QNIS promotes excellence in community nursing to improve the health and wellbeing of the people of Scotland. Which begs the question, what do we mean by community nursing?
Community nursing can be broadly described as any nursing care provided outside of an acute hospital. This includes healthcare provided in the home, and also in other settings, for example within General Practice, a community hospital, the custody suite of a police station, a school or care home. There are at least 14,000 community nurses, working across every corner of Scotland in a number of different roles and some of these are listed below:
Advanced Nurse Practitioner (ANP)
manages the complete care for their patient, not solely any specific condition. Four pillars of practice define the core role and function of the ANP: Clinical practice, Leadership, Facilitation of learning and Evidence, research and development. Read more – meet Ian, Julie, Cathanna and Kirsteen.
Care Home Nurse
provides nursing care for those in residential care or nursing home setting. Read more – meet Kate and Lesley.
Community Children’s Nurse
provides expert nursing care for children and families in their own homes. Read more – meet Brenda.
Community Mental Health Nurse (Community Psychiatric Nurse)
provides specialist support to those with mental health issues in a range of community settings. There are specialist teams with particular expertise for example supporting children and young people or those with addictions. Read more – meet Kelvin, Gerry, Coleen and Tracey.
Community Learning Disability Nurse
provides support to those with learning disabilities. From working in schools to residential and community centres or in the home, LD nurses support the health needs of people with learning disabilities, their families and carers.
Community Midwife
provides midwifery support to women (and newborns up to 10 days old) at home and in community clinics. Read more – meet Hilary.
Criminal Justice Nurse/Prison Nurse
works within the criminal justice setting – either in a prison, or a custody suite supporting people with a wide range of health issues, they are considered expert generalists across mental and physical health. Read more – meet Jess.
District Nurse (DN)
visits patients in their own homes. According to Scottish Government figures, 40% of all community nurses are DNs. A DN provides generalist nursing expertise – their skillset is broad, covering everything from advice and action on staying well, to coordination of complex care, wound care, and end of life care. Read more – meet Ally, Madeline, Barbara, Delia, Julie and Brigid.
General Practice Nurse (GPN)
based in a GP surgery, works closely with General Practitioner colleagues. They provide support to those with long term conditions such as asthma, COPD and diabetes as well as provide travel health support and health screening. GPNs are increasingly Advanced Nurse Practitioners who see, treat and prescribe in their own right. Read more – meet Kitty, Lorna and Joanne
Health Visitor (HV)
helps new parents, babies and children through their early years. Health visitors offer a pathway of home visits and development checks, offering advice and support for the under 5s. Read more – meet Clare, Gemma and Margaret-Ann.
Homeless Outreach Nurse
works with and advocates for homeless people, typically with an expertise in public health and mental health. They support those who have found themselves homeless and excluded by tackling existing medical, personal and social problems to enable them improve their situation.
Infant Feeding Nurse
provides support to new mothers, along with promoting culture change within the community to encourage breastfeeding. Read more – meet Elizabeth.
Looked After Children’s Nurse
provides support to looked after children – those who have been in the care of a local authority for more than 24 hours – those in foster homes, residential homes or secure units or under under a supervision requirement order. Read more – meet Rachel
Nurses working in unscheduled care/out of hours
sees and treats patients out of core General Practice hours, working with GPs and paramedics. These nurses are often advanced nurse practitioners who prescribe in their own right.
Occupational Health Nurse
provides support designed to protect the health and wellbeing of people at work. Their role is one of public health, promoting healthy working conditions and preventing problems with health and wellbeing in the workplace.
Offshore Medic
provides physical and mental health support for those working on oil rigs, as well as health and safety and occupational health. Read more – meet Bob.
Palliative Care Nurse
works with people at the end of their lives whether at home, or in a hospice or care home setting. Several large charities including MacMillan and Marie Curie are actively involved in supporting specialist community based palliative nursing care. CHAS operates palliative care hospices for children. Read more – meet Caroline.
Parish Nurse
works in churches, and supports people and communities towards whole person healthcare. Read more – meet Rachel.
Public Health Nurse
plays a vital role in promoting and protecting the public’s health, working with defined populations or social groups.
Sexual Health Nurse
provides information, advice and counselling to individuals with a sexually transmitted infection (STI) playing a key role in helping people understand and manage their condition. They also have a vital role in prevention, raising awareness and helping people minimise the risk of transmission.
School Nurse
works within a school setting, often across a number of schools, providing support and advice, with an emphasis on public health and wellbeing. Read more – meet Joan, Keri and Lesley.
There is also a range of specialist nurses working within Scotland’s communities including Looked-after Children’s Nurses, Treatment Room Nurses and Family Nurses (meet Anne). In addition there are specialist nurses whose roles focus on particular conditions, for example, cancer, asthma, diabetes or Parkinson’s disease. To read more, meet Polly (Dermatology), Lyndsey (ADHD), Lorraine (Dementia), Debra (Cardiac), Michelle (Respiratory) and Moira (MND and MS).
There are also nurses working in a variety of roles in Scotland’s communities using their nursing skills to support well-being in small charities and outreach roles.