Associate feature: Action needs to follow intent to deliver the nursing care Scotland needs

Despite positive movement in the number of vacant nursing posts, improvements are not being made fast enough to keep up with the increasing health demands of the Scottish population. We only need to look at the latest activity figures. Too many people are stuck in hospital due to capacity issues within community health and social care services and those who need to be admitted can experience lengthy waits and care in inappropriate areas.

The need to focus on prevention and wider public health has been acknowledged but cannot be realised when the workforce is constantly firefighting - under pressure and under-valued. Community nurses are ideally suited to respond to public health challenges as they understand the communities they work in and have the expertise to promote health as part of their clinical practice. Yet initiatives to promote public health, to support people to manage their health and wellbeing and to address health inequalities, will continue to be severely constrained by a lack of available workforce.

Scottish government stands on the precipice of a significant opportunity to shape a positive future for Scotland’s nursing and midwifery provision. The recommendations made by the Ministerial Taskforce are realistic and tangible actions that, if implemented honestly and wholeheartedly, will see the profession flourish, and provide Scotland with the safe and effective nursing care it deserves. 

As the implementation work begins, at its core is a need for commitment to fully fund the plans as they are developed. Without the proper funding, the recommendations won’t deliver the significant improvements needed to address Scotland’s public health challenges and provide the health and care services people deserve.

The Scottish government made promises to the nursing profession, and to the people of Scotland, when it set up the Taskforce - now it is time to deliver on that promise, to make Scotland ‘the best place for nurses and midwives to work.’

This article is sponsored by Royal College of Nursing Scotland. 

www.rcn.org.uk/scotland