Opinion
Book reviews Living Well with Dementia Shibley Rahman Radcliffe Publishing £29.99 | 328pp ISBN: 9781908911971
ALL NURSES and healthcare professionals working with people who have dementia will find much of relevance to practice in this book, namely the chapters on exploring living well with specific types of dementia; communication; decision making, capacity and advocacy; assistive technology; dementia-friendly communities; and built environments. Staff working in care homes
should find the information on leisure activities particularly useful. The chapters on socio-economic arguments for living well with the disease and a public health perspective are also valuable. Although useful as an overview for professionals who may not have the time to wade through multiple documents, I would have valued further evaluation of dementia policy and strategy. Exploration of living well across a range of non-NHS settings including care homes would also be useful. This book would be a good library reference. Donna Doherty, senior lecturer (nursing), Faculty of Health Sciences, Staffordshire University
Letters Guideline falls short Wendy Barker’s article in the July issue of Nursing Older People (26, 6, 18-24) summarised the revised National Health and Care Excellence clinical guideline 161 on falls, published in 2013. The guideline focuses on health and social care professionals, but we question whether this is a holistic approach as older people live mostly alone or with their families, not with health professionals. The guideline should therefore also include patients and their families so that they too are aware of how to prevent falls. In addition, the safety of health and social care settings for preventing falls in older people should be taken into account. At the very least, national floor safety standards should be implemented. Use of risk identification tools for falls prevention must also be considered. Sim Sai Tin, professor in public health, medical center, Shantou, China Viroj Wiwanitkit, professor in medicine, Hainan Medical University, China Wendy Barker responds: The revised falls guideline is a concise set of prioritised statements designed to drive measurable quality improvements in health or social care. It is derived from the best available evidence. The 10 September 2014 | Volume 26 | Number 7
article explored the new addition to the guideline (hospital inpatients). The original falls guideline covered those living in the community (own home or extended care setting – nursing home/ supported accommodation). The guideline does advise how to support individuals and their carers about the risk of falls. This includes what measures individuals and families can take to prevent falls, the benefits of modifying falls risk and how to cope if they fall, including how to summon help and how to avoid a long lie. There are already rigorous health and safety standards. Most patient falls in hospital are not a direct result of a wet floor. A greater risk is disorientation to the ward environment, inappropriate footwear, instability and poor mobility. The greatest danger of ‘risk identification’ tools is missing that one single avoidable risk factor that would prevent a fall and potential injury. Risk identification tools should not be used in nursing older people. The tools give a false sense of security. Having low risk does not mean people will not fall. Wendy Barker, deputy director of nursing, York Teaching Hospital NHS Foundation Trust
Introduction to the Psychology of Ageing for Non-Specialists Ian Stuart-Hamilton Jessica Kingsley £16.99 | 240pp ISBN: 9781849053631
EXPLANATIONS OF ageing, life expectancy and demographics lead into a discussion of the main aspects and theories of the psychology of including intelligence, memory, language, personality and lifestyle, and mental health in later life. The book describes complex concepts through practical and relatable examples for the target population. All of the ideas discussed are well supported by research examples and grey literature, however, the writing style largely avoids the reporting of theoretical research in favour of practical, applied concerns, making the content more accessible to non-specialists. The author has adopted a warm and casual tone throughout and has written in a clear, concise manner which makes it easy to read and suitable for his intended audience: social workers, care workers, nurses and medical professionals, and non-specialists with an interest in the subject area. Although this book does not directly inform providers how to deliver care for older adults or offer recommendations for best practice, it does provide an interesting account of the psychological background and explanations to many characteristics of older adults. It may be of particular interest to healthcare workers who are involved in gerontological care, the general population who have older relatives or those who are curious about the psychological effects of their own ageing. While this book is an interesting read, it would be more appropriate in a classroom setting as its relevance to clinical practice is limited. Deborah Preshaw, doctoral student (nursing), Queen’s University Belfast NURSING OLDER PEOPLE
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Book reviews Living Well with Dementia Shibley Rahman Radcliffe Publishing £29.99 | 328pp ISBN: 9781908911971
ALL NURSES and healthcare professionals working with people who have dementia will find much of relevance to practice in this book, namely the chapters on exploring living well with specific types of dementia; communication; decision making, capacity and advocacy; assistive technology; dementia-friendly communities; and built environments. Staff working in care homes
should find the information on leisure activities particularly useful. The chapters on socio-economic arguments for living well with the disease and a public health perspective are also valuable. Although useful as an overview for professionals who may not have the time to wade through multiple documents, I would have valued further evaluation of dementia policy and strategy. Exploration of living well across a range of non-NHS settings including care homes would also be useful. This book would be a good library reference. Donna Doherty, senior lecturer (nursing), Faculty of Health Sciences, Staffordshire University
Letters Guideline falls short Wendy Barker’s article in the July issue of Nursing Older People (26, 6, 18-24) summarised the revised National Health and Care Excellence clinical guideline 161 on falls, published in 2013. The guideline focuses on health and social care professionals, but we question whether this is a holistic approach as older people live mostly alone or with their families, not with health professionals. The guideline should therefore also include patients and their families so that they too are aware of how to prevent falls. In addition, the safety of health and social care settings for preventing falls in older people should be taken into account. At the very least, national floor safety standards should be implemented. Use of risk identification tools for falls prevention must also be considered. Sim Sai Tin, professor in public health, medical center, Shantou, China Viroj Wiwanitkit, professor in medicine, Hainan Medical University, China Wendy Barker responds: The revised falls guideline is a concise set of prioritised statements designed to drive measurable quality improvements in health or social care. It is derived from the best available evidence. The 10 September 2014 | Volume 26 | Number 7
article explored the new addition to the guideline (hospital inpatients). The original falls guideline covered those living in the community (own home or extended care setting – nursing home/ supported accommodation). The guideline does advise how to support individuals and their carers about the risk of falls. This includes what measures individuals and families can take to prevent falls, the benefits of modifying falls risk and how to cope if they fall, including how to summon help and how to avoid a long lie. There are already rigorous health and safety standards. Most patient falls in hospital are not a direct result of a wet floor. A greater risk is disorientation to the ward environment, inappropriate footwear, instability and poor mobility. The greatest danger of ‘risk identification’ tools is missing that one single avoidable risk factor that would prevent a fall and potential injury. Risk identification tools should not be used in nursing older people. The tools give a false sense of security. Having low risk does not mean people will not fall. Wendy Barker, deputy director of nursing, York Teaching Hospital NHS Foundation Trust
Introduction to the Psychology of Ageing for Non-Specialists Ian Stuart-Hamilton Jessica Kingsley £16.99 | 240pp ISBN: 9781849053631
EXPLANATIONS OF ageing, life expectancy and demographics lead into a discussion of the main aspects and theories of the psychology of including intelligence, memory, language, personality and lifestyle, and mental health in later life. The book describes complex concepts through practical and relatable examples for the target population. All of the ideas discussed are well supported by research examples and grey literature, however, the writing style largely avoids the reporting of theoretical research in favour of practical, applied concerns, making the content more accessible to non-specialists. The author has adopted a warm and casual tone throughout and has written in a clear, concise manner which makes it easy to read and suitable for his intended audience: social workers, care workers, nurses and medical professionals, and non-specialists with an interest in the subject area. Although this book does not directly inform providers how to deliver care for older adults or offer recommendations for best practice, it does provide an interesting account of the psychological background and explanations to many characteristics of older adults. It may be of particular interest to healthcare workers who are involved in gerontological care, the general population who have older relatives or those who are curious about the psychological effects of their own ageing. While this book is an interesting read, it would be more appropriate in a classroom setting as its relevance to clinical practice is limited. Deborah Preshaw, doctoral student (nursing), Queen’s University Belfast NURSING OLDER PEOPLE
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