What is a Nursing Associate? The Nursing Associate (NA) role is described on this page with lists of duties, introductory videos and a table capturing what makes a NA different to a Nurse.
Nursing associates work with healthcare support workers and registered nurses to deliver hands-on, person-centred care for patients and the public as part of a multidisciplinary team in a range of different care settings. The Nursing Associate role can also be a steppingstone to becoming a registered nurse.
Nursing associates can work across all four fields of nursing: adult, children's, mental health, and learning disability. The skills and responsibilities you will need vary, depending on the care setting you work in. Within the role you will need to demonstrate the values and behaviours of the NHS Constitution .
Your duties include:
Performing and recording clinical observations such as blood pressure, temperature, respirations, and pulse.
Discussing and sharing information with registered nurses on a patients' condition, behaviour, activity, and responses.
Ensuring the privacy, dignity and safety of individuals is maintained at all times.
Recognising issues relating to safeguarding vulnerable children and adults.
Demonstrate effective approaches to monitoring signs and symptoms of physical, mental, cognitive, behavioural, and emotional distress, deterioration and improvement.
Preventing and managing infection.
Demonstrate effective skills when working in teams.
Introductory videos
Meet the nursing associates
Health Education England (HEE) have made this 3 minute video providing examples of the role of the Nursing Associate and the possitive impact it can have.
Introducing the Nursing Associate
The Nursing and Midwifery Council (NMC), have produced this 3 minute video with health professionals disucssing the role of the Nursing Associate. The NMC are the professional regulator for nurses and midwives in the UK, and nursing associates in England.
The differences between a Nurse and a Nursing Associate
While nursing associates will contribute to most aspects of care, including delivery and monitoring, registered nurses will take the lead on assessment, planning and evaluation. Nurses will also lead on managing and coordinating care with full contribution from the nursing associate within the integrated care team.
