The COVID-19 pandemic brought an overnight change to the work of general practice nurses (GPNs), as care shifted from face-to-face to the virtual environment. GPNs adapted rapidly to this new and challenging environment. At the same time, the system was still dealing with familiar, pre-existing challenges: how to recruit and keep GPNs? How to attract future nurses to the role? London Region, where most practices report problems recruiting nurses, and where 50% of the workforce is aged over 50, responded with a number of initiatives. These included a series of podcasts, designed to highlight the diversity of general practice nursing, and the value of GPNs in the primary care workforce.
The idea for the podcasts came from meetings set up early in the pandemic, which brought together a group of GPN leads across the capital. The aim was to collaborate on ways to share good practice, offer support, feedback information to the appropriate departments and pass on regional guidance on the pandemic. However, the group was also hearing concerns from some nurses about employment issues – sick pay, talk of redundancy and furlough, lack of support for those who were shielding.
Raman Patria, workforce lead at Healthy London Partnership, and who works with colleagues across the region, explained: ‘A group of managers (including a nurse, GP and workforce leads) working on primary care issues got together and thought about how to tackle these challenges. How can we ensure that practice nurses are valued? We decided to do something to highlight the many roles and responsibilities held by GPNs in a positive way.’
The result was The Power of Practice Nursing (https://www.healthylondon.org/general-practice-nursing-in-london/) a series of 10 podcasts produced by Healthy London Partnership, in collaboration with Health Education England, Capital Nurse and NHSE/I, and with the support of Jane Clegg, the Chief Nurse of London.
The team supporting the podcasts was multi-professional and this helped make the series as comprehensive and useful to listeners as possible, and to give it credibility. The aim was to share with others in London and further afield, and to showcase the possibilities of a GPN career.
Each podcast was carefully planned to showcase the variety of approaches and nursing roles in general practice. They cover a broad range of subjects, from the design and delivery of COVID hot hubs in London, to strengthening the training pipeline for nurses in primary care, and feature interviews with experts in the field.
The final podcast brings together system leads, Dr Michelle Drage, Amita Shah, Brenda Donnelly and Claire Johnstone, for an overview of the series and to discuss those key questions of recruitment, retention and education. Brenda Donnelly, GPN and Clinical Director of South Southwark PCN, said that every single podcast made her curious to know more. Her standout podcast was on advanced care planning. For her it epitomised the approach of nurses in the pandemic – collaboration, vulnerability, showing courage, adapting to new ways of working, showing no fear of change – and was a reminder that GPNs need support and training to do this complex work.
Amita Shah, Nurse Development Lead at Barnet Training Hub, found the podcast inspiring for nurses considering primary care as a first destination career. She also felt that it demonstrated that nurses listen to each other and we need to collaborate with GP colleagues to share ideas on recruitment, retention and good practice.
Dr Michelle Drage, CEO of Londonwide Local Medical Committees and Londonwide Enterprise Ltd, thought the dedication of nurses during the pandemic shines through in each of the podcasts – and given the right support by the system great things can be achieved by practice nurses for patients.
COVID-19 has brought huge change to GPNs' work. In the Queen's Nursing Institute GP Survey 2020, 71% of GPNs who responded said they had moved largely or entirely to remote working. But the survey also reveals concerns at lack of recognition for the role and feeling undervalued in relation to their significant knowledge and skills. As the challenges of the pandemic continue, there has never been a more important time for the healthcare system to look closely at the varied roles of GPNs and the value they bring as a pivotal cog in the primary care workforce. The podcasts are a valuable resource for highlighting good practice. We need to continue to work together across the region to tackle the challenges so that this vital role is built upon and enhanced for the benefit of patients.