This week, we’ve been celebrating International Nurses’ Day – and I want to take the opportunity to thank all of you – and nursing staff across the UK and around the world. I’ve been delighted to join a number of International Nurses’ Day events, and I hope that many of you have taken the opportunity to celebrate and reflect on your value and contribution. Watch our amazing International Nurses’ Day video here.  

Nursing is a truly global profession. While nursing staff may work in different systems, we face many of the same challenges and ultimately share the same dedication and passion. In my last blog I spoke about recent moments of solidarity, pride and inspiration from nursing staff in the UK and internationally. But it’s important that we celebrate our profession not just on International Nurses’ Day, but all year round.

In every International Nurses’ Day celebratory event that I attended, my thoughts were with the hundreds of nurses across the UK who are struggling with the rising cost of living and the barriers to progressing their careers. Some fast spinning downwards on a debt spiral. Some can’t even find the money needed to travel to an interview for the job they’ve always wanted. I hear these stories every day from nursing staff.  

That’s why I’ve decided to make a small monthly donation to the RCN Foundation, which provides hardship and learning grants to nursing staff across the country — including those who aren’t RCN members. If this resonates, please help me spread the word: share this post, tag colleagues, or consider a small monthly gift. Let’s make this week about raising awareness and practical support so more nursing staff can access interviews, training and the opportunities they deserve. 

If you’re not able to donate but are in need of help, or you know someone who is, information about the RCN Foundation and its grants is available here. Please share the information with anyone who might benefit. 

It’s obviously a time of some change and uncertainty in politics, with the appointment of a new UK Health Secretary, recent election results in Wales and Scotland, as well as local election results in England. But with times of change come opportunities. We clearly set out our positions in our manifestos of what we think nursing needs and we will be working with the next governments to ensure the nursing voice is heard in Wales and Scotland.  

We know there is plenty of work to be done. This week RCN Scotland released its fifth Nursing Workforce in Scotland Report, which provides the new Scottish Government with a clear picture: while the nursing workforce has grown, the gap between planned and actual staffing remains, with little adjustment to account for the continued increases in demand for services. The new Scottish Government must prioritise workforce planning if it is to deliver health and social care reform. Nursing needs to be seen as an investment, rather than a cost. 

On Monday, we called on the new Welsh Government to commit to a graduate guarantee for newly qualified nurses in Wales as only 69% of anticipated nursing graduates this year are set to secure a job. This is a shocking position for our recent graduates to be in and we will be loud in continuing to demand action. We want to hear from graduates across the UK about your experiences and we have resources to support you be as prepared as you can be for interviews.  

We have once again heard comments from the BMA on Advanced Nurse Practitioners. I want to assure Members on how seriously we are treating this. We know that advanced nurse practitioners are highly-skilled experts in their own right and not replacements for doctors. Patient safety is non-negotiable for both doctors and nurses alike but our time would be better spent working together to resolve patient safety matters. 

However emotionally charged or selectively presented, anecdotes cannot and should not be used to undermine established models of safe care. Attempts to present isolated allegations from a small section of the profession into systemic concern risk misleading the public and eroding trust in highly skilled professionals delivering consistent, high-quality care. It is therefore deeply troubling to see some elements of the BMA leadership adopt rhetoric that appears to diminish other professions, seemingly in response to internal pressures.

Such tactics are not only divisive among the professions but also a risk to patient safety to which we are collectively responsible. The RCN will continue to defend advanced practice nursing and the important role it plays in delivering high quality care, with professionalism and full weight of evidence. If you are a nurse practicing in advanced level and experience, any challenges in your area, we would like to hear from you and please be aware, you are not alone, we are here to help. 

And finally, we are just a couple of days away from RCN Congress 2026, and I look forward to seeing many of you there. There is obviously a lot to discuss, and I know that we are in for an exciting few days of discussion, debate, and sharing ideas and ultimately shaping the future of our profession together