Introduction
In January 2016, I embarked on a journey of self-discovery through the Florence Nightingale Foundation (FNF) Emerging Leaders Scholarship. This bespoke programme has facilitated my personal and professional development beyond my expectations. The primary focus has been on advancing my leadership skills through deep reflection, increasing emotional intelligence, cultivating political awareness and increasing presence and influence. The scholarship has enabled me to widen my professional network across professions, organisations, the United Kingdom and the Atlantic!
My cohort are the first Emerging Leaders Scholarship recipients and the inclusion of a 6-day Leadership Programme, as a compulsory element, was incredibly supportive. It enabled a close-knit network to be established early in the scholarship year which provided advice and inspiration. The bespoke learning and development programme undertaken through the scholarship has been a wonderful experience. The experiential learning elements have been invaluable in increasing my self-awareness and confidence. Conferences, international visits and the Caritas Coach Education Program (CCEP) have further supported my personal and professional growth.
Learning and Development
Two aspects of the compulsory Leadership Program made the strongest impact on me, namely the ‘NHS Care Jigsaw’ and ‘Personal Presence & Impact’. Cumberlege Eden & Partners facilitated the ‘NHS Care Jigsaw’ day which was extremely helpful in unpicking the political landscape of health. The role play was invaluable in helping bring issues to life and expose the complexities of senior leadership in the NHS. ‘Personal Presence & Impact’ was facilitated by the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art (RADA) in Business and the role plays from this element of the course enabled powerful learning. Both sessions were hugely valuable and have contributed to the development of my personal presence and influence.
During April to September 2016 I completed the Caritas Coach Education Program (CCEP). The CCEP is facilitated by the University of Colorado and is based on Jean Watson’s Theory of Human Caring (Caring Science). The theory is supported by a framework of 10 Caritas ProcessesTM and places a strong emphasis on the caring and healing elements of nursing. Whilst the curative medical side of healthcare is important, Watson’s theory supports re-alignment of the balance between curative and carative practices thus promoting holistic and compassionate care. The model is applicable across all care settings and within mental health and learning disability services supports our approaches to person centred and recovery focussed care, compassionate practice and the importance of staff health and well-being. It also aligns to the Five Year Forward View (2015) aspirations of promoting prevention and putting patients at the centre of their care. Through the program I have met inspirational nurses and healthcare practitioners, including Jean Watson, allowing me to develop a network across the United States, Canada and Australia. The program has also given me insight into how different healthcare models work and helped me gain a global perspective on the challenges facing healthcare and nursing.
Patient Care Improvement Project
In May 2016, I changed roles and moved to a new organisation. I agreed my FNF project with my new Director of Nursing (DoN) whilst working my notice in my previous organisation. Within my new Trust the development of a robust nursing strategy, to strengthen nursing and therefore improve patient outcomes, was key to progressing the profession in an organisation where nurse leadership had been tumultuous in recent years. Therefore, I agreed with the DoN that I would investigate the viability of 2 established frameworks and how they could support the achievement of this vision; firstly, the Magnet Program and secondly Jean Watson’s Theory of Human Caring. Alongside this I would support the development of the nursing strategy and subsequently lead on the implementation.
During my scholarship year, I visited Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH) and Brigham & Women’s (B&W), these are both high performing healthcare providers within Boston. These visits were informative and thought provoking. MGH have been a Magnet accredited organisation since 2003. B&W’s are on the journey to Magnet accreditation and as part of this have adopted Jean Watson’s Theory of Human Caring as their professional practice model.
Through the CCEP program I explored Caring Science Theory in depth. My visit to B&W enabled me to witness how they embed Caring Science into practice. The model has expanded beyond nursing, with other healthcare professionals adopting this way of being to practise mindfully, improving patient care and experience. I believe introducing Caring Science as a professional practice model is supportive of both practitioners and patients.
Work on my trust’s nursing strategy commenced prior to me joining the organisation. Once in post I was able to support the development of the strategy and I now lead on the implementation. During our recent Care Quality Commission (CQC) comprehensive inspection nurses reported feeling valued, listened to and motivated. The development of the nursing strategy has contributed to this; the drive now is to harness these feelings and build upon them during implementation, contributing to continuous improvement in nursing and thus patient care and experience. The nursing strategy has provided a framework to continuously develop the nursing profession within my organisation. The 3 year strategy is supported by an annual workplan, the use of a workplan ensures clear outcome measures are identified and therefore the impact of the nursing strategy can be measured. There is enthusiasm amongst our nurses in taking this forward and this has resulted in a stronger sense of professional identity within nursing. Strengthening this sense of professional identity is already having a positive impact on nurse retention and development.
Article for publication
In taking forward the requirement to write an article for publication, my intention is to focus the article on Caring Science and the potential impact on organisations adopting this theory as their professional practice model. This will share my learning and raise awareness of the theory within the UK where the model is less well known.
Reflection
The scholarship has had a significant impact on my personal and professional development. I have taken the expansive learning from the range of experiences the scholarship has afforded me and I am integrating these into my professional and personal life. The most impactful experience has been exploring Caring Science as a professional practice model. This took me on a deeply reflective 6-month journey developing a Caritas consciousness and has led me to promoting the vision of developing a Caritas Culture organisationally. Adopting Caring Science as a professional model values nurses, promotes self-care and resilience and ultimately enhances patient care and experience; this is my vision and will be a wonderful legacy from a wonderful scholarship year.