Nursing role

According to Alzheimers New Zealand, the number of New Zealanders with dementia is expected to exceed 170,000 by 2050.1 Dementia refers to a collection of progressive neurodegenerative illnesses, including Alzheimer's disease, vascular dementia and Lewy body type.

The article focuses on the role of biological or legal family members of lesbian, gay, bisexual, and/or transgender (LGBT) older adults, in providing better care, comfort and safety, and talks of nurses to develop trust to recognize and communicate, and provides chart on questions to be asked.

A researcher who conducted a study on the experiences of informal carers of terminally ill patients had difficulty gaining access to participants. In many cases this was because nurses would not refer them to the researcher without the permission of a doctor.

The author discusses activities of a social inclusion team working at George Spencer Academy, which specializes in aiding the learning of young carers. He cites a research by BBC, which suggests that schools should identify the support needs of such vulnerable group of students by looking out for particular factors signifying that the student is a young carer. Among various facilities, the policy also offers individualized support, staff training, and reasonable allowances.

Aim.  This paper is a report of a study to explore the development of specialist staffing for older people in six case study sites in the United Kingdom.

Background.  In the United Kingdom there has been some concern about the health care available to older people, leading to the development of a National Service Framework. A key theme of this framework is the development of specialist staff skilled in providing services tailored to the needs of older people.

Seye Obadina looks at the importance of identifying young carers of parents with mental illness, and to offer them and their family adequate support.

Introduction: In Spain and the United Kingdom, more than 80% of people with schizophrenia are cared for by informal carers who are at risk of experiencing chronic stress. If this stress is not dealt with in time, a more serious disorder could develop. The present article aims to explore the role of nursing in this group of carers and attempts to answer the question: to what extent do nurses' views of their role affect their practice with carers?