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Accessible summary: What is known on the subject?: Compared to the general population, people with mental illness die several years prematurely. The prevalence of chronic physical illnesses such as diabetes and cardiovascular disease is higher in people with mental health illnesses, putting them at increased risk of developing skin wounds.The majority of the studies on wound care education and management were carried out in acute care and long‐term care settings. A very few addressed the wound care needs for psychiatric patients and the educational needs of nurses in the mental health setting. What the paper adds to existing knowledge?: This study adds to the existing evidence by offering an evidence‐based solution to equip Psychiatric and Mental Health Nurses (PMHNs) with the necessary knowledge and skills to provide high‐quality wound care to patients.When a lack of wound care competency has been identified, it may be worth the effort to provide education and training to psychiatric nurses on wound care management. What are the implications for practice?: This project has the potential benefit of healthcare cost savings, which can be further investigated in a future study, for instance, a pilot randomized controlled trial to estimate the parameters for a full‐trial and cost‐effectiveness study.Future mental health nursing practice and research need to focus on finding solutions to help support PMHNs improve their competence in caring for physical illnesses. Introduction: People with mental illnesses are at increased risk of developing skin wounds. A very few studies addressed the wound care needs for psychiatric patients and the educational needs for psychiatric and mental health nurses (PMHNs). Aim: A wound care education—feasibility and quality improvement project—was implemented to improve wound care competence among nurses on the Seniors' Mental Health Units at a psychiatric hospital. Methods: A total of 36 nurses participated in wound care knowledge education and completed both the pretest and post‐test. Four nurses participated in wound care skills training. Results: The post‐intervention mean score increase for wound care knowledge was 5.14 (178%) and for skills was 7(75.7%). The results were statistically significant (p <.001). Discussion: This study adds to the existing evidence by offering an evidence‐based solution to equip PMHNs with the necessary knowledge and skills to provide high‐quality wound care to patients. Implications for Practice and Research: Future mental health nursing practice and research need to focus on finding evidence‐based practical solutions to help support PMHNs improve their ability to care for physical illnesses. A future pilot randomized controlled trial will be needed to estimate the parameters for a full‐trial and cost‐effectiveness study. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Aims and Objectives: To identify whether a Compassionate Mind Model‐based curriculum reduces students' perceived fears of compassion and improves their professional well‐being. Background: Enabling compassion is mandatory within nurse education but evidencing it is challenging. Research suggests that application of the Compassionate Mind Model might reduce students' fears of compassion and also decrease compassion fatigue. This study reports outcomes of a post‐registration curriculum based on that model for training Specialist Community Public Health Nurses (Health Visiting). Design: A quantitative, prospective evaluation of a 12‐month training course for Health Visiting students. Reporting was guided by the STROBE checklist for observational studies. Methods: Fears of compassion scales were applied at course start (time 1), mid‐point (time 2; +6 months) and end (time 3; +12 months) to evaluate fears of compassion of 26 post‐registration student Health Visitors (81% of course cohort) who provided data at all three points. The Professional Quality of Life tool was administered simultaneously to evaluate compassion satisfaction and burnout/secondary traumatic stress (compassion fatigue). Results: Between time 1 and time 3, mean fears of compassion scores decreased by 16.6‐48.5% (repeated measures analysis of variance); mid‐point scores were intermediary. At time 3, compassion satisfaction had increased slightly (+4.1%), negatively correlated with fears of compassion for self (r = −0.602; p =.001; n = 26) and fears of receiving compassion from others (r = −0.568; p =.002; n = 26). Burnout score decreased by 18.7%, correlated positively with fear of compassion for self (r = 0.493; p =.011; n = 26) and fear of receiving compassion from others (r = 0.615; p =.001; n = 26). Secondary traumatic stress score decreased by 16.5% but was not correlated with any fear of compassion. Conclusion: Findings suggest that application of the Compassionate Mind Model might reduce practitioners' fears of compassion linked to a decrease in risk of compassion fatigue. Relevance to clinical practice: The Compassionate Mind Model could provide an effective vehicle to promote compassion and nurse well‐being. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]