Be curious. You can find similarities, differences, and opportunities

Andrea Stebbings 17 Nov 2022

The role of Professional Advocacy is an emerging role across the whole of nursing. Due to some of the sub-specialisms and realms of practice colleagues can feel that some of the challenges that they face are unique. Learning together can strengthen our sense of belonging and our professional identity.

I am fortunate to be our HEI Lead for Professional Midwifery and Professional Nurse Advocacy (PMA/ PNA). Here experienced nurses and midwives are able to learn and share their experiences in practice as they grow in a leadership role.

This is central to NHS England advancement of A-EQUIP, Advocating for Education and Quality Improvement in Practice; a model for supervision. A-EQUIP reflects Proctor’s (1986) model of, formative (education), normative (monitoring) and restorative (well-being) and adds a fourth function for quality improvement.

What never ceases to amaze me is how within our job roles, areas of registration, fields of practice and different organisations we have so much to learn and share with from one another. Often, we do not realise how others have dealt with and approached the challenges that we are currently facing. Neither do we realise that there are so many shared opportunities and together there is a collective strength.

Curiosity and creating new critical friends affords many to harness their creativity, giving them the confidence to find their voice in their organisation.

In my privileged position, I am inspired by the willingness that I see in wanting to learn with and from one another. That is whilst never losing sight of individual person-centred care and the passion to strengthen and develop not only themselves but their colleagues and places of work.

So, I challenge you to check in and learn more about others alongside you. Hear their stories and be brave and curious about all the people in your organisation. Be curious about the systems and processes and as your curiosity grows this will enable you to learn from one another. This will not only benefit the service users that you work alongside, yourself, but your whole professional community.

NHS England (2017) A-EQUIP a model for clinical midwifery supervision
NHS England (2021) Professional nurse Advocate A-EQUIP Model: A Model of Clinical Supervision for Nurses
Proctor, B., (1986) Supervision: A Cooperative Exercise in Accountability in: Marken, M., Payne, M. (eds.) Enabling and Ensuring – supervision
in practice National Youth Bureau, Council for Education and Training in Youth and Community Work. Leicester, UK

Andrea Stebbings

Midwifery Lecturer, University of Plymouth

Andrea has worked for many years clinically, in education and professional regulation. Her practise is currently in education and as a Professional Midwifery Advocate.