Clinical Nurse Specialist (CNS) workforce

Access to specialist nurses

We believe that every man with prostate cancer should have access to the expertise of nurse specialists throughout their treatment and care journey, and in relation to their specific needs.

There is strong evidence that demonstrates the allocation of a dedicated nurse specialist has a positive impact on patient experience and outcomes, yet the numbers of specialist nurse posts are not proportional to disease incidence. There is an increasing need for more nurses; the current provision is insufficient and access across the UK varies dramatically.

Our Change Delivery team are leading on our work to address these issues in variation and inequity in access. We will work with key policy and decision makers across the UK to ensure a sustainable approach to prostate cancer care management is implemented, and to meet the urology CNS workforce gaps in relation to the increased incidence and prevalence of the disease. This work will include:

1. Ensuring men do not experience poor outcomes due to shortage of specialist support by identifying and addressing geographical variations.
2. Influencing strategic staff planning across the four nations of the UK, to ensure that there is capacity for all men with prostate cancer to be supported by a named nurse specialist at the point of diagnosis and continuing throughout their treatment journey into survivorship.
3. Mainstreaming nurse education with access for all levels of staff and implementing new models of working to address workforce planning and succession issues both regionally and nationally.

Interested in working in Urology?

We recognise the important role that nurses play in caring for men with prostate cancer and we want to support you to ensure that men get the level of care they need.

Whether you’re a nurse who wants to know more about urology or a clinical nurse specialist wanting to specialise in prostate cancer and continue to develop best practice we have a range of free opportunities available to help you meet your educational and professional development needs.

Funding

We can offer you a range of bursaries to support your prostate disease focused education, as well as funding for your organisation providing these training opportunities.  

Bursaries are available for professional development activities that have a clear focus on prostate cancer or benign prostate disease and are up to £1,500 for individuals and £5,000 for organisations.

If you’re working towards a specialist or advanced practice role in prostate cancer, we can also support you with a bursary to undertake the Masters degree in Prostate Cancer Care (distance learning) with Sheffield Hallam University.

Webinars

If you've registered for our online learning system, you can access our webinar library below:

• An introduction to radiotherapy
• Radiotherapy treatments and managing side effects
• Interpersonal communication and decision-making
• Prostate cancer and black men