Most practice nurses are aged over 50

Abstract

Nurses specialising in lung cancer care are overstretched, with a ratio of only one nurse to every 122 patients in England, according to an expert review. A report by the United Kingdom Lung Cancer Coalition (UKLCC), made up of charities, senior NHS professionals and healthcare companies, points out more people die of the disease than any other type of cancer, yet lung cancer has the second lowest ratio of nurse specialists to patients. In comparison, it states there is one nurse specialist to every 79 breast cancer patients. The report contains 30 recommendations, including four that affect nurses directly: All lung cancer patients should be able to access nurse specialist support and advocacy. Lung cancer nurse specialists should be involved with pre-diagnosis care of suspected lung cancer patients. Lung cancer nurse specialists need to work closely with multidisciplinary team co-ordinators, trackers and audit staff to ensure they are not taking on unnecessary administrative roles. Despite the financial pressures facing the NHS, the role of the lung cancer nurse specialist must be protected. National Lung Cancer Forum for Nurses chair and nurse specialist John White said the report’s findings echo the results of a snapshot survey of forum members last year. This revealed that all believed their specialist role was under pressure. ‘Our members said they had been asked to work on the wards to relieve winter pressures,’ he added. ‘We are hoping that the UKLCC report will confirm to commissioners how vital we are.’ He added that the National Patient Experience Survey 2011/12 found that patients who had seen a cancer nurse specialist were more likely to report a good experience of care than those who had not. Macmillan Cancer Support head of policy Duleep Allirajah said the charity welcomed the report. ‘For too long lung cancer has been one of the most overlooked cancers, despite being the UK’s biggest cancer killer.’ To read the UKLCC report go to tiny.cc/Dream_MDT WORLD IN BRIEF