Anne Marie Rafferty is Professor of Nursing Policy at King’s College London and is an internationally recognised expert in healthcare workforce research. The first nurse to gain a doctorate from Oxford University, her research has reframed the way we think about nursing and the state. Her research into the healthcare workforce was the first to establish the link between nurse staffing and patient mortality rates in the UK. The policy reach and significance of her research has impacted on numerous government initiatives both in the UK and abroad. Notably her design of the Culture of Care Barometer is being adopted by the hospital outcomes research network in Europe.