Resources
What can I do? Protecting your child from sexual abuse
In the wake of recent news stories about allegations of sexual abuse against children, the NSPCC is making its recently published booklet for parents and carers, What can I do? Protecting your child from sexual abuse, available for free to parents and professionals working with families
What can I do? Protecting your child from sexual abuse with nursing practitioners and the families they work with who may have a need. You can look at this publication by following this link: www.nspcc.org.uk/help-and-advice/for-parents-and-carers/guides-for-parents/sexual-abuse/sexual-abuse_wda90715.html
We would like to offer all RCN members up to 10 free copies, and invite any parent they have contact with to apply to us for a free copy.
Managing children with health care needs: delegation of clinical procedures, training, accountability and governance issues
In 2004 the Council for Disabled Children published ‘the Dignity of Risk’ which contained an advisory list of procedures previously produced by the RCN in 1999, highlighting those clinical procedures which could be safely taught and delegated to unregistered health and non-health qualified staff. This list was subsequently updated for ‘Including Me’ in 2005. Further revisions have since been made to reflect some of the queries which have arisen, clarifying pointers as needed. This most recent version takes account of changes occurring in the NHS and the significant risks posed to children and young people arising from the plethora of private providers and social enterprises. This document will continue to be updated at periodic intervals.
To read more you can download the document here (106KB PDF)
Safeguarding children and young people: roles and competences for health care staff, Intercollegiate document, September 2010
To protect children and young people from harm, all health staff must have the competences to recognise child maltreatment and to take effective action as appropriate to their role. They must also clearly understand their responsibilities, and should be supported by their employing organisation to fulfil their duties.
In 2006, the royal colleges and professional bodies jointly published Safeguarding children and young people: roles and competences for health care staff. The document described six levels of competences and provided model role descriptions for named and designated professionals.
Since that time, reviews across the UK have reinforced the need to further improve the safeguarding skills and understanding of health staff, and to improve access to safeguarding training (see 2-7). A specific review of safeguarding training by the Department of Health in England highlighted the need for greater clarity about the training that should be received by different staff groups.
To read more you can download the document here (867KB PDF)
Recruitment of nurse case assessors to review care received by children and young people with epilepsy
The Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Heath (RCPCH) is currently recruiting nurses to work as case assessors on the Child Health Reviews-UK case review project, which is part of the UK-wide Clinical Outcome Review Programme commissioned by HQIP. Case assessors will perform criterion-based and holistic assessments of clinical care received by children and young people with epilepsy, who have died of any cause or been admitted to hospital for intensive or high dependency care following a prolonged seizure.
Case assessors will work collaboratively in pairs of one nurse and one paediatrician to review care received based on case notes from various healthcare settings. Comprehensive training covering service evaluation projects, case assessment methodology and data protection will be provided, and final appointment will be confirmed following training.
For more information on how to apply please visit:
www.rcpch.ac.uk/child-health-reviews-uk/recruiting-case-assessors/recruiting-case-assessors
Emotional neglect and emotional abuse in pre-school children
The NSPCC and Cardiff University have launched a new resource to help practitioners identify emotional neglect and emotional abuse in pre-school children.
The resource, which is free to download, alerts practitioners to the key signs they should look out for both in a child’s behaviour and in parent-child interactions which may indicate a child is being emotionally neglected or emotionally abused.
It is the latest in the CORE-INFO series of leaflets and is based on a systematic review of the latest worldwide published scientific research into the features of emotional neglect and emotional abuse in children under six, conducted by Cardiff University’s Child Protection Systematic Review group.
Dr Sabine Maguire, of Cardiff University, said: “The review showed there are clearly observable emotional, behavioural and developmental features in pre-school children who have been emotionally neglected or emotionally abused. Early recognition of these features potentially enables the cycle of emotional neglect or emotional abuse to be broken, thus preventing longer term consequences which may include increasing aggression, poor social skills and language delay.”
Dr Ruth Gardner, head of the NSPCC’s neglect programme said: “Emotional neglect and abuse in early infancy have a profound impact on children and can lead to them becoming anxious, anti-social, withdrawn, or aggressive later in life. It is vital that practitioners have the right resources to allow them to recognise the signs early, as the longer the child is left in an emotionally abusive or neglectful environment, the greater the resulting damage. By bringing together the learning from a wide range of research in an accessible way the new CORE-INFO resource will be very valuable in helping practitioners identify these children and seek specialised assessment where necessary.”
This is part of the work that the NSPCC is undertaking to tackle neglect a key priority for the charity, with its research showing that one in 10 children are experiencing severe neglect in childhood and recent report revealing that calls to its helpline about neglect have doubled in the last two years.
The resource can be downloaded by going to www.nspcc.org.uk/core-info
Latest Evidence Update from NHS Evidence - food allergy in children and young people
‘Food allergy in children and young people: Evidence Update May 2012’ is the latest Evidence Update from NHS Evidence – a service provided by NICE. It focuses on a summary of selected new evidence relevant to NICE clinical guideline 116 ‘Diagnosis and assessment of food allergy in children and young people in primary care and community settings’ (2011).
The full document can be downloaded here (PDF 272KB)
Planning a new qualitative study for children, young people and their families
The Royal College of Nursing and the Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health launched, today, Monday 14 May 2012, an on line route map to help support practitioners when undertaking qualitative research with children and young people.
This is one output delivered by the RCN team, but in collaboration from a joint steering group led by the RCPCH, with input from the MCRN, Paediatric non-medicines speciality group, NIHR, MRC, GMC, NRES and MHRA. During 2013 a new updated ethical guidance document will also be produced from the group.
The on line tool hosted here in the RCN has been developed to benefit novice NHS and other researchers planning to undertake qualitative research. The tool contains step by step instructions around research questions, choosing a research paradigm, methods of data collection, as well as the research ethics and other regulatory approval processes in the UK. Information includes reference lists, relevant website links and videos. The online infant, Children and Young People's tool follows the established formatting of the Medical Research Council route maps.
The document in full can be accessed here (PDF 589KB)
For help in accessing PDF files see [How to access PDF files]
Allergywise
The Anaphylaxis Campaign has developed AllergyWise, an online course, based on its successful school nurse training in anaphylaxis and severe allergy.
AllergyWise for healthcare professionals is accredited by the Royal College of Nursing (RCN) and endorsed by the British Society of Allergy and Clinical Immunology (BSACI). The course is specifically designed for healthcare professionals including school or nursery nurses, health visitors, those with responsibility for training teachers and other staff working in schools and early years settings.
For more information, please download the Allergywise flyer (PDF 101KB)
Use of outcome metrics to measure quality in education and training of healthcare professionals: A scoping review of international experiences
This document presents a rapid review of the published evidence on initiatives undertaken at international and national levels that may inform the further development of the proposed NHS outcomes framework for workforce planning, education and training in England.
The document in full can be accessed here (PDF 406KB)
The effect of a hospital nurse staffing mandate on patient health outcomes: evidence from California’s minimum staffing regulation
This paper evaluates the impact of California Assembly Bill 394, which mandated maximum levels of patients per nurse in the hospital setting. This paper finds evidence that the legislation had the intended effect of decreasing patient/nurse ratios in hospitals that previously did not meet mandated standards. However, these improvements in staffing ratios do not appear to be associated with relative improvements in measured patient safety in affected hospitals.
The report in full can be accessed here (PDF 271KB)
Managing children with health care needs: delegation of clinical procedures, training and accountability issues
In 2004 the Council for Disabled Children published ‘the Dignity of Risk’ which contained an advisory list of procedures previously produced by the Royal College of Nursing in 1999, highlighting those clinical procedures which could be safely taught and delegated to non-health qualified staff. This list was subsequently updated for ‘Including Me’ in 20052. Further revisions have since been made to reflect some of the queries which have arisen, clarifying pointers as needed. This document will continue to be updated at periodic intervals.
To access the document, please go here (PDF 50KB)
All Babies Count- Support for parents
Becoming a new parent is a really exciting time. But it can also be worrying. The NSPCC booklet ‘All Babies Count: support for parents’ explores the challenges that new parents face and the vulnerability of babies. Written following consultation with both parents and professionals, this is a resource for you to share with parents, especially those parents who are under stress as it includes advice on how to calm a crying baby, how to manage the stress of new parenthood, how to pick up signs of post-natal depression and where to get help.
NSPCC are offering those who work with parents 10 free copies of this booklet (whilst stocks last). Please email info@nspcc.org.uk or ring 0207 825 2775. Alternatively you can download a copy from www.nspcc.org.uk
The NSPCC want ‘All Babies Count’ to be a tool to support your work. If you have any comments or feedback about how effective this booklet has been, they would like to hear from you. Please contact them on info@nspcc.org.uk
HeadSmart- raising awareness of brain tumour symptoms
HeadSmart is a new joint campaign by the Children's Brain Tumour Research Centre at the University of Nottingham, the Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health (RCPCH) and the Samantha Dickson Brain Tumour Trust that aims to raise awareness of brain tumour symptoms by helping parents and health professionals spot the signs of brain tumours in
children and young people.
For more information please visit www.headsmart.org.uk or download the PDF below.
HeadSmart- be brain tumour aware (PDF 86KB)
Conference presentations
Click here to see the list of PowerPoint presentations available to view or download.
Useful links
Critical care - a one-stop resource for critical care practitioners
Resource from the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency which includes guidance, safety alerts and links to educational material to assist in the safe use and management of medicines and medical devices.
ERIC launches new website
ERIC (Education and Resources for Improving Childhood Continence) has launched a new website to allow health professionals, parents and children to easily access information and support on childhood continence problems.
Continence problems affect 1 in 12 children and young people in the UK and ERIC is the only organisation dedicated to providing information and support. The new website includes updated information for children, young people, parents and health professionals along with easy to navigate headings. The website also features interactive message boards, an online training booking facility and ERIC’s specialist online shop.
For additional information please visit www.eric.org.uk
Back to Sleep
The headline statistics from the launch was that in 1991, when Ann Diamond launched the ‘Back to Sleep’ campaign, there were over 4,000 Cot deaths, that number is now around 400. There are currently 6,500 stillbirth and neonatal death (17 per day) , and they hope this campaign will start a move towards reducing that figure, which puts the UK 35th out of 37 developed countries!
“ Sands, the stillbirth and neonatal death charity, has called for more research, better care and greater awareness of the risks of stillbirth and early death in a report entitled Preventing Babies' Deaths: What Needs To Be Done. With 6500 babies stillborn or dying shortly after birth each year in the UK, the charity believes that up to 1200 of these deaths could be avoided.
The new report, launched on 18 January at the House of Commons, highlights advances in neonatal medicine which have led to some reductions in the number of deaths. However, stillbirth numbers in the UK remain much the same as they were in the late 1990s, and Sands believes that commitment and investment in research and improved care will result in a reduction in the rates. The Royal College of Midwives has welcomed the report's assertion that high quality antenatal care is needed to help women and their families to minimize risks and poor outcomes, but stress that this requires sufficient numbers of midwives to deliver the care.
The Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists have also welcomed the report, citing a need for more research into the causes of stillbirth and an emphasis on what is required for clinical staff supporting such families.
The report includes personal stories on babies who have died, and the devastating impact the deaths have on parents and families. To read the report in full, please click here (PDF 3806KP) “
Residual anaesthetic drugs in cannulae
Reference number1140 E
Issue date27 November 2009
This Signal relates to risks to children as result of residual anaesthetic being left in cannulae after surgery.
After intravenous anaesthesia, small amounts of the agent may be left in the cannula which is then flushed into the patient when further fluid or medication is given intravenously through the same cannula. This may happen when ward staff give antibiotics or pain relief after the patient returns from theatre. For more information visit the NPSA website
Guidance on U16 pregnancy checks
Determining pregnancy status in young female patients under 16 years of age is an area that clinicians may find difficult. Whilst regulators state it is required before surgical or radiological procedures the ethical, practical and contextual considerations can compromise compliance with good practice. This practical guide sets out the considerations and approaches that NHS organisations may consider when developing their policies in this area. Supported by all the major professional clinical bodies and backed with evident statistics and tools it aims to support local members in brokering conversations and agreement around this sensitive process.
For more information, please visit www.rcpch.ac.uk/pregnancychecks
A whole systems approach to improve the planning and commissioning of services for children and families
The British Association for Community Child Heath (BACCH) has produced a discussion document for consultation. The intention is to try and improve the quality of planning and commissioning, delivery and regulation of services in order to achieve better outcomes for children and families through the adoption of a "family friendly framework".
For more information, please download the framework (PDF 770KB)