ÃÛÌÒÖ±²¥

UK governments are working to develop guidance and information:

• GOV.UK: ÃÛÌÒÖ±²¥¯- Current situation in the UK and actions taken in the UK and abroad.
• DHSC & Public Health England (PHE):
•  
• HSC Public Health Agency (Northern Ireland):
•  
• International Council of Nurses: 
• European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC):ÃÛÌÒÖ±²¥¯
• ±Ê±á·¡:ÃÛÌÒÖ±²¥¯
• Scottish Council for Voluntary Organisations:ÃÛÌÒÖ±²¥¯
• Scottish Social Service Council:ÃÛÌÒÖ±²¥¯
• Scottish Government:ÃÛÌÒÖ±²¥¯
• World Health Organization (WHO):ÃÛÌÒÖ±²¥¯

• England:
• Northern Ireland:
• Scotland: 
• Wales:

• Coronavirus (Covid-19): Apprenticeship Updates
• NHS Education for Scotland: 

NMC:

CPR position and NMC code

During the COVID-19 pandemic, some people will become critically ill and their clinical progress, or lack thereof, will prompt frequent review of their likelihood of benefitting from cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR). These reviews and discussions should be communicated with patients and their family members, to all staff (such as Advance Care Plans, Advanced directives includingÃÛÌÒÖ±²¥¯ReSPECT documentsÃÛÌÒÖ±²¥¯or equivalent). All healthcare establishments have policies in place around CPR and guidelines on attempting CPR.

Registered nurses have reported that local CPR policy may differ from national guidance, raising concerns that following local or national guidance could mean criticism either way and breach of theÃÛÌÒÖ±²¥¯. The RCN and NMC issued a .

Due to the pandemic waves, resource and manning constraints in the surges of critically ill coronavirus patients has seen conflicting CPR guidance is circulating nationally.ÃÛÌÒÖ±²¥¯ÃÛÌÒÖ±²¥¯maintains early CPR and defibrillation gives people the best chance of survival and reiterates that all conversations and decisions around CPR are individual to the person involved; a blanket approach to decisions on whether or not to resuscitate individuals in an emergency is not supported. The RCN,ÃÛÌÒÖ±²¥¯are unanimous in the use of advance care plans being made with people and patients, and are explicit that decisions must be made on an individual basis.

°Õ³ó±ðÃÛÌÒÖ±²¥¯NMC has re-iteratedÃÛÌÒÖ±²¥¯that all registrants are to use their professional judgement to decide what action should be taken in the best interests of the person in their care.ÃÛÌÒÖ±²¥¯ÃÛÌÒÖ±²¥¯must continue to be upheld as they are useful to support decision making.

The RCN view is that registered nurses (and Nursing Associates in England) should use their professional judgement to provide CPR or not, taking into consideration the individual needing CPR, the current situation and environment they are in and local policy. Provided the registrant can justify their actions based on these judgements, they should not face criticism.

Additional guidance is available in the collaborative documentÃÛÌÒÖ±²¥¯- .ÃÛÌÒÖ±²¥¯â¶Ä¯

• GOV.UK:
• Health and Social Care Public Health agency in NI (HSCNI):
• Health Protection Scotland (HPS): 
• Public Health Wales: 
• PHE:
• Public Health Wales

Department of Health and Social Care, Public Health Wales, Public Health Agency (Northern Ireland), Health Protection Scotland and Public Health England joint UK advice:

• )
• RCN Personal protective equipment (PPE) advice
• RCN Skin health toolkit

Also see:

• RCN: Uniform and workwear guidance
• RCN: Essential Practice for Infection Prevention and Control
• Healthcare Infection Society: .
• Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency: 
• NHS England & NHS Improvement: 

People previously considered to be clinically extremely vulnerable will not be advised to shield again, as the government agrees to end the requirement for centralised guidance for these groups following expert clinical advice.

See: and

There is separate advice available for example: .

Further resources:

• NHS: 
• RCN: redeployment advice 
• RCN: Medicines management and prescribing safely under COVID-19
• NHS England:

NICE , including:

New variants of SARS-CoV-2 have been identified since the initial emergence of infection in December 2019. Some of these variants have been associated with rapid increases in the spread of infection. These are likely to cause further waves in the future across the UK or in local regions. When rapid increases in infection rates of SARS-CoV-2 variants happen, critical care and emergency department nurses are likely to be looking after more acutely and critically unwell patients. Nurse to patient ratios have been much higher than usual and they may again if we continue to have new variants rapidly increasing infection rates. Additional critical care capacity may again require support from colleagues from other specialties not necessarily related to emergency or critical care. Therefore, RNs may have to supervise non-emergency/critical care colleagues moved to support the care delivery to the critically ill patients in their departments.

Please see:

• CC3N, 
• CC3N, 
• DHSC, 
• UKCCNA ,

RCN e-learning 

Two RCN e-learning programmes are available to support nurses in critical care during the pandemic:

• ‘Introducing Critical Care’ provides flexible and accessible learning resources to support an introduction to critical care for the nursing and midwifery workforce.
• ‘End of life care and wellbeing for the nursing and midwifery workforce’ supports the delivery of end of life care to the dying person, their family and carers.

See also: Nurse staffing ratios in ICU revised to help manage second surge of COVID-19

National Early Warning Score 2 (NEWS2) 

Read information from the Royal College of Physicians (RCP)  which has been developed to improve detection and response to clinical deterioration in adult patients. The system has not specifically been designed for the COVID 19 outbreak but is a vital tool to support clinical judgement with the emergency situations. 

Is Nasogastric Tube insertion an Aerosol Generating Procedure?

Currently, Public Health England do not view Nasogastric Tube (NG) placement as an Aerosol Generating Procedure (AGP).  The RCN agree with The British Association for Parenteral and Enteral Nutrition (BAPEN) and the Association of UK Dieticians (BDA) that insertion of an NGT regularly induces a cough or sneeze in patients and that this could generate both droplets and aerosols within the range of 1-2 metres required for proximity to the patient during NGT insertion. We have respectfully asked PHE in an to change its guidance to reflect the decisions of the professional bodies representing those who have to insert NGT/NJTs during the Covid-19 crisis.

A significant proportion of patients needing hospital admission with COVID-19 will require oxygen therapy and/or ventilatory support. National guidance for respiratory support of COVID patients is available and up to date. Local guidelines should be in place regarding the management of patients with COVID-19 requiring oxygen therapy. These should outline oxygen flow and potential oxygen demand.

The use of high flow oxygen has significantly increased during the pandemic and there have been concerns that oxygen supply levels in hospitals may not be sufficient to meet the demand. The RCN has been assured that procurement and distribution systems have been put into place to monitor and ensure supply meets demand.ÃÛÌÒÖ±²¥¯

Resource is sufficient if oxygen is regulated according to individual need. Oxygen delivery systems have a finite capacity; if this is exceeded through unregulated full flow oxygen delivery through all wall outlets, there is a risk of a rapid pressure drop in oxygen supply pipes. Therefore, systems should be in place to check on an individual level that oxygen supply meets and does not exceed the need of each patient e.g. if 15 litres oxygen is prescribed and selected then 15 litres should be delivered via the appropriate regulated mask. Equally, if five litres is prescribed then only five litres should be delivered.ÃÛÌÒÖ±²¥¯ ÃÛÌÒÖ±²¥¯

Organisations should have risk assessments in place alongside risk mitigation strategies in the event of piped oxygen limitations e.g. oxygen cylinders that are full, readily available and replenished regularly.

The following links provide further information: 

British Thoracic Society. 

British Thoracic Society. BTS/ICS Guidance: respiratory care in patients with acute hypoxaemic respiratory failure associated with COVID-19

Healthcare Safety Investigation Branch. 

Cancer and Coronavirus (COVID19)

has been produced by the One Cancer Voice* charities in partnership with NHS England.

Macmillan Cancer Support:  for people with cancer.

Please refer in the first instance to wider Government guidance on:

RCN: Remote consultations guidance under COVID-19 restrictions. This guidance has been developed to support nursing staff, including health visitors, midwives and nursing support workers, where they are being asked to see and/or treat patients via a telephone or video or other remote consultation process.

How to differentiate lung cancer from COVID-19

• UKONS Oncology Nursing Society. 
• Public Health England. 

National Early Warning Score 2 (NEWS2) 

Read information from the Royal College of Physicians (RCP)  which has been developed to improve detection and response to clinical deterioration in adult patients. The system has not specifically been designed for the COVID 19 outbreak but is a vital tool to support clinical judgement with the emergency situations. 

Royal College of Psychiatrists . Developed with NHS England and Improvement (NHSE/I) and the ÃÛÌÒÖ±²¥.

The National Association Psychiatric Intensive Care and low secure units (NAPICU) have developed advice on .

See also:

• RCN COVID-19 Mental Health guidance
• RCN: Remote consultations guidance under COVID-19 restrictions

National Early Warning Score 2 (NEWS2) 

Read information from the Royal College of Physicians (RCP)  which has been developed to improve detection and response to clinical deterioration in adult patients. The system has not specifically been designed for the COVID 19 outbreak but is a vital tool to support clinical judgement with the emergency situations. 

• Beyond Words: . Free picture stories and illustrated guides to support people with learning disabilities and autism through the coronavirus pandemic.
• Care Quality Commission: 
• Chris Hatton's Bog.
• Department of Health and Social Care: 
• Learning Disability England: COVID-19 hospital Passport
• Learning Disability England:
• Learning Disabilities Professional Senate (LDPS): 
• Mencap. 
• National Mental Health and Learning Disability Nurse Directors Forum.
• NHS England & NHS Improvement.
• NHS England: . Patient, carer and family engagement and communication during the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic
• NHS England: Learning Disability and Autism COVID-19 webinar slides, Stakeholder webinar slides and Stakeholder webinar transcript 
• Office of the Public Guardian: 
• NHS Scotland: Caring for someone with a learning disability who is self–isolating or social distancing due to risks associated with Coronavirus
• National Mental Health and Learning Disability Nurse Directors Forum: Planning and considerations for NHS trusts.
• Public Health England: Learning Disability and Autism Programme FAQ
• Scottish Commission for Learning Disability: . Self-help booklets supporting people with mild to moderate learning/intellectual disabilities during the COVID-19 outbreak. 
• The Challenging Behaviour Foundation. .

Surrey and Borders Partnership NHS Trust: Videos to support people with learning disabilities and families/ carers

• Faculty of Sexual and Reproductive Health (FSRH) guidance. 
• HEE. 
• NHS England & NHS Improvement. Maternity care pathway in quarantine hotels
• ÃÛÌÒÖ±²¥: Redeployment guidance for pregnant staff (under 'What are the occupational health / health and safety factors?')
• Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists: 
• Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists: 

Further information is also available from:

• Beyond Words: 
• Department of Health and Social Care: 
• HM Inspectorate of Prisons (HMI): 
• Independent Advisory Panel on Deaths in Custody: 
• Ministry of Justice, PHE, and Her Majesty’s Prison and Probation Service:
• Ministry of Justice and Her Majesty's Prison and Probation Service:  This Framework sets out how we will take decisions about easing coronavirus-related restrictions in prisons.
• Ministry of Justice and PHE: 
• NHS England: 
• NHS England: 
• NHS England: 
• Prison Reform Trust. 
• Public Health England: 
• RCGP: COVID-19 guidance for healthcare in secure environments
• Shona Minson, British Academy Post Doctoral Research Fellow. 
• UK Health Security Agency. 
• Zahid Mubarek Trust. 

• RCN: Prescribing safely under COVID-19
• RCN: Maintaining the National Immunisation schedule during COVID-19
• RCN: Remote consultations guidance under COVID-19 restrictions

See also:

• AHSN Network.
• Association for Palliative Medicine: 
• COVID EoLC Community Charter
• DHSC: 
• DHSC: 
• JCVI:
• NHS England: 
• NHS England and NHS Improvement. Principles of safe video consulting in general practice during COVID-19
• NHS England and NHS Improvement. This guidance supports primary care and community health services to meet the immediate and longer-term care needs of patients discharged following an acute episode of COVID-19, by describing the typical expected health care needs of these patients, post-discharge.
• NICE: COVID-19 rapid guideline 
• PHE: 
• PHE: 
• RCGP: 
• RCGP:

Surrey and Borders Partnership NHS Trust: Videos to support people with learning disabilities and families/ carers

National Early Warning Score 2 (NEWS2) 

Read information from the Royal College of Physicians (RCP)  which has been developed to improve detection and response to clinical deterioration in adult patients. The system has not specifically been designed for the COVID 19 outbreak but is a vital tool to support clinical judgement with the emergency situations. 

Delivering clinical services in non-clinical areas in General Practice

The RCN recognise that at this time of unprecedented demands on primary care balancing the need to maintain social distancing, while continuing to maintain essential services such as child immunisation clinics has led General Practice to investigate alternative ways to maintain these services. It is recognised that in order to limit the spread of the virus and protect patients and staff it is necessary to reduce footfall and maintain social distancing as far as possible in clinical areas.

We are aware that many patients and the parents of young children are reluctant to attend clinics for childhood immunisations or blood tests due to fears around COVID-19.  In order to address this, some general practice surgeries are offering patients services in practice care parks and, in some cases, have been administering vaccines in the client’s car. Other reports suggest temporary tents or gazebos being erected to serve as clinical areas for phlebotomy services for example.

Delivering services in this way requires a number of considerations. The potential risks identified include:

• Maintaining infection prevention control
• Maintaining good documentation and record keeping
• Consent and Confidentiality
• Health and safety of staff and patients including needlestick injury; personal safety, traffic and environmental risks e.g. weather conditions rain/heat, equipment and site security.
• Managing post vaccination anaphylaxis
• Appropriateness for certain groups e.g. Vulnerable adults such as Learning Disability and Dementia patients.
• Safeguarding

Recommendations

Delivering services in different ways is an increasing demand for services during the pandemic. This is to help ensure social distancing as far as possible and minimise footfall in clinical areas.

There are some key considerations staff need to consider as part of the risk assessment for delivering the services in this way. A risk assessment is the responsibility of your employer and needs to be regularly reviewed and updated.

• RCN: Maintaining safe vaccine storage and administration where this is applicable including post vaccination prophylaxis
• Nursing in Practice: 
• PHE: 
• RCN: IPC Guidance
• RCN: Safe staffing handwashing guide
• NMC: 
• RCN: Consent and Confidentiality 
• RCN: Health and safety of staff and patients (including needlestick injury; personal safety, traffic and environmental risks e.g. weather conditions rain/heat, equipment and site security)
• RCN: Personal safety when working alone: guidance for members working in health and social care
• HSE: 
• HSE: 
• HEE: 
• RCN: Safeguarding of children, young people and vulnerable adults
• DHSC: 

The long term impact of COVID-19 is not clear but we know that many patients suffer variety of symptoms and there are studies underway to explore this. 'Long COVID’ is the term used to describe longer term side effects from COVID-19. For more information, see:

• Asthma UK and British Lung Foundation.
• Carfì A, Bernabei R, Landi F, for the Gemelli Against COVID-19 Post-Acute Care Study Group. . JAMA. 2020;324(6):603–605
• Homerton University Hospital NHS Foundation Trust. . See also: .
• NHS. 
• NHS Employers. 
• NHS England. 
• NHSE/I. 
• . This Post-hospitalisation COVID-19 study is a consortium of leading researchers and clinicians from across the UK working together to understand and improve long-term health outcomes for patients who have been in hospital with confirmed or suspected COVID-19.
• Royal College of Occupational Therapists. 
• Royal College of Occupational Therapists. 
• SAPHNA. 
• SOM. . This leaflet offers guidance for workers on how to manage getting back to work after COVID-19 infection and Long COVID.
• Trish Greenhalgh et al. ‘Long Covid’: evidence, recommendations and priority research questions. Written evidence.
• QNI.

See also: 

RCN. Long COVID: what you need to know

• King's Fund:ÃÛÌÒÖ±²¥¯
• British Thoracic Society: 
• NHS England: NHS Improvement & East of England Diabetes Clinical Network: Delivering Diabetes Care during the COVID-19 Pandemic - the 'new normal'
• NHS England: 
• UCL Partners: . Tools and resources designed to enable primary care teams to continue to effectively manage patients with long-term conditions.

Community Nursing in all forms is pivotal to the nation’s health and social care. We have put together some useful UK guidance. However, it is important that the nursing team familiarise themselves with their local policies on emergency planning, infection prevention and control and national other guidance.

You may find useful information on the Queens Nursing Institute website: See: .

See also:

NHS England. .

Coronavirus (COVID-19): . Guidance and advice about coronavirus (COVID-19) in educational settings for staff, parents and carers, pupils and students.

Respiratory illnesses

• RCPCH. 
• e-Learning for Healthcare (e-LfH). 

•  
  
• )

Department for Education: 

• . Information for parents and carers about the wider opening of nurseries, schools and colleges, transport, attendance, free school meals and remote education.
• . Next steps for the phased wider opening of educational and childcare settings.
• . A planning guide for primary school leaders to help prepare them to open their schools for more pupils during the coronavirus outbreak. 
• . Preventing and controlling infection, including the use of PPE, in education, childcare and children’s social care settings during the coronavirus outbreak.
• . Guidance for further education (FE) providers on maintaining education and skills training, changes to funding arrangements, data collections and assessment.
• . An explanatory note for SAGE’s paper assessing the potential impact of more children returning to school on the transmission of coronavirus (COVID-19).
• .

Further resources:

• European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control.
• Public Health England and the Department of Education. . This guidance is for students, staff and children in the education sector planning to travel in the UK or overseas, and for those who are already overseas.
• See also general guidance for the public:
• RCN, SAPHNA, CPHVA and iHV. Delivering the school nursing healthy child programme during the covid19 pandemic. Professional advice to support best practice virtual contact by school nurses.
• RCN, SAPHNA, CPHVA and iHV. Working with vulnerable families. Professional advice to support best practice.
• SAPHNA. 

People living with dementia may find changes in patterns of life difficult to manage. It is important to explain to people living with dementia why there are changes are occurring and what is being done to keep them safe. Writing reminders, reinforcing details at each visit and encouraging virtual community support will all be helpful. 

• Alzheimer’s society: 
• Alzheimer's Society:
• British Geriatrics Society: 
• Dementia UK: 
• Dementia UK: . This video provides calming techniques which may help a person with dementia as well as their carer
• NHS England: Dementia wellbeing in the COVID-19 pandemic
• SCIE:
• SCIE: 

National Early Warning Score 2 (NEWS2) 

Read information from the Royal College of Physicians (RCP)  which has been developed to improve detection and response to clinical deterioration in adult patients. The system has not specifically been designed for the COVID 19 outbreak but is a vital tool to support clinical judgement with the emergency situations. 

We need to be aware that people may experience considerable stress during this outbreak and be in closer contact with household members for longer periods of time, which may increase issues related to safeguarding. 

Children

• RCPCH: . Further advice and guidance will be added should further information become available
• RCPCH: 
• RCPCH: . See also: , and 

See also:

• Department for Education: 
• Home Office: 

With infants and young children spending more time indoors it is important that we all remind parents of potential hazards in the home, including hazards such as blind cords. There have been one or two deaths recently of young infants/children getting tied up in blind cords. Info can be found at  and .

Adults

Changes in patterns of day to day life may result increased safeguarding events as people spend longer periods of time together without access to recreational activities and other opportunities to socialise, Community nurses need to be aware that they may be an increase in abuse, harm or neglect and understand their role for both adults and any children that may be involved.

Many of the usual options for respite care, such as day centres and home support, may not be available during this COVID-19 outbreak. This is likely to increase the stresses placed on family carers. Additionally, people with high levels of need may be exposed to unscrupulous persons who may contact them offering services or financial advice which may result in abuse.  We recognise that community nurses will often be the only people who are entering the homes of many adults with high level of care need and will demonstrate their usual vigilance to identify safeguarding concerns. It is important you are familiar with any different ways of working in your locality in order to protect people.  

• RCN. Safeguarding resource.
• SCIE.

See also:

Commission for Countering Extremism: 

Domestic abuse and COVID-19

• Home Office. 
• RCN. Domestic abuse - Guidance for health professionals
• RCN. COVID-19 and domestic abuse

The coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak has resulted in major implications for health and care services in the UK, and for health and care staff. This briefing is to support members making difficult decisions during this challenging time.

Background 

Health and social care staff are faced with difficult decisions every day. However, planning for and responding to COVID-19 will require nurses and members of the nursing team to make difficult decisions under new and exceptional pressures, with limited time, resources and information.  

These decisions could relate to the care we provide, how we provide it and who we can provide it to and could have wider impacts on the delivery of our health and social care services.

RCN Position 

Making these difficult decisions should be based on our professional judgement, in accordance with the law, relevant guidance and evidence, and statutory duties.  

This resource is designed to direct RCN members to the relevant resources designed to support specific areas of care but also provide some overarching principles. 

It is critical that our decisions are made with transparency and are free from unlawful discrimination and personal bias, commensurate with the spirit of the Human Rights Act 1998 and Equality provisions operating across the UK.   

• The right to life must be preserved wherever possible  
• The protected characteristics of a patient such as their age, ethnicity, gender, sexual orientation, should not influence our clinical decision making without a clear evidence base for doing so. 
• Decisions must be taken in consultation and discussion with the patient during this pandemic, wherever possible. 
• Health and care workers must be supported including with relevant and adequate guidance and resources, in order to provide the best possible care in the context of this emergency.  

Guidance 

Wherever possible decisions must be taken in consultation and discussion with the patient. If treatment is available (subject to resources), and there is a real prospect that the patient would benefit, then the treatment should be offered. 

A patient with capacity should be given sufficient information to make a real choice of which available treatment, if any, to consent to. If the patient lacks capacity, then the clinician should decide which, if any, available treatment is in the best interests of the patient, but should normally consult with the patient’s family and carers, or an independent mental capacity advocate (if appropriate), before making this decision.  

A record of the decision and the discussion should be made.   

If a treatment is likely to be futile, or harmful, then it need not be offered. For example, if there is no real prospect that mechanical ventilation will benefit the patient, then it should not be offered. The clinician should explain to the patient why it would not be appropriate. Ultimately, the patient does not have the right to insist on a treatment that would not be beneficial. 

Resources to Support Practice 

For more information about this visit: 

• RCN COVID-19 guidance on DNACPR and verification of death
• RCN Unsustainable pressures. Resources to support RCN members dealing with unsustainable service pressures
• Resuscitation Council UK 2021
• Joint NMC/RCN statement regarding Decisions Relating to Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation (CPR) (updated March 2020)
•  

With recognition of the increasing pressures and demand on staff and on the health and care system, it might become necessary to make challenging decisions about how to direct resources to where they are needed most, and to prioritise individual care needs.  

The NICE , include a decision tree algorithm and tools to support clinical decision making: 

See also   

The ; provides support for ongoing response planning and decision-making to ensure that sufficient consideration is given to ethical values and principles when organising and delivering social care for adults.

The framework intends to serve as a guide for these types of decisions, and that consideration of any potential harm that might be suffered and the needs of all individuals are central to decision-making. 

Due to coronavirus infection (COVID-19) there will be an increase in numbers of people with Palliative and end of life care needs. This will include those who have also become palliative during the pandemic with COVID-19 and also unrelated conditions and be impacted by changes to health and care services in this time of unprecedented demand. This briefing is to support members at a time of unprecedented numbers of deaths due to COVID-19.

Background

Palliative care is the care people receive when their treatment is no longer considered curative. The Palliative care philosophy promotes holistic care looking after all the domains in life that makes us individual and important to ourselves and those around us. It is recognised that for some people, curative interventions for COVID-19 may be inappropriate and/or ineffective and a palliative approach to care may be implemented. 

Palliative and end of life care is delivered by a range of healthcare professionals across the health and social care workforce. Community nursing caseloads will have a large proportion of people who have palliative and end of life care needs, and this is likely to increase. Palliative may need to be given in settings which do not normally care for people at the end of life.

People with current palliative care needs may fall within the vulnerable group criteria and should they contract COVID-19 they may find that they decline more rapidly than would have been expected. Advance care planning is critical to ensuring that people who are or who may become palliative during this pandemic have opportunity to discuss their wishes.

Conversations with people who are approaching the end of their life are not always easy, but they are necessary. Opportunities to discuss Do Not Attempt Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation (DNACPR) with the person or their advocate/family if they lack capacity, are important and should be initiated as early on within the illness as possible.  Advance Care plans including advance directives to refuse treatment should be discussed and support put in place to complete, should the person decide that this is what is important to them. 

Where a person lacks capacity then a decision in their best interests (a best interests decision implies a formal legal decision under MCA) should always be made supported by the people that know them the best. Or who have powers of attorney

As a result of COVID 19, life expectancy may be shorter than previously expected and people and their families should, as far as possible, be prepared for this.  Sensitivity and kindness must prevail even in these challenging situations. 

Hospices and specialist palliative care providers may change the way they are working during this pandemic. 

Guidance

Dignity, respect and compassion must remain at the core of the delivery of end of life care.  

People approaching the end of their lives should still be engaged in conversations about their treatment during this pandemic, wherever possible. This may form a part of advanced decision-making conversations. See section on DNACPR and advanced decision making

As far as reasonably possible, people’s cultural and religious beliefs should be explored and respected. However, as the pandemic increases, this may not always be possible.

Health and care workers in all relevant settings must be supported including with relevant and adequate guidance and resources, in order to provide the best possible end of life care in the context of this emergency.  

Resources to support practice

Further protocols and guidance are currently being produced to support care of the dying in the community, and in mental health. This will be added to this resource as they become available.

• RCN: Guidance on advance care planning 
• RCN: COVID-19 guidance on DNACPR and verification of death
• RCN: Having courageous conversations by telephone or video during the COVID-19 pandemic
• All Wales Therapeutics & Toxicity Centre. 
• APM: 
• Department of Health and Social Care: 
• COVID EoLC Community Charter
• e-Learning for Healthcare: 
• Hospice UK: 
• Hospice UK: 
• Hospice UK: 
• Hospice UK: 
• Marie Curie: 
• National Bereavement Alliance: 
• NHS England: 
• NHS England: 
• NHS England: 
• Public Health England:
• RCGP: 
• RCGP:
• RCGP: 
• Social Care Wales: 
• Welsh Government.

Bereavement Support

It is likely that people who may become bereaved during this time may need extra bereavement care and support, local hospice websites may have local information.

You can also access information .

National Early Warning Score 2 (NEWS2) 

Read information from the Royal College of Physicians (RCP)  which has been developed to improve detection and response to clinical deterioration in adult patients. The system has not specifically been designed for the COVID 19 outbreak but is a vital tool to support clinical judgement with the emergency situations. 

It is likely that people who may become bereaved during this time may need extra bereavement care and support, local hospice websites may have local information. See: .

Nursing teams work closely with many community and staff groups. Set out below are the links to guidance covering different sectors that may be helpful to you in managing day to day interaction with colleagues and will inform your own practice. 

Care home providers should stop visits to residents from friends and family. Healthcare professionals and delivery couriers can still visit.

RCN

• COVID-19 Care home visiting position statement. A statement of the RCN position on enabling visiting in care homes (nursing) for older people using an individual dynamic risk assessment
• COVID-19 Care home visiting FAQs. FAQs for older peoples care home (nursing) visiting

England

• Department of Health and Social Care: 
• Department of Health and Social Care:
• Department of Health and Social Care: 
• Department of Health and Social Care: PHE & NHS England,
• Department of Health and Social Care: 
• Department of Health and Social Care: 
• Department of Health and Social Care, Public Health England, Care Quality Commission, and NHS England: 
• HEE:
• Hospice UK: 
• NHS England & NHS Improvement: Clinical guide for the management of palliative care in hospital during the coronavirus pandemic
• PHE: 
• PHE: 
• PHE: 

Also available from PHE is a and two posters for care homes showing and .

COVID-19: guidance on residential care provision:

• Department of Health and Social Care: 
• GOV.UK: 
• SCIE:  

Scotland 

Scottish Government guidelines:

• and from the Chief Medical Officer, Chief Nursing Officer and Chief Social Worker. Care home new admissions or  and on COVID-19 for the management of clients accessing care at home, housing support and sheltered housing.

SCIE:

Northern Ireland 

• HSC Public Health Agency: 

Wales

• Social Care Wales: 

National Early Warning Score 2 (NEWS2) 

Read information from the Royal College of Physicians (RCP)  which has been developed to improve detection and response to clinical deterioration in adult patients. The system has not specifically been designed for the COVID 19 outbreak but is a vital tool to support clinical judgement with the emergency situations.

British Geriatrics Society.  The COVID-19 pandemic raises particular challenges for care home residents, their families and the staff that look after them. This guidance has been developed to help care home staff and NHS staff who work with them to support residents through the pandemic.

• European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC): 
• PHE: 
• Scottish Council for Voluntary Organisations: 
• Scottish Social Service Council: 
• Scottish Government: 
• RCN: COVID-19 (coronavirus)
• World Health Organization (WHO): 

• Public Health England.
• Doctors of the World: 
• NHS Inform: 
• NHS Inform: 
• Groundswell: 
• Asylum Project Appeals Project: 
• Action on Hearing Loss.

• See RCN public Health Travel pages