New career pathways developed for emergency nurses in Northern Ireland

A career framework for nurses in emergency care settings in Northern Ireland is due to be launched by the autumn.

Northern Ireland (NI) chief nursing officer Charlotte McArdle commissioned the NI Practice and Education Council for Nursing and Midwifery (NIPEC) to develop the professional framework with the NI subgroup of the RCN Emergency Care Association (ECA) following an Emergency Care Summit in 2014.

The framework will provide continuity of training and skills for emergency nurses, and a level of standardisation across NI’s emergency departments.

Supportive framework

Speaking at RCN congress in Glasgow last month, NIPEC project lead Frances Cannon said the framework will be available on the NIPEC website by September. 

The framework will support emergency nurses working in clinical, management and leadership, education, and research and development roles. 

‘We hope the framework will give them the support they need to ensure the right nurses with the right skills are in the right place,’ she said.

Real nurse stories

Belfast’s Royal Victoria Hospital clinical co-ordinator and chair of the steering group developing the framework Linsey Sheerin said the website will feature real nurse stories, links to accredited training courses and pathways. 

‘Junior nurses on the floor can have a role model and say “that is where I want to get to” and work their way there,’ she said.

ECA steering committee member and co-founder of Emergency Nurses NI Roisin Devlin said the framework ‘dovetailed perfectly’ into ongoing work by the ECA to create a competency framework for emergency nurses.