Venous leg ulcers make up a large part of a nurse’s caseload, with the application of compression bandaging requiring competent and skilled practitioners. At Central and North West London Foundation Trust (CNWL) Camden Integrated Primary Care (IPC) Service recruiting and retaining community nurses is a challenge, a situation which is shared across all London boroughs. In particular, it is difficult to maintain consistent standards for wound cleansing and compression bandaging, resulting in the responsibility for a large caseload falling to a small number of practitioners. Following a review of innovative products on show at the European Wound Management Association (EWMA) conference in May 2014, an alternative to traditional compression bandaging was identified as a possible solution to this problem; namely, UCSTM for effective debridement and Juxta CURESTM as an alternative to compression bandaging (both medi UK Ltd, Hereford).
Long-term conditions: seasonal allergic rhinitis.
Allergic rhinitis (AR) is a common disorder which has a major impact on the lives of sufferers and families. Although currently there is no cure for this disease, a variety of therapeutic interventions can alleviate the symptoms. It is important that general practice nurses (GPNs) are able to differentiate allergic and non-allergic rhinitis (NAR) from viral upper respiratory tract infections (URTIs) in order to best manage their patients. It is also necessary to ask appropriate questions of those patients attending for asthma review, as they may have unrecognised and untreated disease. Familiarity with the range of medications and their administration is advocated. Patients with troublesome, non- responding symptoms need to be referred, as do those with red flag signs.
Skin cancer continues to be a major health problem in the UK (National Institute for Health and Care Excellence [NICE], 2011), despite representing a group of cancers which, in theory, is preventable. The single most important factor in the aetiology of skin cancer is solar radiation, also known as ultraviolet radiation (UVR). UVR is also responsible for other skin changes such as premature ageing, sunspots and sun-tanning. Sunshine does have some benefits in that, in general, it makes us feel physically and psychologically well (Kampfer and Mutz, 2013), and is needed for vitamin D synthesis. This article looks at the way that the sun can damage the skin and the signs that can indicate the development of malignancy. It also discusses the importance of staying protected from the harmful effects of the sun and ways to reduce the risk of skin cancer.
The introduction of revalidation for nurses and midwives from April 2016 will strengthen the renewal process with its new requirements.
Alongside the official NMC revalidation pilot projects, organisations are developing their own pilots to get ahead of the curve when it comes to revalidation to ensure that their workforce are fully prepared to meet the necessary requirements.
HeART, an online e-Portfolio based system which has been accredited by the Royal College of Nursing (RCN), is being evaluated by participants in NHS England Central Midlands as a tool to help portfolio development.
General practice nurses are using HeART to ensure that they can meet revalidation requirements when the time comes to apply for revalidation.
With the Government looking to cut costs across the healthcare landscape, nurses may wonder how they can help procurement secure the savings needed — identifying comparable but cheaper treatment options is one such way.
In each issue we speak to general practice nurses and ask about their role in primary care. Here,Yvonne Lee, integrated nursing team leader, Cerne Abbas Surgery, talks about an integrated nursing team.
Five-year plan aims to improve cardiovascular care for all. Sara Askew on the British Heart Foundation's five-year strategy to 2020, and the development of an alliance of healthcare professionals working with people at risk of or living with cardiovascular disease.
Working towards an end to Female genital mutilation (FGM).
FGM is a violent and damaging ritual, which, although illegal in the UK, remains a major challenge for healthcare professionals. This is in part due to the multicultural nature of our contemporary society and greater emphasis and commitment by women and professionals including the police, health and social care and government to eradicate it (Royal College of Midwives [RCM] et al, 2013).
Spacers are important
They help you:
As a consequence of increasing prevalence, cost, and complications of diabetes, there has been a significant shift in the management of patients with diabetes from secondary to primary care in the last decade (Hawthorne et al, 2012). This article explores some of the goals, issues and practicalities in caring for people with diabetes in primary care, based on a community model used by a diabetes specialist team in London, and the role of diabetes specialist teams in supporting general practice nurses (GPNs) and other healthcare professionals in the multidisciplinary team. It also highlights the importance of ongoing diabetes education and training to ensure that all patients receive early diagnosis, appropriate health checks, an individualised treatment plan, and appropriate referral as needed.
