So what sort of nurse are you?
Research type
Research Study
Full title
So what sort of nurse are you? Nursing in a social care setting: Looked after children’s views and stories
IRAS ID
149570
Contact name
Lin Graham-Ray
Contact email
Research summary
Looked after children is a term introduced by the Children Act, which refers to all children in public care, including those who may live at home with their parents but who are the subject of care orders. There were 67,050 looked after children In England and Wales at 31 March 2012. This figure has been rising over the last few years. My practice
area is a busy cosmopolitan London borough and currently we have in the region of 550 looked after children per year
and approximately 200 young people who are referred to as care leavers; that is to say they are young people aged
over 18 who have previously been in the care system as looked after children. The studies that have been carried out
to date tell us this group of children and young people are reluctant to go to health services for help or assistance. This
concerns those whose job it is to make sure that everyone gets the same assessment and access to health services
and treatment. All of the reports and documents produced by government bodies in the last few years have indicated
that looked after children are also particularly prone to long term ill health and emotional and mental health difficulties
(NICE/SCIE2010). Some of this is due, in part, to the experiences they have had, such as neglect, abuse, social
isolation and poverty. The reports also suggest that looked after children and care leavers do not trust health
professionals and are fearful about attending health appointments. However, my professional experience of being a
looked after children’s nurse has been such that the vast majority of looked after children and care leavers are very
happy to meet with the nurses and engage in a meaningful way. This has lead to achieving high levels of attainment in
the key performance indicators that the government set all Local authorities as part of their mandatory role and
responsibilities (DH 2010). As a looked after children’s nurse I have become very interested as to why, and what it is
about being a nurse, that makes a difference to looked after children and care leavers. I would like to understand some
of the reasons why they are happy to see us and let us help them with their health issues. Therefore, I would like to
research what it is about nurses working in social care that makes a difference to looked after children and care
leavers health, but perhaps more importantly what do looked after children and care leavers think about this and what
do they say about it when asked?
A further aim of this research is to gather examples of what patients think works for them, as well as what doesn’t, so
too what’s helpful and what’s not in their view. I will invite looked after children and care leavers to talk to me in
interview and tell me about their experiencesREC name
London - Harrow Research Ethics Committee
REC reference
14/LO/0845
Date of REC Opinion
4 Sep 2014
REC opinion
Further Information Favourable Opinion