CNWL holds first post-Covid Nursing Conference

“From the bottom of my heart thank you all for the things you’ve done and the things you do.”

These were the closing words of our first keynote speaker, Michael McGrath, to more than 500 nurses from across CNWL who gathered together for the first time since Covid at the CNWL Nursing Conference to celebrate their profession, present awards and to talk about developments and case studies.

Mr McGrath, who was diagnosed with Muscular Dystrophy at the age of 18, made history 20 years later by becoming the first disabled person to lead expeditions to both the North and South Poles. 

During the conference he spoke about leadership, courage and resilience along with optimism, self belief, confidence and teamwork and applied these values to nursing, acknowledging that while life had been hard during the pandemic everyone found a way to get through.

Speaking of his gratitude towards the nursing profession, he said: “Be proud of what you’ve accomplished. Today is your time.”

He also presented his top 10 survival tips. 

The second key note speaker was Prof Dame Ann Marie Rafferty, Professor of Nursing Policy and former Dean of the Florence Nightingale Faculty of Nursing, Midwifery and Palliative Care at King’s College, London.

Prof Rafferty spoke about nursing developments, particularly during the pandemic, developments required for the future and nursing practice and about key nursing behaviours such as compassion and care and the fortitude that nurses presented during the pandemic.

Held at the Connaught Rooms in Holborn, the conference was opened by Chief Nurse Maria O’Brien who spoke of the CNWL Nursing Strategy.

There were also a series of sessions that looked at nursing innovations across four nursing areas:

• School Nursing
• Older Adult Mental Health Nursing
• Health and Justice
• Addictions

Two further sessions looked at:

• The Chief Nurse Fellowship programme and the experience of three CNWL nurses who took part in the programme – Clarence Gwashavanhu, Yvonne Kayiya and Phanuel Mtape. CNWL’s programme is particularly focussed on developing nurses from a BAME background. Bertha Matunge, Goodall’s Assistant Director of Nursing, said of the programme: “CWNL not only talks the talk, but walks the walk. This is a subject close to my heart.”
• Workforce pathways and how nurses started: This session covered the experience of a Nurse Cadet on CNWL’s Nursing Cadet programme; of a newly qualified Healthcare Support Worker and of five Lebanese refugees who joined CNWL via an NHS England Refugee Nurse programme. Among the five is Fayzeh Rachid who told the audience that she was one step away from becoming a registered nurse in the UK.

Awards were presented to individual nurses, nursing teams and healthcare support workers from each of CNWL’s three divisions, Goodall, Jameson and Diggory. Congratulations to them all.

The full list of those nominated can be viewed by right clicking here.

Slides from the event can be viewed by right clicking here.

During the conference we also showed a series of films that celebrate nursing within CNWL.

You can view the films on the links below:

• Testimonials Film: https://vimeo.com/693605749

• Film 1 Adult Nursing:  https://vimeo.com/693931507
• Film 2 Adult Mental Health Nursing: https://vimeo.com/693932319
• Film 3 Children and Young People: https://vimeo.com/693931959
• Film 4 Learning Disability: https://vimeo.com/693932742
• Film 5 Specialist nursing:  https://vimeo.com/693932960
• Film 6 Healthcare support worker film:  https://vimeo.com/693454079

Closing the event, Chief Executive Claire Murdoch, said: “What I’ve seen makes me feel hugely positive for the future of the profession and for patient care.”

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