Editorial Resources

The impact of COVID-19 has been felt across the UK and continues to be so, even with lockdown measures lifted in many parts of the country. As a specialist nurse at Prostate Cancer UK, we provide information and support to thousands of men living with and concerned about prostate cancer. We have heard many stories of the amazing measures that have been put in place by healthcare professionals to ensure appropriate access to treatment has continued, and we have also been hearing about the difficult decisions men and their medical teams have had to make around changes or delays to treatment by weighing up the risk of Covid-19 infection and the risk of their disease progression.

Sunlight exposure is the primary source of vitamin D in humans (Scientific Advisory Committee on Nutrition [SACN], 2016), but vitamin D deficiency is common worldwide (Bouillon et al, 2019; Mendes et al, 2020). Measures to contain the recent spread of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) and to help prevent the Covid-19 disease caused by the SARS-CoV-2 virus may increase rates of vitamin D deficiency, as selfisolation is likely to prevent people from gaining adequate exposure to sunlight to meet their vitamin D requirement if they do not have a garden or balcony.

General practice’s unique position at the heart of the NHS is why it is so important that general practice nurses (GPNs) have the Freedom to Speak Up.

The current Covid-19 pandemic has raised the population’s reliance on the NHS, and on key roles such as general practice nurses (GPNs). The untapped potential of GPNs to lead and drive innovation has long been recognised, if not always by the nurses themselves (Hughes, 2006). NHS England and Improvement (NHSE/I) through the ten point action plan for general practice nursing (NHS England, 2017) and the CARE (connected, authentic, resilient, empowered) programme have recently played a key role in providing leadership development for GPNs. Indeed, new lead roles have emerged such as clinical directors of primary care networks (PCNs), primary care lead nurses, nurses who are partners in practice, and others leading on clinical specialities and workforce development within their PCNs. Now more than ever, it is important that GPNs are supported on their leadership journey, with a digital leadership support package.

The Covid-19 pandemic has posed unprecedented challenges, particularly for the health service which has faced pressures like never before.

This, coupled with the breaking news that prostate cancer has become the most commonly diagnosed cancer in the UK (Prostate Cancer UK, 2020), means that it is now more crucial than ever that Prostate Cancer UK continues to support healthcare professionals managing prostate care.

General practice nurses (GPNs) play an important role in prevention and must make every contact count to educate patients and help them be healthier. Based on calculations by the Cancer Intelligence Team at Cancer Research UK, when it comes to weight, people who are obese now outnumber people who smoke two to one in the UK.