Annual Report extract - Student achievements

Jill Brooks, a second year PhD student, won a prize for the best research article in the Journal of the Dermatology Nurses' Association:

Brooks J (2012) Developing and investigating skin and wound cleaning approaches in rural Africa Journal of the Dermatology Nurses' Association 4, 255-258

Tim Büscher, a first year PhD student published:

Büscher T P, Dyson J, Cowdell F (2013). The effects of hoarding disorder on families: an integrative review Journal of psychiatric and mental health nursing doi:10.1111/jpm.12098

Gillian Hebblewhite, a 3rd year Learning Disability Nurse won the Pre-registration/Pre-qualifying student award and published:

Hebblewhite G (2012) Grief in the transition from oral to enteral feeding among children earning Disability Practice 15:10 12-16

Annual Report extract - Higher Education Academy Fellowships

Peter Draper, Senior Lecturer

Rev Dr Peter Draper

Excellence in teaching is at the heart of the Faculty’s mission, and this year several members of our staff have received significant recognition from the Higher Education Academy (HEA) through the award of HEA fellowships and other accolades.

The HEA has recognized Parveen Ali, Nicola Credland, Judith Dyson, Paula Gawthorpe, Jeanette MacNaught and Helen Sisson as Fellows. To achieve fellowship, academics must show that they are skilled teachers who are knowledgeable about their subject material and contemporary approaches to teaching and that their teaching is underpinned by evidence and reflects professional values. This cluster of practice, knowledge and values is known as the UK Professional Standards Framework.  Academics can be awarded fellowship by successfully completing an accredited programme or by producing evidence which is peer-reviewed by senior academics.  Thus Fellowship of the HEA is a significant professional achievement.

Senior Fellowship of the HEA can be awarded to experienced academics who have shown significant leadership in their learning and teaching practice.  One member of our staff was successful in gaining a Senior Fellowship this year – congratulations to Jennifer Loke.

Every year the HEA invites universities to nominate academic staff to become National Teaching Fellows (NTF).  The National Teaching Fellowship Scheme is a highly competitive and prestigious national competition in which up to 55 awards are made in recognition of individual excellence.  This year the university nominated Peter Draper, Senior Lecturer in Nursing, for the award.  Peter was successful, and received his certificate in a ceremony in London.

This level of success is the result of a great deal of hard work.  The FHSC regularly runs staff development events with a focus on learning and teaching.  This year, two leading nurse educators, Professor Janet Hargreaves (University of Huddersfield) and Professor Philip Keeley (University of Manchester) delivered seminars on learning and teaching topics, and the faculty has held several learning and teaching forums jointly facilitated by leading educators from other disciplines.  Peter Draper has also held workshops to help colleagues prepare their submissions for HEA recognition.

The award of a fellowship of the Higher Education Academy at any level is valuable because it is the outcome of a process of peer review of performance against objective standards.  The Student Led Teaching Awards are recognized by the National Union of Students and the Higher Education Academy, and this year Mike Parker, Lecturer in clinical nursing, received the Inspiring Teacher of the Year Award.  This award recognizes his ability to make content interesting and relevant, and a teaching approach with a transformative impact on the student experience and a passion for good teaching that motivates students to perform academically at their full potential.

Annual Report extract - Awards and appointments

Roger Watson, Professor of Nursing

Sue Beacock was appointed Chair of the UK Learning and Intellectual Disabilities Nursing Academic Network.

Mary Beadle and Yvonne Needham presented a poster at the Phi Mu Chapter (England) Inaugural Conference Putting people at the heart of nursing care: leading the way at Bournemouth University in June 2013.  The poster was awarded the best poster prize for clarity of message and creativity of design.

Fiona Cowdell has been nominated by Cambridge Scholars Publishing for a British Medical Association award for her book entitled “That’s how we do it ... we treat them all the same” : an Exploration of the Experiences of Patients, Lay Carers and Health and Social Care staff of the Care Received by Older People with Dementia in Acute Hospital Settings.

Peter Draper was awarded a Senior Fellowship of the Curriculum Development and Teaching Enhancement with a remit to deliver a project on innovations in learning and teaching in higher education and awarded £10k by the Leadership Foundation for Higher Education for a project to understand the experiences of educational innovators at the University of Hull.

Barbara Elliott and other Hull colleagues were shortlisted for the Universal Biotech Innovation Prize, beating around 200 other contenders from across Europe for their work on a novel feeding tube.  The project was also shortlisted for the Medipex NHS Innovation Awards and was one of five finalists in the Medical Devices and Diagnostics category. The feeding tube is designed to provide a signal once it is correctly positioned.  The project is funded by the National Institute for Health Research (NIHR) Invention for Innovation (i4i) Programme.

Mark Hayter was elected to Fellowship of the American Academy of Nursing (FAAN) in Washington DC, USA in October 2013.  Mark was also appointed Editor of the Journal of Advanced Nursing.

Andrea Hilton was awarded a University Teaching Fellowship (UTF) 2013.  This peer-reviewed award is made in recognition of Andrea’s excellent contribution to learning and teaching.  Andrea has also been appointed as a National Institute for Health and Care Excellence accreditation external adviser and a Royal Pharmaceutical Society conference research panel member.

Janet Kelly has been nominated by Cambridge Scholars Publishing for a British Medical Association book award, under the ‘Basis of Medicine’ category for her book Is Medical Ethics in Armed Conflict Identical to Medical Ethics in Times of Peace? 

Gloria Likupe was awarded a Mary Seacole award and in October 2013 was presented with a successful completion project certificate at the Royal College of Nursing of the UK office in London for her project 'A communication Model between Health Care Workers and Ethnic Minority Elders'.  The certificates were presented by Dean Royles, Chief Executive, NHS Employers and Jane Cummings, Chief Nursing Officer England.

Jennifer Loke was awarded a Higher Education Academy International Scholarship to study nursing education in Singapore.

Roger Watson has been appointed to lead a Lancet commission on UK nursing.  Professor Watson will lead a team of eminent UK and international nurses over the next two years to investigate nursing education, organisation and practice in the UK.  Roger was also appointed to serve on the 2014 Research Excellence Framework sub-panel for Dentistry, Allied Health Professions, Nursing and Pharmacy.

Annual Report extract - Publications

Staff were asked to nominate their best paper for the year:

Alderdice F, Ayers S, Darwin Z, Green J, Jomeen J, Kenyon S, Martin CR, Neham JJ, Redshaw M, Savage-McGlynn E, Walsh J (2013) Measuring psychological health in the perinatal period Journal of Reproductive and Infant Psychology 31, 431-438

Ali, PA Naylor PB Intimate partner violence: A narrative review of the biological and psychological explanations for its causation Aggression and Violent Behavior 18 373-382

Barrett D (2013) Effectiveness of a telehealth and telecare learning resource within an undergraduate nursing curriculum Journal of the International Society of Telemedicine and eHealth 1, 12-18

Batten G, Oakes P M, Alexander T. (2013) Factors Associated With Social Interactions Between Deaf Children and Their Hearing Peers: A Systematic Literature Review The Journal of Deaf Studies and Deaf Education doi:10.1093/deafed/ent052

Bell ER, Glover L, Alexander T (2013) An exploration of pregnant teenagers’ views of the future and their decisions to continue or terminate their pregnancy: implications for nursing care Journal of Clinical Nursing doi:10.1111/jocn.12431

Cheney G, Schlösser A, Nash P, Glover L (2013) Targeted group-based interventions in schools to promote emotional well-being: a systematic review Clinical Child Psychology and Psychiatry doi:10.1177/1359104513489565

Cowdell F, Ersser S, Gradwell C, Langford A 2012 The development, validity, reliability and field testing of the Person-Centred Dermatology Self-Care Index Archives of Dermatology 148, 1251-1256

Credland N (2013) Non-invasive ventilation in COPD exacerbations Nursing Times 109(36), 16-21

Cutler L, Hayter M, Ryan T (2013) A critical review and synthesis of qualitative research on patient experiences of critical illness Intensive and Critical Care Nursing 29, 147-157

Holloway M, Adamson S, Argyrou V, Draper P, Mariau D (2013) “Funerals aren’t nice but it couldn’t have been nicer”. The makings of a good funeral Mortality: Promoting the

interdisciplinary study of death and dying 18, 30-53

Draper PR, Wray J and Burley S (2013) Exploring Nurses’ Use of Language with Older People Nursing Older People 25 (9) pp. 18-23

Dyson J, Lawton R, Jackson C, Cheater F (2013) Development of a theory-based instrument to identify barriers and levers to best hand hygiene practice among healthcare practitioners Implementation Sciencedoi:10.1186/1748-5908-8-11

Ersser S, Farassat H, Jackson K, Dennis H, Sheppard Z, More A (2013) A service evaluation of the Eczema Education Programme: an analysis of child, parent, and service impact outcomes British Journal of Dermatology 169, 629-636

Fox C, Chew GC, Maidment I, Wolverson E, Hilton A (2014) Dementia-present and future therapeutic options In Foster C, Herring J, Doron I (Eds) Dementia law and ethics Hart, Oxford

Galvin KT, Todres L (2013) Caring and Wellbeing: A Lifeworld Approach Routledge, London

Gretton M, Lazenby B (2013) Grandma, Remember me: drama in nurse education Journal of Dementia Care 21:6, 24-27

Grubb P (2013) Setting the landscape for a study of academic and creative writing techniques as an aid to professional development of healthcare professionals Journal Of Practice Teaching & Learning 12, 53-69

Handley E, Hutchinson N (2013). The Experience of carers Supporting People with Intellectual Disabilities through the Process of Bereavement: An Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis Journal of Applied Research in Intellectual Disabilities 26, 186-194

Hanson C, Clarke C (2013) Is expressed emotion related to estimates of ability made by older people with cognitive impairments and their partners? Aging and Mental Health 17, 535-543

Hewson V, Wray J (2012) Are the dental health needs of adults with illegal drug dependence being met by current service provision in the United Kingdom? Journal of Addictions Nursing 23, 191-199

Jeffrey P (2013) First job interviews: preparation is the key The Journal of Operating Department Practice 4:4, 15

Jolley J (2013). Introducing research and evidence based practice for nursing and healthcare professionals Pearson, Harlow

Jones C, Jomeen J, Oghuebi O (2013) A preliminary survey of the use of complementary and alternative medicines in childbearing women Evidence Based Midwifery 11, 128-131

Kelly J (2013) Is medical ethics in armed conflict identical to medical ethics in times of peace? Cambridge Scholars Publishing, Newcastle-upon-Tyne

Layton H (2013) Commentary on Zhang J, While AE, Norman IJ (2012) Development and testing of an instrument to assess nurses' knowledge, risk perception, health beliefs and behaviours related to influenza vaccination Journal of Clinical Nursing 21, 2636-2646 Journal of Clinical Nursing 23, 296-297

Likupe G, Archibong UE (2013) Black African Nurses’ Experiences of Equality, Racism, and Discrimination in the National Health Service Journal of Psychological issues and Organizational Culture 3 (s1), 227-246

Loke JC-F, Colquhoun D, Lee KW (2013) A glimpse into nursing discursive behaviour in interprofessional online learning Journal of Nursing Education and Practice 3, 67-69

Mackintosh-Franklin C (2013) Registered nurses' personal responses to postoperative pain: a descriptive qualitative study Pain Management Nursing doi:10.1016/j.pmn.2013.03.001

Mills J, Frizelle D, Been S (2013) BACPR Standards and core components of cardiovascular disease prevention and rehabilitation: A guide to the evidence and effective implementation In Cardioproterctive Therapies; Cardioprotective Medication, Implantable Devices Wiley, Oxford

Morton N (2013) Non-invasive ventilation in COPD exacerbations Nursing Times 109:356, 18-21

Ogbuehi O (2013) Commentary on Kaunonen M, Hannula L and Tarkka M-T (2012) A systematic review of peer support interventions for breastfeeding. Journal of Clinical Nursing 21, 1943–1954  Journal of Clinical Nursing 22, 1786–1787

Rainforth M , Laurenson M (2013) A literature review of Case Formulation to inform mental health practice Mental Health Nursing doi:10.1111/jpm.1206

Schoenleber M, Wadhawan J, Singh R, Shields L, Greenman J, Elliott B (2013) Random Arrays of Vitamin K₁ Modified Electrodes for pH Sensing, Faraday Conference 2013, University of Durham UK

Sherratt A, Skinn E, Gardiner A (2013) Gastrointestinal cancers: an update for nurses Nursing & Residential Care 15, 206-209

Smith L (2012) Opthalmia neonatorum: a modern problem International Journal of Ophthalmic Practice 3, 162-165

Tame S (2013) The effect of continuing professional education on perioperative nurses' relationships with medical staff: findings from a qualitative study Journal of Advanced Nursing 69, 817-827

Watson R, Chen Y, Ip MYK, Smith GD, Wong TSK, Deary IJ (2013) The structure of stress: confirmatory factor analysis of a Chinese version of the stressors in Nursing Students Scale (SINS) Nurse Education Today 33, 160-165

Fox C, Maidment I, Moniz-Cook E, White J, Thyrian JR, Young J, Kationa C, Chew-Graham CA (2013) Optimising primary care for dementia Mental Health in Family Medicine 10, 143-151

Whitfield C, Jomeen J, Hayter M, Gardiner E (2013) Sexual health information seeking: a survey of adolescent practices Journal of clinical nursing 22, 3259-3269

Wilkes Z (2012) A framework to support practice teachers in the assessment process Community Practitioner 84(12), 24-27

Wilkinson Y (2013) Commentary on Ronen T, Hamama L and Rosenbaum M (2012)

Enuresis – children’s predictions of their treatment’s progress and outcomes. Journal of Clinical Nursing 22, 222–232

Wright C, Coad J, Morgan S, Stark D, Cable M (2013) ‘Just in Case’: Understanding the Fertility Information Needs of Teenagers and Young Adults with Cancer Journal of Adolescent and Young Adult Oncology. doi: 10.1111/ecc.12137

Zhang JF, Goode KM, Rigby A, Balk AHM, Cleland JG  & TEN-HMS Investigators (2013) Identifying patients at risk of death or hospitalisation due to worsening heart failure using decision tree analysis: Evidence from the Trans-European Network-Home-Care Management System (TEN-HMS) Study International Journal of Cardiology 163, 149-156

Research - extract from our annual report

Professor Julie Jomeen, Associate Dean

Julie Jomeen

The Faculty of Health and Social Care has had a successful year in research terms. The establishment of three clear research development groups (RDG's) in the faculty has provided a strong focus for research and is promoting the growth of critical mass in key areas. The three groups comprise:

·         Long Term Conditions

·         Maternal, Reproductive, Relationships & Sexual Health

·         Health Technology, Interventions & Innovations

The concept of promoting well-being works as a central theme crossing all planned activity. The RDGs focus on those underpinning mechanisms that ensure and enhance health and wellbeing.  The groups have worked as a base for the development of early career researchers, supported by the faculty’s fast track programme, now in its 2^nd successful year, and many of those individuals have gone on to publish some of the papers showcased in this report.

Researchers in the faculty have been proactive in developing relationships with external partners and internally across-faculties to promote the growth of grant based activity. The projects in our 2012/13 work-stream highlight our commitment to a collaborative and applied approach to our research. Projects have been developed around RDG areas of expertise and successfully underpinned a growth in research grant applications across a range of grant awarding bodies, from local organisations and charities to research councils. The research income for the last year totalled £399,000, supporting projects across all three RDG's. Some examples of projects from the last year include:

·         Preparing to Care: A longitudinal study of personal qualities, values, and readiness to engage in caring work among students in nursing, occupational therapy and physiotherapy at the Universities of Hull, York and York St John.

·         Development of the MOLES Index – a measure of barriers and levers to skin self-examination

·         Empowering Health Visitors to predict and detect deleterious mental health during pregnancy and the postnatal period and promote optimal care for childbearing women

·         Intimate Partner Violence: Exploring the Perspective of the Muslim Community: A Community Consultation

·         Evaluating use of telehealth in Hull care homes (ATTICS project)

·         Preventing repeat unplanned teenage pregnancies

·         The experiences of innovators in learning and teaching: lessons for leadership development

·         Evaluation of Air Products telehealth project in NHS East Riding of Yorkshire

The faculty has made a significant and valuable contribution to the Research Evaluation Framework (REF) in UoA 3, with faculty staff making contributions in terms of both outputs but also impact statements. The number of staff that have returned with 3* papers demonstrates a significant increase in the number of staff returning from the previous RAE 2008 and lucidly highlights the progressive trajectory the faculty is on in terms of research activity.

Annual Report: Learning and teaching

Learning and teaching

Carol Mackintosh-Franklin, Associate Dean

The headlines this year for teaching are:

·         All graduate Operating Department Practitioners programme successfully revalidated by HCPC and College of Operating Department Practitioners.

·         New Associate Practitioner Programme launched.

·         MSc Health Flexible Framework Developed

This has been a good year for teaching in the Faculty, we have been successful in validating one of the very few all graduate Operating Department Practitioner programmes in the UK, which places the University of Hull at the forefront of education in this expanding and vital area of health care. Moreover, students on the current Operating Department Practitioner programme gave a resounding score of 100% satisfaction in the most recent National Student Survey.

We have also launched our new Associate Practitioner programme, which offers Health Care Support workers the opportunity to improve their clinical skills and knowledge, as well as a chance to move towards entry to an approved route to gain Registered Nurse status.

We are also just about to say goodbye to students on our old Advanced Diploma in Nursing programme who are due to graduate early in the New Year.  All pre-registration education in the Faculty is now at graduate level with our first all graduate nursing students due to receive their awards in September 2014.

We have also improved some of our existing areas of provision.  Our Midwifery programmes have been subject to extensive review and pending approval by the Nursing and Midwifery Council in the New Year we hope to be able to offer all future students the opportunity to undertake the most up-to-date programme available. We are also starting the process of revising our Community Nursing provision to ensure that all students undertaking these programmes have the highest quality and most relevant educational experience that will ensure the continued delivery of high quality community based health care.

In our post-registration provision we have also launched our new MSc Health Flexible framework.  This allows already qualified health care professionals to study for postgraduate qualifications of direct relevance to their own work and area of expertise. Students can follow a specific route such as Critical Care or Advanced Practice or can make their own bespoke programme from the range of modules available in our portfolio. We will be looking at developing this approach further in the New Year by offering a similar framework at undergraduate level and named Postgraduate Certificates and Postgraduate Diplomas.

None of our work is done in isolation; we are fortunate to be able to work collaboratively with many health care professionals from a broad range of health care providers, both local and in some case not so local to the faculty, who support the development of our provision but also its delivery.  We are also grateful to the many service users who make a fantastic contribution to the development and delivery of all our provision, through their ability to offer unique insights and perspectives. Finally we cannot be a successful Faculty without the active engagement and participation of our students whose feedback, evaluations and participation is a further vital ingredient in our continued success.

Annual report: international activities

International

Roger Watson, Professor of Nursing

International activity is very important to the Faculty and that includes students and staff and involves both outgoing and incoming activities.  Jeremy Jolley is the Faculty’s International Co-ordinator.

In the academic year including 2013, 22 of our students have visited other countries including Barbados, Nepal, Oman, Singapore, India and Uganda and 22 students visited the Faculty from Spain, Taiwan, Singapore, Finland, India, Oman, Sweden and the USA.  In addition, we have 36 international students studying in the Faculty and they come from Australia, Brunei, China, Cyprus, Finland, Ghana, Greece, Ireland, Italy, Jordan, Malta, Nigeria, Philippines, Saudi Arabia, Spain, Sweden, Taiwan, Tanzania, Uganda and the USA.  International academic visitors have come from Canada, Singapore, South Africa and Sweden.

Staff have been actively engaged in international travel with work in Europe (Finland, Italy, Ireland, Sweden), Far East (Hong Kong, China and Taiwan); India, Middle East (Saudi Arabia, Oman, Bahrain), North America (Canada and the USA), South Africa and South East Asia (Singapore, Malaysia and Thailand).

Annual Report extract: External Engagement

Sue Beacock, Associate Dean

Sue Beacock

2013 has been an exciting year for the external engagement team. We have been involved in several key developments in the Faculty and with our partners and others externally.  The biggest internal change has come in terms of admissions with the development of the team of admissions tutors for the pre-qualifying programmes. We now have Sheila Wright as overall admissions co-ordinator; Benita Wilson for the adult field; Lolita Alfred for mental health; Mary Dearing for learning disabilities and Jackie Wright for children. Nicky Clarke is continuing her role for midwifery as is Paul Jeffries for Operating Department Practitioners. In November we welcomed the admissions staff for SSPRD into the Faculty meaning that the process of applying for our post qualifying courses is more streamlined and there is a single point of contact within the Faculty.

With the development of Health Education Yorkshire and Humber (HEEY&H) and the associate local training and education board as our commissioners, we have had a clear steer in the direction of the Faculty portfolio. With the support of our partners, we have developed a new approach to the structure and delivery of our Specialist Skills – Post Registration Development (SSPRD, formerly Continuing Professional Development) provision

With new and flexible frameworks for both the Masters and Associate Practitioners we are now able to align professional development to the needs identified by the NHS and other providers.  One example of this development is the MSc in Advanced Practice where this year we have worked with two provider National Health Service Trusts to tailor a programme to meet the needs of advanced clinical practitioner roles. The MSc Health Studies framework now has stepping off points at post graduate certificate and diploma levels enabling us to work with students and their managers to develop specific skills as they relate to practice areas, examples of developments being critical care, mental health dementia and  long terms conditions. The masters has a naming process allowing for student determined awards depending on the pathway being undertaken.

Supporting clinical and service areas in workforce issues and development is becoming a strong feature in the Faculty and we are developing new ways of such joint working such as agreeing an annual SSPRD plan with some partner organisations and this is something we are hoping to build on.  This year we have also developed an extended portfolio in terms of specific and bespoke work, using the flexibilities that have been built into the SSPRD contract we are able to respond to requests from our partners for study days, consultancy and practice development activity. Please come and talk to us if you need any help in developing yourself, your staff or your organisation.

Annual Report Introduction - Steve Ersser

Professor Steven Ersser, Dean

Email: s.ersser@hull.ac.uk

Welcome to the first Annual Report of the Faculty of Health & Social Care. I cannot believe that over two years have passed since my arrival at Hull. Reading this report I am proud to be Dean of a Faculty whose staff and students have excelled in research and education and have embraced transformational change to prepare us for the challenges of the future. Our staff and students have excelled in many areas and these are illustrated through a wide range of awards and appointments.

We have welcomed new members of academic staff from varied clinical, academic and professional support backgrounds, including our expanded professoriate including Professors Galvin, Hayter and Watson, all of whom contribute to the leadership of the Faculty.  Our latest addition to the senior team is Dr Carolyn Macintosh-Franklin from Liverpool, who has taken up the post of Associate Dean, Learning, Teaching & Quality.  We also welcome new Visiting Faculty, including Honorary Professor Esme Moniz-Cooke, who is an international scholar in the field of dementia research.

The Faculty has undergone a major restructure with four new Departments including two new Heads (Professors Hayter and Jomeen), these are: - the Department of Nursing; Midwifery & Child Health; Psychological Health & Wellbeing and Health Technology and Perioperative Practice. Psychological Health brings together for the first time our clinical psychologists with academic staff in the mental health and learning disability nursing fields to promote interdisciplinary opportunities. We are also delighted to welcome the integration of our colleagues on the Scarborough campus who are within the Centre for Health Care Studies, led by Jane Baxter. 

A key part of our development strategy is to look outward and engage with and learn from not only our vibrant region but also colleagues internationally. We have been developing our regional activity by working closely with our NHS partners and Health Education England to drive up standards though innovation; this has been led by Sue Beacock, our Associate Dean (External Engagement). One exciting area of curriculum development is in the area of advanced practice where health professionals such as nurses prepare to lead and develop new services, often challenging traditional health care role boundaries to promote better access to health care. 

On the national stage Dr Peter Draper has been recognised with National Teaching Fellowship by the Higher Educational Academy and Professor Watson has been invited to lead the new Lancet Commission on Nursing. Another highlight has been our strong Operating Department Practice team who have had a highly successful and commended validation of a new BSc ODP degree, one of the first in the country to prepare ODPs at degree to support the future development of perioperative care.

Further afield we have significantly expanded our international activity welcoming many students and staff that have visited and enriched our academic community. Our visits are promoting collaboration and the sharing of ideas with countries in most of the continents of the world. We recognise that health care development, research and education are global activities and the need to develop our work through examining other cultures. 

Through our new Research Development Groups we are building research teams in areas addressing key health problems, the challenge of supporting the wellbeing of those living with long-term conditions, addressing major societal challenges in the field of sexual and maternal health and investigating new approaches to embracing new health technologies and their application to the care. Our research programme is increasingly interdisciplinary. This wok has been led by our Associate Dean, Professor Julie Jomeen and our group leads.   

An illustration of our developing scholarly activity is the substantial growth in the number and quality of publications by staff; some of these are illustrated in this report. The Faculty is also proud to host the Journal of Advanced Nursing through the work of its editors Professor Watson and Hayter, which is just one of many journals the faculty is engaged with.

This is an exciting period in not only the history of the Faculty but also the University of Hull, its city and the wider region. It has just been announced that the University will be making a major investment in the ‘Health Hub’, which will involve the development of the health and medical facilities on the western campus at Hull, including of our own academic facilities, especially in our clinical skills facilities and the integration of our clinical psychology staff. We will also have an active presence within the new cross Faculty interdisciplinary research areas within the new Hull-York Medical School building.  This is an addition to the major transformation of the Brynmor-Jones library which completes its redevelopment this summer. Furthermore, as members of the city of Hull, we are delighted to be recognised as the UK City of Culture in 2017, where we will play our part in highlighting and investigating the connection between the arts and health care.

Our Faculty is trying to reach out to a wider community of health academics and health providers through our rapidly developing blog which, in its first year has had over 10,000 visits. This report complements our web and social media providing another valuable opportunity to connect with and share some of news with our partners, colleagues and supporters to offer only some illustrations of work and development. We hope it will provide additional opportunities to connect with our Faculty and offer new insights into how we are developing and playing our part in health care research and education.

Finally, I would like to take this opportunity to thank all those who have supported the Faculty in its work over the last few years and hope that we can continue to work together in supporting the development of health care near and far through our growing academic health care community.