Blog: 29.03.19
NMC Chief Executive, Andrea Sutcliffe, recounts her recent visit to Herefordshire
Lots of people take time out on their birthday to enjoy
themselves or just to relax. That was my original intention last week
but as my husband had to work, I decided on a different kind of birthday
treat – visiting services as part of my #ListeningMode
tour to meet nurses, midwives and nursing associates across the UK. I
could not have chosen a better way to celebrate my birthday.
Joining the dots
I was in Herefordshire kindly hosted and chauffeured by my good friend Richard Humphries. In the afternoon I was at the Wye Valley Trust
with Chief Nurse Lucy Flanagan meeting groups of nurses and talking
about their challenges and local developments including nursing
associates, advanced clinical practice, apprenticeships and the NMC’s
approach to Fitness to Practise.
We had some lively discussions and they certainly put me through my
paces. What was heartening though was how the issues they are tackling
locally resonated with the national debates at the Workforce Implementation Steering Group, Ruth May’s CNO summit and the launch of the Closing the Gap
report I attended. Hopefully we will all be able to join the local and
national dots to make a difference for nurses and midwives so they can
be supported to provide better, safer care.
Outstanding nursing home care
But the main reason for my visit was to meet up with Karen Rogers and see for myself what she and her team are achieving in Herefordshire Care Homes.
Karen runs this small group of four residential and two nursing homes,
five of which are rated as Outstanding by my former colleagues at the Care Quality Commission.
