Redesign of community nursing services launched

The Department of Health today announced the funding of eight new pilot projects, which will test the strategic thinking and reshaping of future community nursing services in Northern Ireland.

Speaking at the launch of the ‘Redesign of Community Nursing Services’, Permanent Secretary to the Department, Clive Gowdy, said the projects would provide "a direction and a framework to inform redesign of community nursing services, as well as form part of wider HPSS reform”.

Chief Nursing Officer for Northern Ireland, Judith Hill, who chaired the launch, added: “In Northern Ireland, we propose to develop a model for community nursing that meets the specific needs of the population. We wish to develop a workforce that is supported and equipped to respond to the increasing demands of first contact care, ongoing care and chronic disease management, while always underpinning this with a public health approach.”

The principles underpinning all of the activity are to ensure that Northern Ireland will have a community nursing service for primary care that:

Eight pilot projects, two in each board area, have been funded to test the strategic thinking outlined in the November 2003 position paper.

A Project Director, Siobhan Rooney, and Project Officer, Loretta Gribben, have been appointed to the Nursing and Midwifery Advisory Group to drive the initiative.

(MB)