Nurses To Lead The Campaign To Drive Up Quality In The NHS, UK

Main Category: Nursing / Midwifery
Article Date: 16 Oct 2008 - 2:00 PDT

email to a friend   printer friendly   opinions  

Commenting on the release of the King's College London reports, Nurses in Society: Starting the Debate and State of the Art Metrics for Nursing: A Rapid Appraisal, Dr Peter Carter, Chief Executive & General Secretary of the Royal College of Nursing (RCN), today said:

"These reports present a unique opportunity for nurses to drive up the quality of care across the NHS. In July, Lord Darzi pledged that nurses would be given the practical tools to improve standards of care - we now have a clear way forward and a nursing workforce which is ready to take up the challenge. Now is the time for the nursing profession to grab this opportunity so that vision can be turned into reality.

"For too long the NHS focused on keeping down costs at the expense of quality patient care. We need to work together to stop squeezing care out of the health equation and concentrate on what really counts for patients and nurses. We've invested lots of money in faster care - now is the time to invest in quality care.

"We now have a range of tools to help nurses determine what really matters to patients. But let's be clear, this isn't about how often nurses smile at patients. This is about measuring the things that really matter - dignity, compassion, nutrition and cleanliness.

"This is an opportunity to make significant and long-lasting changes in the delivery of care to patients and the RCN will work closely with the Government and key stakeholders to ensure that we don't miss this opportunity."

Royal College of Nursing (RCN) is the voice of nursing across the UK and is the largest professional union of nursing staff in the world. The RCN promotes the interest of nurses and patients on a wide range of issues and helps shape healthcare policy by working closely with the UK Government and other national and international institutions, trade unions, professional bodies and voluntary organisations.

http://www.rcn.org.uk

• Additional
• References
• Citations