The vital role of nursing associates

The dangers of a diminishing community nursing workforce have been highlighted in many reports (NHS Pay Review Body, 2018; Health Foundation, 2019). Since 2009, there have been significant falls in the numbers of nurses working within community health services, with increased pressure to provide more complex care closer to home. There is now a major drive to implement a new role to support the nursing workforce—that of nursing associates. The number of new nursing associates is projected to increase by 50% in 2019, with 7500 new nursing associates starting on a programme over the year (NHS England, 2019).

The nursing associate role is designed to stand alone alongside the registered nurse workforce; it aims to support but not substitute the registered nurse. Trainee nursing associates (TNAs) undertake a 2-year apprenticeship and, on successful completion, they will join the Nursing and Midwifery Council (NMC) as registrants regulated by a professional code of practice that was updated in 2018 to include this new role (NMC, 2018a).