Mental health nursing staff are voicing concerns from various clinical and non-clinical backgrounds about the future, role and identity of mental health nursing in the UK.
In recent years mental health nursing professionals have voiced concerns over:
- a perceived deficiencies in pre-registration education
- a lack of opportunities for ongoing professional development beyond preceptorship
- and inadequate mental health workforce planning leading to a system-wide shortage of skilled and experienced mental health nurses.
To date, these concerns have been primarily anecdotal. In February 2023, the RCN mental health forum committee set out to understand the issue and what is causing a devaluation or weaking of mental health. We asked our 14,000-strong forum membership, ‘are we seeing the dilution of mental health nursing?’.
Our findings have led to two key conclusions. Firstly, that getting more involved in campaigning activity already taking place in the RCN could help us build a better future for our discipline; and secondly, that due to the unique position and often undefined nature of mental health nursing we must do more to speak up, and speak out about the expertise and role our profession plays in nursing, and in society.
The questionnaire also sought member views on the three issues they see as most critical facing mental health nursing’s role and identity to identify the priority areas in which we can strategically influence and bolster the position of mental health nursing now and in the future.
Within the space of two weeks, we received a total of 951 responses from members in England (738), Northern Ireland (26), Scotland (104), Wales (67) and other locations within the UK (16). Most members reported seeing the dilution of mental health nursing (63%).
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