Biomedical subjects
Publications and source records attributed to D Tolson.
This, the second in a series of articles considering potential developments in gerontological nursing, focuses on a community setting. It highlights current trends in policy which emphasizes the promotion of independence and outlines implications for community nurses. The authors argue that if new roles are to emerge then the educational preparation of community nurses must reflect more fully future policy initiatives.
This, the third of five articles considering the future of gerontological nursing, focuses on practice within nursing homes. The important contribution of such environments is highlighted and it is argued that work within long-term care settings must be recognized and valued if the quality of care provided is to improve.
In the previous three articles in this series (Vol 9(1): 39-42; Vol 9(2): 103-6; Vol 9(3): 157-60), nurses have been challenged to reconsider their approach towards the care of older people. To facilitate this it is helpful to provide specific examples of how expert practice might be achieved. Using one of the most prevalent but neglected problems of old age, hearing disability, the authors describe how nurses can contribute to the health of older people and maximize the therapeutic component within gerontological nursing.
In this, the final article in the series, the authors consider the prospect for the future of gerontological nursing with a special focus on philosophy of care, expert gerontological nurses and evidence-based practice. The article highlights the need for more research and education in gerontological nursing if quality of care is to improve and gerontological nursing is to consolidate its place in the future of nursing practice.
This article, the first in a series of five, will briefly trace the emergence of gerontological nursing and highlight some of the tensions that currently exist in the context of acute care environments. The next two articles will consider the prospects and challenges for nurses working with older people in community and nursing home environments, while the fourth article uses hearing impairment across a range of care contexts as a case study to summarize the ways in which the nursing contribution to the health needs of older people could be significantly improved. The series will conclude with an article drawing together the challenges that gerontological nursing faces in the new millennium.
Nurses have the potential to carry out health promotion activity related to alcohol use in a range of settings where older people receive care. The majority of the literature on alcohol use in later life has focused on abuse, especially on the more common risk of drug-alcohol interactions. In order to work effectively with older people in health prevention and education, nurses need to be knowledgeable about older people's patterns of drinking, the effects of alcohol on medication and the current evidence on the harm and benefits of alcohol to health. In carrying out assessments, a skillful approach needs to be adopted in questioning older clients on what some might regard as a sensitive issue. Screening tools for the detection of alcohol abuse in the general adult population may not be valid for use with older clients. Tools specific to the detection of alcohol abuse by older people will be considered.
As nursing research becomes more common, so does the issue of whether or not patients should be involved and, if so, to what extent. This article examines how the data protection legislation helps to protect patients, and whether they have the capability to decide to participate, or not.
Seventy per cent of the sample residents had significant hearing impairment (> or = 40 dBHL). Forty-seven per cent of the sample residents wanted further help with their hearing but this had not been offered. Screening for hearing impairment on the study wards was haphazard. Less than 10% of residents owned and used a hearing aid. The listening environment was potentially disabling on all of the wards. Nursing staff were inadequately prepared to meet the care needs of the hearing-impaired elderly hospital resident. Nursing and medical care policies are not sensitive towards the needs of the hearing-impaired elderly hospital resident. Hearing impairment is a neglected area of healthcare on long-stay wards for elderly people.
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Explore the source record for details and available documents.
Explore the source record for details and available documents.
Explore the source record for details and available documents.
A survey was made of the problem of age-related hearing impairment within a sample of National Health Service long-stay wards for elderly people. Detailed assessment of hearing was completed for 188 residents derived from 15 long-stay wards, located within nine Scottish hospitals. The sample residents were more than four times as likely to need a hearing aid as their contemporaries in the general population. Of the 131 people considered to be potential hearing aid candidates, 103 (78%) demonstrated a positive attitude towards hearing aids ownership. Medical policies on the study wards were not considered sensitive to the needs of the hearing-impaired; screening was haphazard and specialist referral problematic.