The role of Endometriosis Clinical Nurse Specialists in British Society for Gynaecological Endoscopy registered centres: A UK survey of practice

Aim: To identify Endometriosis Nurse Specialists' roles and responsibilities in accredited Endocentres, how these align with the Royal College of Nursing Skills Framework and potential for development to improve patient care. Design: Cross-sectional national survey. Methods: Data were collected from an online survey distributed to all 66 Endometriosis Nurse Specialists working across 58 UK-based Endometriosis registered centres. The response rate was 58% (N = 38). Data from closed questions were analysed using descriptive statistics, and free text responses were collated and analysed thematically. Results: Unlike Nurse Specialists in other fields of practice, most Endometriosis Nurse Specialists (N = 33, 87%) had another nursing role. The median hours worked per week as an endometriosis nurse was only 13.5 hr. Most respondents (N = 35, 92%) spent all or most of their allocated hours collecting and inputting endometriosis data, whilst over a third (N = 13, 34%) were not undertaking any autonomous, nurse-led patient consultations.