Opinion

Comment

Illustration showing two nursing team members in uniform standing pointing at a huge shift roster, as if discussing filling or swapping shifts

Unsocial shifts and rotas: what’s your breaking point?

Nurses are flexible but there has to be give and take if the NHS is to boost retention

A nurse stands in front of a line of other nurses, looking happy and confident. Yet nurses often downplay their role

Our professional inferiority complex: why you’re never ‘just’ a nurse

Safety-critical care is what we do, yet some of us can’t resist the urge to downplay

Car park pay machine and pay-and-display signs in a hospital car park – hospital nurses face charges and fines for parking at work

Hospital car parking: who exactly is making a profit from all those charges and fines?

Using staff as cash cows if they drive to work shows how far goodwill has fallen in the NHS

Cruel curbs on migrant care workers’ lives are at odds with British values

Rules to stop overseas staff bringing family are also risky for the care sector and NHS

Do autism health passports actually help nurses and patients in practice?

Two autistic researchers look at the pros and cons of health passports

Nurse sneezing

Feeling unwell? Damned if you don’t work, damned if you do

Guilt may send you to work when ill – but at the heart of the problem is staff shortages

Expert advice

A nurse in scrubs sits while taking a break, looking tired and fanning her face with her eyes closed as she struggles with symptoms of menopause during a shift

Menopause: what reasonable adjustments can I expect at work?

Most nurses will experience menopause and new guidance says employers have a duty to help

Nurse reads a vital signs monitor at patient’s bedside. This is key information when assessing level of risk for a person with sepsis

Sepsis guidance update: how do I need to change my practice?

Nurse specialist explains the importance of more targeted antibiotic use

Ramadan and how to keep energy levels up in clinical practice during a month of fasting

Tips on the best ways to minimise hunger and thirst, while making time to pray on shift

Illustration of a nurse looking down and demotivated, holding a mask showing a brave face, which she is putting on her own face

How to give your best to patients when you’re lacking motivation

Finding ways to boost morale and reaching out to peers can help you get back on track

Man frowns and holds his chest as he coughs – chronic cough is a common experience among adults

Chronic cough in adults: how the latest guidance can help you help your patient

Advice on diagnosis and assessment, red flags, complications and timely referral

An illustration of a chess board with healthcare workers represented as chess pieces. One nurse is being picked up and moved to a different square by a big hand, representing management

Redeployment: what to expect if you are asked to work in another clinical area

How and when staff may be moved, and what makes them feel supported in unfamiliar roles

Editorial

Free
Illustration of bullying shows two people, one is aggressive. Giant speech bubble from him weighs heavily on the back of the other person

When ‘banter’ is no laughing matter and should not be tolerated in healthcare workplaces

If a colleague’s behaviour intimidates, belittles or offends, managers must act

Free
Nurse holds nursing journal and tablet computer to read an RCNi Learning module, which will help them fulfil their CPD requirements for revalidation

If you’re worried about your CPD hours, don’t be – we’ve got your back

Revalidation requirements can feel daunting, which is why we’re here to help

Free

Red flags for patient safety: wave them high in the coming election year

Daily safety breaches in the NHS must be taken seriously, not waved away with empty pledges

Free

New NHS uniforms won’t please everyone, but will they help you stand out from the crowd?

Nationally colour-coded designs have yet to win universal praise inside the profession

Free

Nursing Live: here’s why we hope you can join us for our celebration of nurses

Get your ticket to a unique event designed to inspire you, whatever your career stage

Free

Martha’s rule: role nurses will play points to profession’s unique position of trust

Nurses to be central to new process designed to enable families to secure a second opinion

Your views

Illustration showing healthcare staff in different uniforms, representing different professions, standing on top of piles of coins of varying heights, suggesting pay differences between professions

NHS pay: would a separate pay spine benefit nurses?

We ask our readers if a split from Agenda for Change is the best approach

Illustration of nurse sitting on the floor, leaning against a near-empty battery – a metaphor for burnout in nursing

Your mental well-being: why should struggling in your job be seen as a sign of weakness?

As nurses, we often put ourselves last, yet still ‘resilience’ is a stick to beat us with

A year on from NHS industrial action, what has changed for nurses?

After the hard-won pay deal, we ask our readers’ panel how they feel about the dispute now

Will the colourways of the new NHS uniform really help distinguish nurses’ roles?

The colour-coding designed to denote who’s who, has its critics among nurses

What would give you the confidence to speak up against poor practice?

After Letby, nurses are raising concerns about the treatment of those who speak out

Patient confidentiality and sharing patient data in your work WhatsApp group

What safeguards do you need to help you use instant messaging responsibly?

Reviews

Health Communication: Theoretical and critical perspectives

This frank and bold text sets out to dispel assumptions and fill a much-needed gap in health communication literature

Working Together in Clinical Supervision: A Guide for Supervisors and Supervisees

A useful, well-written book primarily aimed at less experienced supervisors and supervisees. It would be most suited to busy mental health professionals seeking an up-to-date and concise text to guide their clinical supervision

Book review: Snowball in a Blizzard: The Tricky Problem of Uncertainty in Medicine

Retired practice development nurse Valerie McGurk reviews Snowball in a Blizzard: The Tricky Problem of Uncertainty in Medicine

Pain: A Sociological Introduction

Individual stories that will resonate with those who experience pain are included in this book, which is a refreshing and easy read while tackling a wide topic in an informative way

Recovery in Mental Health Nursing

The blurb on the back cover says this book is for nurses and other professionals in mental health practice, but the contents are clearly directed towards nursing students

Positive Communication: Activities to reduce isolation and improve the wellbeing of...

Useful activities to help boost confidence, self-esteem and wellbeing in older people

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