• To recognise the importance of meeting the palliative care needs of people with dementia
• To enhance your understanding of what a ‘community of practice’ might entail
• To learn about the benefits that were gained from developing a community of practice between palliative and dementia care nurses
Dementia usually occurs as a result of brain disease and, while it is usually chronic or progressive in nature, it has not traditionally been conceptualised as a terminal or life-limiting syndrome. However, the median survival time for people with dementia is between 3.5 years and 4.5 years from symptom onset to death, although this varies depending at which stage the dementia is diagnosed and its cause. As such, it has long been recognised that people with dementia and their family carers have palliative care needs equal to those of patients with cancer. However, a palliative approach to dementia care requires both the dementia and palliative care workforces to fully understand the needs of people with dementia and their families towards the end of life. This article describes the development of a ‘community of practice’ where healthcare professionals from dementia and palliative care services shared their practice and learned from each other in a safe and supportive environment.
Nursing Standard. 39, 11, 63-68. doi: 10.7748/ns.2024.e12331
Peer reviewThis article has been subject to external double-blind peer review and checked for plagiarism using automated software
Correspondence Conflict of interestNone declared
Hayes A, Daly R, Russell J et al (2024) Adopting a ‘community of practice’ between palliative and dementia care nurses. Nursing Standard. doi: 10.7748/ns.2024.e12331
Published online: 23 September 2024
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