This series focuses on the patient treatment pathway in managing psoriasis as laid out by the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence guidelines (NICE, 2016). This disease affects up to 1.8 million people within the UK, necessitating up to 60% of these patients requiring a form of secondary care input (Jackson, 2012). Secondary care is often required to provide further topical treatment advice, but equally this also falls within the remit of all healthcare professionals, such as community nurses, who have face-to-face contact with patients with psoriasis. As these topical treatments may not manage the symptoms of psoriasis alone, referral to dermatology departments where more specialist treatments can be prescribed may be needed. The first option is to offer a course of phototherapy. There are several forms of treatment under this umbrella, with which community nurses should be familiar.
This fourth article in a seven-part series looks at scalp psoriasis. Managing this condition can be difficult as treatments are often messy, time-consuming or ineffective. The impact of scalp psoriasis can affect several aspects of daily living, notably choice of clothes, intense itching, which can be embarrassing for patient. intense itching, which can be embarrassing for patients. Finding suitable treatments can be life-changing to some. This piece focuses on treatment options, from bland and simple techniques through to the variety of treatments available on prescription. This should enable community nurses to facilitate patients in managing their scalp psoriasis when asked
