Resources

In each issue we investigate a hot topic currently affecting you and your community practice.

The number of people living with complex, multiple health conditions is increasing. It is estimated that almost three million people in the UK have three or more long-term conditions, whether these are physical or mental, psychological or cognitive (King’s Fund, 2020). In addition, people living in more socially deprived areas are at greater risk of developing such conditions. Nurses working in the community have a hugely important role to play in supporting people affected to live the healthiest lives possible — working with carers and families.

When things go wrong, we need to make sure that lessons are learnt and improvements made. If we think something might go wrong, it’s important that we all feel able to speak up so that potential harm is prevented. Even when things are good, but could be even better, we should feel able to say something and should expect that our suggestion is listened to and used as an opportunity for improvement.

Urinary incontinence (UI) is among the most common paediatric problems and it is commonly assumed to resolve with age. Consequently, parents and clinicians often adopt a ‘wait and see’ approach to childhood UI (Berry, 2006). A significant proportion of children, however, continue to suffer from persistent UI into adolescence (Swithinbank et al, 1998; Hellstrom et al, 1995; Yeung et al, 2006; Heron et al, 2017). For example, the authors’ research using data from a large birth cohort (Avon Longitudinal Study of Parents and Children — www.bristol.ac.uk/alspac/) found that 4.2% of females and 1.3% of males experienced UI at the age of 14 years (Heron et al, 2017).