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Abstract

The UK is facing a nationwide staffing crisis within adult social care, due to difficulties in recruiting and retaining registered nurses. Current interpretation of legislation means nursing homes must always have the physical presence of a registered nurse on duty within the home. With the shortage of registered nurses increasing, reliance on agency workers is commonplace, a practice impacting service cost and continuity of care. Lack of innovation to tackle this issue means the question of how to transform service delivery to combat staffing shortages is open for debate. The potential for technology to augment the provision of care was highlighted during the COVID-19 pandemic. In this article the authors present one possible solution focused on the provision of digital nursing care within nursing homes. Anticipated benefits include enhanced accessibility of nursing roles, reduced risk of viral spread and opportunities for upskilling staff. However, challenges include the current interpretation of legislation.

DOI

10.12968/bjon.2023.32.9.428

Publication Date

2023-05-11

Publication Title

British Journal of Nursing

Volume

32

Issue

9

ISSN

0966-0461

Embargo Period

2023-08-09

Organisational Unit

School of Nursing and Midwifery

First Page

428

Last Page

432

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