Resources

Laryngeal cancer falls under the umbrella term of head and neck cancers and is the second commonest cancer type within this group. The condition often presents with symptoms shared with those of other less serious diseases, making diagnosis challenging.
This article hopes to give nurses and non-medical prescribers an overview of symptoms, diagnosis, treatment, and prognosis with the aim of raising awareness and helping to get an earlier diagnosis of this devastating disease.

Maintaining an ideal weight is difficult for many people. For those who have reduced energy requirements, such as people with a spinal cord injury (SCI), maintaining a healthy weight can be more challenging. There are many barriers, including difficulties with increasing energy expenditure. This article discusses these challenges along with the increased health risks of diabetes and coronary heart disease seen within this population. Through a review of the literature, some practical solutions are provided. These include having weight management programmes starting soon after injury, education including carers’, and focusing on behavioural change techniques as part of a multidisciplinary approach to encouraging a healthy lifestyle, lifelong.

This article explores the multifaceted landscape of mental health inequalities and proposes a comprehensive approach for community nurses to address these disparities. Drawing on
legislative measures, healthcare delivery reforms, and community engagement initiatives, the article emphasises the pivotal role of nurses in advocating for equitable access to mental health services and promoting inclusive care practices. Key considerations include the impact of social determinants of health, the need for collaborative multidisciplinary approaches, and the importance of addressing systemic factors perpetuating inequality within the healthcare system.

Dementia is a progressive neurodegenerative condition and poses significant challenges to an individual’s quality of life (QoL). As the global prevalence of dementia continues to rise, understanding and enhancing QoL for people living with dementia becomes even more 
important. This article explores the concept of QoL in the context of dementia, its application in community nursing practice, and the pivotal role nurses can play in improving QoL. An overview of the challenges, considerations, and evidence-based strategies to improve QoL are explored. Through person-centred care, education and advocacy, community nurses can make a significant difference in supporting the wellbeing and dignity of people living with dementia.

Constipation is not much talked about, but it affects one in three children and will not go away by itself. ERIC, The Children’s Bowel and Bladder Charity, is the only UK-wide charity dedicated to children’s continence services. It provides online resources on all things wee and poo, webinars for healthcare professionals and parents/carers, and a free Helpline — on which the most common call is about constipation. Here, Sunni Liston, ERIC nurse, discusses constipation and how to help treat it.

As usual, there is an abundance of learning, information and differing points of view in our latest issue of the journal, so lots of reading for everyone — hopefully while sitting outside in the warmer weather! Our ‘Community matters’ piece explores the need for open and honest discussions in relation to death and dying.

It’s a commonly quoted maxim that there are only two certainties in life — death and taxes. But while most of us have little control over the money the government rudely deducts from our wages, it is human nature to consider what might happen when our time on earth is finally up. Some of us might have already made a list of the favourite relatives we’d invite to our funeral or thought about the uplifting music we might play. Others might have considered a traditional burial or want their ashes scattered in a cherished beauty spot.