The RCN has become the latest high-profile nursing organisation to publically back Independent Nurse's No Tokenism campaign, which aims to champion nurse involvement in clinical commissioning.
The campaign was launched in November after a survey of more than 650 nurses, carried out by Independent Nurse, revealed that many felt excluded by the board of their local Clinical Commissioning Group (CCG), and were facing barriers to getting involved.
RCN chief executive, Dr Peter Carter, welcomed the campaign's commitment to holding CCGs that exclude nurses to account if they fail to meaningfully involve nurse leaders.
'It is particularly important, given the significant challenges ahead, that CCGs appoint an experienced, senior nurse, with commissioning experience, into a substantive board level role. They will focus on ensuring high quality care and patient safety while promoting best practice through their experience of various healthcare settings.
'To this effect we are pleased to support Independent Nurse Magazine's 'No Tokenism' campaign,' he said.
The campaign has already been backed by the Queen's Nursing Institute, Unite/CPHVA, and the NHS Alliance.