How to design and deliver a nurse fellowship

RATIONALE AND KEY POINTS: A nurse fellowship can be described as a programme of professional development incorporating taught sessions on leadership and research, experiential learning, mentoring and undertaking a quality improvement project. Nurse fellowships are typically offered to support the professional development of early-to-mid-career nurses and can provide benefits to the organisation as well as the individual nurse. In addition, a nurse fellowship can become a sustainable element of an organisation's professional development and clinical academic pathway for nurses with an interest in research, quality improvement and innovation. • Participating in a fellowship can support nurses to develop their confidence, leadership capabilities, and engagement in research and quality improvement. • Research activity has multiple benefits for organisations, staff and patients, such as increased staff recruitment and retention, implementation of evidence-based care and improved patient outcomes. • Fellowships can provide an academic clinical career pathway for nurses. • Organisations and patients can benefit from nurse fellowships, since fellows will progress in their careers and continue to build on the leadership, research and innovation skills they developed during the programme. REFLECTIVE ACTIVITY: 'How to' articles can help to update your practice and ensure it remains evidence-based. Apply this article to your practice. Reflect on and write a short account of: • How this article might enhance your design and delivery of a nurse fellowship. • How you could use this information to educate your colleagues on the benefits of nurse fellowships for individual nurses and for the wider organisation.