Intermittent catheterisation is seen as the gold standard for younger people with post void residual urine because there are lower complication rates when compared with indwelling urethral or supra pubic catheters. This study set out to discover whether people over 70, who are rarely considered suitable for intermittent catheterisation, would be able to master the technique.

Despite the fact that health is considered to be for all people the literature on health promotion rarely considers the needs of the dying person and his/her family. However, each one of us must face the process of dying at some stage in our lives. The goal of palliative care is to achieve the best quality of life for patients and their families. If health is regarded as enabling a person to maximize his or her potential then palliative care can reasonably be regarded as a health promotion activity. This article explores a positive health promotion approach for palliative care and suggests a health promotion framework for use in care of the dying. This is based on the three fundamental prerequisites for health, i.e. enabling, advocacy and mediacy, as identified by the Ottawa Charter (World Health Organization, 1986). It is argued that the role of the nurse is fundamental in implementing these prerequisites to health in the care of the dying.

The thought of having a life-limiting disease and/or dying can be a fearful prospect. However, a positive approach to palliative care can help the individual and his/her family to approach the last stages of life with hope and, for some people, fulfilment. This article explores a positive health promotion approach to palliative care. This approach is underpinned by the principles of the Ottawa Charter (World Health Organization (WHO), 1986) which specifies advocacy, enabling, and mediacy as the three central elements of health promotion. The nurse as patient advocate can help to ensure that the wishes of the dying person are met. The principles of enabling can help the dying person and his/her family to remain involved in key decisions while mediacy between caregivers can ensure that death occurs in the most appropriate setting for the individual. Through this approach nurses can play a pivotal role in the multidisciplinary team both as agents of change and as providers of care and support to the dying person and his/her family.

This article aims to explain the difference between venous and arterial leg ulcers, methods of treatment and prevention for each kind of ulcer, and the social and emotional impact of venous ulcers.

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