Recently, it seems that Westminster politics has started to resemble that old joke about London buses – you wait ages for a new prime minister, then a whole succession of them come along at once.
Still, while we strive to remain politically neutral at the GPN, it has been refreshing to see that Andy Burnham, the latest holder of the keys to number 10 (or the poisoned chalice, whichever way you choose to look at it), is at least making the right noises about putting social care at the top of his agenda.
General practice nursing is often described as the backbone of primary care. The phrase is familiar, and it is true, but it can also obscure as much as it reveals. Backbones are expected to hold things up. They are rarely seen, seldom thanked, and too often noticed only when they begin to fail. The findings from a recent Queen's Institute of Community Nursing (QICN) national survey of general practice nurses (drawn from responses of over 1,000 nurses working in general practice across the UK) offer a timely and uncomfortable reminder that a highly skilled, deeply committed workforce is being asked to sustain an increasingly complex workload without the infrastructure, recognition, employment conditions or protected time required to do so safely.
Cancer remains one of the leading causes of morbidity and mortality across the UK, with around 1,100 people diagnosed every day (Cancer Research UK, 2026). Early identification is critical to improving outcomes, and primary care is the frontline of that effort. General practice nurses (GPNs) are often the first point of contact for patients presenting with vague, non-specific, or seemingly unrelated symptoms – and their holistic approach places them in a unique position to recognise early warning signs, initiate timely investigations, and support patients through what can be an anxious and uncertain period.
Wonderful to read the article from Steph Lawrence MBE, chief executive, Queen's Institute of Community Nursing, who has not only articulated so clearly the complexity, centrality and importance of the GPN role, but also highlighted the experienced and yet ageing workforce and the potential issues attracting the next generations into general practice nursing. I love my job and the way it has grown over
It is no secret that lung health is in crisis in this country. While there has been a dedicated focus on improving cardiovascular and cancer care, respiratory has lagged, and it is the three million people living with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) in the UK (Whittaker et al, 2025) who are bearing the brunt of this as they struggle to get a diagnosis and optimum care.
Fewer than one in 10 people with COPD (8.8%) surveyed by charity Asthma + Lung UK are receiving the 'five fundamentals' of care recommended by the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE, 2019; Asthma + Lung UK, 2025a). This includes smoking cessation, vaccination, pulmonary rehabilitation (PR), personalised self-management planning and optimised treatment for comorbidities.
General practice nursing is often described as the backbone of primary care. The phrase is familiar, and it is true, but it can also obscure as much as it reveals. Backbones are expected to hold things up. They are rarely seen, seldom thanked, and too often noticed only when they begin to fail. The findings from a recent Queen's Institute of Community Nursing (QICN) national survey of general practice nurses (drawn from responses of over 1,000 nurses working in general practice across the UK) offer a timely and uncomfortable reminder that a highly skilled, deeply committed workforce is being asked to sustain an increasingly complex workload without the infrastructure, recognition, employment conditions or protected time required to do so safely.
General practice nursing is often described as the backbone of primary care. The phrase is familiar, and it is true, but it can also obscure as much as it reveals. Backbones are expected to hold things up. They are rarely seen, seldom thanked, and too often noticed only when they begin to fail. The findings from a recent Queen's Institute of Community Nursing (QICN) national survey of general practice nurses (drawn from responses of over 1,000 nurses working in general practice across the UK) offer a timely and uncomfortable reminder that a highly skilled, deeply committed workforce is being asked to sustain an increasingly complex workload without the infrastructure, recognition, employment conditions or protected time required to do so safely.
