On the fifth anniversary of nursing associates joining the Nursing and Midwifery Council register in 2019, we now have more than 1,100 working across the NHS in the North West.

The innovative pathway into the NHS helps bridge a gap between healthcare assistants and registered nurses, and provides a career pathway into becoming a registered nurse.

Nina Thwaite, who works for Wellfield Health Centre in Rochdale, was a single mum in her early 40s when she applied to join a nursing associate course.

Having started off as a prescribing clerk, Nina was always passionate about working with people. It was, however, only when she trained in phlebotomy that she “truly fell in love with working closely with patients.”

She said: “It was like a light had been switched on in me and I knew then that I wanted to work towards becoming more clinical and be in a position to really make a difference to my patients.

“I absolutely love the relationships you develop with your patients in primary care, you feel like you can truly influence and help their health and wellbeing outcomes and over time you build a connection with your patients where they really put their trust in you.

“The feelings and emotions that go along with the programme are truly like a rollercoaster. It’s one of the hardest things I’ve ever done in my life so far but equally one of the most rewarding.”

Initially, Nina doubted herself. “I thought I was too old to study and met plenty of obstacles along the way. Yes, it’s hard work and takes commitment and sacrifices but it’s absolutely worth it all,” she said.

Increasing the number of routes into the nursing professions is a key part of growing the workforce to achieve the ambitions laid out in the NHS Long Term Workforce Plan.

The plan has pledged to grow the number of nursing associates across the country to 64,000 full-time equivalents by 2036/37.

To achieve this, the NHS will expand the number of training places. The North West has already seen 600 student nursing associates start on programmes in 2022 and 750 in 2023.

Sophia Hardy had been a dental nurse for over seven years and wanted a change. She is now a trainee nursing associate at Liverpool University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, having started the programme in September 2022.

She said: “I wanted to help people who needed it the most and challenge myself academically. I had experience working with patients in different types of dental settings, and I had also previously worked within the A&E department during covid, my role there was to swab all patients for covid. This gave me more of an insight into how the hospitals work and I was inspired to work within the hospital setting to look after poorly and vulnerable patients.

“I have enjoyed the programme. There have been times where it has tested me and my resilience, opening me up to things that I have never done or seen before and somehow, I have turned it all into positive outcomes and ways of learning. I have challenged myself academically and I have managed to achieve all my assessments so far, which I have surprised myself with.”

During her training, Sophia has already worked in cardiology and at an emergency surgical assessment unit. She is now working in nephrology and will then move on to A&Es for her next placement.

She said: “It has been amazing to gain an insight in how different these settings are and the challenges they face. It is great to see how dedicated the staff are to all their patients and families and carers. Each placement has given me new experiences, some are good, and some are a little more stressful than others, but it makes you grow as a person and expands your knowledge in things that may come in handy in the future.”

On completion of her programme, Sophia intends to work as a qualified nursing associate for a year, build confidence and then join the top up programme to become a registered nurse.

“It has been five years since the nursing associate role was first introduced. The role has made a huge contribution in caring for our patients and their families. Nursing associates work with people of all ages, in a variety of settings in health and social care. The role contributes to the core work of nursing, freeing up registered nurses to focus on more complex clinical care.

“It’s also a great way for people to develop in their healthcare career and progress to become registered nurses. The majority of trainee nursing associates in the North West are completing the programme as an apprenticeship, supported by their employers. These are in a wide range of settings, that include NHS Trusts, Mental Health and Learning Disability settings, social care providers, primary care and hospices.

“Across the country we are looking to expand this vital part of the nursing workforce as part of the NHS Long Term Workforce plan by doubling the number of those starting on programmes by 2031.”