Resources

An evaluation of Debrisoft® Duo was undertaken at Accelerate, a Community Interest Company (CIC), over a period of three months in 2025. This evaluation was undertaken independently by the clinical team, which included seven clinicians across three sites. Thirty patients participated in the project, presenting with a variety of aetiologies including venous leg ulceration, hyperkeratosis and non-diabetic foot ulceration. This resulted in 102 episodes of mechanical debridement across the cohort. Data was collected using e-Kare inSight®, pre- and post-debridement. This was enhanced by feedback from participants. Key findings included average time to debride which was two to four minutes, in >98% of the episodes clinicians identified visible changes within two minutes, the average reduction in devitalised tissue was 29, and clinicians reported the new Debrisoft Duo was more eͿective than the standard Debrisoft® debridement pad.

Heart failure and lymphoedema are common conditions that often coexist, particularly in older people. Compression therapy, a cornerstone of lymphoedema care, is frequently withheld in those with heart failure due to safety concerns. This article explores the interaction between heart failure and lymphoedema, summarises current evidence on compression safety, and provides practical advice for community practitioners. It highlights key assessment tools (NYHA class, NT-proBNP, vascular tests), addresses common misconceptions, and signposts to national guidelines. With careful assessment and collaboration between cardiology and lymphoedema teams, compression therapy can be used safely in most patients, improving outcomes and quality of life.

Urinary catheter blockage is a common complication of long-term catheterisation that freTuently aͿects outcomes and Tuality of life for catheter users. +aving an indwelling catheter that is prone to blocking can be e[tremely distressing for the user and lead to additional complications of pain, retention, infection and potentially life-threatening urosepsis. Management of catheter blockage significantly impacts care provision by communitybased nursing teams, resulting in the ‘freTuent blockers’ reTuiring unplanned or outofhours care for catheter maintenance solutions, catheter changes or emergency hospital visits.

People living within rural areas of Scotland, as in other remote parts of the UK, face certain challenges in relation to economy, transport, education and health. The definition of rural Scotland is defined as settlements with a population of less than 3,000, with these settlements further defined by postcodes and drive times to larger settlements. Also within such rural communities, there is a higher percentage of ‘older smaller’ households, where one or both adults are of pensionable age. In addition, remote rural areas have a higher proportion of single pensioner households (‘single older’) compared to accessible rural areas and the rest of Scotland (Scottish Government, 2021). Scotland’s population compared to urban areas as a whole is ageing, with a larger proportion of the population in remote rural areas now aged 65 and over, with a lower percentage of people aged 16–44 years old (Rural and Environmental Science and Analytical Services [RESAS], 2023). This paper highlights these issues and showcases the collaborative work being undertaken by Urram, a local charity to address issues residents face in a rural community on the west coast of Scotland.

Welcome to our December/ January issue and I am sure that you, as I am, are all wondering where this year has gone and feeling that each year seems to pass faster than the previous one! Is it a sign of our age or reflective of our lives being so busy that the days, weeks and months merge? At this time of year, I always find it useful to take a little time to reflect, asking myself what I have achieved over the past year, could I have aimed higher and what differences have I made to patients’ experiences. It really is a useful approach to take and drives/guides me into the coming year. Please try it — acknowledge the highs and the lows, plan for the coming year and stay strong. Our ‘Community matters’ feature follows a similar concept — it reflects on our NHS and community nursing, discussing previous plans and asking: are we fit for the future? Please take some time to read the summarised main points of our new 10 Year Health Plan — it may support your own reflective practice and drive you into 2026.

While rising energy costs, food inflation, and the ongoing effects of Covid-19 continue to affect daily life, recently it seems that government ministers are finally accepting that the NHS is in serious trouble and that there’s a need to address its difficulties.

Back in 2024, Wes Streeting, the new Labour government’s health secretary, expressed what most of us had been thinking for some time, stating that ‘this government will be honest about the challenges facing our country, and serious about tackling them. From today, the policy of this department is that the NHS is broken’ (‘The NHS is broken: health and social care secretary statement’ — www.gov.uk).

The government’s 10-Year Health Plan (GOV.UK, 2025) puts health inequity under the spotlight and wants to reduce disparities. But, what does this look like on the ‘shop floor’ and how can it be implemented?

Most previous guidance on the management of chronic constipation has focused on the use of medication. However, new guidance funded by the British Dietetic Association, and produced by a team of UK-based clinicians (Dimidi et al, 2025), gives the first comprehensive evidencebased dietary guidelines for the management of chronic constipation in adults. As well as the effect on the bowel, chronic constipation is prospectively associated with an increased risk of urgency and hesitancy among parous middle-aged women (Alhababi et al, 2021).

As of August 2025, half a million people in the UK have been diagnosed with dementia, according to NHS figures (NHS England, 2025). With numbers projected to rise to 1.4 million by 2040 (Alzheimer’s Society, 2024), innovative approaches to dementia care have never been more urgent. Dementia is now the leading cause of death in the UK and affects around 70% of care home residents (Alzheimer’s Society, n.d.). For families and caregivers, supporting loved ones through the challenges of the condition is a daily reality. Increasingly, attention is turning to sensory gardens — specialised outdoor spaces designed to engage the senses and promote wellbeing.

At JCN we would like to thank our industry partners for their support to the 2025 JCN study days and exhibition. To share what has been happening at these UK-wide events, we invited our partners to give an overview of the topics they presented, which offer some valuable insights into their areas of care and highlight the education provided to our delegates.