Maintain pressure on reforms to protect NHS
Una Adderley
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Comments (2)
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Comment on: Nurses need degrees, like a hole in the head
When I was referring to 'novice nurses' maybe I should have said "novice nurses, with or without a degree, have a lot to learn from their experienced colleagues"? I agree that with five years exerience under your belt, you are not a novice. The term 'novice' was not intended as an insult - simply that we are all novices when we start learning something new. I also have a lot of nursing experience and education under my belt, but I am still a 'novice' when I am faced with something new.
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Comment on: Nurses need degrees, like a hole in the head
Whether we like it or not, the financial pressures of the NHS have forced nursing to change. Much ‘hands on’ work which was the mainstay of the registered nurse now has to fall to the healthcare assistants. While all nurses and healthcare assistants should be capable of delivering compassionate and skilled hands-on care, we need our nurses to also have the skills and knowledge to undertake a high level of clinical decision making. This usually requires extensive experience coupled with academic study. While I agree that novice nurses with a degree have a lot to learn from their experienced non-degree level nursing colleagues, an experienced nurse educated to degree level (especially if that degree has been obtained following their initial training) generally knocks spots off an experienced nurse without any academic qualifications. Academic achievement and safe compassionate care are not mutually exclusive! I manage a team of highly qualified specialist nurses – their passion and dedication to the needs of their patients is remarkable. However, it is their academic knowledge that enables them to identify the best possible care for their patients and the means by which to deliver such care. This is the future of nursing. We should be embracing it, not arguing against it.
