Community interventions for prostate cancer

In a new phase II feasibility study published in the British Medical Journal examining both quantitative and qualitative data, it has been reported that men living with prostate cancer have benefitted...

Emergency department visits and hospitalisation

‘The evidence appears to suggest that the use of emergency departments and transfer to hospital could be mitigated if clients towards the end of their lives and their families feel well supported at...

A chance to improve end-of-life care

Long-term urinary catheterisation in community-dwelling adults

Indications for long-term catheterisation are given in Box 1. Given the known risks associated with long-term catheter use, as well as the overuse for convenience in the older population, catheters...

Treatment for superficial thrombophlebitis of the leg

The primary objective of the review (Di Nisio et al, 2018) was to assess the efficacy and safety of topical, medical and surgical treatments for ST of the leg, related to the improvement of local...

Caring for people with multiple sclerosis who use cannabis for symptom control

Cannabis (Cannabis sativa) is a flowering plant that contains around 400 chemicals, over 70 of which are cannabinoids (Atakan, 2012). Two of these cannabinoids have been of interest within the field...

Getting anticipatory prescribing right in end-of-life care

The Department of Health and Social Care (2012) developed ‘Vision and strategy: an approach to district nursing’, building upon the six Cs (care, compassion, competence, communication, courage and...

Adjustable compression devices for chronic oedema and lipoedema: purpose, selection and application

The advent of ACDs has presented new avenues in the management of chronic oedema, and these devices have gained popularity, with a number of companies manufacturing multiple versions (Figures 1 and 2;...

Barriers and facilitators to implementing the Carer Support Needs Assessment Tool in a community palliative care setting

The Carer Support Needs Assessment Tool (CSNAT) assesses the support needs of informal carers of people with a terminal illness (Ewing and Grande, 2013). This is a 14-item tool that assesses (a)...

A good idea badly implemented? Revised National Early Warning Score 2 in community settings

In 2017, a revised form of NEWS (NEWS2) was released (RCP, 2017). This system measured the same six physiological measures as NEWS (respiratory rate, oxygen saturation, temperature, systolic blood...

Affording patients their dying wish at the end of life

The purpose of dying wishes can be multifactorial, from personal to including others, mainly those deemed important to the dying person. The request for a dying wish signifies that the patient is...

Compensation for lifting accidents in community nursing

The Health and Safety at Work Act 1974 (Health and Safety Executive (HSE), 1974) created a Commission and an Executive to make policies for, and to oversee the enforcement of, safe working conditions...