AQW 13832/17-22 Written question to the Minister of Health
To ask the Minister of Health to detail the specialist nurses employed by each Health and Social Care Trust, as of 1 January 2021, broken down by (i) number; (ii) specialism; and (iii) whole time equivalent.
Asked by Paula Bradshaw MLA on 1 February 2021
- Answered
- Written
- After due date
- Tabled
- 1 February 2021
- Answer due by
- 16 February 2021
- Answered
- 11 March 202138 days after tabling
- Department
- Department of Health
- Priority question
- No
Answer
The Health and Social Care (HSC) Trusts have separately provided the following responses in relation to specialist nurses employed as at 1st January 2021. Each Trust may have interpreted the question differently as nurses within a specialism rather than numbers of specialist nurses.
Belfast HSC Trust
| Specialism | Headcount | |
| Acute (ICU & Theatres) | 38 | |
| Learning & Disability | 8 | |
| Mental Health | 8 | |
| Unscheduled Care | 111 | |
| Children’s Community Team | 144 | |
| Specialist Surgery | 59 | |
| Cancer & Specialist Medicine | 119 | |
| Community (Adult) | 24 | |
| TOR | 39 | |
| Maternity / SH & WH | 12 | |
| Children / SWCH | 61 | |
| Total | 623 |
Northern HSC Trust
| Specialism | Headcount | Whole-Time Equivalent |
| District Nursing | 64 | 44.04 |
| Continence adult | 6 | 5.00 |
| Palliative Care | 14 | 12.40 |
| Occupational health | 2 | 2.00 |
| Bereavement and health and safety | 1 | 1.80 |
| Emergency Nurse Practitioner | 17 | 14.79 |
| Parkinsons | 1 | 0.50 |
| Multiple Sclerosis | 1 | 1.00 |
| ANP adult/older people | 2 | 2.00 |
| Renal | 2 | 2.00 |
| Tissue Viability | 5 | 3.89 |
| Respiratory | 6 | 6.00 |
| Rheumatology | 5 | 4.60 |
| Adult protection | 1 | 1.00 |
| Brain Injury | 1 | 0.85 |
| Heart Failure/Coronary care | 6 | 5.67 |
| Dermatology | 2 | 2.00 |
| Dementia | 2 | 2.00 |
| Endocrinology/Diabetes | 9 | 8.73 |
| Orthopaedics | 1 | 1.00 |
| Eating Disorders | 3 | 3.00 |
| Forensics | 3 | 3.00 |
| Learning Disability | 5 | 4.29 |
| Mental health Liaison | 8 | 8.00 |
| Community Mental Health Team | 8 | 8.00 |
| Addictions | 6 | 5.80 |
| Crisis Response | 11 | 10.60 |
| Behaviour Specialist | 5 | 3.58 |
| Personality Disorders | 4 | 4.00 |
| Cognitive Behavioural Therapy | 3 | 3.00 |
| Falls Prevention | 1 | 0.91 |
| Infection Control | 6 | 5.68 |
| IBD | 1 | 1.00 |
| ENT | 1 | 1.00 |
| Endoscopy | 3 | 2.80 |
| Cancer | 16 | 13.07 |
| Ophthalmics | 2 | 1.64 |
| Stoma | 1 | 1.00 |
| Breast Care | 4 | 4.00 |
| Health Visiting | 119 | 101.87 |
| Child & Adult Mental Health Services | 13 | 12.80 |
| GUM | 4 | 2.59 |
| School nursing | 12 | 10.00 |
| Neonatal | 7 | 7.00 |
| Specialist Midwife | 1 | 1.00 |
| Obstetrics and gynaecology | 2 | 2.00 |
| Breast feeding coordinator | 1 | 1.00 |
| Family Planning | 6 | 3.52 |
| Paediatric behaviour therapist | 3 | 2.00 |
| Paediatric diabetes | 5 | 4.36 |
| Paediatric Autism | 1 | 1.00 |
| Paediatric continence | 1 | 1.00 |
| Total | 414 | 355.78 |
South Eastern HSC Trust
| Specialism | Headcount | Whole-Time Equivalent |
| SCMH Community Mental Health Nursing | 5 | 5.00 |
| SPA Adult Nursing | 157 | 126.40 |
| SPCC Community Children’s Nursing | 6 | 3.00 |
| SPDN District Nursing | 81 | 51.05 |
| SPGP General Practice Nursing | 2 | 0.00 |
| SPLD Learning Disability Nursing | 1 | 1.00 |
| SPMH Mental Health | 32 | 26.62 |
| Total | 284 | 213.07 |
Includes those nurses with a specialist practice qualification (SPQ). Many more nurses will have a specialist interest/evidence of continuing professional development in relation to a particular specialism but this information is not collated centrally.
Southern HSC Trust
| Specialism | Headcount | Whole-Time Equivalent |
| Acute Care at Home | 3 | 2.73 |
| Breast Care | 4 | 3.60 |
| Cancer Services Haematology | 2 | 1.20 |
| Cardiology | 8 | 6.71 |
| Child Protection | 6 | 5.20 |
| Cognitive Behaviour Therapy | 10 | 9.31 |
| Colorectal | 2 | 1.71 |
| Community Addictions | 2 | 1.80 |
| Community Children’s | 15 | 13.55 |
| Community Learning Disability | 2 | 2.00 |
| Dermatology | 1 | 0.80 |
| Diabetes | 11 | 10.17 |
| District Nursing | 78 | 71.15 |
| Eating Disorders | 1 | 1.00 |
| Emergency Department | 21 | 17.20 |
| Family Nursing | 7 | 6.40 |
| Gastroenterology | 2 | 2.00 |
| GP Out of Hours | 1 | 0.08 |
| Gynaecology Nursing | 1 | 0.89 |
| Head & Neck | 2 | 2.00 |
| Health Visiting | 122 | 99.91 |
| Health Visiting & School Nursing | 1 | 1.00 |
| Infant Mental Health | 1 | 1.00 |
| Lung Cancer Nursing | 1 | 1.00 |
| Midwifery | 4 | 1.53 |
| NINES – nurse led new entrant service | 2 | 1.80 |
| Non Medical Prescriber - Dermatology | 2 | 1.71 |
| Non Medical Prescriber - Epilepsy | 1 | 1.00 |
| Non Medical Prescriber - LAC Psychology | 1 | 1.00 |
| Non Medical Prescriber - Memory Services | 2 | 1.80 |
| Non Medical Prescriber - Mental Health & Disability | 1 | 1.00 |
| Non Medical Prescriber - Mental Health Liaison | 1 | 1.00 |
| Non Medical Prescriber - Mental Health Patient Flow | 1 | 1.00 |
| Non Medical Prescriber - Support & Recovery | 1 | 1.00 |
| Nurse Endoscopy | 4 | 3.28 |
| Nursing Care for Older People | 1 | 1.00 |
| Occupational Health | 6 | 4.71 |
| Oncology | 4 | 3.60 |
| Paediatric Services (Ambulatory) | 4 | 3.76 |
| Paediatric Services (Children’s Research) | 1 | 0.50 |
| Paediatric Services (Neonatal) | 5 | 4.43 |
| Palliative | 3 | 2.91 |
| Palliative Nursing | 3 | 2.85 |
| Parkinson | 1 | 1.00 |
| PDSN (diabetes ) | 5 | 4.20 |
| PEN (epilepsy) | 2 | 2.00 |
| PRANS (Resp. Allergy) | 3 | 2.55 |
| Respiratory | 12 | 8.85 |
| Resuscitation | 2 | 2.00 |
| Rheumatology | 5 | 3.80 |
| School Nursing | 9 | 7.67 |
| School Nursing & NINES | 1 | 1.00 |
| Sexual Health | 1 | 1.00 |
| Specialist Screening Practitioner - BCS | 3 | 2.19 |
| Stroke | 6 | 4.85 |
| Ultrasonography | 1 | 1.00 |
| Upper GI Nursing | 1 | 1.00 |
| Urology | 5 | 5.00 |
| Total | 408 | 350.39 |
Excludes bank staff, staff on career break and those staff currently undertaking a specialist practice programme as part of the 2020/21 education commissioning cycle.
Excludes nurses who work in a specialism but have been unable to gain their specialist practice qualification (SPQ) as there is no course regionally available or has only recently been made available, or have completed specialist courses/modules relating to their areas but not a SPQ.
Western HSC Trust
| Specialism | Headcount | Whole-Time Equivalent | |
| Medical Specialties | Diabetes | 15 | 13.30 |
| Respiratory | 13 | 12.05 | |
| Cardiology | 11 | 9.80 | |
| Renal | 1 | 1.00 | |
| Rheumatology | 2 | 2.00 | |
| Multiple Sclerosis | 3 | 2.14 | |
| Epilepsy | 2 | 1.64 | |
| Parkinsons | 2 | 2.00 | |
| Emergency Care | 10 | 10.00 | |
| Palliative Care | 10 | 8.40 | |
| Haemovigilence | 4 | 3.50 | |
| Tissue Viability | 4 | 3.80 | |
| Resuscitation Training | 4 | 3.45 | |
| Stroke Care | 1 | 1.00 | |
| Continence Assessment | 5 | 4.50 | |
| Infection Prevention & Control | 8 | 6.82 | |
| Clinical Trials | 4 | 3.80 | |
| Surgical Specialties | Head and Neck | 2 | 1.80 |
| Urology | 7 | 6.72 | |
| Stoma Care | 5 | 5.00 | |
| Ophthalmology | 6 | 6.00 | |
| Pre-Assessment | 7 | 4.40 | |
| Endoscopy | 5 | 4.40 | |
| Surgical Specialties | 7 | 5.00 | |
| Cancer Services | Cancer Services | 25 | 22.00 |
| Radiotherapy | 5 | 4.80 | |
| Women and Children’s | Child Safeguarding | 4 | 3.80 |
| Adult Safeguarding | 1 | 1.00 | |
| Family Nurse Partnership | 4 | 3.40 | |
| Paediatrics | 13 | 10.38 | |
| Women’s Health | 1 | 0.80 | |
| Milk Bank | 1 | 1.00 | |
| Adult Mental Health | Eating Disorders | 3 | 3.00 |
| Total | 195 | 172.70 | |