Ahead of International Nurses Day on May 12th, Helen Whyley, Director for the Royal College of Nursing in Wales, has shared her optimism for the future of the profession in Newcross Healthcare’s Voices of Care podcast series.
After the RCN in Wales experienced its first strike in its 100-year history, Ms Whyley outlined her vision for the future of the profession. She believes the role of nurses is “safety-critical, evidence-based” and noted that in many cases, “if you want something done, you tend to ask a nurse.”
Ms Whyley called for continued investment in the profession and better workforce planning. She said, “We don’t always think when we have 100 new nurses across their careers, we actually want some of them to be health visitors and some to be advanced nurse practitioners and some to be consultant nurses and some to be endoscopists and all sorts of things that nurses do.”
She also questioned why nurses are not offered the same kind of contracts as other healthcare professionals working in the NHS, emphasising the need for flexible working and a good work-life balance.
Discussing the campaign for improved pay and conditions, Mrs Whyley said it was a humbling experience. She heard stories of newly qualified nurses walking into wards with no other substantive staff, and other incidents that “made her toes curl”.
The podcast episode featuring Helen Whyley is available now across various platforms, including YouTube, Apple, Spotify and the Newcross Healthcare website.
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