Assembly Government Outlines Plans To Meet One Wales Commitment On Family Nurses

Main Category: Nursing / Midwifery
Article Date: 22 Sep 2008 - 1:00 PDT

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The first steps to recruit more nurses in Welsh schools to tackle issues including obesity, sexual health problems and drug and alcohol misuse get underway today.

Consultation is beginning on the Welsh Assembly Government's One Wales commitment to provide a minimum of one family nurse per secondary school by the end of the current Assembly term in 2011.

Family nurses will build on the current school nursing service, focusing on secondary school pupils. They will support the core surveillance programme and ensure the public health promotion agenda is delivered.

They will help meet key targets, including reducing obesity rates through promoting appropriate nutrition; sexual health education; prevention of substance misuse; and tackling eating disorders and mental health and well-being issues.

The family nurse service will also extend the current service beyond the school boundaries to engage with families.

Edwina Hart said:

"The challenge of improving Wales' health must start with our children and young people.

"Increasing numbers of children are developing chronic conditions and complex health problems and it is only by improving support in schools that we can tackle these issues before they become endemic.

"The current school nursing service is variable across Wales and may not be providing a comprehensive service to all. Our goal is to ensure that the health service provided to school-age children and young people is sustainable, adaptable to change, responsive and effective, ensuring continued development and improvement."

Across secondary and primary schools, the current nurse workforce - including registered nurses, assistants, nursery nurses and clerical support - is 291. Of these, 243 are qualified nurses, with 67 additionally qualified as Specialist Community Public Health Nurses (SCPHNs).

There is currently no statutory requirement for the current workforce to hold the SCPHN qualification and the consultation will ask whether there is a need for family nurses to hold it.

Based on the One Wales commitment to secondary schools, there are 224 mainstream secondary schools in Wales and currently 209 individuals - including SCPHNs - in post.

The consultation - closing on 5 December - invites views on four different models of a family nurse service. An agreed minimum standard for the family nurse service is scheduled to be published in February 2009.

Notes

The consultation document can be accessed here.

2. Ahead of the consultation, the Welsh Assembly Government commissioned snapshot research asking schoolchildren what they would like to see in the new family nursing service. Some of the main points were:

the nurse should work as part of a community team so there is access to support and advice from other professionals;
when talking about personal issues they would prefer to see a nurse of the same gender; some suggested two nurses - one male and one female;
the importance of confidentiality; rejecting the idea of a text/email service as this was open to breaches;
a need for the nurse to have their own office so there could be a drop-in or appointment service.

3. School-aged children health statistics for Wales:

According to the Health Behaviours in School-aged Children (HBSC) report by the World Health Organization) which surveyed 41 industrialised countries and regions across Europe and North America.

17 per cent of 13 year-old girls and 18 per cent of 13 year-old boys are obese or overweight - one of the worst rates in Europe and higher than England, Scotland or Ireland;
38 per cent of 15 year-old girls and 42 per cent of 15 year-old boys drank alcohol at least once a week - the third highest of those countries surveyed;
32 per cent of 15 year-old girls and 30 per cent of 15 year-old boys had used cannabis at some point in their lifetime - the third highest of the 34 countries surveyed.

Welsh Assembly Government