care---or geriatric nursing---is a medical specialty. Aged patients often have conditions and needs that differ from other sectors of the populace. A range of conditions that are either peculiar to or are more prevalent in the elderly population helps define a geriatric nurse's job. Various headings can serve to group the major facets of geriatric nursing, but in practice there is considerable overlap.
Communication
One important aspect of elderly nursing is communicating effectively with the patient or resident and with family members. (The health care recipient in a hospital setting is a "patient" while the staff in nursing homes typically refer to their charges as "residents.") The family will have concerns and questions, and among the nurse's many responsibilities is to address these. In the case of a resident who is alert and lucid, the nurse may communicate in the ordinary way. However, an all too common affliction in the elderly---dementia---results in a debilitating loss of mental capacity. It presents a challenge for the patient, for the family and for caregivers, including the nurse. Dementia patients generally require a special approach.
The must communicate effectively not only with the resident and family but with the doctor. Alerting the doctor or other staff to changes in a patient's condition or to a new sign or symptom that might have otherwise gone unnoticed is at the core of nursing care.
Psychology
Nurses are trained in the basics of psychology but, often, working effectively with residents comes down to intuition and common sense. As already noted, dementia patients present a special challenge in this regard. And the psychological aspect of nursing naturally extends to family relations.
As an example of psychology and communication being interrelated, absence of dementia in a resident doesn't necessarily mean communications will be simple. It is a fact of human nature that people can and do run the gamut from being mild-mannered and reasonable to being stubborn, unreasonable, and belligerent or combative. This is true in society in general and it is true in the health care setting.
Compassion
A basic quality of human decency, compassion is refined in good nursing care. In elderly nursing there are times and circumstances that call for a gentle touch. The are other times and circumstances that call for---though with no less compassion---sternness. The nurse must use her discretion to decide where the balance is and what is appropriate in each given instance.
Medications
Dispensing medications is a significant part of a nurse's responsibility in caring for the elderly. Residents commonly have multiple prescription medications in addition to over-the-counter medicines, including supplements. The nurse must ensure that medications are given at the proper times and in the proper dosages. And awareness of medication allergies or drug interactions are important.
Treatments
Injuries such as fractures from falls and skin tears, often resulting from very minor mishaps, are more prevalent in the elderly than in the general population. Nurses for the elderly must must care for and appropriately treat these and other wounds.
Record Keeping
A nurse's responsibility isn't limited to meeting all the demands of caring for residents or patients. He must also accurately document all the care provided and medications dispensed.
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