Corina Naughton1, Nicky Hayes2, Zainab Zahran3, Christine Norton4, Geraldine Lee5, Joanne M Fitzpatrick6, Mary Crawford7, Stephen Tee8. 1. Florence Nightingale Faculty of Nursing and Midwifery, King's College London, James Clark Maxwell Building, Waterloo, London SE1 8WA, UK. Electronic address: corina.naughton@kcl.ac.uk. 2. Consultant Nurse for Older People, King's College Hospital NHS Foundation Trust, London, UK. Electronic address: nicky.hayes@nhs.net. 3. Florence Nightingale Faculty of Nursing and Midwifery, King's College London, James Clark Maxwell Building, Waterloo, London SE1 8WA, UK. Electronic address: zainab.zahran@kcl.ac.uk. 4. Florence Nightingale Faculty of Nursing and Midwifery, King's College London, James Clark Maxwell Building, Waterloo, London SE1 8WA, UK; Florence Nightingale Foundation of Clinical Nursing Research, Florence Nightingale Faculty of Nursing and Midwifery, King's College London, London, UK. Electronic address: christine.norton@kcl.ac.uk. 5. Florence Nightingale Faculty of Nursing and Midwifery, King's College London, James Clark Maxwell Building, Waterloo, London SE1 8WA, UK. Electronic address: gerry.lee@kcl.ac.uk. 6. Florence Nightingale Faculty of Nursing and Midwifery, King's College London, James Clark Maxwell Building, Waterloo, London SE1 8WA, UK. Electronic address: joanne.fitzpatrick@kcl.ac.uk. 7. Florence Nightingale Faculty of Nursing and Midwifery, King's College London, James Clark Maxwell Building, Waterloo, London SE1 8WA, UK. Electronic address: mary.crawford@kcl.ac.uk. 8. Faculty of Health and Social Sciences, Bournemouth University, Royal London House, Christchurch Road, Bournemouth BH1 3LT, UK. Electronic address: stee@bournemouth.ac.uk.
Abstract
BACKGROUND: Preparing the nursing workforce to meet the challenges of an ageing population is a priority for many countries. The development of an Older Person's Nurse Fellowship (OPNF) programme for senior clinical nurses is an important innovation. OBJECTIVES: This article describes the philosophical development, delivery and early evaluation of the OPNF. DESIGN: In 2014, Health Education England funded 24 senior clinical nurses to participate in the OPNF. The Fellowship was designed to build clinical leadership and innovation capability and develop a network of nurses to influence local and national strategy for older people's care. The Fellows selected were drawn from mental health (n=4), community/primary care (n=9) and acute care (n=11). The twelve month programme consisted of two Masters-level modules, delivered through study days and e-learning. The first cohort (n=12) commenced the course in November 2014 with a module designed to enhance clinical knowledge and skills. METHODS: Evaluation data were collected from the first cohort using anonymous surveys (n=11) and focus group interviews (n=9). Descriptive statistics are presented for the quantitative data and common themes are described in the qualitative data. RESULTS: The overall satisfaction with the clinical module was high with a median score of 18/20 (range 17-20). Topics such as comprehensive geriatric assessment, frailty, pharmacology and cognitive assessment were regarded as highly relevant and most likely to result in a change to clinical practice. In the focus group interviews students discussed their learning experience in terms of: module specificity, peer-to-peer learning and using the OPNF as leverage for change. CONCLUSIONS: The OPNF is a timely innovation and a positive commitment to developing an academic pathway for senior nurses. It marks an important step in the future development of the older person's nursing workforce.
BACKGROUND: Preparing the nursing workforce to meet the challenges of an ageing population is a priority for many countries. The development of an Older Person's Nurse Fellowship (OPNF) programme for senior clinical nurses is an important innovation. OBJECTIVES: This article describes the philosophical development, delivery and early evaluation of the OPNF. DESIGN: In 2014, Health Education England funded 24 senior clinical nurses to participate in the OPNF. The Fellowship was designed to build clinical leadership and innovation capability and develop a network of nurses to influence local and national strategy for older people's care. The Fellows selected were drawn from mental health (n=4), community/primary care (n=9) and acute care (n=11). The twelve month programme consisted of two Masters-level modules, delivered through study days and e-learning. The first cohort (n=12) commenced the course in November 2014 with a module designed to enhance clinical knowledge and skills. METHODS: Evaluation data were collected from the first cohort using anonymous surveys (n=11) and focus group interviews (n=9). Descriptive statistics are presented for the quantitative data and common themes are described in the qualitative data. RESULTS: The overall satisfaction with the clinical module was high with a median score of 18/20 (range 17-20). Topics such as comprehensive geriatric assessment, frailty, pharmacology and cognitive assessment were regarded as highly relevant and most likely to result in a change to clinical practice. In the focus group interviews students discussed their learning experience in terms of: module specificity, peer-to-peer learning and using the OPNF as leverage for change. CONCLUSIONS: The OPNF is a timely innovation and a positive commitment to developing an academic pathway for senior nurses. It marks an important step in the future development of the older person's nursing workforce.