Opinion

Comment

A nurse stands in front of a line of other nurses, looking happy and confident. Yet nurses often downplay their role

Our professional inferiority complex: why you’re never ‘just’ a nurse

Safety-critical care is what we do, yet some of us can’t resist the urge to downplay

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Time for change written in sand on a beach

Is it time to retire the title learning disability nurse?

Changing the name could make it more contemporary and reflect changing times

Images of several human heads in profile symbolising changes – a ladder is propped against one of them and next to it is a small figure representing a nurse with a conversation bubble coming from her mouth

Is the title learning disability nurse still fit for purpose?

Jonathan Beebee asks if the profession needs a new title to reflect changes in practice

A book entitled Euthanasia with weighing scales beneath the title, next to a gavel with a folder of documents just above them

Why we need to think about assisted dying and people with learning disabilities

In future people with learning disabilities could be granted euthanasia requests too easily

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What would you put in an election manifesto for future learning disability nursing?

New reports on learning disability care are hard-hitting but do offer support for nurses

Two women, one of whom has a learning disability, sit on a sofa talking to each other

How to talk to people with learning disabilities about death

Avoiding the subject can rob people of a chance to grieve or prepare for death

Expert advice

A nurse sitting at a table with a person with learning disabilities and epilepsy going through the Clive Treacey Safety Checklist

Promoting safe care for people with epilepsy and a learning disability and/or autism

Nurses can use the new Clive Treacey Safety Checklist to support service users

A teenage girl lies on her side looking distressed while her mother sits close by holding her hand and puts her other hand on her head to comfort her

What you need to know about caring for children with epilepsy

Support can include peer group activities, school counselling and individual care plans

A healthcare professional carrying out cardiopulmonary resuscitation on a male patient

What you need to know about DNACPR and people with learning disabilities

The facts and rules about this recommendation play a critical role for everyone concerned

Illustration shows woman in bed sleeping happily: adults with learning disabilities face a range of sleep issues affecting quality of life, but there are strategies nurses can share to improve quality of sleep

Tips and actions to improve quality of sleep

Adults with learning disabilities face a range of sleep issues but new strategies can help

Use of restrictive practices: the ethical, legal and practical issues

Practical advice on delivering safe and humane interventions

Post-incident debriefing: how to demonstrate your professionalism and empathy

Tips on adapting your communication to send the right signals, and why reassurance is key

Editorial

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Will integrated care systems improve support for the most vulnerable?

The new system will replace local commissioning groups

Coming out of lockdown: the route back to normality

People with learning disabilities and/or autism will need support to rebuild their lives

DNACPR notices: learning disability nurses are best-placed advocates for families

CQC report acknowledges vulnerabilities of service users during COVID-19

Mental Health Act reforms: have your say

New law alone will not address unnecessary detentions of people with learning disabilities

COVID-19: will people with learning disabilities fare better in the second wave?

Report reveals service users six times more likely to die than others during the first wave

Image illustrates the online interaction between new nursing students and their lecturer during the first week of term at university

COVID-19: uncertain times highlight the best of learning disability nursing

Nursing students starting university graduate courses face a strange new online world

Your views

Illustration showing healthcare staff in different uniforms, representing different professions, standing on top of piles of coins of varying heights, suggesting pay differences between professions

NHS pay: would a separate pay spine benefit nurses?

We ask our readers if a split from Agenda for Change is the best approach

A year on from NHS industrial action, what has changed for nurses?

After the hard-won pay deal, we ask our readers’ panel how they feel about the dispute now

Dreaded form-filling: would standardisation across all settings make your job easier?

Universal patient documentation and its potential to ease your admin burden

Patient confidentiality and sharing patient data in your work WhatsApp group

What safeguards do you need to help you use instant messaging responsibly?

Why does it feel like pay for care home and independent sector nurses is overlooked?

Are non-NHS staff under-estimated by the public and even their nursing colleagues?

Reviews

job coaches for adults with disabilities

Job Coaches for Adults with Disabilities: A Practical Guide

Nicky Genders looks at a book focusing on the role of a job coach for people with LD

Moulster and Griffiths

Book review: The Moulster and Griffiths Learning Disability Nursing Model

Michael Brown looks at a book focusing specifically on learning disability nursing models

Girls and Autism

Book review: Girls and Autism: Educational, Family and Personal Perspectives

A new book focusing on girls and women on the autism spectrum

Book review: Vaccines Did Not Cause Rachel’s Autism

Lynne Marsh reviews a book arguing that vaccines save lives and do not cause autism

Childhood obesity

Book review: Childhood Obesity: Causes, Consequences, and Intervention Approaches

Community nursing reference guide on nutrition and childhood obesity

Census

Book review: Census

Novel about a dying man on a road trip with his son who has a learning disability

Jobs