Self care Resources

Self-care or self- management of health has become essential for sustainability of health and social care services but can be challenging to engage with for several reasons. Frustration can arise when people are unable to self-manage, perhaps through lack of confidence, willingness, outside influences (such as family members), lack of knowledge about a particular condition or procedure, disease symptoms, or even issues with digital inclusion. It can become difficult to work with people where there are barriers to self-management due to lack of time or resources to fully explore and address these alongside the person, or lack of access to professional training for skills such as coaching, which are essential to achieving effective self-management.

During Self Care Week (16–22 November), which is the national awareness week to promote the benefits of self care, I want to remind colleagues in the nursing profession to ‘live self care for life’. This year it is more important than ever, with all health and care workers managing the extreme pressures brought about by the Covid-19 pandemic. It is essential that we look after our own health and wellbeing.

Historically, wounds have been treated within the medical model with a paternalistic approach where healthcare professionals assess the aetiology and condition of the wound bed, identify any modifiable patient risk factors which may impact on healing, and then implement evidence-based treatments to promote healing (Lusher, 2020). This article discusses the challenges in implementing both shared decision-making and self-care and reviews some of the innovative initiatives which have been developed to encourage patient self-care for wounds. The theories underpinning self-care and the advantages and disadvantages of self-care and shared decisionmaking are also discussed from both healthcare professionals and patients/carers’ perspectives.

Pressure ulcer prevention is a challenge both in acute care and in community care, although prevalence is hard to determine due to differing ways of assessing and reporting both ulcers and risk of ulceration. Those who are acutely ill or have compromised mobility, or are older, or who have multiple co-morbidities are at greater risk of pressure ulcer development.

Acknowledgements:
All District Nursing Staff, Greater Glasgow & Clyde

­Lynne Watret, MN, PGCertTLHE, MA, RGN, CNS Tissue Viability
Fiona Middler, BA, Master in Primary Care, Clinical Effectiveness Coordinator, Primary Care, Greater Glasgow & Clyde

Article accepted for publication: August 2012