Dr Carole McKenna, Senior Professional Officer
In 2022, the CNO asked NIPEC to undertake a programme of work to inform the strategic direction and future needs of Advanced Nursing Practice in Northern Ireland.
The Advanced Nursing Practice Framework: Supporting Advanced Nursing Practice in Health and Social Care Trusts (DHSSPS, 2016) was launched to enable a strategic and consistent approach to the development and implementation of the Advanced Nurse Practitioner role in Northern Ireland.
An MSc Advanced Nursing Practice programme was subsequently commissioned, co-produced and delivered from 2017, underpinned by the Advanced Nursing Practice Framework and funded by the DoH.
To meet the project aim, a Steering Group was convened by Dr Carole McKenna, NIPEC Project Lead and chaired by Donna Keenan, Executive Director of Nursing, Primary Care & Older People’s Services, Western HSC Trust.
An analysis of Advanced Nursing Practice was undertaken which included the following:
- a review of the existing education requirements and delivery model of the ANP education programme in NI;
- engagement with relevant stakeholders, including the NMC to ensure alignment of future regulatory NMC requirements; a scoping of ANP programmes across the UK and ROI to inform the project report;
- engagement with stakeholders to make recommendations regarding changes to the education requirements and ANP programme delivery, reflective of the future needs of the profession, that can be used to inform and support the annual education commissioning cycle;
- exploration of current evaluation of ANP programmes in terms of educational priorities, processes and outcomes along with the potential for cost benefit analysis;
- exploration how current arrangements link in with existing career frameworks;
- a review of the current ANP Framework to reflect the outcomes from the work above.
Click on the right hand margin to view all the relevant project documents and Steering Group agendas and notes.