Covid-19 pandemic Resources

Before the pandemic, the UK was spending only 9.8% of gross domestic product (GDP) on health care, which is one of the lowest in the developed world, and only had a bed capacity of 2.5 per 1,000 people (Maizland and Felter, 2020). Thus, when the pandemic hit, NHS frontline services were rapidly overwhelmed. They responded by postponing nonemergency procedures, closing nonemergency services, and redeploying specialists, which released necessary hospital beds. Unfortunately, these actions had negative consequences for older people and their carers.

Here, Carole Young, professional nurse advocate, independent tissue viability nurse consultant and associate lecturer, Anglia Ruskin University, reflects on the impact of the pandemic on specialist nurses in the last two years and considers what is needed next in terms of support and recovery of self and service. The role of compassionate leadership and professional nurse advocacy (PNA) will be discussed to share an understanding of how restorative clinical supervision (RCS) can be used to support emotional recovery and plan for future development. Models including A-EQUIP and the GROW coaching model used by PNAs to guide RCS will be explained as tools which can support personal reflection and recovery through personal actions for quality improvement.

n each issue of the Journal of Community Nursing, we investigate a topic currently affecting our readers. Here, Kate Upton, representative for Nursing Professions on the Crisis, Disaster and Trauma Psychology Section of the British Psychological Society, looks at "Recognising compassion fatigue and protecting wellbeing".

Since the first patient in the UK was diagnosed with Covid-19 on the 31st January 2020, the last 18 months have been unlike any we have experienced in our lifetime. The impact of the pandemic has been dramatic, turning our lives upside down and changing them beyond recognition — and not least for community nurses, like yourselves.

With the presence of Covid-19, community nurses not only had to deal with pre-existing concerns (many of which have been exasperated by the virus), but also with new challenges and pressures. Having to battle a shared enemy that appears to thrive on hiding in plain sight, many of you will have been thrust into having to operate outside of your comfort zone and in environments where you may have felt a loss of control.You will have experienced a huge shift in the way you carry out your work, having been pushed into being more open- minded and creative in managing workloads, as well as having to rapidly adapt to ever evolving new ways of providing patient care. For some, you may also have been redeployed to roles where you have needed to make use of new or rarely used skills. And, of course, underlying all of this, there is the understandable additional concern of contracting the virus and passing it on to others.

We are living through a global pandemic, which has affected us all. It has changed the way we work and think. In the midst of this awful experience, a deeply sad picture is emerging — that BAME (Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic) people and communities are being massively hit by Covid-19, and a BAME person is more likely to die from Covid-19 (Public Health England [PHE], 2020).

People who are extroverted tend to seek social stimulation and opportunities to engage with others through social interaction. Yet, whether you have an introvert or extrovert personality, loneliness can strike anyone. Being an extrovert by nature, experiencing enforced lockdown earlier this year was initially extremely daunting and challenging for me. Although well past the ‘flush of youth ‘, I am still in a section of life where my calendar was filled with meetings, attendance at international conference/exhibitions,
networking and travelling, giving me a purpose to manage my professional and home life with positivity.

It is estimated that there are currently over 145,000 people diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease in the UK. This progressive neurological condition affects people in a variety of ways, depending on numerous factors, including the impact and severity of their motor and non-motor symptoms. In relation to the current Covid-19 pandemic, the UK government identified people with Parkinson’s disease as clinically vulnerable, suggesting that they were at higher risk of severe illness if they contracted the Covid-19 virus. The subsequent self-imposed isolation could potentially impact on Parkinson’s symptom control, and also affect wellbeing and quality of life. The Parkinson’s disease nurse specialist has had to rapidly adapt service delivery to ensure that the needs of people with Parkinson’s disease are addressed, predominantly with remote assessment, during the Covid-19 pandemic.

It is estimated that there are currently over 145,000 people diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease in the UK. This progressive neurological condition affects people in a variety of ways, depending on numerous factors, including the impact and severity of their motor and non-motor symptoms. In relation to the current Covid-19 pandemic, the UK government identified people with Parkinson’s disease as clinically vulnerable, suggesting that they were at higher risk of severe illness if they contracted the Covid-19 virus. The subsequent self-imposed isolation could potentially impact on Parkinson’s symptom control, and also affect wellbeing and quality of life. The Parkinson’s disease nurse specialist has had to rapidly adapt service delivery to ensure that the needs of people with Parkinson’s disease are addressed, predominantly with remote assessment, during the Covid-19 pandemic.