Advanced Clinical Practice at the University of Derby
To mark Advanced Care Practitioner (ACP) Week at Joined Up Care Derbyshire, we are publishing this post from Terri Walsh, Senior Lecturer, programme lead for MSc Advanced Clinical Practice (ACP) apprenticeship, College of Health and Social Care, University of Derby.
Why we welcome the regulation of Advanced Practice by the Nursing and Midwifery Council and how this can support the NHS Long Term Workforce plan.
Advanced Practice is under the spotlight with regulation of Nurses and Midwives on the horizon by the NMC. Terri Walsh, Senior Lecturer and Programme Lead for apprentice Advanced Clinical Practice and Donna Brewster, Senior Lecturer and Programme Lead for the non-apprentice route, discuss how regulation can improve confidence in the role.
It is Advanced Practice week across the country, so it is the perfect time to explore what this means in the ever-changing landscape of healthcare in the United Kingdom. The NHS Long Term Workforce Plan in June 2023 has identified advanced practice roles as critical to the NHS workforce and alongside the NMC regulation offers an exciting future for Advanced Practice.
At University of Derby, we are proud of our MSc Advanced Clinical Practice programme which is accredited by NHS England. Donna worked hard to achieve this, it is no mean feat, and it provides our trainees with a ‘digital badge’ that can assure employers and patients of the quality of their training.
We embrace their ambitions in growing the Advanced Practice workforce by 138% by 2031 and work in collaboration with the Derbyshire Faculty for Advancing practice to develop our ACPs to the highest standard locally and influence national strategies.
Advanced Practice Roles
New roles continue to emerge within advanced and enhanced practice. Whilst they are critical to the workforce and the continuation of high-quality healthcare, clarity and standardisation of these roles are required to increase public confidence. Enhanced practitioners are qualified healthcare professionals who have attained specific knowledge and skills within their speciality. It is a stepping stone into an Advanced Clinical Practitioner (ACP) whereby practitioners work autonomously in a wide variety of settings at a senior level. This level of practice is underpinned by an MSc encompassing the four pillars of clinical practice, leadership, education and research set out by Health Education England – Multiprofessional framework for advanced clinical practice in England (2017).
Why is regulation of Advanced Practice important?
There has been growing concern around the regulation and standardisation of advanced practice recently. It is vital we ensure that patient safety and expectational patient care remain at the forefront of our decision making regarding advanced practice, and we welcome the discussions on the introduction of regulation by the Nursing and Midwifery Council (NMC). As it stands the ACP role is at the pinnacle of Advanced Practice, however the term ‘advanced’ is commonly incorrectly applied to job titles which increases confusion and undermines the integrity of the role. It is our hope that the regulation of nurses and midwives by the NMC will provide much needed clarity and reassurance by enforcing a nationally robust, standardised approach to advanced practice. We acknowledge that the Health and Care Professions council (HCPC) have taken a different approach to regulation of advanced practice. However, all regulatory bodies are working together to create a common understanding of Advanced Practice.
Celebrating the Derbyshire Faculty of Advancing Practice
We are very proud to be part of the faculty and welcome the collaboration between employers and the university. Within Derbyshire, upon completion of their MSc, our ACPs must submit their clinical portfolio to the Derbyshire Capability and Academic Reviews of Progress panel (CARP). The panel is made up of Advanced Practice leads across the county creating a robust quality assurance process. We continue to strive to improve and collaborate to standardise quality across Derbyshire and demonstrate best practice.
Advanced Practice has an exciting future, and we look forward to being involved in its development locally and nationally. Find out more about the Advanced Clinical Practitioner Programme here.
