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Caring for a loved one can take its toll physically and emotionally. Caroline Swinburne discovers how district nurses can ease the load. Supporting unpaid carers is an important but often unseen aspect of community nursing.

Besides patients’ health and well-being, healthcare interventions may affect the well-being of significant others. Such ‘spill over effects’ in significant others may be distinguished in two distinct effects: (i) the caregiving effect and (ii) the family effect. The first refers to the welfare effects of providing informal care, i.e., the effects of caring for someone who is ill. The second refers to a direct influence of the health of a patient on others’ well-being, i.e., the effects of caring about other people.

Personalisation is now the driving agenda for adult social care and Putting People First recognises that increasing numbers of ordinary people will be called upon to contribute to care delivered in people’s own homes. Of the UK's six million carers, 1.3 million are already caring, unpaid, for over 50 hours a week. Carers have always wanted better outcomes for the people they care for. However, with many carers suffering poverty, ill health and isolation due to unsustainably heavy caring roles, they also want and deserve better outcomes for themselves.

‘This leaflet is about confidentiality issues which arise between mental health professionals and carers of adults with mental health problems, in particular those who provide on-going help and support, without payment, to a relative, partner or friend.

The issues of confidentiality and information-sharing between mental health professionals and carers are difficult and complex to resolve. Some of these problems are described, together with examples of good practice which may help address them.’