Elsevier and Florence Nightingale Foundation Launch Course to Combat Healthcare Retention Crisis

Elsevier S’ouvre dans une nouvelle fenêtre, a global leader in advanced information and decision support is partnering with the UK-based nursing and midwifery charity, Florence Nightingale Foundation (FNF), to announce the launch of a new preceptorship course. Preceptor Plus is a clinical eLearning course that has been developed to enhance leadership capabilities, help improve patient outcomes, and strengthen clinical practice of the nursing, midwifery and allied health professional workforce.

The healthcare sector is in urgent need of effective retention strategies for nurses and midwives. The World Health Organization projects a shortfall of 11 million health workers by 2030.¹ In the UK alone, research indicates that almost one in five nurses are leaving NHS in England within their first two years of qualifying.²

Preceptorship programmes have been proven to help increase staff retention by up to 50%³ and they have been shown to play a vital role in standardising care and reducing medication error rates made by novice nurses from 50% down to -0%.⁴ Additionally, for newly registered nurses and healthcare professionals, quality preceptorship programmes can help enhance clinical confidence, reduce workplace anxiety, and provide clearer career development pathways during their most vulnerable transition period.³

Preceptor Plus developed by Elsevier in collaboration with Florence Nightingale Foundation offers a comprehensive 16-module approach that incorporates interactive eLearning with persona-based knowledge checks, measurable impact tracking, expert-validated content, and flexible implementation options that support consistent practice standards.

Professor Greta Westwood CBE, PhD, RN, Chief Executive Officer of the Florence Nightingale Foundation said: "Lack of support, stress and difficult working conditions are cited as some of the top issues facing nurses and midwives, with over 50% of newly registered nurses reporting they feel unprepared for the challenges they will face in clinical practice Through our partnership with Elsevier, we've combined FNF's UK and global network of nursing and midwifery experts with Elsevier's educational innovation to create this comprehensive preceptorship course. Together, we're tackling these critical challenges head-on—providing the structured support and leadership development that empowers newly registered nurses and midwives while helping healthcare organisations build stronger, more resilient teams.”

This comprehensive course was developed in response to the critical gaps identified in the 2025 FNF Preceptorship Pulse Check survey, which found that nearly a third of preceptors (29%) feel inadequately prepared and supported for their vital role and that only 19% of early career respondents rated their preceptorship experience as excellent⁷. The survey also identified critical development priorities, with preceptorship leads highlighting the need for additional preceptor training (52%), better structured programmes (36%), and more programme flexibility (23%)⁷.

Tim Morris, VP, Global Nursing Solutions at Elsevier said: "Preceptor Plus aims to address the needs identified by nurses as well as supporting the delivery of consistent practice standards. This latest addition to Elsevier's comprehensive clinical eLearning solutions is designed to equip healthcare professionals with evidence-based strategies to help tackle critical healthcare workforce challenges through enhanced learning and training. We are excited to deliver a new solution that not only enhances clinical practice but also provides measurable returns for healthcare organisations through improved retention and care quality."

For healthcare organisations looking to nurture future leaders, improve staff retention, and elevate patient care, prioritising quality educational approaches offers a transformative pathway to workforce development. This latest collaboration between Elsevier and the Florence Nightingale Foundation reinforces their shared commitment to supporting nurses and midwives throughout their careers.

References

1. World Health Organization. State of the World’s Nursing Report 2025, available at State of the world's nursing report 2025 S’ouvre dans une nouvelle fenêtre [Accessed 05.06.2025]

2. Palmer, Rolewicz, & Dodsworth (2024). Waste not, want not: Strategies to improve the domestic supply of clinical graduates. Waste not, want not: Strategies to improve the supply of clinical staff to the NHS S’ouvre dans une nouvelle fenêtre [Accessed 27.02.2025]

3. Goss, C. R. (2015). Systematic review building a preceptor support system. Journal for Nurses in Professional Development, 31(1), E7–E14. doi:10.1097/nnd.0000000000000117

4. Lee TY, Tzeng WC, Lin CH, Yeh ML. Effects of a preceptorship programme on turnover rate, cost, quality and professional development. J Clin Nurs. 2009 Apr;18(8):1217-25. doi: 10.1111/j.1365-2702.2008.02662.x. PMID: 19320789.

5. Clinician of the future 2023. Available at: https://assets.ctfassets.net/zlnfaxb2lcqx/fFeA138FfSSHk7ZwYy5EQ/17336a57bc93d41da7705c479778a472/CLINICIAN-OF-THE-FUTURE_SUMMARY_REPORT-2023.pdf S’ouvre dans une nouvelle fenêtre. [Accessed 27.02.2025]

6. Nursing Times, Exclusive survey reveals too many nurses lacking good support at start of career | Nursing Times S’ouvre dans une nouvelle fenêtre [Accessed 27.02.2025]

7. 2025 Preceptor Pulse Check Survey, FNF, https://florence-nightingale-foundation.org.uk/news/ S’ouvre dans une nouvelle fenêtre [Accessed 10.06.2025]

Notes to editors

For more information on Elsevier's commitment to comprehensive nursing solutions and support resources visit https://www.elsevier.com/en-gb/health/nurse S’ouvre dans une nouvelle fenêtre and find out more about Elsevier’s clinical eLearning solutions at https://www.elsevier.com/en-gb/products/clinical-elearning S’ouvre dans une nouvelle fenêtre

For more information on the Florence Nightingale Foundation and Elsevier Health's ongoing commitment to nursing and midwifery, explore their collaborative report WHAT DO YOU STAND FOR? Empowering nurses and midwives to influence the future of health and care S’ouvre dans une nouvelle fenêtre which examines how healthcare professionals can strengthen their voice and impact in today's evolving healthcare landscape.

About the Florence Nightingale Foundation

The Florence Nightingale Foundation (FNF) supports and develops nurses and midwives as leaders, to promote health, improve care and save lives, maintaining Florence Nightingale’s legacy. As a UK-based charity established over 90 years ago, we reach nurses and midwives around the world at every level of their career and across all sectors. Experience shows us the transformation that is possible when FNF enables nurses and midwives to connect, lead, and influence healthcare.

About the Preceptor Pulse Check

In 2025, the FNF ran the Preceptorship Pulse Check survey, which received 876 responses, with 51% early career nurses/midwives (n=422), 24% preceptorship leads (n=198), 19% preceptors (n=155), 8% preceptorship champions (n=66) and 6% student nurses, midwives or nursing associates (n=49). The majority of respondents (98%) were from England, working primarily in NHS acute hospitals (58%), mental health services (18%), and community services (12%). Download the full report: https://florence-nightingale-foundation.org.uk/news/ S’ouvre dans une nouvelle fenêtre

About Elsevier

A global leader in advanced information and decision support, Elsevier helps to advance science and healthcare, to advance human progress. We do this by facilitating insights and critical decision-making with innovative solutions based on trusted, evidence-based content and advanced AI-enabled digital technologies.

We have supported the work of our research and healthcare communities for more than 140 years. Our 9,700 employees around the world, including 2,300 technologists, are dedicated to supporting researchers, librarians, academic leaders, funders, governments, R&D-intensive companies, doctors, nurses, future healthcare professionals and educators in their critical work. Our 3,000 scientific journals and iconic reference books include the foremost titles in their fields, including Cell Press, The Lancet and Gray’s Anatomy. Together with the Elsevier Foundation S’ouvre dans une nouvelle fenêtre, we work in partnership with the communities we serve to advance inclusion in science, research and healthcare in developing countries and around the world.

Elsevier is part of RELX S’ouvre dans une nouvelle fenêtre, a global provider of information-based analytics and decision tools for professional and business customers. For more information on our work, digital solutions and content, visit www.elsevier.com.