For 35 years, I’ve researched the nursing workforce, the difference nursing makes to patient care and what the profession needs to thrive. One conclusion is impossible to ignore - nursing has been denied the investment, and support, that the profession so clearly deserves.
We still see a persistent belief that nursing can be done “on the cheap”, that degrees can be shortened; that registered nurses can safely supervise ever growing teams; and that care can be delivered without the depth of specialist nursing education it requires. This slow erosion has been happening for far too long, chipping away at the foundations of safe, skilled and effective nursing.
And every day we see the consequences - from corridor care to understaffed nursing homes, and community caseloads that stretch far beyond what teams can reasonably manage.
It’s up to us to raise the bar. And to do that, we need to turn your lived experiences into data, into evidence, into action. Our asks you tell us what your last shift was like - the pressures you faced, the compromises you had to make, and the support you did - or didn’t - receive.
By sharing your experiences, we can build a collective picture that policymakers will find hard to ignore. We’ll use your responses to strengthen our case for safe staffing legislation, for better working conditions, for investment in nursing education, and for protecting the profession itself.
As the Director of the RCN Institute, I’m in a position to help drive change. But let’s be clear: this isn’t about adding icing to the cake of an already healthy profession. It’s about rebuilding the foundations so nursing can thrive. Professional nursing is at a pivotal moment, and things will only improve if we act together.
So, it falls to us to turn the tide. We must be bold again. We must reassert the standards that protect both nursing staff and patients. We must demand the education, the staffing, the development, the working conditions, and the basic dignity that nursing requires. Not because it is convenient, but because it is essential.
So I am asking you - whether you are a nurse, a student, a midwife, or a nursing support worker - to take part. . Encourage fellow RCN members to do the same, because every single response adds weight to the argument we must make together.
I have only a few more years in my career where I can give my all to this mission. But it will take more than one person, or one organisation. Nursing needs a collective voice, united and unshakeable, determined to secure its future.
Together, we can bring it back to where it needs to be.
We still see a persistent belief that nursing can be done “on the cheap”, that degrees can be shortened; that registered nurses can safely supervise ever growing teams; and that care can be delivered without the depth of specialist nursing education it requires. This slow erosion has been happening for far too long, chipping away at the foundations of safe, skilled and effective nursing.
And every day we see the consequences - from corridor care to understaffed nursing homes, and community caseloads that stretch far beyond what teams can reasonably manage.
It’s up to us to raise the bar. And to do that, we need to turn your lived experiences into data, into evidence, into action. Our asks you tell us what your last shift was like - the pressures you faced, the compromises you had to make, and the support you did - or didn’t - receive.
By sharing your experiences, we can build a collective picture that policymakers will find hard to ignore. We’ll use your responses to strengthen our case for safe staffing legislation, for better working conditions, for investment in nursing education, and for protecting the profession itself.
As the Director of the RCN Institute, I’m in a position to help drive change. But let’s be clear: this isn’t about adding icing to the cake of an already healthy profession. It’s about rebuilding the foundations so nursing can thrive. Professional nursing is at a pivotal moment, and things will only improve if we act together.
So, it falls to us to turn the tide. We must be bold again. We must reassert the standards that protect both nursing staff and patients. We must demand the education, the staffing, the development, the working conditions, and the basic dignity that nursing requires. Not because it is convenient, but because it is essential.
So I am asking you - whether you are a nurse, a student, a midwife, or a nursing support worker - to take part. . Encourage fellow RCN members to do the same, because every single response adds weight to the argument we must make together.
I have only a few more years in my career where I can give my all to this mission. But it will take more than one person, or one organisation. Nursing needs a collective voice, united and unshakeable, determined to secure its future.
Together, we can bring it back to where it needs to be.
