team where she has been able to introduce, develop and co‐ordinate e‐learning packages on the program.
Along with teaching pre‐registration healthcare, Emma has maintained her post‐registration nurse teaching within sexual health, safeguarding and public health within the Specialist Community Public Health Nurse Program. During her time at Northumbria University, Emma was a part of the workforce development team working in collaboration with external partners to create education packages to develop the workforce. In 2015, Emma became involved and is Program Lead for Northumbria University's innovative program for Professional Non‐Surgical Aesthetic Practice, which has been a trail blazer nationally.
Emma's key areas of interest are public health, sexual health, military families and technology enhanced learning. Emma has published widely in journals and is Fellow of the Higher Education Academy.
Laura Stavert MPharm, PgDip Clinical Pharmacy, PGCert Independent Prescribing, MRPharmS, Advanced Pharmacist Practitioner Cumbria, Northumberland Tyne and Wear NHS Foundation Trust.
Laura began her training in 2005 as a Pharmacy undergraduate at The Robert Gordon University (RGU) in Aberdeen before completing pre‐registration training at the Royal Infirmary of Edinburgh in 2009 and developing a range of skills across a number of clinical specialities, including a passion for mental health and medicines of the elderly. After qualification in 2010, she completed a number of basic grade rotations at the Western General Hospital in Edinburgh before taking up a specialist role in mental health services with Cumbria, Northumberland Tyne and Wear NHS FT in 2012. Laura began in a specialist role in the mental health of older adults in 2016 before qualifying as an independent prescriber in 2017.
Laura now has an advanced practice role working in the community with older adults with functional and organic mental health disorders. She currently teaches on the V300 Independent Prescribing course at the University of Sunderland and hopes to pursue a doctorate in the near future.
Hayley Underdown Nurse Neurological Intensive Care, BSc (Hons) Critical Care, DipHE Adult Nursing.
Hayley embarked on her nursing career in 2002 where she began her Diploma of Higher Education in Adult Nursing at the University of Hertfordshire. Upon qualifying as a nurse in 2005, Hayley started work as a Band 5 Staff Nurse on the acute medical unit.
Hayley then went on to work in cardiothoracic and vascular intensive care at St Mary's Hospital in Paddington, London. She worked there for two and a half years, before moving to Charing Cross Hospital in London where she worked as a Charge Nurse and the Senior Charge Nurse in the neuro‐intensive care unit. After five years at Charing Cross Hospital, Hayley relocated to Perth, Western Australia. While in Perth she worked for five years in a general intensive care unit and coronary care unit at St John Of God Hospital in Murdoch. Hayley currently works at the Royal Perth Hospital in a 50‐bedded acute medical unit as a Staff Development Nurse in clinical education.
Hayley has had a strong passion for critical care nursing. Her key interests are clinical and nurse education, service improvement and patient experience.
Elaine Walls Senior Lecturer, Health and Life Sciences, Northumbria University.
Elaine first qualified as a Children's Nurse in 1996, from the Bolton and Salford School of Nursing. Upon qualification, Elaine worked at Newcastle General Hospital, rotating between paediatric intensive care and the children's bone marrow transplant unit. In 2001, Elaine commenced a Nurse Specialist post for children pre‐ and post‐bone marrow transplant for immunological conditions. This involved national work, alongside presenting developments with international world specialists at European Bone Marrow Transplant Conferences. Elaine then went on to work in paediatric oncology and completed further study to qualify as a Health Visitor in 2007, working across Northumberland and South Tyneside. Following completion of a Masters degree in Public Health, Elaine trained as a Community Practice Teacher for post‐registration specialist public health students in Northumberland and was responsible for their practice training and development, working in partnership with Northumbria University. In 2017, Elaine joined Northumbria University as a part time Lecturer on secondment alongside her clinical role. In 2018, Elaine joined the children's nursing team at Northumbria University and currently teaches across pre‐registration nursing and post‐registration specialist and prescribing programs.
Elaine has been involved in research with Newcastle University, is currently studying for her own PhD and has achieved several publications within academic journals.
David Waters RN, BSc (Hons), PGDip, MA Ed, PgCert Research. Associate Professor and Head of Department, Department of Post‐Qualifying Healthcare Practice, School of Nursing and Midwifery Birmingham City University.
David is an experienced nurse and academic, with a clinical background in cardiac care, critical care and aeromedical repatriation. He currently leads the post‐qualifying portfolio, within the School of Nursing and Midwifery at Birmingham City University. He is currently undertaking a PhD, exploring the impact of errors within a critical care setting.
Carol Wills MSc Multidisciplinary Professional Development and Education, PGDip Advanced Practice, BSc (Hons) Specialist Community Public Health Nursing (SCPHN) (Health Visiting), DipHE Adult Nursing, Registered Nurse (RN), Enrolled Nurse (EN), Registered Health Visitor (HV), Community Practitioner Prescriber (NP), Registered Lecturer/Practice Educator (RLP), Senior Fellow (SFHEA), Subject and Program Leader Non Medical Prescribing at Northumbria University.
Carol began her career undertaking enrolled nurse training in 1983 at Hexham Hospital in Northumberland. She then worked within neurotrauma at Newcastle General Hospital and then spent several years in coronary care and intensive care at Hexham Hospital. This experience and additional training to complete registered nurse qualification then stimulated her to focus on primary care and prevention of ill health. Carol worked as a Practice Nurse and Nurse Practitioner in Newcastle city centre and as a Staff Nurse within Northumberland community nursing teams before going on to complete a Health Visiting degree and working in Newcastle as a Health Visitor for several years. During this time, she undertook several leadership and teaching roles including Immunisation Training Co‐Ordinator, Community Practice Teacher and Trust Lead Mentor.
Carol has been a Senior Lecturer at Northumbria University since 2002 and has led several post‐graduate professional programs including the MSc Education in Professional Practice (NMC Teacher Program), PGDip SCPHN and the Non‐Medical Prescribing Program. She has also undertaken national roles including Policy Advice Committee member and Treasurer for the UK Standing Conference SCPHN Education and Subject Expert for several quality approval panels and external examiner roles. Her key areas of interest and research are around developing learning and teaching and advanced level practice.
Preface
The overarching aim of this text is to provide the reader with an understanding of the fundamentals associated with pharmacology and the adult patient and in so doing enhance patient safety and patient outcomes. This book will help readers develop their competence and confidence within the field of pharmacology as related to the adult care setting, enabling them to recognise and respond compassionately to the needs of those they offer care to. The contributors to the text are all experienced clinicians and academics who have expertise in their sphere of practice.
The Nursing and Midwifery Council (NMC) in the UK is required to establish standards of proficiency that each nurse must achieve prior to being admitted to the professional register demonstrating safe and effective practice. The standards of proficiency for registered nurses and the standards of proficiency for nursing associates have been established (NMC 2018a, 2018b respectively). The NMC (2018a) standards have been designed in such a way as to ensure that pre‐registration nurses are ‘prescriber ready’ when they have successfully completed their undergraduate nursing program (Prydderch 2019).
If undergraduate, pre‐registration nurses are to be ‘prescriber ready’ there is a need for those nurses to be prepared in order to practice as