Role Description
A Nursing Associate (NA) is a member of the nursing team in England that helps bridge the gap between Healthcare Assistants and Registered Nurses.
The role contributes to the core work of nursing, freeing up Registered Nurses to focus on more complex clinical care. It's a stand-alone role that also provides a progression route into graduate level nursing. They work with people of all ages and in a variety of settings in health and social care.
The Student Nursing Associate
(SNA) is an NA still in training and working under supervision.
Education Pathways to Qualification
Currently, most Registered Nursing Associate training programmes are being delivered through the apprenticeship route. The nursing associate apprenticeship standard was approved for delivery in 2017 some spaces are available through direct applications to the university.
Other pathways to working as a Nursing Associate include Retire and Return, self-funded candidates, and overseas recruitment. Please click here to compare these pathways.
A Registered Nursing Associate qualification contains a number of different elements:
- A foundation degree training programme is usually taken over two years. During this time, the trainees must complete at least 2,300 programme hours which are divided to achieve an equal balance of theory and practice learning. This equates to half the hours required for a registered nursing qualification.
- To meet the requirements of the training programme, trainee nursing associates must work in a range of settings and situations to gain as much experience as possible across different age groups.
- The trainees must complete at least two substantial placements (totalling a minimum of 460 hours) in settings other than their primary place of employment. . External practice placements enable the TNA’s to develop breadth of experience, they also compliment their development and understanding of the healthcare system and the population that they are working in.
- As part of the Nursing Associate apprenticeship, trainees must meet the 15 standards set out in the care certificate. If they do not already hold level 2 English and maths qualification, these must also be achieved before completing the programme.
- Requirements for training and education are set out and regulated by the NMC in its standards for pre-registration nursing associate programmes.
