Keeping on top of the evidence

Your time in nurse training may be behind you, but your professional learning and development is ongoing. ‘Nurses need to keep up to date with all the latest evidence around any of the activities we are carrying out in our practice,’ says Jenny Aston, an advanced nurse practitioner at Granta Medical Practices, Cambridgeshire.

As well as needing the latest evidence on a range of medical conditions - such as asthma, diabetes, and long-term conditions - nurses need to keep on top of the latest clinical guidance, any changes to immunisation schedules, and new ways of diagnosing diseases. And nurses who are independent prescribers will need to be up to speed with what the best medications are for different conditions, making sure they are following the latest guidance.