Glossary of nurses and midwives
September 2007
Go to Job titles/grades
Summary
Nurses work in hospitals, specialist clinics, in the community visiting people at home or attached to local general practices or health centres and play an increasingly prominent role in the provision of health care. Nurses focus on the needs of the individual, rather than specific illnesses or conditions. They help individuals and their families by providing care, advice and counselling. Midwives are often the key health professional supporting, guiding and caring for the mother, baby and family through the months of pregnancy, during the birth itself and afterwards in the post-natal period.
Nurses and midwives undertake a degree or diploma course in order to qualify. These courses are provided by universities with placements in local hospital and community settings. To work in the UK, all nurses and midwives must be registered with the Nursing and Midwifery Council (NMC).
The nursing profession has several broad categories.
Adult nursing
Adult nurses work in hospitals or the community, in people's homes, attached to a health centre or in nursing homes, and support and educate people of all ages. Many adult nurses take courses to specialise in areas such as cancer care, women's health, accident and emergency, critical care, practice nursing, health visiting or school nursing.
Children's nursing
Children's nurses work with 0 to 18 year olds in a variety of settings, from specialist baby care units to adolescent services, and also support, advise and educate parents and other close relatives. Children’s nurses can specialise in hospital and community settings in areas such as burns and plastics, intensive care, child protection and cancer care.
District nursing
District nurses visit people in their own homes or in residential care homes where they provide care to patients and support family members. They also have a teaching role, for example showing patients how to carry out their own injections. A district nurse's patients can be of any age, but often many of them are elderly, while others may recently have been discharged from hospital or have physical disabilities. A new role of community matron has been introduced. Community matrons are experienced, senior nurses who work with patients with long term conditions, in their homes, to plan and organise their care.
Health visiting
Health visitors are qualified nurses who promote health and wellbeing in the community, by giving practical help and advice, focusing on children aged five or under. They work from a general practice or health centre and also visit people in their homes. Health visiting can range from visiting mothers with new-born babies to providing advice and support to someone who wants to give up smoking.
Learning disability nursing
Nurses who qualify in this branch of nursing help those with learning disabilities to live independent and fulfilling lives. This may involve working with people in supported accommodation or with individuals who require more intensive support. Some specialise in areas such as epilepsy management or working with people with sensory impairment.
Mental health nursing
Mental health nurses work with GPs, psychiatrists, social workers and others to coordinate the care of people suffering from mental illness. The vast majority of this work is done in the community; in a person’s own home, in small residential units or in specialist hospital services. Some mental health nurses develop expertise in areas such as rehabilitation, child and adolescent mental health or substance misuse.
Midwifery
Midwives work in the community, where they manage their own caseload of work, or in hospital. They provide support to women, their babies, their partners and families, from conception to the first phase of post-natal care. They can also continue care in a person’s own home or in local clinics.
Practice nursing
Practice nurses work in a GP surgery, health centre or in the community as part of a team. They perform a wide variety of duties: treating small injuries, helping with minor operations done under local anaesthetics, health screening, family planning and helping monitor patients with chronic conditions such as diabetes. Practice nurses may also be involved in running health promotion programmes, for example to help people stop smoking.
School nursing
School nurses visit schools to carry out screening programmes to check that children are developing healthily. They also provide children and teachers with information on healthy lifestyles, sex education and alcohol and drug abuse.
Job titles/grades
Clinical support worker
Location Community, Hospital
Description The clinical support worker provides personal care duties for patients in the community, hospital or similar setting. Higher level clinical support workers also undertake a range of delegated clinical health duties.
Training NVQ2 qualification or equivalent experience.
Regulator Nursing and Midwifery Council
Useful links The Royal College of Nursing
Health visitor
Location Community, General practice, Health centre, Hospital
Description Health visitors work with families with specific health and social needs and plan and implement care. They also run child health clinics and provide advice and health education as well as providing clinical supervision to students and other staff.
Training Degree qualification plus further specialist learning and experience.
Regulator Nursing and Midwifery Council
Useful links The Royal College of Nursing
Health visitor specialist
Location Community, General practice, Health centre, Hospital
Description A health visitor specialist works with communities, families and individuals with specific health and social needs which may include undertaking specialist service planning and working with other agencies. They also promote public health and provide advice through clinics and home visits as well as providing training and clinical supervision to health visitors and students.
Training Degree or diploma qualification plus further specialist learning to masters degree level equivalent.
Regulator Nursing and Midwifery Council
Useful links The Royal College of Nursing
Health visitor team manager
Location Community, General practice, Health centre, Hospital
Description The health visitor team manager carries out the role of a health visitor and has additional responsibilities to manage and provide clinical supervision to teams of health visitors and other community staff.
Training Degree qualification plus further specialist learning and experience to postgraduate diploma level.
Regulator Nursing and Midwifery Council
Useful links The Royal College of Nursing
Maternity care assistant
Location Hospital
Description The maternity care assistant assists midwives in providing support to women and their families. They carry out basic care and can also undertake delegated clinical procedures such as removal of intravenous cannula, urinary catheter and wound sutures or clips.
Training NVQ3 qualification plus further learning and experience.
Regulator Nursing and Midwifery Council
Useful links The Royal College of Midwives
Midwife
Location Birth centres, Community, Hospital
Description Midwives provide a full-range of care and advice to women from pre-conception to ante-natal. They carry out clinical examinations, deliver babies and help mothers to make informed choices about the services and options available to them. There are a small number of midwives that practise independently.
Training Degree or diploma qualification plus further learning and experience.
Regulator Nursing and Midwifery Council
Useful links The Royal College of Midwives
Midwife consultant
Location Birth centres, Community, Hospital
Description The midwife consultant provides expert professional advice to mothers, their families and colleagues as well as the normal role of a midwife. They will also teach and train other staff and students and can undertake specialist research.
Training Degree or diploma qualification plus further specialist training to masters degree level equivalent.
Regulator Nursing and Midwifery Council
Useful links The Royal College of Midwives
Midwife team manager
Location Birth centres, Community, Hospital
Description A midwife team manager has the same role as a midwife, but also has responsibility for the day-to-day management of an area of the service, for example ante-natal, post-natal or obstetric theatre.
Training Degree or diploma qualification plus further learning and experience.
Regulator Nursing and Midwifery Council
Useful links The Royal College of Midwives
Modern matron
Location Hospital
Description The modern matron provides leadership for nurse team managers, nurse specialists, midwives and other staff. They play a part in developing services, ensuring the cleanliness of wards and that standards and policies are met. In addition they will also provide specialist education and training to other staff.
Training Degree or diploma qualification plus further specialist training to masters degree level equivalent.
Regulator Nursing and Midwifery Council
Useful links The Royal College of Nursing
Nurse (alternatives: staff nurse, registered nurse, registered practitioner)
Location Community, General practice, Health centre, Hospital, School
Description Nurses assess patients, plan and implement their care and provide advice. They also provide clinical supervision to students and other staff. Nurses in schools carry out immunisation programmes, health assessments and health screening and provide health education.
Training Degree or diploma qualification.
Regulator Nursing and Midwifery Council
Useful links The Royal College of Nursing
Nurse advanced (alternatives: lead specialist, clinical nurse specialist, senior specialist nurse)
Location Community, Hospital, School
Description A nurse advanced will, in addition to the normal nursing role, be a lead specialist in a defined area of nursing care. They will also provide specialist training to students and other staff, and undertake research and lead audits in their specialist area.
Training Degree or diploma qualification plus further specialist training to masters degree level equivalent.
Regulator Nursing and Midwifery Council
Useful links The Royal College of Nursing
Nurse associate practitioner
Location Community
Description Nurse associate practitioners report to a qualified nurse, and implement care for patients in the community or other settings. They carry out some nursing procedures such as redressing wounds, taking blood samples and administering injections.
Training NVQ3 qualification plus further training to diploma level equivalent.
Regulator Nursing and Midwifery Council
Useful links The Royal College of Nursing
Nurse associate practitioner acute
Location Hospital
Description The nurse associate practitioners acute reports to a qualified nurse, and implements care for patients in hospital. They carry out some nursing procedures such as redressing wounds, taking blood samples and administering injections, and may also supervise clinical support workers in the same area.
Training NVQ3 qualification plus further training to diploma level equivalent.
Regulator Nursing and Midwifery Council
Useful links The Royal College of Nursing
Nurse consultant (alternatives: consultant nurse, clinical nurse specialist, lead nurse)
Location Hospital
Description A nurse consultant provides expert professional advice to patients, carers and colleagues, and ensures the maintenance of clinical excellence. They will also undertake research in their specialist area and provide education and training to students and other staff.
Training Degree or diploma qualification plus further specialist training to masters degree level equivalent.
Regulator Nursing and Midwifery Council
Useful links The Royal College of Nursing
Nursery nurse
Location Community, Hospital (neonatal unit)
Description In the neonatal unit, the nursery nurse cares for sick babies under the supervision of midwives and nurses, and teach parent-craft to the parents or carers of the infant. In the community, nursery nurses work with health visitors as part of a team to provide care and support to families. They can also run play programmes in homes and at childcare facilities.
Training NNEB qualification or equivalent plus further learning and experience.
Regulator Nursing and Midwifery Council
Useful links The Royal College of Nursing
Nurse specialist (alternatives: specialist nurse, senior staff nurse)
Location Community, General practice, Health centre, Hospital, School
Description A nurse specialist carries out the role of a nurse in a particular specialist area along with specialist nursing procedures. In addition, they provide clinical supervision to nurses, students and other staff, and may undertake research and lead audits in their specialist area. Nurses specialists in a general practice will also run specialist clinics, provide health education and carry out procedures such as immunisations and smear tests.
Training Degree or diploma qualification plus further specialist training and experience.
Regulator Nursing and Midwifery Council
Useful links The Royal College of Nursing
Nurse team leader (alternatives: deputy ward/unit manager, ward team leader, senior staff nurse)
Location Hospital
Description The nurse team leader undertakes the role of a nurse and has additional responsibilities to provide clinical and management leadership to nursing and support staff and may deputise in running the ward.
Training Degree or diploma qualification plus further specialist clinical and management training and continued professional development.
Regulator Nursing and Midwifery Council
Useful links The Royal College of Nursing
Nurse team manager (alternatives: ward manager, sister, charge nurse, clinical manager)
Location Community, Hospital, School
Description As well as undertaking the role of a nurse, nurse team managers manage staff and may also manage the budget for their area. Community nurse managers will manage a team of nurse specialists covering a geographical area.
Training Degree or diploma qualification plus further specialist clinical and management training.
Regulator Nursing and Midwifery Council
Useful links The Royal College of Nursing
Theatre nurse
Location Hospital
Description The theatre nurse develops and implements programmes of care for patients undergoing theatre procedures. They also prepare the instruments for the procedure.
Training Degree qualification or equivalent.
Regulator Nursing and Midwifery Council
Useful links The Royal College of Nursing
Theatre nurse specialist
Location Hospital
Description In addition to the role of the theatre nurse, the theatre nurse specialist also provides clinical or day-to-day supervision to junior staff.
Training Degree qualification or equivalent plus further learning and experience.
Regulator Nursing and Midwifery Council
Useful links The Royal College of Nursing
Theatre practitioner
Location Hospital
Description The theatre nurse develops and implements programmes of care for patients undergoing theatre procedures. They also prepare the theatre implements.
Training Degree or diploma qualification or equivalent.
Regulator Nursing and Midwifery Council
Useful links The Royal College of Nursing
Theatre practitioner team manager
Location Hospital
Description The theatre practitioner team manager undertakes the role of the theatre practitioner with the additional responsibilities of managing theatre staff, supervising students, and providing clinical or day-to-day supervision to junior staff.
Training Degree or diploma qualification plus further specialist learning and management training or experience.
Regulator Nursing and Midwifery Council
Useful links The Royal College of Nursing
Information sources for this section of the glossary are: NHS Careers, The Royal College of Midwives and The Royal College of Nursing