Devon Care Homes Nursing Education Forum
We are extremely pleased to announce the launch of a special social care clinical education forum.
DCHC has collaborated with Indago Development to bring a series of learning sessions for registered nurses and other clinicians working in and with social care.
We have long been noting member feedback around the support for registered nurses working in our part of the sector and are pleased to be able to offer a solution.
Our aim is to bring together clinicians working in social care in a safe place, to learn from subject matter experts and each other. Certificates of attendance and partially populated NMC revalidation reflection sheets are provided at the end of each session.
Session 9 (February 2026):
Skin Care and Wound Management
In our February session, we were joined by Lucy Hernaman, Nurse at Heanton Nursing Home.
This session covered:
- Basic skin care principles, including cream application
- Basic wound management and tissue viability
- Wound management documentation, including pressure damage
Session 8 (January 2026):
Social Care Nursing Advisory Councils (SCNACs)
It was really informative having the SW Co-Chairs for the SCNAC present at our Forum. There was interest and engagement from all who attended in the opportunities for collaborative work and sharing of best practice.
One such opportunity is involvement with their creation of a Prevention Project Suite. In the SW the two initial projects will be around Dementia and Suicide Prevention. We can also engage with other areas of work including Competency Documents and development of a Dysphagia Toolkit.
The ask had been made to our Forum for a repository for sharing standards, guidance and best practice. Challenges in discussions around this had included band width and capacity. SCNAC are happy to include and share examples of projects, learning etc. Please share directly with SCNAC or Ann Butts.
Session 7 (December 2025):
End-of-Life Care
We were joined, in this session, by Catherine Hughes from Rowcroft Hospice and Gabriela Ogreanu, Registered Manager at Sefton Hall Care Home.
Gabriela’s talk focused on the importance of advance care planning. Not so much from a clinical angle, but from the emotional and human perspective – the small, overlooked details that can make a big difference, but are sometimes missed in the rush of a busy day. Gabriela also shared some of the changes that have been implemented at Sefton Hall and how these changes have transformed the way they approach End-of-Life care.
Catherine discussed the Planning for the Future Hub, which Rowcroft is evolving year on year as a resource for both healthcare professionals and the public. She also shared their offer of becoming a Champion for Advance Care Planning using a Brief Intervention Tool.
Session 6 (November 2025):
Continence Management
Kate Heys, who works within the Devon Bladder and Bowel Care Service, delivered a presentation on Continence Management.
Kate’s team receive the paperwork for the continence assessments and work together with the community teams and nursing/residential homes in Devon. They check the 3-day bladder diaries, bowel charts, authorise Tena prescriptions and deliver continence training to community nurses and care homes.
Session 5 (October 2025):
Nutrition and Hydration
In this session, we were delighted to be joined by Julie Kemmner, Clinical Community Dietitian and Team Lead at the Torbay and South Devon NHS Foundation Trust. Julie is a Registered MSc Dietitian with Masters and has nearly 25 years of NHS experience, including work in the community and with care homes in the Torbay and South Devon area.
This session focused on undernutrition and hydration in care homes, with the latest updates, news, resources and support for care home residents, who have poor appetites, difficulty eating and drinking or unplanned weight loss.
Julie was also joined by Dr Esther Muriuki, Senior Research Fellow from the University of Plymouth, to talk about a once-in-a-lifetime research opportunity, looking at how best to treat malnutrition in older care home residents.
Presentation Slides: Research Opportunity
Session 4 (September 2025):
Management of pain and identifying pain in dementia
This session offered valuable insights and knowledge on the management of pain and identifying pain in dementia, essential for improving the quality of life for our residents.
Presentation Slides: Identifying Pain in Dementia /Pain Assessment Tools
Feedback on previous sessions
"I thought this was a really good training session, with a short and succinct presentation about a really relevant subject"
"This is an excellent format to learn and share"
"Our clinical lead was very enthusiastic and is looking forward to the next one"
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