Profile

Fiona Peniston-Bird RN, RHV, BSc (Hons), NIP, PRINCE2

Fiona qualified as a Registered Nurse in 1989.  Working in Brighton hospitals as a staff nurse and early in her nursing career, Fiona won a team award for developing a patient self-administration of medicines project in 1990.  In 1992 she took a post as a community nurse in Hove, East Sussex.  In 1998 Fiona undertook a BSc Hons specialist practitioner degree and attained a 2:1 in Health Visiting.  Whilst working in a Health Visiting role she was one of the first nurses in the UK who undertook the Extended Formulary Nurse Prescribing training in early 2002.  Fiona subsequently set up and ran a minor ailments clinic within a GP practice in Shoreham, West Sussex.

Frustrated by lack of support, infrastructure and continued professional development to support her prescribing practice, Fiona was delighted to take up the role of Non Medical Prescribing Facilitator for the Strategic Health Authority covering Surrey & Sussex in 2003, bringing with her an understanding of what was required in terms of development by organisations to support their Non Medical Prescribers.  Fiona is qualified in both foundation and practitioner level PRINCE2 project management.

Fiona is the Non Medical Prescribing expert opinion on the Nursing Times website where she writes a regular blog, and an article referee for the Nursing Times Journal.  She is a member of the editorial board and writes a monthly question and answer page in the Nurse Prescribing journal.  Fiona was invited as one of the speakers at the 4 Association of Nurse Prescribing conferences held across the UK in London, Scotland, Manchester and Cardiff last year.  Fiona has a part time lecturing post on the Independent and Supplementary Prescribing programme at University of Winchester, and is an external examiner at Medway School of Pharmacy which is a unique collaboration between University of Greenwich and University of Kent.  Fiona is also on the professional advisory panel of the Queen's Nursing Institute.

I am a dedicated, well qualified and committed individual with nursing experience in the Hospital, Community, Primary Care, Strategic and more recently academic setting.  I strive for clinical excellence and the continued improvement of the patients healthcare experience.  I am renowned for my exceptional communication and influencing skills.  I am respected nationally for my authority on all matters related to the development of Non Medical Prescribing.

                                                                                                                                             - Fiona Peniston-Bird