear and intimidation if they try to speak out. This is putting patient safety at risk”. This story was reported in The Guardian, The BBC, The Daily Mail and The Evening Standard.
I am happy to announce that #RCNCongress and ‘Peter Carter’ trended for most of Monday on twitter. This lively debate was largely positive and involved a variety of audiences. Therefore I would continue to encourage you all to become involved with Congress 2013, in any way you can.
Many thanks
Rod
