School nurses role in tackling child sexual exploitation

Child Sexual Exploitation (CSE) is a mainstream child protection issue which can impact upon any child in any community (Barnados 2011). Until recently this abhorrent sexual abuse crime remained hidden, rarely recognised and/or identified by professionals and young people as exploitation (Department of Health (DH) 2014). The impact of CSE is devastating as it causes a catastrophic effect on a child/young person’s psychological, emotional and physical health and wellbeing leaving them “deeply traumatised and scarred for life” (Barnados 2011, p.1)

An exploratory study investigating perceptions, opinions and experiences of safeguarding education within pre-registration children’s nursing curricula

Aim: To explore perceptions, opinions and experiences of safeguarding education within pre-registration children’s nursing curricula. Methods: Using a qualitative research method, an online questionnaire, was developed and disseminated to pre-registration children’s nursing students to complete via an weblink which was added to their programme virtual learning environment (VLE). Findings: This study, highlighted the need to integrate other pedagogies within safeguarding education. This includes, implementing more practical based workshops within University, such as, completing safeguarding referrals to social care and undertaking case vignettes from a multi-professional perspective. Conclusion: Therefore, the recommendation from this study, for future safeguarding education in pre-registration children’s nursing curricula includes; incorporating a hybrid experiential learning approach, through problem and simulation based (PBL-SBL) learning, to support the theory to practice divide and ensure practitioners are fit for practice

Depression screening measure for school nurses

School nurses lead on delivering the Healthy Child Programme (Department of Health (DH), 2009) for school-aged children, hence they have expertise in health promotion, protection and prevention at an individual, community and population level. Since April 2013, the commissioning of key public health services for school-aged children has transformed with this responsibility being devolved to local authorities. Therefore, the provision of school nursing services has altered with the emphasis on productivity, demonstrating the effectiveness of their role and in providing a framework to deliver improved outcomes which meet the current and future health needs of children and young people (DH and Public Health England (PHE), 2014). One of the key current and future public health issues, which has significantly developed in children and young people over the last decade, is emotional health and wellbeing. Approximately one in ten 5-16 year olds are known to have a diagnosable mental health condition and 50% of these lifetime cases begin by the age of 14 years’ (Green et al, 2005: xxi). Furthermore approximately ‘18% of children living with a parent who has a mental health problem are twice as likely to develop emotional disorders themselves’ (Green et al, 2005: xxi). However, most worrying is the World Health Organization’s (WHO, 2001) prediction that at its current rate depression will be the second most disabling disease globally by 2020

Trauma informed education for specialist practice

Trauma experienced in childhood and adolescence, can have a lifelong impact upon an individual’s physical and mental health. Therefore, the integration of trauma-informed education, within SCPHN training programmes was considered, in order to ensure school nurses, have the essential knowledge and skills, required to effectively deliver trauma informed care within their role in practice. This involved utilising a combination of theoretical frameworks such as life course epidemiology, psycho-social epidemiology and trauma informed principles in conjunction with a variety of pedagogies such as social constructivism, experiential learning and a strengths-based approach

Designing an adolescent safeguarding curriculum framework for pre-registration nurse education programmes.

Adolescence is a crucial period of transition during which young people are exposed to a range of safeguarding risks in the wider social context. However, it has been identified that the need to safeguard adolescents is less well recognised than the need to safeguard children. Furthermore, there is evidence that child development education provided as part of preregistration nurse education programmes tends to neglect adolescent development. Therefore, there is a need to adopt a life-course approach – which focuses on all stages of child development, including adolescence – and to review child development education to support future nurses in their role in safeguarding young people in practice. This article proposes a curriculum framework for adolescent safeguarding education, outlining a structure to support nurse educators when designing or reviewing preregistration nurse education programmes

Emotional health and wellbeing CPD for school nurses

The emotional health and wellbeing of children and young people is a significant public health issue. If figures of mental health disorders continue to rise at their current rate, by 2020 mental ill health may become one of five leading causes of childhood illness, disability and death (WHO, 2004). While it is not definitive why this public health issue continues to rise, several triggers have been associated with the deterioration in mental health in young people. These triggers include: pressure to achieve educationally, perfection relating to body image, consumerism, competition for jobs in a rising unemployment market, family breakdown and access to social media 24-hours a day (Young Minds, 2014). Furthermore it has been found that the adult brain does not fully develop until the age of 25 years thus creating a combination of factors, which make young people susceptible to developing mental health issues during this formative stage. Consequently this has led to a paradigm shift in the school nursing service over the last decade, with an ever increasing focus on the emotional health of children and young people. School nurses are involved in a range of complex psychological and emotional disorders; for example, with children as young as 5 experiencing anxiety and/or displaying signs of conduct disorder through to adolescents with eating disorders, who deliberately self-harming and/or with depression. Nonetheless school nurses are in a unique position to identify, support and manage children and young people with their emotional health through their public health role, which involves early intervention, health prevention and education (Haddad et al, 2010) across all service levels from Universal to Universal Partnership Plus (Department of Health (DH), 2012a)

Adolescent safeguarding: a review of the literature

Adolescence marks a phase of biological, social, emotional and cognitive development. It is a critical period of transformation and vulnerability when young people are exposed to some of the highest safeguarding risks. The aim of this literature review was to explore the qualitative research undertaken on adolescent safeguarding in the UK to identify key themes and areas of development. A comprehensive literature review was undertaken to investigate evidence published in the past ten years. The review concludes that a public health approach to the adolescent life course should be adopted and a better understanding of risk and vulnerability is needed to safeguard young people in the wider social context. In addition, further research into practitioners’ and young people’s experiences of safeguarding is required

Brain development education pathways

Adolescence marks the beginning of a metamorphic phase of physical, emotional, social and intellectual development. Due to the complexity of this transition, heightened mental health problems have been associated with this progressive stage (Loftus, Kelly and Mustillo 2011). The exposure to a range of environmental and sociological factors, in addition to cognitive vulnerabilities may considerably increase the risk of adolescents developing mental illness. Therefore in the first instance it is essential to raise awareness of adolescent brain development, in order to assist practitioners in recognising and detecting mental illness and ensuring early intervention and prompt treatment

Benchmarking school nursing practice: the North West Regional Benchmarking Group

It is essential that the quality of care is reviewed regularly through robust processes such as benchmarking to ensure all outcomes and resources are evidence-based so that children and young people’s needs are met effectively. This article provides an example of the use of benchmarking in school nursing practice. Benchmarking has been defined as a process for finding, adapting and applying best practices (Camp, 1994). This concept was first adopted in the 1970s ‘from industry where it was used as a structured approach to quality measurement and improving services’ (Royal College of Nursing (RCN), 2014: 5). The first ‘paediatric clinical benchmarking group was set up in the North West in 1994 in response to the Chief Nursing Officer requiring a quality tool for paediatric practice’ (RCN, 2007: 2). Since this initial benchmarking group being developed the North West has continued to lead the way in benchmarking in other areas of clinical practice such as cardiac surgery, neonatal and neurosurgery. The benefits of benchmarking include (RCN, 2007): reflective practice; sharing of innovative practice; reducing duplication and repetition; promoting a bottom up approach to quality improvement; evidence base for outcomes and resources; providing an avenue for implementing change in practice

Effect of Inorganic and Organic Carbon Enrichments (DIC and DOC) on the Photosynthesis and Calcification Rates of Two Calcifying Green Algae from a Caribbean Reef Lagoon

Coral reefs worldwide are affected by increasing dissolved inorganic carbon (DIC) and organic carbon (DOC) concentrations due to ocean acidification (OA) and coastal eutrophication. These two stressors can occur simultaneously, particularly in near-shore reef environments with increasing anthropogenic pressure. However, experimental studies on how elevated DIC and DOC interact are scarce and fundamental to understanding potential synergistic effects and foreseeing future changes in coral reef function. Using an open mesocosm experiment, the present study investigated the impact of elevated DIC (pHNBS: 8.2 and 7.8; pCO2: 377 and 1076 ?atm) and DOC (added as 833 ?mol L-1 of glucose) on calcification and photosynthesis rates of two common calcifying green algae, Halimeda incrassata and Udotea flabellum, in a shallow reef environment. Our results revealed that under elevated DIC, algal photosynthesis decreased similarly for both species, but calcification was more affected in H. incrassata, which also showed carbonate dissolution rates. Elevated DOC reduced photosynthesis and calcification rates in H. incrassata, while in U. flabellum photosynthesis was unaffected and thalus calcification was severely impaired. The combined treatment showed an antagonistic effect of elevated DIC and DOC on the photosynthesis and calcification rates of H. incrassata, and an additive effect in U. flabellum. We conclude that the dominant sand dweller H. incrassata is more negatively affected by both DIC and DOC enrichments, but that their impact could be mitigated when they occur simultaneously. In contrast, U. flabellum can be less affected in coastal eutrophic waters by elevated DIC, but its contribution to reef carbonate sediment production could be further reduced. Accordingly, while the capacity of environmental eutrophication to exacerbate the impact of OA on algal-derived carbonate sand production seems to be species-specific, significant reductions can be expected under future OA scenarios, with important consequences for beach erosion and coastal sediment dynamics