General practice nurses (GPNs) are being encouraged to highlight their strengths and negotiate development opportunities with their employer as part of a new network hoping to raise the profile of the profession.
In an interview with Nursing in Practice, lead of the Queen’s Nursing Institute’s (QNI) new GPN Network Angie Hack said it was her mission to help practice nurses ‘reflect on who they are and what they represent’ and to support those among the profession to promote their value.
Inspiring the practice nurse workforce
Last year, the QNI launched a GPN Network to help ‘raise the profile and voice’ of practice nurses – with more than 600 GPNs across England, Wales and Northern Ireland signing up in the first few weeks.
The network has since held its first webinar, on menopause and primary care, and welcomed hundreds of members into its closed Facebook group to discuss both the joys of the role and what needs to change.
Ms Hack is a Queen’s Nurse, former district nurse, assistant director of primary care nursing programmes and lead of the GPN Network at the QNI.
She told Nursing in Practice that some among the profession can be cautious to discuss their strengths, and that inconsistent education and training opportunities often stop GPNs from feeling valued and recognised day to day.
‘As nurses, we’re not always encouraged to talk about our strengths, and that’s something I work on quite a lot, to encourage nurses to reflect on who they are and what they represent,’ she said.
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Despite having a wealth of training and expertise, often including master’s degrees and other post-graduate training, Ms Hack said ‘speaking up’ and getting recognised can be ‘hard’ for GPNs.
‘Especially if they’re the only GPN in their practice, it’s a potentially very lonely place,’ she explained.
As GP practices are run as individual businesses, Ms Hack said practice nurses can be especially fearful of ‘rocking the boat’ and challenging the practice management that they work so closely with.
Acknowledging the challenges independent working can present when raising concerns, Ms Hack believed general practice is still ‘a fantastic work environment’ to develop as an autonomous practitioner and hopes the network will tackle these challenges by inspiring confidence in practice nurses.
‘With the right support and opportunities, you develop the most unique role that provides essential support and care to population health needs,’ she said.
‘There’s a disparity of value’
While some university courses include an ‘introduction’ to general practice nursing, or offer a GPN specialist practice qualification, this has never been made mandatory in the UK.
Ms Hack says this has contributed the ‘lack of recognition’ of the GPN role, ‘as the value of this is not always understood’.
‘There is at times little encouragement or perception of the need to develop the GPN specialist practice qualification (SPQ), as the value of this is not always understood,’ she explained.
‘Within general practice you work for a business and so it’s individualised, and you’ve got practices who promote the value of general practice nursing and those that do not, so there’s a disparity of opportunity [and] a disparity of value.’
Training in practices
Beyond GPN training after university, there is also no standardisation in the training and development opportunities that GPNs receive while working in practices.
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‘It’s very varied and disparate. Conditions and opportunities can vary, and practices can be completely different, even if they’re just down the road from one another,’ said Ms Hack.
‘It’s quite incredible and it’s never been addressed.’
She explained how – given this – the GPN Network is a key tool for teaching GPNs how to ‘negotiate’ with their practice, including on opportunities for development.
‘I discuss with GPNs about negotiating with their practice to improve opportunities however, there is definitely an anxiety among practice nurses around negotiating with their employer because they work so directly with them, and it often isn’t clear what is required of them.’
Earlier this month, an exclusive Nursing in Practice survey revealed that over a third of GPNs spend one hour or less on training per week.
Calls for a deanery
Ms Hack said a deanery for general practice nurses is needed to for ‘parity of education and practice’ to ‘become the norm’ amongst the GPN workforce, as with DNs.
Earlier this month, an independent evaluation of the GPN Foundation School in Staffordshire by the QNI found it was ‘driving change’ and working to develop a ‘national culture’ for the training and development of the profession.
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Discussing the QNI’s evaluation, Ms Hack said the school – launched in 2023 – should be taken as ‘the gold standard’ for improving the consistency of education and practice for GPNs nationally.
‘By having a consistent approach to education and practice of GPNs from the outset, this would raise the level of value and respect of the role,’ she said.
Those behind the GPN Foundation School in Staffordshire are currently calling for a deanery for the profession, to remove the ‘ad hoc nature’ of recruitment and education of nurses working in primary care.
The GPN Network is next meeting on Tuesday 4 May 2025 to discuss ‘long term conditions’ with speakers and attendees from general practice nursing.
