Nurses have the potential to make a real impact on the health and well-being of people and populations and contribute to the realisation of delivery of Universal Health Coverage. However, in many parts of the world, the education and practice of nursing and nurses’ position in health care and society are restricted by a range of social, cultural, economic and political factors. In North Macedonia, the Ministry of Health in partnership with the WHO Country Office launched a primary healthcare strategy supporting the development of nurses in primary care to fulfil their full scope of service.

To present information on the education, practice and position of nursing, in particular primary care nursing, in North Macedonia and to describe the ongoing initiatives to support the further development of nursing.

Background documents reviewed, and visits to healthcare settings, organisations, interviews with individuals and groups and workshops undertaken in 2019–2020.

Three key areas of development were identified: education of nurses, their service delivery and practice in primary care, and their position in health care and society, all underpinned by the need for workforce planning. The findings formed the basis of a 10-year plan: Making Change Happen: The Nursing and Midwifery Development Roadmap.

To support the proposed primary care pilots, during the 2020/2021 COVID-19 pandemic, an on-line modular programme for primary care nurses was developed and delivered with the support of members drawn from The National Working Group for Moving Primary Care Nursing Forward in North Macedonia. Further work is planned to develop initial nurse education and to pilot changes in primary care.

The launch of the primary healthcare strategy stimulated initiatives to improve the education, position and practice of primary care nursing. The COVID-19 pandemic required flexibility and changes to the original plans.

The overall purpose was to develop, test and evaluate an educational package to help people with diabetes self-manage their risk of developing chronic kidney disease (CKD), one of the main complications of diabetes.

Management of people in primary care who have both CKD and diabetes can be controlled by strict blood pressure (BP) and blood sugar control and advice on lifestyle changes, such as smoking cessation. However, there is little evidence to support the assertion that self-management can slow the rate of kidney disease progression.

A mixed-method longitudinal study. Development of the self-management package was informed by the findings of a case study in six GP Practices and also through interviews with 15 patients.

Testing of the self-management package was undertaken in the same six Practices, with one additional control Practice. Patients with Type 1 or Type 2 diabetes at risk of kidney disease were included. Outcomes in patients in the participating surgeries who did receive a pack (n = 116) were compared with patients in the control group (n = 60) over 6 time points.

At the end of the study (time point 6), the intervention group had a mean systolic BP of 4.1 mmHg lower and mean diastolic BP of 2.7 mmHg lower than in the control group.

Self-management techniques such as understanding of, and subsequent concordance with, prescribed BP medication may contribute to a reduction in BP, which in turn will reduce cardiovascular risk.

Relevance to clinical practice: This study contributes to the evidence base for self-management of early kidney disease. Although the exact reason for reduced BP in the intervention group is unclear, the importance of practitioner understanding of kidney disease management and patient understanding of BP medication are likely to be the contributing factors.