This article discusses the use of Quest acuity and frailty measures for community nursing interventions to quantify and qualify the contributions of district nursing teams. It describes the use of a suite of acuity and frailty tools tested in 8 UK community service trusts over the past 5years. In addition, a competency assessment tool was used to gauge both capacity and capability of individual nurses. The National Quality Board (NQB) improvement resource for the district nursing services recommends a robust method for classifying patient acuity/frailty/dependency. It is contended the Quest tools and their usage articulated here offer a suitable methodology.

Ami David - Principal Consultant, Quest for Community Health

Mary Saunders - Principal Consultant, Quest for Community Health