Nursing associates, their employers and people from supporting organisations are starring in a series of films designed to highlight the positive impact of this new role in adult social care.

As the numbers of people with complex health needs increases across social care, a new approach to delivering care is needed and the nursing associate role is designed to bridge the gap between a care assistant and a registered nurse.

The new role isn’t a substitute for a registered nurse, but employing a nursing associate will free up the time of the registered nurse to work at the upper limits of their registration.
The nursing role creates a new career pathway for care staff and Emily Gillott talks in the film about how she used that route to become a registered nursing associate at Drovers Call Care Home.

Emily explained: “Before I became a registered nursing associate, I started here as a care assistant and worked my way up through senior carer, and then the nursing associate post came about.

“The course itself has helped me massively. I didn’t have the qualifications to begin with to go on and do my nursing degree straight away, so this is like a stepping stone to get me to where I want to be. I’m enjoying the role and seeing how it develops.”

Skills for Care is using the film, and six shorter ones, to support the sector in increasing the number of nursing associates that will help employers retain highly skilled and motivated workers.

The Lincolnshire partnership was part of the first test site for the role, and there are now three registered nursing associates in care homes across the county.

www.skillsforcare.org.uk/nursingassociates