Resources

Suboptimal management of leg ulcers is a growing burden on NHS nursing and financial resources (Guest et al, 2015; 2017; 2020). Compression therapy plays a crucial role in leg ulcer management by improving outcomes and reducing the burden of disease, however it is not routinely applied in practice and knowledge and confidence between bandage types and application styles often varies greatly (Guest et al, 2017; Hopkins, 2023). This article focuses on the importance of compression therapy in the management of leg ulceration and how to select the appropriate compression therapy based on the patient’s presenting symptoms. It identifies possible barriers to application and offers potential strategies and suggestions to support the use of compression options in the community.

Falls in the elderly come at a high cost, both to the NHS and to the health and confidence of the person who has fallen. Hospital-based trials in 2021 started to explore potential links between caffeine and falls associated with going to the toilet, given caffeine’s diuretic effect. In 2023, following positive trial outcomes, the project spread to social care, where a 35% reduction in falls associated with going to the toilet was seen when decaffeinated products were introduced as standard in eight care homes for the elderly. This article explores the Decaf Project and potential benefits of decaffeination in wider community settings, including for elderly people living in their own homes. It examines ways in which community nurses can support those in their care to understand potential benefits of decaffeination.

Suicide is a stark word that provokes a deluge of emotions in all of us, including community nurses and society at large, both on a personal/community and professional level. Suicide provokes a wide range of questions and has many ramifications that ripple outwards. It can cause consternation on the part of the community practitioner by questioning themselves and their actions and also on the part of the families and friends while coping with grief
and all asking, among other things, should I have acted or spoken differently. Suicide and attempted suicide impacts all of us, our colleagues, our patients and ourselves.

Here, Professor Michelle Howarth, professor in health and social care, associate director CSR (Centre for Social Responsibility), Faculty of Health, Social Care and Medicine, Edge Hill University, Rhian Last, nurse educator, Self-Care Forum self-care champion and Libby Whittaker, Self-Care Forum manager, explore the findings of a project undertaken last year on self-care, highlighting ways that community nurses can support self-care both in their day-to-day role and more strategically across primary care populations.

My first experience of working in a prison was delivering rehabilitation programmes and I left this post to undertake my nurse training. After spending several years working in acute hospitals and community drug and alcohol services, a post for an advanced clinical practitioner came up in a prison. The job description really appealed to me with being able to work across the four pillars of advanced practice, and having worked in a prison environment previously, I thought it would be a good opportunity to expand and  develop my skills further.

T his issue’s ‘Community matters’ piece discusses the subject of artificial intelligence (AI) and is a ‘must read’. Technology is advancing at such a pace so we cannot ignore
it and need to find ways to embrace the benefits it brings. This article demonstrates how AI is used in our everyday lives, and to be honest it was a surprise to me just how much we
do use it! Examples are given of some uses within healthcare and nursing environments and possible future innovations explored. It is definitely thought provoking, and this feature is clear and explicit, helping us to understand how AI currently supports us and how it could do in the future.

Whenever scientists try and imagine what the future will look like, they invariably get a little carried away. If past predictions were anything to go by, by this point in the 21st century we should all be whizzing about in driverless cars, feasting on laboratory grown meat and living to improbable ages, our life expectancy artificially extended by stem-cell implants.

Having read the ‘Community matters’ piece in the last issue of the Journal of Community Nursing on talking about death and ‘do not attempt cardiopulmonary  resuscitation’ (DNACPR) orders, a subject very close to my heart, I felt compelled to write this editorial to encourage community nurses to always keep this vital aspect of care in mind. Discussing death and DNACPR orders can be challenging. However, these conversations are not just about medical procedures; they are about understanding and respecting patients’ wishes, values, and dignity. Engaging in these discussions ensures that patients receive the care they want at the end of their lives, aligning with their personal
values and preferences