firenze
On the very powerful thread here on Gransnet about ageisim in hospital, one of the suggestions by those of us who are former nurses was to bring back the authoritarian matron and ward sister. Many of us remember being frightened to be seen slacking when we were young nurses. Restoring a hierarchy to nursing would mean you'd never get nurses hanging around the nurses' station talking to each other when there is a patient without a visitor at visiting times, for example. Do you agree?
Lots of people have raised the issue of ageism in hospitals and the appalling cases of bad treatment that have recently, and I'm afraid all too regularly, come to light. I'll try and reply to several of these questions in one... (if that makes sense)
To directly answer this particular question, I think having clear and strong nurse leadership on individual hospital wards is a big part of the solution. I've done a lot of workshadowing in the NHS over the last 12 months and the wards that seem to me to provide the best care for older people and their families have strong leadership from senior ward sisters and matrons.
This leadership has also got to go to the very top - to hospital Boards. I met the President of the British Geriatrics Society yesterday, and he said that hospitals who 'get it right' for older people and their families, will probably get it right for all patients. This issue must be absolutely central to those leading and running our hospitals.
We also need to strike the right balance between academic and practical education and training for nurses, and ensure people coming into the profession understand what nursing really means in the 21st Century.
One nurse involved in education and training recently told me that the first question she asks people who want to become a nurse is 'Do you want to care for older people?' If they say no, she says she tells them nursing probably isn't the right career for them.
But finally (and sorry for the long response) we need to look at wider attitudes in society. I think too often we shut old people away - we're frightened of getting older, particularly now we live so much longer. This is a much bigger and complicated issue to address... thoughts from Gransnetters would be v welcome!