Resources & References

Comfort Care Booklet — UK version

Providing Comfort Care to People with Dementia During Their Last Days of Life: A guide for family and friends.

Resources for you

Your wellbeing

Resilience Resource: this resource was co-designed with the care home sector to support care home staff; it provides tools and techniques to help you understand and build resilience. “We hope you will enjoy this resource and see it as your ‘go to’ to remind you how important you are and how vital your role as a care home worker is”.

Nurse Lifeline: call ‘The Listening Service’ 0808 801 0455 (Monday–Friday, 7–10pm).

Samaritans: call 116 123 (available 24/7), email: jo@samaritans.org or online chat (pilot).

For professional guidance

Admiral Nurse Dementia Helpline: call 0800 888 6678 (Monday–Friday, 9am–9pm, Saturday and Sunday 9am–5pm).

Supporting future care planning in care homes

COVID ACP Care Homes: Necessary Discussions: a resource on advance care planning during a Covid-19 outbreak with tips for having these discussions. It is a useful training resource for staff and an information website to share with families in preparation for advance care planning discussions.

Macmillan Courageous Conversations: resource for useful words and phrases when holding difficult conversations.

NHS Education for Scotland: Support Around Death Resource: website for staff working with patients, carers, and families before, at, and after death.

Alzheimer’s Society: Making decisions for a person with dementia who lacks mental capacity: guidance on capacity assessment and best interests’ decision-making.

My future wishes: advance care planning for people with dementia in all care settings. Guidance on advance care planning discussions and when one hasn’t been possible.

NMC’s reflective accounts forms

Reflective Accounts Form template.

Examples of completed revalidation forms and templates.

Signposting family carers to additional support and information

Capacity and decision-making

Dementia UK: Capacity and decision-making: information on mental capacity, decision-making, and other resources.

Support and information helplines

Samaritans: Call 116 123 (available 24/7), email: jo@samaritans.org or online chat (pilot).

Dementia Connect Support Line: call 0333 150 3456.

Admiral Nurse Dementia Helpline: call 0800 888 6678.

Bereavement support

Cruse Bereavement Care: free support, advice and information for adults, children, and young people. National Freephone Helpline: 0808 808 1677. Opening hours Monday–Friday 9.30am–5.00pm (excluding bank holidays), with extended hours on Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday evenings, until 8pm.

GriefChat: a safe online space where people can share their story, explore their feelings and be supported by a qualified bereavement counsellor. The service is free and open Monday–Friday, 9am–9pm (UK time) for people who are grieving or bereaved.

Local support organisations: You can also find details of local support organisations at www.mindingyourhead.info under the “Services” section.

References

Atkins, S. and Murphy, K. (1993) ‘Reflection: a review of the literature’, Journal of Advanced Nursing, 18, pp. 1188–1192.

Barksby, J., Butcher, N. and Whysall, A. (2015) A new model of reflection for clinical practice, Nursing Times, 111(34/35), pp. 21–23.

Borton, T. (1970) Reach, touch and teach, London: Hutchinson.

Driscoll, J. (1994) ‘Reflective practice for practice’, Senior Nurse, 14(1), pp.47–50.

Driscoll, J. (ed.) (2007) Practicing clinical supervision: A reflective approach for healthcare professionals, Edinburgh: Elsevier.

Gibbs, G. (1988). Learning by doing: A guide to teaching and learning methods, London: Further Education Unit.