About Conference

It’s true. Aberdeen is known as ‘The Granite City’ due to the many buildings composed of locally quarried grey granite. Some view the swathes of grey as depressing, but those with a discerning eye for architecture and optimism will note that they appear silver due to the high mica content. Aberdeen is one of the oldest cities in the UK, a huge urban centre in Scotland and a key piece of the UK’s national infrastructure, but a lot of people don’t realise how truly interesting and unique it really is. Surrounded by a national park twice the size of the Lake District, with a sea bursting with life and a heart to the city that reaches forward, out of the past and into a bright future, this bustling urban hub of Scottish life has so much to offer everyone that visits it. 

I think one can say the same about Critical Care Nursing. It's true that Critical Care Nursing has gone through extreme times, and it can sometimes feel grey and depressing. It demands long hours, emotional stamina, and the ability to provide comprehensive care to critically ill patients. This profession is challenging but we also know how immensely rewarding it can be, and there is hardly ever a dull moment. We are at a critical moment in our professional history. Critical Care Nursing had been in the spotlight during the global pandemic, but it is clear that we need to develop and evolve to ensure that we attract new nurses into the profession but more importantly retain all our highly trained specialised experienced nurses.  Our regeneration should be more than a programme to make it nicer: it should be a programme to make it an attractive sustainable career option. It should make us remember why we nurse, who we nurse for, and what nursing means to us!

Like many other professions, Critical Care Nursing must continue to evolve and develop through interventions that assert its identity and contribute to be of a vibrant, diverse, academically rich profession with a tangible and distinctive sense of place within the field of Critical Care. Whether planned as a large-scale vision or small, organic and incremental developments, any interventions must be united by forming part of a strategic and holistic vision and direction. We need to stimulate diversity whilst cultivating cohesion and reinforcing identity. Crucially, we now need a deeper, more inclusive dialogue about Critical Care Nursing's future.