Potential occupational standard
Occupational standard in development
Approved occupational standard
Occupational standard without apprenticeship
Custom occupational card
Apprenticeship
Higher Technical Qualification
T Level
Technical Qualification
Career starter apprenticeship
Royal apprenticeship
Occupational progression
Technical education progression
Mid green occupation
Dark green occupation
Favourite occupation
View glossary of terms
home Health and science
Nursing associate

Nursing associate

Health and science

Level 5 - Higher Technical Occupation

Providing care for people of all ages and from different backgrounds, cultures and beliefs.

Print to PDF View occupation in map

Reference: OCC0827

Status: assignment_turned_inApproved occupation

Average (median) salary: £25,079 per year

SOC 2020 code: 3213 Medical and dental technicians

SOC 2020 sub unit groups:

  • 3213/06 Nursing associates
  • 6131/01 Blood donor carers and phlebotomists
  • 6131/03 Maternity care assistants
  • 6131/04 Occupational therapy assistants
  • 6131/05 Physiotherapy assistants
  • 6131/06 Radiography assistants
  • 6131/07 Speech and language therapy assistants
  • 6131/08 Sterile services assistants
  • 6131/09 Theatre assistants (excludes entertainment)

Technical Education Products

ST0827:

Nursing associate (NMC 2018)

(Level 5)

Approved for delivery

Employers involved in creating the standard:

Berkshire Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust, Cambridgeshire and Peterborough NHS Trust, Gateshead NHS Trust, Great Ormond Street NHS Foundation Trust, Hallmark Care Homes, Haringey CCG, Hillingdon Hospital NHS Foundation Trust, Ipswich Hospital NHS Trust, Mersey Care NHS Foundation Trust, North Bristol NHS Trust, NHS Harrogate and Rural District CCG, Solent NHS Trust, South West London & St Georges Mental Health NHS Trust, St Christopher’s Hospice, Walsall Healthcare NHS Trust, Western Sussex Hospitals NHS Trust, Woodland and Hill Brow Ltd, Worcestershire Health & Care NHS Trust

Summary

This is a new occupation introduced into the health and care workforce to bridge the gap between health and care assistants and registered nurses. Nursing associate is a stand-alone role that will also provide a progression route into graduate level nursing. It’s intended that the role will enable registered nurses to focus on more complex clinical duties. Nursing associates work in the public, independent and voluntary sectors and it is a statutorily regulated profession. The standards for proficiency are set by the Nursing and Midwifery Council (NMC). Successful completion of this apprenticeship will meet the education requirements for registration with the NMC. This standard covers the NMC Standards for Proficiency and Annexes A & B for nursing associates (October 2018).

The broad purpose of the occupation is to provide care for people of all ages and from different backgrounds, cultures and beliefs. Nursing associates may provide care for people who have mental, physical, cognitive and behavioural care needs. They may provide care for people in their own home, in the community or hospital or in any health care settings where their needs are supported and managed. Nursing associates work in the context of continual change, challenging environments, different models of care delivery, shifting demographics, innovation and rapidly evolving technologies. Increasing integration of health and social care services will require nursing associates to play an active role in multidisciplinary teams.

Nursing associates contribute to the promotion of health, health protection and the prevention of ill health. They do this by empowering people and communities to exercise choice, take control of their own health decisions and behaviours and by supporting people to manage their own care where possible. In their daily work, an employee in this occupation interacts with a variety of service users, families and carers, and with an extensive range of health and care professionals and other agencies including social services, police, probation, prisons, housing, education, language interpreters and third sector agencies. They might be working in a health, social care or public health provider and may work various shift patterns which enable care to be provided 24 hours per day, seven days per week, 365 days of the year. This is a new role and it is expected that nursing associates will become a key part of the team to meet the integrated health and care needs of patients and service users.

An employee in this occupation will be responsible for providing care for people of all ages and from different backgrounds, cultures and beliefs. They must be able to care for people in their own home, in the community or hospital or in any care settings where their needs are supported and managed. All nursing associates will work as part of a team but on a day to day basis they may be working alone when seeing people in their own homes or in the community. They work in the context of continual change, challenging environments, different models of care delivery, an older and more diverse population, innovation and rapidly evolving technologies. Increasing integration of health and social care services will require nursing associates to negotiate boundaries and play an important role in multidisciplinary teams. The confidence to apply knowledge and skills and provide evidence based, direct nursing care therefore lies at the centre of all nursing associate practice.

Nursing associates must be emotionally intelligent and resilient individuals, able to manage their own personal health and well-being, recognise boundaries of their practice and know when and how to access support.

Employers involved in creating the standard:

Berkshire Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust, Cambridgeshire and Peterborough NHS Trust, Gateshead NHS Trust, Great Ormond Street NHS Foundation Trust, Hallmark Care Homes, Haringey CCG, Hillingdon Hospital NHS Foundation Trust, Ipswich Hospital NHS Trust, Mersey Care NHS Foundation Trust, North Bristol NHS Trust, NHS Harrogate and Rural District CCG, Solent NHS Trust, South West London & St Georges Mental Health NHS Trust, St Christopher’s Hospice, Walsall Healthcare NHS Trust, Western Sussex Hospitals NHS Trust, Woodland and Hill Brow Ltd, Worcestershire Health & Care NHS Trust

Typical job titles include:

Nursing associate
Nursing associate is a protected title and may only be used by someone on the Nursing and Midwifery Council register

Keywords:

Care
Health
Medicine
Nurse
Nursing
Pracitioner
Science

Knowledge, skills and behaviours (KSBs)

K1: Understand the Code: Professional standards of practice and behaviour for nurses, midwives and nursing associates (NMC, 2018), and how to fulfill all registration requirements
K2: Understand the demands of professional practice and demonstrate how to recognise signs of vulnerability in themselves or their colleagues and the action required to minimise risks to health
K3: Understand the professional responsibility to adopt a healthy lifestyle to maintain the level of personal fitness and well-being required to meet people’s needs for mental and physical care
K4: Understand the principles of research and how research findings are used to inform evidence-based practice
K5: Understand the meaning of resilience and emotional intelligence, and their influence on an individual’s ability to provide care
K6: Understand and apply relevant legal, regulatory and governance requirements, policies, and ethical frameworks, including any mandatory reporting duties, to all areas of practice
K7: Understand the importance of courage and transparency and apply the Duty of Candour
K8: Understand how discriminatory behaviour is exhibited
K9: Understand the aims and principles of health promotion, protection and improvement and the prevention of ill health when engaging with people
K10: Understand the principles of epidemiology, demography, and genomics and how these may influence health and well-being outcomes
K11: Understand the factors that may lead to inequalities in health outcomes
K12: Understand the importance of early years and childhood experiences and the possible impact on life choices, mental, physical and behavioural health and well-being
K13: Understand the contribution of social influences, health literacy, individual circumstances, behaviours and lifestyle choices to mental, physical and behavioural health outcomes
K14: Understand the importance of health screening
K15: Understand human development from conception to death, to enable delivery of person-centred safe and effective care
K16: Understand body systems and homeostasis, human anatomy and physiology, biology, genomics, pharmacology, social and behavioural sciences as applied to delivery of care
K17: Understand commonly encountered mental, physical, behavioural and cognitive health conditions as applied to delivery of care
K18: Understand and apply the principles and processes for making reasonable adjustments
K19: Know how and when to escalate to the appropriate professional for expert help and advice
K20: Know how people’s needs for safety, dignity, privacy, comfort and sleep can be met
K21: Understand co-morbidities and the demands of meeting people’s holistic needs when prioritising care
K22: Know how to meet people’s needs related to nutrition, hydration and bladder and bowel health
K23: Know how to meet people’s needs related to mobility, hygiene, oral care, wound care and skin integrity
K24: Know how to support people with commonly encountered symptoms including anxiety, confusion, discomfort and pain
K25: Know how to deliver sensitive and compassionate end of life care to support people to plan for their end of life
K26: Understand where and how to seek guidance and support from others to ensure that the best interests of those receiving care are upheld
K27: Understand the principles of safe and effective administration and optimisation of medicines in accordance with local and national policies
K28: Understand the effects of medicines, allergies, drug sensitivity, side effects, contraindications and adverse reactions
K29: Understand the different ways by which medicines can be prescribed
K30: Understand the principles of health and safety legislation and regulations and maintain safe work and care environments
K31: Understand how inadequate staffing levels impact on the ability to provide safe care and escalate concerns appropriately
K32: Understand what constitutes a near miss, a serious adverse event, a critical incident and a major incident
K33: Understand when to seek appropriate advice to manage a risk and avoid compromising quality of care and health outcomes
K34: Know and understand strategies to develop resilience in self and know how to seek support to help deal with uncertain situations
K35: Understand own role and the roles of all other staff at different levels of experience and seniority in the event of a major incident
K36: Understand the roles of the different providers of health and care
K37: Understand the challenges of providing safe nursing care for people with complex co-morbidities and complex care needs
K38: Understand the complexities of providing mental, cognitive, behavioural and physical care needs across a wide range of integrated care settings
K39: Understand the principles and processes involved in supporting people and families with a range of care needs to maintain optimal independence and avoid unnecessary interventions and disruptions to their lives
K40: Understand own role and contribution when involved in the care of a person who is undergoing discharge or a transition of care between professionals, settings or services
K41: Know the roles, responsibilities and scope of practice of different members of the nursing and interdisciplinary team, and own role within it
K42: Understand and apply the principles of human factors and environmental factors when working in teams
K43: Understand the influence of policy and political drivers that impact health and care provision

S1: Act in accordance with the Code: Professional standards of practice and behaviour for nurses, midwives and nursing associates (NMC, 2018), and fulfil all registration requirements
S2: Keep complete, clear, accurate and timely records
S3: Recognise and report any factors that may adversely impact safe and effective care provision
S4: Take responsibility for continuous self-reflection, seeking and responding to support and feedback to develop professional knowledge and skills
S5: Safely demonstrate evidence-based practice in all skills and procedures required for entry to the register: Standards of proficiency for nursing associates Annex A & B (NMC 2018)
S6: Act as an ambassador for their profession and promote public confidence in health and care services
S7: Communicate effectively using a range of skills and strategies with colleagues and people at all stages of life and with a range of mental, physical, cognitive and behavioural health challenges
S8: Recognise signs of vulnerability in self or colleagues and the action required to minimise risks to health
S9: Develop, manage and maintain appropriate relationships with people, their families, carers and colleagues
S10: Provide, promote, and where appropriate advocate for, non-discriminatory, person-centred and sensitive care at all times, reflecting on people’s values and beliefs, diverse backgrounds, cultural characteristics, language requirements, needs and preferences, taking account of any need for adjustments
S11: Report any situations, behaviours or errors that could result in poor care outcomes
S12: Challenge or report discriminatory behaviour
S13: Apply the aims and principles of health promotion, protection and improvement and the prevention of ill health when engaging with people
S14: Promote preventive health behaviours and provide information to support people to make informed choices to improve their mental, physical, behavioural health and wellbeing
S15: Identify people who are eligible for health screening
S16: Promote health and prevent ill health by understanding the evidence base for immunisation, vaccination and herd immunity
S17: Protect health through understanding and applying the principles of infection prevention and control, including communicable disease surveillance and antimicrobial stewardship and resistance
S18: Apply knowledge, communication and relationship management skills required to provide people, families and carers with accurate information that meets their needs before, during and after a range of interventions
S19: Recognise when capacity has changed recognise and how a person’s capacity affects their ability to make decisions about their own care and to give or withhold consent
S20: Recognise people at risk of abuse, self-harm and/or suicidal ideation and the situations that may put them and others at risk
S21: Monitor the effectiveness of care in partnership with people, families and carers, documenting progress and reporting outcomes
S22: Take personal responsibility to ensure that relevant information is shared according to local policy and appropriate immediate action is taken to provide adequate safeguarding and that concerns are escalated
S23: Work in partnership with people, to encourage shared decision making, in order to support individuals, their families and carers to manage their own care when appropriate
S24: Perform a range of nursing procedures and manage devices, to meet people’s need for safe, effective and person-centred care
S25: Meet people’s needs for safety, dignity, privacy, comfort and sleep
S26: Meet people’s needs related to nutrition, hydration and bladder and bowel health
S27: Meet people’s needs related to mobility, hygiene, oral care, wound care and skin integrity
S28: Support people with commonly encountered symptoms including anxiety, confusion, discomfort and pain
S29: Give information and support to people who are dying, their families and the bereaved and provide care to the deceased
S30: Recognise when a person’s condition has improved or deteriorated by undertaking health monitoring, interpreting, promptly responding, sharing findings and escalating as needed
S31: Act in line with any end of life decisions and orders, organ and tissue donation protocols, infection protocols, advanced planning decisions, living wills and lasting powers of attorney for health
S32: Work collaboratively and in partnership with professionals from different agencies in interdisciplinary teams
S33: Maintain safe work and care environments
S34: Act in line with local and national organisational frameworks, legislation and regulations to report risks, and implement actions as instructed, following up and escalating as required
S35: Accurately undertake risk assessments, using contemporary assessment tools
S36: Respond to and escalate potential hazards that may affect the safety of people
S37: Participate in data collection to support audit activity, and contribute to the implementation of quality improvement strategies
S38: Prioritise and manage own workload, and recognise where elements of care can safely be delegated to other colleagues, carers and family members
S39: Recognise when people need help to facilitate equitable access to care, support and escalate concerns appropriately
S40: Support and motivate other members of the care team and interact confidently with them
S41: Monitor and review the quality of care delivered, providing challenge and constructive feedback when an aspect of care has been delegated to others
S42: Support, supervise and act as a role model to nursing associate students, health care support workers and those new to care roles, review the quality of the care they provide, promoting reflection and providing constructive feedback
S43: Contribute to team reflection activities to promote improvements in practice and services
S44: Access, input, and apply information and data using a range of methods including digital technologies, and share appropriately within interdisciplinary teams

B1: Treat people with dignity, respecting individual's diversity, beliefs, culture, needs, values, privacy and preferences
B2: Show respect and empathy for those you work with, have the courage to challenge areas of concern and work to evidence based best practice
B3: Be adaptable, reliable and consistent, show discretion, resilience and self-awareness

Duties

Duty D1

Be an accountable professional, acting in the best interests of people, putting them first and providing nursing care that is person-centred, safe and compassionate

Duty D2

Communicate effectively, recognising and working within the limits of competence and being responsible for their own actions

Duty D3

Promote health and prevent ill health to improve and maintain the mental, physical, behavioural health and well-being of people, families, carers and communities

Duty D4

Contribute to the ongoing assessment of individuals nursing care needs, recognising when it is appropriate to refer to others for reassessment

Duty D5

Provide and monitor nursing care to individuals and groups, providing compassionate and safe nursing interventions

Duty D6

Improve safety of individuals by identifying risks to safety or experience of care and taking appropriate action, putting the best interests, needs and preferences of people first

Duty D7

Improve quality of care by contributing to the continuous monitoring of people’s experience of care

Duty D8

Contribute to the provision of complex nursing and integrated care needs of people at any stage of their lives, across a range of organisations and settings

Duty D9

Work in teams collaborating effectively with a range of colleagues

Duty D10

Support and supervise others in the care team

Occupational Progression

This occupational progression map shows technical occupations that have transferable knowledge and skills.

In this map, the focused occupation is highlighted in yellow. The arrows indicate where transferable knowledge and skills exist between two occupations. This map shows some of the strongest progression links between the focused occupation and other occupations.

It is anticipated that individuals would be required to undertake further learning or training to progress to and from occupations. To find out more about an occupation featured in the progression map, including the learning options available, click the occupation.

Progression decisions have been reached by comparing the knowledge and skills statements between occupational standards, combined with individualised learner movement data.

Technical Occupations

Levels 2-3

Higher Technical Occupations

Levels 4-5

Professional Occupations

Levels 6-7

This is the focused occupation.
assignment_turned_in

Level 5

Progression link from focused occupation.
assignment_turned_in

Level 5

Progression link from focused occupation.
assignment_turned_in

Level 6

Progression link from focused occupation.
assignment_turned_in

Level 6

Health and science