www.associationfornutrition.org
AfN LAUNCHES THE WORKFORCE COMPETENCE MODEL IN NUTRITION
A
t the Royal Society on 23rd February 2012, the Association for Nutrition (AfN) launched the newly developed ‘Workforce Competence Model in Nutrition’. AfN’s Nutrition & Health Inequalities Team presented the Model to key stakeholders as the major outcome
of a three year Project, ‘Improving Capacity, Confidence and Competence in Nutrition across the Workforce’, funded by the Department of Health. The Model provides a framework which benchmarks competences and underpins standards for upskilling the nutrition workforce, to ensure that workers are demonstrably competent and able to practise in accordance with defined standards of proficiency, conduct, ethics and training. It has the potential to make a significant contribution to reducing nutrition related health inequalities in disadvantaged areas. The UK is fortunate in having a body of well-qualified
Registered Nutritionists (UKVRN registered) and Registered Dietitians (HPC registered). However, the wider nutrition workforce comprises a range of individuals with differing skill sets, levels of education and training, scope of practice and professional support. Employed at various levels within health and social care, frontline workers deliver nutritional messages and advice to the public, including those at greatest risk of nutritional ill-health. No schemes exist to improve and validate the competence of this workforce at Levels 3 and 4 on the Public Health Skills and Career Framework (PHSCF), nor any mechanism for ensuring that nutrition advice offered by health professionals at Level 5+ is accurate or consistent. The Workforce Competence Model was established to address this need – a process which took place in four stages: 1. Identifying and mapping the workforce responsible for nutrition delivery at levels 3, 4 and 5+.
2. Scoping vocational training and educational provision in nutrition and how training provision contributes to workforce capacity.
3. Using 1) and 2) to derive Nutrition Workforce Competences to form the Workforce Competence Model.
4. Testing and validating the proposed Workforce Competence Model among the target workforce.
The finalised Model consists of 10 Competences,focusing on essential knowledge and experience in nutrition, alongside vital delivery skills. Each Competence is supported by a series of statements which demonstrate the necessary knowledge and understanding required. Levels are cumulative, so users are expected to demonstrate knowledge and understanding for all statements at their entry level and below. Likewise for the Competences, nutrition workers at Level 3 typically comply with Competences 1-6, those at
Level 4 with Competences 1-8 and health professionals comply with Competences 1-10. All users of the model must act in accordance with the Code of Practice. Users distinguish their entry level according to their highest level of education or training in nutrition. Nutrition workers such as Community Food Workers, Health Trainers and Nursery Nurses might hold level 3 or 4 training e.g. NVQs, awards, certificates and diplomas. Health professionals hold a higher level qualification in their own discipline so comply with Competences at Level 5+.
Workforce Competence Model for Nutrition
The Model will also prove an invaluable tool for other groups such as employers, training providers and prospective students, to assess benchmarked standards in nutrition at differing levels. We are currently developing a web portal to be the central access point for further information, recommended nutrition training courses and nutrition-related events, to support health and social care professionals and encourage networking. The Project has been an outstanding success for AfN. It is an
entirely innovative piece of work with clear potential to deliver change beyond conventional professional boundaries to the benefit of the public. The challenge now is to implement the concept, embed skill development in the frontline nutrition workforce and ensure continued relevance of the Model in the context of rapid change within the health and social care sectors. Over the next twelve months we will seek further funding to extend and test the Model in Scotland, Wales, Northern Ireland and the EU to provide a truly comprehensive Workforce Competence Model in Nutrition. Further information on the Project, the specific workstreams and the launch event is available on our website.
Stefanie Radford, Project Manager, Association for Nutrition
For more information: T: +44 (0)20 7291 8352 E:
info@associationfornutrition.org
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