KGH receives award for way it supports new nurses

Kettering General Hospital has received a national quality award for the way it supports new nurses.

The hospital has successfully achieved a National Preceptorship for Nursing Quality Mark from the National Workforce Skills Development Unit.

It is one of only 28 hospital trusts in England to achieve the status – part of a new way the NHS is trying to improve support for newly qualified nurses to help them get started in their NHS careers.

KGH’s learning environment lead nurse, Wendy Goode, said: “Preceptorship means the hospital has a structured programme in place for supporting newly qualified nurses, nursing associates, and nurses from overseas, in their transition to working in the UK.

“It means we give them a specific 12-month programme of support from the moment they arrive.

“We know some nurses find the transition from the academic environment to a complex and demanding work environment as challenging and potentially overwhelming.

“And for overseas nurses there is the additional pressure of language and culture and living and working in a new country.

“Our preceptorship programme helps us to address this by creating a very supportive environment where we can answer any question that they have, help them to fully understand their role, how they fit into the team, and how to work with patients.

“It helps us to build their confidence and competence and shows that as a trust we really value and support nurses in every way we can. It is about giving them the best possible support in their careers.”

Director of nursing, midwifery and allied health professionals, Jayne Skippen, said: “I am absolutely delighted that we have achieved the National Preceptorship Quality Mark for Nursing.

“We have a very robust preceptorship programme that meets the National Nursing Framework requirements and demonstrates that we have a structured way that we support newly qualified professionals and allow them to translate their knowledge into everyday practice.

“Our aim at KGH is to always give our new nurses and nursing associates the very best start in their careers and then continue to support them on that journey.

“I want to thank our preceptorship team for the excellent way they deliver the programme – which has already reached more than 500 new staff since 2019.”