Issues associated with the increasing role of nurse
Deligating some responsibilities to nurses may lower the cost
Nurses may take longer to perform the procedures which would counter any cost savings
Some nurses are very experienced and could be much more proficient than some junior doctors
Nurses do not have general medical training and, although good at following protocol, they may not be able to identify potential problems that an experienced doctor would spot
Sharing roles with nurses is likely to reduce the training opportunities available to junior doctors - those training opportunities have already been reduced by the introduction of the EWTD.
Nurses also need that training
Care should be taken to ensure that training oppotunities are adequately shared between doctors and nurses
Nurses are likely to remain in a department long term and so are valuable resource, compared to junior doctors who rotate frequently.
Inter-professional learning can be a useful way to maximise training time for all
