Community Nurses
Community Nurses
About the department
Community nursing opens up a host of opportunities to any prospective nurse or healthcare assistant. We care for patients who are housebound i.e. those who cannot physically make their own way to the GP or hospital for care and we also care for patients living in residential care settings.
Within the community nursing team we need a range of different skills and abilities to care for our acute and complex patients. District nursing, being identified as a speciality, is the main stalwart of community care for complex and acute patients. To be a district nurse you must be a generalist and have great skills and knowledge across all specialties – you never know what you will experience in each and every referral.
About the role
Community nursing is an excellent way to develop your skills – as the years have gone by we have developed the treatments that can be completed in a patients home i.e. vascular assessments including dopplers, intravenous drug administration, enteral drug administration, CVAD care, Topical Negative Pressure to name but a few.
As a community nurse you are invited to support vulnerable patients to live their life as safely as possible. To many patients you will be a lifeline, a vision of support and a friend to those who are lonely.
The benefits include being able to develop your nursing assessment skills and ‘thinking outside of the box’ when you problem solve for your patients. Your car is sometimes your office, so you can enjoy the beautiful Buckinghamshire countryside as you complete your work.
Career routes
The career pathway for community nursing in Bucks can start as a community healthcare assistant (CHCA – Band 3). A higher level of autonomy is expected of our CHCAs as they administer medication, do simple wound dressings as well as the day to day tasks of ensuring our patients in the community are well cared for.
The Trust supports HCAs every year to develop into more senior roles by completing their nursing associate apprenticeship or their nurse training. Once nurse training is completed the teams will assist you to develop by offering post-graduate training on a range of different topics.
The District Nursing Specialist Qualification (DNSpQ) for example is a year long, full time university course with clinical placements, funded by the NHS. To join the DNSpQ you must have some community nursing experience. We employ nurses at band 5 level as newly qualified or those with experience, and we support them to develop their skills and confidence to work autonomously towards completing the DNSpQ when they are ready to be a case manager.
As you develop into more senior roles you will be invited to undertake Nurse Prescribing, Community Practice Teacher (CPT) among other roles. Community nursing is one speciality where you won’t get bored and you will receive great training that will benefit you in any speciality
Mini case study
Lucy Hopla, District Nurse
As a District Nurse I am responsible for managing a case load of patients in the community and planning their care. Day to day I visit patients in their own homes and carry out nursing needs such as full holistic assessments, diabetic care, injection administration, catheter changes, IV medication and PICC line care, bowel care, palliative care and symptom control, syringe drivers, Rocket drain care, pressure area care, blood tests. I work alongside a team of nurses and healthcare assistants and we also work closely with GPs, palliative care nurses, physios, OTs, RICC team and diabetic nurse specialist.
I really enjoy my job as I really like visiting patients in their own homes. I feel that I can build up very good relationships with the patients and their families as we see them on a regular basis and there is a good continuity of care.
Buckinghamshire Healthcare is a great trust to work for. I find the Trust is always very supportive and there are great opportunities for learning. I have been here since I qualified as a nurse which was 6 years ago and am very happy.
