Search

The article covers "Understanding Quality in District Nursing Services," a report by British think tank the King's Fund which found an increasing gap between capacity and demand in district nursing services. It discusses how demand for nursing has increased while the number of nurses working in community health services has declined. The article covers the King's Fund's recommendations including establishing national data on capacity and demand, examining staffing numbers, and increasing use of digital technologies.

The article focuses on district nursing, the challenges facing it, and the value of its service. It traces the origin of the role, originating in 1859 when Rathbone, a wealthy Liverpool merchant, established a training home for district nurses. The Queen's Nursing Institute published its 2020 Vision of the future of the job and presented issues which include loose use of the title, reduction in leadership opportunities, and lack of recognition of the value of their specialization.

The article discusses health care worker Ethel Armstrong's experiences as an employee in the British National Health Service (NHS), and it mentions how the NHS, which launched in 1948, is preparing to celebrate its 70th anniversary in 2018. Armstrong's work in nursing and radiodiagnosis is examined, along with her employment at a mental health hospital in Newcastle, England in 1947. The evolution of British health care services is also assessed.