Intergenerational practice aims to bring people together in purposeful, mutually beneficial activities which promote greater understanding and respect between generations and contributes to building more cohesive communities. Intergenerational practice is inclusive, building on the positive resources that the younger and older have to offer each other and those around them. (Beth Johnson Foundation, 2009)
This definition acknowledges the importance of bringing younger and older people together, but sees this in the wider context of a community constructed from a number of generations.
In 2020, a group of RCN members met online to explore intergenerational practice. Specifically, they wanted to look at ways in which retired nurses and student/newly qualified nurses could mutually support each other. The retired nurses were from those representing the RCN at the National Pensioners’ Convention, and the students were members of the RCN Students’ Committee.
As a result of regular meetings, this group put together a proposal for a fringe event at RCN Congress 2021. Unfortunately the Congress fringe events were not able to take place in 2021, but the group continued to meet and ideas evolved.
Plans were made for a slot in the 2022 Congress Learning and Wellbeing Programme. The submission was agreed, and the event took place in Glasgow in June 2022. Two Yorkshire and Humber regional events confirmed the need for this continued collaboration. The first was a regionally organised online conference named, 'Retired Nurses – Valued for Life'. The second was a student/newly qualified conference on 'Starting Out', at which I was invited to speak, introduce the subject, and gauge feedback from RCN students which proved to be encouraging.
The subsequent Congress event was recorded and is available to watch on the RCN website. The response was positive from both retired, student and other members both in-person and online.
As we met further and ideas evolved, we found we could agree on a set of key common values we hold which will be central to our working together.
Most important is that we actively listen to and understand each other. Only when this happens can true communication take place in order to share good practice in professional, educational and life skills, including family issues. We will learn, value and express our own identity. We will recognise that we share in experience of going through transitions at critical stages of life.
Between us, we are resources holding complementary aspects of institutional memory of nursing and the College.
We can use this intergenerational relationship to build up each other’s confidence and resilience in facing the challenges of the future. This is not about the traditional nurse’s concept of mentorship, but about mentorship in its broadest sense, unrelated to supervision and assessment.
We continue to meet regularly online. A momentum is building in the group and in other entities in the College to take things further for the benefit of the College and all its members.
As a result of this reflective process, we believe that intergenerational practice will have an impact on the culture of nursing and associated morale, resilience, recruitment and retention.
If you would like to find out more about intergenerational practice, please come along to our next Yorkshire & the Humber Retired Members' Group meeting on 28 November.
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