Opinion
Board’s eye view Treatment of Child Abuse
Nursing in Criminal Justice Services
Robert Reece, Rochelle Hanson, John Sargent et al Johns Hopkins University Press £50 | 392pp ISBN: 9781421412733
Ann Norman and Elizabeth Walsh M&K Publishing £25 | 180pp ISBN: 9781905539857
PACKED WITH useful information, this American text will be invaluable for healthcare professionals who work in mental health, children’s wards and emergency departments, as well as social workers and lawyers acting as child advocates. The book is now in its second edition and has been expanded to include bullying, medical management and the importance of self-care for professionals. Long-term medical management and the ‘sanctuary model’ of trauma-informed care are also covered for the first time. It is divided into 35 chapters, each with headed sections covering topics from initial contact and evidence-based treatments to education and the appropriate use of psychopharmacology. Each chapter presents relevant case studies to aid learning and understanding, and is supported by an extensive list of references. I was particularly interested in the sections on empowering families, parent‑child interaction therapy, foster and family kinship care, and cultural considerations for assessment and treatment. The book concludes with an excellent chapter on legal issues relating to child maltreatment and its therapy. I recommend this inspirational book for beginners and experts who are interested and involved in improving the lives and outcomes of abused children and their families. Valerie McGurk is a practice development facilitator, paediatrics, at Northampton General Hospital NHS Trust
HAVING ASSUMED that this book would focus on the role of prison nurses, I was pleasantly surprised to find that it has a potentially wider appeal. It addresses the experiences of nurses in a variety of roles who give care and support to patients who are embroiled in the criminal justice system, and their families. These experiences include caring for the victims of sexual assault, working in a police custody suite and providing evidence in a court of law. I found the book’s examination of professional probity in a chapter concerning the care of people in the criminal justice system especially interesting. The book is well written in a readily comprehensible style by authors who have obvious expertise in the subject areas. However, the topic of caring for patients who attend emergency departments while in the custody of prison or police officers, from which I am sure valuable lessons can be learned, could have been addressed more fully. Given its breadth of content, I would recommend that all pre-registration nurses, but in particular those taking mental health or learning disability branch training, place this book on their reading lists. It would also be of value to registrered nurses who work in institutional or community settings, where they may encounter convicted prisoners or those undergoing home‑based rehabilitation. Jim Bethel is a senior lecturer and nurse practitioner in emergency care at the University of Wolverhampton
What’s your view? If you want to express your opinions on any of the issues in Emergency Nurse, email the editor at [email protected] EMERGENCY NURSE
Restorative justice THE AMBULANCE service is under more pressure now than it has been for decades. There are several reasons for this, including a rise in the number of unnecessary 999 calls from the general public. All emergency nurses and paramedics know of ‘offenders’ who call ambulances despite having no urgent medical needs. Some of these individuals call several times but refuse to co-operate with ambulance crews when they arrive. Attempts have been made to educate the public on when and when not to call 999, and it has even been mooted that people are charged if they use the ambulance service inappropriately. I, however, want to propose the practice of restorative justice, a scheme in which the victims and perpetrators of crimes meet face to face. The practice is based on the idea that crime is a violation of people, relationships and of the wider community, not simply an offence against the state (Kirklees Partnership 2013). When victims have opportunities to express their distress and fear to the individuals who have robbed or mugged them, broken into their homes, or abused them, both parties can be affected positively. Similarly, if paramedics were to visit people who have misused the ambulance services, and explain how their selfish and thoughtless use of an important resource has caused patients to suffer, their behaviour may change. This practice could help offenders understand the consequences of their actions and lead at least some of them to hesitate before misusing services again. Lorna McInulty is senior lecturer in emergency and unscheduled care at the University of Central Lancashire, Preston, and a member of the Emergency Nurse editorial advisory board
Reference Kirklees Partnership (2013) Kirklees: A Restorative Community Safety Partnership 2013-2016. tinyurl.com/jvqvwbw (Last accessed: February 17 2015.)
March 2015 | Volume 22 | Number 10 13
Downloaded from RCNi.com by ${individualUser.displayName} on Nov 27, 2015. For personal use only. No other uses without permission. Copyright © 2015 RCNi Ltd. All rights reserved.
Board’s eye view Treatment of Child Abuse
Nursing in Criminal Justice Services
Robert Reece, Rochelle Hanson, John Sargent et al Johns Hopkins University Press £50 | 392pp ISBN: 9781421412733
Ann Norman and Elizabeth Walsh M&K Publishing £25 | 180pp ISBN: 9781905539857
PACKED WITH useful information, this American text will be invaluable for healthcare professionals who work in mental health, children’s wards and emergency departments, as well as social workers and lawyers acting as child advocates. The book is now in its second edition and has been expanded to include bullying, medical management and the importance of self-care for professionals. Long-term medical management and the ‘sanctuary model’ of trauma-informed care are also covered for the first time. It is divided into 35 chapters, each with headed sections covering topics from initial contact and evidence-based treatments to education and the appropriate use of psychopharmacology. Each chapter presents relevant case studies to aid learning and understanding, and is supported by an extensive list of references. I was particularly interested in the sections on empowering families, parent‑child interaction therapy, foster and family kinship care, and cultural considerations for assessment and treatment. The book concludes with an excellent chapter on legal issues relating to child maltreatment and its therapy. I recommend this inspirational book for beginners and experts who are interested and involved in improving the lives and outcomes of abused children and their families. Valerie McGurk is a practice development facilitator, paediatrics, at Northampton General Hospital NHS Trust
HAVING ASSUMED that this book would focus on the role of prison nurses, I was pleasantly surprised to find that it has a potentially wider appeal. It addresses the experiences of nurses in a variety of roles who give care and support to patients who are embroiled in the criminal justice system, and their families. These experiences include caring for the victims of sexual assault, working in a police custody suite and providing evidence in a court of law. I found the book’s examination of professional probity in a chapter concerning the care of people in the criminal justice system especially interesting. The book is well written in a readily comprehensible style by authors who have obvious expertise in the subject areas. However, the topic of caring for patients who attend emergency departments while in the custody of prison or police officers, from which I am sure valuable lessons can be learned, could have been addressed more fully. Given its breadth of content, I would recommend that all pre-registration nurses, but in particular those taking mental health or learning disability branch training, place this book on their reading lists. It would also be of value to registrered nurses who work in institutional or community settings, where they may encounter convicted prisoners or those undergoing home‑based rehabilitation. Jim Bethel is a senior lecturer and nurse practitioner in emergency care at the University of Wolverhampton
What’s your view? If you want to express your opinions on any of the issues in Emergency Nurse, email the editor at [email protected] EMERGENCY NURSE
Restorative justice THE AMBULANCE service is under more pressure now than it has been for decades. There are several reasons for this, including a rise in the number of unnecessary 999 calls from the general public. All emergency nurses and paramedics know of ‘offenders’ who call ambulances despite having no urgent medical needs. Some of these individuals call several times but refuse to co-operate with ambulance crews when they arrive. Attempts have been made to educate the public on when and when not to call 999, and it has even been mooted that people are charged if they use the ambulance service inappropriately. I, however, want to propose the practice of restorative justice, a scheme in which the victims and perpetrators of crimes meet face to face. The practice is based on the idea that crime is a violation of people, relationships and of the wider community, not simply an offence against the state (Kirklees Partnership 2013). When victims have opportunities to express their distress and fear to the individuals who have robbed or mugged them, broken into their homes, or abused them, both parties can be affected positively. Similarly, if paramedics were to visit people who have misused the ambulance services, and explain how their selfish and thoughtless use of an important resource has caused patients to suffer, their behaviour may change. This practice could help offenders understand the consequences of their actions and lead at least some of them to hesitate before misusing services again. Lorna McInulty is senior lecturer in emergency and unscheduled care at the University of Central Lancashire, Preston, and a member of the Emergency Nurse editorial advisory board
Reference Kirklees Partnership (2013) Kirklees: A Restorative Community Safety Partnership 2013-2016. tinyurl.com/jvqvwbw (Last accessed: February 17 2015.)
March 2015 | Volume 22 | Number 10 13
Downloaded from RCNi.com by ${individualUser.displayName} on Nov 27, 2015. For personal use only. No other uses without permission. Copyright © 2015 RCNi Ltd. All rights reserved.
