Right Nurse Right Skills Campaign

‘Right Nurse Right Skills’ was launched by the QNI in 2012, to campaign for more investment in the community nursing workforce.

One in four people over the age of 75 need a District Nurse’s care at home, rising to one in two people over 85. In total, they visit more than 2.6 million people a year.

The need for skilled home nursing is rising as the population ages, more people live with long-term conditions, and people are discharged earlier from hospital. Yet the number of trained District Nurses has been falling rapidly for more than a decade.

In addition, lack of capacity in the care home sector and in social care has made it even harder for patients, carers and families who need support through illness. One result of this is that many people remain in hospital far longer than they need to because there is no provision in the community for them to be cared for in their own homes.

Nursing care in the community has also got more complicated. In order to ensure that high quality care is available to everyone, where and when they need it, we need investment in community nursing education, training and workforce. Only this way can we have properly skilled and qualified nurses available at all times – the right nurse, with the right skills.

Nursing at home is not a luxury or an optional extra; it must be at the very core of healthcare. Without a universal home nursing service, hospital discharge is more difficult, other services become overburdened and, most importantly, patients suffer. We need investment in home nursing to make sure patients are able to stay at home, safe, supported, secure and comfortable, and avoid unnecessary and stressful hospital admissions.

The QNI’s Right Nurse, Right Skills campaign is a fundamental inspiration for our policy, education and engagement work.