News In brief Adam Scott
Artwork and splash of colour transform wards THE CHILDREN’S wards at Barts Health NHS Trust in London have been transformed using colourful designs and artwork to create a more calming hospital environment for patients. Artists and designers have decorated and furnished the Royal London Hospital’s five children’s wards with wall-to-wall paintings, themed rooms, colourful furniture and bedside curtains painted with panoramic views of the Thames (pictured). Trust director of nursing and governance for children Sally Shearer said: ‘These fun designs are an important part of our commitment to easing children’s fears of being in a seemingly strange and scary building, to create a warm and comforting place of healing.’
Workforce planning sets higher number of school practitioners THERE WILL be a dramatic rise in the number of post-registration school nurse training places next year in a bid to close the ‘extremely high’ vacancy rate in the specialty. Health Education England (HEE) will commission an extra 142 places – a 71.7% rise – in 2015/16, bringing the number of one-year training places in England to 340. HEE made the announcement as it unveiled its second annual Workforce Plan for England, setting out the £5 billion investment it will make in health education and training programmes. Figures show that nearly 25% of school nursing posts are vacant, and those working in the specialty are struggling. It is also predicted that there would be a need to increase the school nurse workforce by nearly 10% by 2019. RCN deputy director of nursing Steve Jamieson said: ‘Bearing in mind that there are about 20,000 schools in England, there is still a long way to go to get the numbers up to where they need to be. These nurses have a key role in improving children’s health and promoting healthy lifestyles, but the workforce is overstretched.’ Unions have raised concerns that school nurses are under pressure to become health NURSING CHILDREN AND YOUNG PEOPLE
visitors because the NHS is struggling to meet a government target of 4,200 more health visitors. Children’s nurse pre-registration training commissions will rise by 7.4% in 2015/16, according to the workforce plan. But the HEE says it will work with NHS England and others to review why many graduates do not appear to be obtaining jobs in children’s services. Anecdotal evidence suggests that they are finding opportunities elsewhere and also that children’s services are facing exceptional levels of turnover.
Pioneering clinicians recognised in new year’s honours A NURSE consultant who has championed improvements to children and young people’s public health is among those recognised in the Queen’s new year’s honours. Founding member and UK professional officer of the School and Public Health Nurses Association Sharon White was made an OBE for services to public health nursing for school-age children. Norfolk Community Health and Care NHS Trust children’s epilepsy specialist nurse Sally Tyler was named an MBE for services to nursing and the epilepsy service she provides a services for young people aged up to 19 in central Norfolk.
The revised Nursing and Midwifery Council’s code contains 25 standards that will be used from March 31 to judge whether a nurse is fit to remain on the register. They include a duty of candour to speak up when things go wrong, which has been added following a recommendation in the Francis report into care failings at Stafford Hospital. Another standard requires nurses to uphold the reputation of the profession at all times, such as through the responsible use of social media and networking sites. Better treatment of gastrooesophageal reflux disease in infants, children and young people is the subject of a new guideline from the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence. It is most common in babies and characterised by regurgitating food after eating. The guideline can be found at tinyurl.com/nawljrz Public Health England has published Improving Young People’s Health and Wellbeing, a framework for service providers, commissioners and others to address the health needs of young people with an emphasis on wellbeing and resilience. The framework can be accessed at bit.ly/15XgGQf Guidance to improve support for young people in emergency care with alcohol-related problems includes a set of questions or prompts for professionals to help them develop care pathways. It is published by Public Health England and can be found at tinyurl.com/ yp-alcohol-path The Nursing and Midwifery Council is consulting on plans to remove time limits for the completion of education programmes to give students greater flexibility. A consultation closes on March 12. Go to: tinyurl.com/ky85vqb February 2015 | Volume 27 | Number 1
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Artwork and splash of colour transform wards THE CHILDREN’S wards at Barts Health NHS Trust in London have been transformed using colourful designs and artwork to create a more calming hospital environment for patients. Artists and designers have decorated and furnished the Royal London Hospital’s five children’s wards with wall-to-wall paintings, themed rooms, colourful furniture and bedside curtains painted with panoramic views of the Thames (pictured). Trust director of nursing and governance for children Sally Shearer said: ‘These fun designs are an important part of our commitment to easing children’s fears of being in a seemingly strange and scary building, to create a warm and comforting place of healing.’
Workforce planning sets higher number of school practitioners THERE WILL be a dramatic rise in the number of post-registration school nurse training places next year in a bid to close the ‘extremely high’ vacancy rate in the specialty. Health Education England (HEE) will commission an extra 142 places – a 71.7% rise – in 2015/16, bringing the number of one-year training places in England to 340. HEE made the announcement as it unveiled its second annual Workforce Plan for England, setting out the £5 billion investment it will make in health education and training programmes. Figures show that nearly 25% of school nursing posts are vacant, and those working in the specialty are struggling. It is also predicted that there would be a need to increase the school nurse workforce by nearly 10% by 2019. RCN deputy director of nursing Steve Jamieson said: ‘Bearing in mind that there are about 20,000 schools in England, there is still a long way to go to get the numbers up to where they need to be. These nurses have a key role in improving children’s health and promoting healthy lifestyles, but the workforce is overstretched.’ Unions have raised concerns that school nurses are under pressure to become health NURSING CHILDREN AND YOUNG PEOPLE
visitors because the NHS is struggling to meet a government target of 4,200 more health visitors. Children’s nurse pre-registration training commissions will rise by 7.4% in 2015/16, according to the workforce plan. But the HEE says it will work with NHS England and others to review why many graduates do not appear to be obtaining jobs in children’s services. Anecdotal evidence suggests that they are finding opportunities elsewhere and also that children’s services are facing exceptional levels of turnover.
Pioneering clinicians recognised in new year’s honours A NURSE consultant who has championed improvements to children and young people’s public health is among those recognised in the Queen’s new year’s honours. Founding member and UK professional officer of the School and Public Health Nurses Association Sharon White was made an OBE for services to public health nursing for school-age children. Norfolk Community Health and Care NHS Trust children’s epilepsy specialist nurse Sally Tyler was named an MBE for services to nursing and the epilepsy service she provides a services for young people aged up to 19 in central Norfolk.
The revised Nursing and Midwifery Council’s code contains 25 standards that will be used from March 31 to judge whether a nurse is fit to remain on the register. They include a duty of candour to speak up when things go wrong, which has been added following a recommendation in the Francis report into care failings at Stafford Hospital. Another standard requires nurses to uphold the reputation of the profession at all times, such as through the responsible use of social media and networking sites. Better treatment of gastrooesophageal reflux disease in infants, children and young people is the subject of a new guideline from the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence. It is most common in babies and characterised by regurgitating food after eating. The guideline can be found at tinyurl.com/nawljrz Public Health England has published Improving Young People’s Health and Wellbeing, a framework for service providers, commissioners and others to address the health needs of young people with an emphasis on wellbeing and resilience. The framework can be accessed at bit.ly/15XgGQf Guidance to improve support for young people in emergency care with alcohol-related problems includes a set of questions or prompts for professionals to help them develop care pathways. It is published by Public Health England and can be found at tinyurl.com/ yp-alcohol-path The Nursing and Midwifery Council is consulting on plans to remove time limits for the completion of education programmes to give students greater flexibility. A consultation closes on March 12. Go to: tinyurl.com/ky85vqb February 2015 | Volume 27 | Number 1
Downloaded from RCNi.com by ${individualUser.displayName} on Nov 25, 2015. For personal use only. No other uses without permission. Copyright © 2015 RCNi Ltd. All rights reserved.
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