• To understand the role of clinical skills facilitators in staff education and development
• To recognise the role of nurse leaders in supporting staff development and influencing ward culture
• To consider the potential of clinical skills facilitators to improve job satisfaction and retention among children’s nurses
Clinical skills facilitators are experienced nurses responsible for staff education and support in a clinical area, where they are employed supernumerary to the team. This article discusses the implementation and evaluation of a pilot clinical skills facilitator role on a medical ward in a children’s hospital in an NHS trust in England, aimed at improving the retention of nursing staff.
A baseline survey was conducted at the start of the pilot and a follow-up survey was conducted at the end, nine months later. The surveys contained ten statements about three factors important for staff retention: clinical skills, job satisfaction and well-being at work. Improvements were seen in all ten statements and a review of staff retention data showed that no member of staff had left the ward in the year of pilot implementation, compared with four the year before. The development of clinical skills facilitator roles on children’s wards is therefore of potential benefit for staff retention.
Nursing Children and Young People. 33, 5, 12-17. doi: 10.7748/ncyp.2021.e1358
Peer reviewThis article has been subject to open peer review and checked for plagiarism using automated software
Correspondence Conflict of interestNone declared
Dowers H (2021) Can a clinical skills facilitator improve staff retention in a children’s hospital? Nursing Children and Young People. doi: 10.7748/ncyp.2021.e1358
Published online: 19 April 2021
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