The Department of Health has launched a cancer nursing clinical career pathway to strengthen the region’s cancer nursing workforce.

The Department of Health in Northern Ireland has launched a cancer nursing clinical career pathway to strengthen the region’s cancer nursing workforce. 

This pathway is intended to establish a clear and regionally consistent framework for career progression and professional development for the cancer nursing workforce. By promoting high standards of practice and equipping the workforce with the specialist skills required to deliver safe, effective, and person-centred care, the initiative hopes that it can improve the overall experience and outcomes of people living with cancer across Northern Ireland.

“We cannot achieve meaningful reform of our health and social care system unless we focus on our workforce, with an emphasis on retention, career progression, and professional development,” said health minister Mike Nesbitt. 

As he told Healthcare Today last year, the response to problems with staff retention must be “to focus on creating a working environment that attracts and retains staff – one where people feel valued and see genuine career progression”.

Career pathway

The pathway was commissioned by the department’s chief nursing officer, Maria McIlgorm, and produced by the Northern Ireland Practice & Education Council for Nursing & Midwifery (NIPEC). It is aligned with the priorities contained within McIlgorm’s five-year vision for nursing and midwifery by providing a career pathway, aligned to levels of practice, to support workforce development.

“This pathway has been shaped through close collaboration with nursing leaders, educators, clinical teams, and people living with and beyond cancer,” she said. 

“This framework strengthens recruitment, retention, and professional development across cancer services, ensuring a skilled workforce that is equipped to deliver safe, person-centred care. By investing in our nurses, we invest in better outcomes and experiences for everyone affected by cancer,” she continued. 

The Cancer Strategy for Northern Ireland 2022-2032 identified a number of actions to improve the experience of people diagnosed with cancer, with key actions directly relating to the role of the nurse. Supporting the realisation of a clinical career pathway for nurses who choose to specialise within cancer, solid tumour and haematological malignancy, is fundamental to a recalibration and reform of cancer services and sustainability of high-quality person-centred care for people living with cancer.