Shaping and delivering the health and care system of the future
The Chief Nursing Officer for England previews her annual summit which will bring together more than 500 nursing and midwifery leaders, academics and patient representatives:
The 2018 CNO Summit, to be held at the Liverpool Arena and Conference Centre on March 7 and 8, will place particular emphasis on the importance of resilient leadership which I have spoken about in detail at several national events.
Leadership resilience is sometimes associated with managing events, incidents or change, yet leaders are met with challenges every day that can tap into their emotions and redirect their attention. This year we have seen a number of devastating incidents across the country and I would particularly like to highlight and thank those NHS staff who responded to the terrorist attacks in Manchester and London, and the horrific fire at Grenfell Tower. Staff clearly demonstrated clinical expertise, compassion and commitment to care for all those directly and indirectly affected. Whether providing a front line service or managing the major incident, staff continue to amaze me with their courage and bravery.
A number of national and international leaders will be speaking at the Summit, providing wide ranging insight into the issues we face across the health and care system, stimulating debate to explore how we can work together to maximise our leadership to influence the design of patient focused services.
An impressive line-up of speakers include Simon Stevens, Chief Executive, NHS England; Annette Kennedy, President of the International Council of Nurses; Elizabeth Iro, Chief Nursing Officer for the World Health Organisation; Professor Linda Aitken, Director of the Center for Health Outcomes and Policy Research, University of Pennsylvania, School of Nursing; and Professor Brian Dolan, the Visiting Professor of Nursing, Oxford Institute for Nursing, Midwifery and Allied Health Research.
Over the coming weeks, a number of speakers from different organisations will be posting blogs, providing insight into what they will talk about, and demonstrating the importance of nursing, midwifery and care staff to deliver positive outcomes for patients.
Finally, you will all be aware of a programme of work I am leading with a number of national organisations to improve the image and perceptions of nursing and midwifery, which I spoke about at my Summit in March 2017.
In July this year, the NHS will turn 70 and in the lead up to and beyond the anniversary, we will be celebrating and showcasing some of the successes and achievements across our professions. At the 2018 CNO Summit we will have a dedicated session that will celebrate how nursing and midwifery has changed over the last 70 years and what we need our future image to look like moving forwards.
We will be running a parallel event as part of our image and perception of nursing programme at the Summit which will bring together hundreds of nurse promoters that will work with schools, colleges, parents and families in their local areas to encourage people to embark on a career in nursing.
I am looking forward to what we can achieve together and I can honestly say I am both proud and privileged to lead such diverse, committed, well- respected and trusted professions.
I would like to thank you all for your support and I look forward to seeing you at my 2018 CNO Summit.
Professor Jane Cummings
Professor Jane Cummings is the Chief Nursing Officer for England and Executive Director at NHS England.
Jane specialised in emergency care and has held a wide variety of roles across the NHS including Director of Commissioning, Director of Nursing and Deputy Chief Executive.
In February 2004, she became the national lead for emergency care agreeing and implementing the 98% operational standard. She has also worked as the nursing advisor for emergency care. In January 2005, she was appointed as the National Implementation Director for ‘Choice’ and ‘Choose and Book’.
Jane moved to NHS North West in November 2007 where she held executive responsibility for the professional leadership of nursing, quality, performance as well as QIPP, commissioning and for a time Deputy Chief Executive Officer. In October 2011, she was appointed to the role of Chief Nurse for the North of England SHA Cluster.
She was appointed as Chief Nursing Officer for England in March 2012 and started full time in June 2012. Jane is the professional lead for all nurses and midwives in England (with the exception of public health) and published the ‘6Cs’ and ‘Compassion in Practice’ in December 2012, followed by publishing the ‘Leading Change, Adding Value’ framework in May 2016.
Jane has executive oversight of maternity, patient experience, learning disability and, in January 2016, became executive lead for Patient and Public Participation.
She was awarded Doctorates by Edge Hill University and by Bucks New University, and she is a visiting professor at Kingston University and St George’s University, London.
She is also Director and trustee for Macmillan Cancer Support and a clinical Ambassador for the Over the Wall Children’s Charity where she volunteers as a nurse providing care for children affected by serious illnesses.
Follow Jane on Twitter: @JaneMCummings.