GPN education Resources

Transforming Roles is a flagship programme of work in Scotland. It aims to provide strategic oversight, direction and governance to develop and transform nursing, midwifery and allied health professional (NMAHP) roles to meet the current and future needs of Scotland’s health and care system. It also ensures that there is a nationally consistent, sustainable education and career pathway approach so that practitioners are appropriately prepared for new and enhanced roles. NHS Education Scotland (NES) provides strategic oversight and works in collaboration with key stakeholders to lead education development to support the Transforming Roles agenda.

General practice nursing is unique in both its skill set and employment. The knowledge and skills required to be a GPN are not taught in pre-registration nursing courses, nor are they evident in other areas of nursing. GPNs perform varied and important roles with increasing responsibility. However, training for this role can be inconsistent, as individual GPNs negotiate it at practice level. This inconsistency has been highlighted in several reports. To address this, the Cheshire and Merseyside Training Hub has developed a one-year preceptorship course for new GPNs. The training is structured, uniform, and accredited by a university. The Hub also provides support from experienced GPNs. While the course has been successful, it has not been without challenges. Future efforts should focus on navigating these challenges and reconsidering the employment framework for GPNs to ensure consistent education.

New framework opens the way for GPN education and career pathways. 

For many years, access to education and career development for general practice nurses (GPNs) has been variable and ad hoc depending on where individuals worked in the country and the general practice settings in which they worked. In my own experience as a GPN, even though I had access to clinical education, to be able to act out leadership with new-found knowledge and skills and to make changes for patients in my care, meant leaving general practice and looking to primary care in the mainstream NHS to fulfil these career aspirations.