- Conference
- 2006 Health Care Service Group Conference
- Date
- 22 December 2005
- Decision
- Carried
UNISON’s Nursing Sector has been heavily involved and influential in the recent Chief Nursing Officer (England) Review of Mental Health Nursing. Unison responded at length to the review consultation, making many observations and recommendation that are taken up in the published report. The Nursing Sector provided three representatives to the Reference Panel which assisted in the framing of the consultation, analysis of the findings, and drafting of the recently published report. The resultant commitment to a recovery based model of mental health and mental health services, equality for nurses within multi-disciplinary teams, a positive vision of mental health nurses and a challenge to outdated stereotypes of the role, enhanced career opportunities for all, including health care assistants, linked to attention to learning and skills training in the context of a skills escalator and the KSF are all to be applauded.
The crucial test will be whether the Review has clout in delivering on its recommendations.
Conference is urged to:
1.Fully support the general aims of the review to enhance the role of mental health nursing and improve the status of mental health nurses within teams and in the eyes of the public.
2.Support the specific recommendations of the review that are aimed at improving the quality of mental health services.
3.The National Service Group Executive and Nursing sector should identify those recommendations whose delivery has significant resource implications and campaign for appropriate funding to ensure proper implementation. In addition continue to campaign for the elements of Unison’s contribution that were not taken up or given insufficient emphasis in the final report.