Background

The primary care nursing and cancer programme within Transforming Cancer Services Team commenced in September 2021, jointly funded by TCST and the cancer alliances in London. The pan London project follows on from the South West London Macmillan Primary Care Nursing project.

What are we working on?

• Engagement and delivering brief training ‘taster sessions’ via General Practice Nursing (GPN) Forums /Training Hubs – to deliver on a rolling programme virtually. This includes signposting nurses to the Macmillan Primary Care Explore programme, Macmillan Practice Nurse course and working with Macmillan to develop local cohort offers. All of this is to support develop of knowledge and confidence in cancer.
• Contributing to the Queens Nursing Institute /NHS England General Practice Education Network website with key cancer resources identified. We developed a Primary Care Nursing and Cancer blog page
• Leading the existing pan London General Practice Nurse Cancer Community of Practice, with a facilitator and aiming for longer term self-sufficiency. The CoP supports the development of clinical GPN leaders in cancer as a long term condition.
• Work with NHS England and London’s ICS partners to promote cancer as an area of specialism within leadership initiatives for primary care nurses across London.
• Influencing universities for curriculum changes regarding postgraduate courses and opportunities to influence under-graduate nursing courses- including a pilot in Kingston University.
• Working with Healthy London Partnership’s primary care programme and other partners to develop a podcast as part of the Power of Practice Nursing series.
• Exploring opportunities to promote cancer as an area of specialism within leadership initiatives across London (for example CARE programmes.)
• Scoping opportunities to broaden our project to include development of paramedics, physician associates, pharmacists and other registered professionals who are new to working in primary care, and involved in the care of patients with long term conditions.

South West London project’s resources

• Education resources for General Practice Nurses
• Patient partner feedback
• Training Needs Analysis reports
• Cancer in the community – Community Nursing Module
• Pan-London GPN Community of Practice
• Project evaluation and next steps
• General Practice Nurse Learning Framework
• Steering Group Members