Top nursing officer from DoH visits Barchester homes

The Department of Health’s Deputy Chief Nursing Officer, Dr David Foster, toured two Barchester care homes with Professor Trish Morris-Thompson who heads up the care provider’s quality and clinical governance team.

David met lots of staff and residents at the London and Guildford based homes and paid particular interest in the roles of the nursing staff. He was keen to understand more about nurses’ responsibilities within a care home setting as well as the support and career progression on offer.

Although they work in different sectors, both David and Trish’s roles require outstanding clinical and professional leadership to provide a better quality service from those in the nursing profession to the individuals who receive the care. Part of the visit was to share best practice where possible and to look at how services may be integrated in the future.

Trish Morris-Thompson, Director of Quality and Clinical Governance at Barchester, said: “It has been great to show David two of our homes and how Barchester nurses deliver personalised care to the older people who live in these homes with a variety of complex needs, including dementia. We have discussed the challenges and opportunities that the NHS and social care face over the next few years and know we have some real synergies to work on going forward.”

Like David, Trish is keen to champion learning and personal development. Trish is a huge advocate of Barchester's in-house business school, which is a fantastic way for all staff to grow and achieve to their highest potential. Nurse retention and ongoing training is high on the agenda and Trish works cross-functionally to make sure the very best opportunities are available for nurses to progress their careers with the only care provider to make the Sunday Times Best Big Companies to work for 2014.