At the annual Chief Nursing Officer’s Summit in Birmingham earlier this week, the Chief Nursing Officer Jane Cummings reflected on the past year, since the publication of the Compassion in Practice strategy;
“The aim [of the strategy] was to get back to the very essence of what great care means for patients and how we can put far reaching changes in place that translate into real improvements for our patients and the staff who care for them.
“We have listened to patients and staff in developing the 6Cs (Care, Compassion, Competence, Communication, Courage, and Commitment). Over the last year I have witnessed a widescale, positive embrace of the 6Cs as a set of values; the likes of which I have never seen before. It has re-instilled a common purpose and recharged pride in the profession.”
The report ‘Compassion in Practice: One Year On’ outlines the impact that the nursing, midwifery and care strategy has had since its publication, and also includes a number of patient and staff stories and case studies – such as the one featured alongside this article.
Absolute transparency is the key
In her speech, Jane Cummings also called for further improvements in care standards and transparency and the creation of a culture of empowerment in the nursing and midwifery profession, saying: “Absolute transparency is the key to driving improvements in standards of care. We need to ensure that every single patient receives great care, every time.”
She added: “Going forward, we need to ensure that excellent practice and culture is embedded in all corners of the health and care service. Our profession is the admiration of many. We see people at their most vulnerable and we have a duty to always act with compassion for our patients and act with the courage to challenge anything that goes against this. Each one of us in the profession needs to ensure that we live by these principles each and every day.”
The Nursing Officer also called for more nurses to join the 6Cs Live! social media network, launched earlier this year, with the aim of creating the largest nursing social media network in NHS history.
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