Stoma care services during the COVID-19 pandemic

The effect of COVID-19 on healthcare provision has been unprecedented. Elective surgery was cancelled in many hospitals due to lack of staff and beds (Fowler et al, 2020). Earlier this year even...

Is the RCN fit for purpose? Crisis at the college again

Community nursing: will new standards be a panacea?

Pelvic organ prolapse and pessaries, an alternative to surgery

This is sometimes called a prolapsed womb or prolapsed vagina. It is when the vaginal walls, vaginal vault, uterus or any combination of these prolapse and move down the vagina. It can also affect the...

Improving the pathway for men with suspected prostate cancer

Urology consultants, cancer managers and I met with the Clinical Commissioning Group (CCG) to identify ways in which we could work towards achieving the best practice pathway. Referrals were being...

A brief overview of fetal alcohol syndrome for health professionals

Alcohol is a teratogen that has a toxic effect on the developing fetus (BMA, 2007a). FASD is seen as a non-diagnostic umbrella term (Riley et al, 2011; Nash and Davies, 2017; Blagg and Tulich, 2018)...

Exploring the benefits of structured medication reviews for frail older patients in advanced clinical practice

Frailty is a complex, multidimensional, dynamic process that is still not fully understood or clearly defined (Clegg et al, 2013). Many depict frailty as a health status related to the ageing process...

Student experiences of a return to practice programme: a qualitative study

The numbers of nurses and midwives leaving the profession have been rising at an alarming rate; more than 29 000 nurses or midwives registered in the UK left the register between October 2016 and...

The experience and psychological impact of a sharps injury on a nursing student population in the UK

The aims of this study were to explore the experience and psychological impact of sustaining a sharps injury within a nursing student population in the UK..

Sepsis knowledge, skills and attitudes among ward-based nurses

The aim of this study was to explore the effects of sepsis training on knowledge, skills and attitudes among ward-based nurses in one hospital in relation to sepsis screening and the delivery of the...

Coronavirus: the 7th C affecting the 6Cs. A focus on compassion, care and touch

Caring has historically been considered the essence of nursing (Fahrenwald et al, 2005). There are many definitions and theories of caring, but most scholars consider that it is complex and needs to...

Article 8 of the European Convention on Human Rights and assisted dying

Article 8 of the ECHR is an example of a qualified human right. It begins by asserting in Article 8(1) that:.