Six frontline clinicians at Leicestershire Partnership NHS Trust (LPT) have completed the Director of Nursing fellowship programme to enhance the quality of care they provide, using an evidence-based approach.
The bespoke fellowship programme was launched in 2021 to support band 5 nurses to develop clinical excellence, clinical academic awareness and skills at an early stage of their careers.
| Claire Clarke-Green, complex care nurse
Pictured seventh |
Claire’s project looked at staff training and patient support of Ekomove turning system to reduce pressure ulcers in community nursing.
Initial quality improvement results following the programme suggest a positive result for the patients in reducing pressure damage. |
| Faith Tipper, staff nurse
Pictured third |
Faith’s project looked at the impact of inpatient ward information technology systems on frontline nursing staff.
Project findings informed numerous recommendations to improve IT on the ward, which is likely to have a positive impact on staff health, job satisfaction and nurse efficiency. |
| Danielle Mantle, staff nurse
Not pictured |
Danielle’s project explored the development of an induction package for new clinical staff on Langley Ward (eating disorders service).
A draft induction package has been produced to support the onboarding of staff, and is being piloted with new colleagues to gather feedback. |
| Eva Kwarteng, community learning disability nurse
Pictured sixth |
Eva’s project aimed to minimise the number of re-referrals in community learning disability nursing through the review of nursing intervention and discharge process.
The quality improvement project found that involving people with learning disabilities in discharge planning is likely to minimise re-referral to CLDN service. |
| Kelly Barber, mental health practitioner
Pictured fifth |
Kelly’s project looked at improving the continuity of care within the crisis resolution and home treatment team.
The project has helped to build the foundations for change to key working practices and established a new and improved standard. |
| Daniel Gaughan, staff nurse
Pictured fourth |
Daniel’s project aimed to improve the quality of communication between ward staff, patients, their families and carers on a male dementia ward.
Despite challenges throughout the year, the project has made progress and considerable changes are being introduced. |
At a special celebration event on 29 September 2022, Anne Scott, director of nursing, allied health professions and quality said:
“I am so proud that our first DoN fellows are graduating today! I’ve been very impressed with the quality improvement projects that they’ve undertaken and more importantly I’ve seen them all grow into confident and curious practitioners. The programme created the space and time to engage and develop our front-line clinicians to deliver quality care, whilst respecting the time and resource required to create and develop an evidence-based approach to patient care.”
LPT also invited Prof. Laura Serrant OBE, regional head of nursing and midwifery at Health Education England, to deliver a keynote address about ‘nurses as leaders’ at the event.
The trust has launched cohort two of the programme, which will now include colleagues from both nursing and allied health professions (AHPs) as the ‘Director of Nursing/AHP fellowship programme’. The programme will continue to focus fellows on what good clinical leadership looks like, delivery of effective and efficient quality care, and continuous improvement.