Abstract
As registered nurses we have the capacity to enhance the quality of life of older members of our communities and ensure they are living in an environment that provides optimum support, so that they are living the satisfying lives we all want to enjoy. A registered nurse can build rapport, assess care needs, implement strategies to address those needs and refer appropriately to other health professionals, with the outcome being an older person and their family who are supported and who can live in optimal health. Underpinning this is a registered nurse with the attitudes, skills and knowledge to orchestrate this outcome. Appreciating that all older people are adults and individuals who deserve respect, whose pathologies present differently and often present as cognitive impairment, and that hospitals can negatively affect their health, is essential in working with older people and their families in acute care hospitals.
| Original language | English |
|---|---|
| Title of host publication | Healthy Ageing and Aged Care |
| Editors | Maree Bernoth, Denise Winkler |
| Place of Publication | South Melbourne, Vic. |
| Publisher | Oxford University Press |
| Pages | 265-289 |
| Number of pages | 25 |
| ISBN (Print) | 9780195597585 |
| Publication status | Published - 2017 |
Keywords
- older people
- intensive care nursing
- quality of life
- nurses