20 | Nursing in Practice | Winter 2023
COLUMNIST
‘ The website will be even more responsive to current issues ’
Longstanding columnist – and Nursing in Practice ’ s first-ever editor – Marilyn Eveleigh reflects on the switch to digital of your favourite general practice and primary care nursing title
Opinion and debate on the latest issues affecting nurses in general practice and the community nursingin practice . co . uk
Marilyn Eveleigh nurse adviser and independent trainer in East Sussex
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If you are reading this column in a glossy printed edition , you ’ ll be doing so for the last time . But Nursing in Practice ( NiP ) will of course continue to be available online . Indeed , many nurses will be reading this online at nursinginpractice . com .
NiP was created in 2001 as a journal specifically for practice nurses , in response to the profession ’ s exponential growth following the 1990 GP Contract . Building on their role in prevention and screening , the 2004 GMS contract ensured nurses were crucial to a proactive and organised approach to chronic-disease management , practice governance and safety . Growing from 3,500 practice nurses ( PNs ) in 1990 to more than 18,000 general practice nurses ( GPNs ) today , the majority are still employed part time by independent contractors , and we negotiate our own contracts .
For a generalist nurse requiring a wide span of knowledge and often working in isolation , NiP identified content that focused on public health , prevention , screening and management of chronic disease , as well as covering news , research and professional issues . Popular national educational events followed and in 2007 NIP launched its website , nursinginpractice . com . It provides dedicated learning / CPD , clinical updates , breaking news , in-depth analysis , and professional advice and challenges .
Nursing in Practice in print : A selection of our covers from 2001 to today
2001 Nursing in Practice is launched in 2001 . Marilyn Eveleigh , its first editor and now advisory board member , describes it as a magazine for nurses working ‘ in and around primary care ’, with the intention of ‘ actively and vigorously promoting and supporting the profession ’ |
2001 The second issue of the magazine features Marilyn Eveleigh on the cover in an ‘ RCGP special edition ’ to highlight the benefits and future potential of multiprofessional practice |
2004 Agenda for Change comes into force in 2004 after many delays . Although it sets out a clear pay structure , this isn ’ t mandatory for nurses working in GP surgeries , leading to a wide variation in pay for practice nurses |
2008 In a Nursing in Practice survey , 20 % of practice nurses describe their morale as ‘ slightly worse ’ compared with how they felt before the introduction of the GMS contract . But just shy of 90 % would still recommend primary care nursing as a career option |