Curative Care: Treatment, Effects & Risks

Curative education nurses support people with disabilities in their participation in social life in outpatient or inpatient settings. They act as partners and caregivers for them and their relatives, as well as for other contacts. The main focus of curative education nursing is assistance in shaping everyday life and relationships with other people.

What is curative education nursing?

Areas of responsibility for a special needs nurse may include working with the mentally ill, mentally handicapped, physically disabled, or addicted. Depending on the type of disability, special education nurses are involved in different areas. Areas of responsibility may include working with the mentally ill, the mentally handicapped, the physically handicapped, or those suffering from addiction. Frequently, those affected have multiple disabilities. The focus is on recognizing and activating existing resources and abilities as well as providing the necessary supportive assistance in coping with everyday life and interpersonal relationships. The goal is to achieve a lifestyle that is as independent and self-determined as possible. In doing so, pedagogical and nursing aspects are combined. The professional group is trained to recognize and promote the needs and abilities of people with disabilities. Ideally, this results in care that respects the personality of the person concerned and his or her dignity and accompanies him or her in a way that is appropriate to the situation. Curative education nurses are part of a competence network consisting of doctors, therapists, etc. and work in an interdisciplinary manner. Care, life support, assistance, pedagogy and counseling are the core competencies. There is no uniform regulation for this profession nationwide. That is why there are different terminologies: A distinction is made between Erzieher/in (curative education), Heilerzieher/in (curative education) and Pfleger/in – Heilerziehung (curative education).

Treatments and therapies

Curative education nursing is a very differentiated job description, as the focus is on the person with disabilities in their entirety. Accordingly, the treatment spectrum is wide. Depending on the degree of disability, the focus is on educational or nursing aspects. In the case of severely disabled or bedridden disabled people, the focus is on physical hygiene and appropriate clothing. Disabled people with more pronounced abilities are helped to run a household independently. If behavioral disorders are part of the medical diagnosis, they are reduced as much as possible through individualized care. The same applies to other psychological predispositions. As caregivers, curative education nurses are responsible for correcting these as far as possible in everyday interactions and steering them in a healthier direction. In accordance with the severity of the disabilities, curative education nurses also assist in the integration into the second or first labor market (inclusion), if the existing resources of the persons concerned allow this. The aim of all these measures is to enable people with disabilities to lead meaningful, self-determined lives in dignity. The aim is to create an atmosphere of security. Since disabilities can affect completely different areas (psychological, physical, mental, disabilities due to addiction problems) and often occur in combination, the field of activity is very broad. Curative education nurses therefore work in various areas: in special residential homes for disabled people, in sheltered workshops, in the outpatient sector (supporting people with disabilities who are largely able to live independently), in psychiatric institutions, in integrative kindergartens, in senior citizens’ homes, etc. For this reason, the exact scope of duties depends on the specific problem at hand. However, the core task is always to accompany the person with a disability throughout his or her life. Due to this complexity, the training to become a curative education nurse is very comprehensive and can take up to five years, depending on the federal state. In other European countries, these are even academic training courses, as medical, psychological, psychiatric, nursing and other aspects must be taken into account.

Diagnosis and examination methods

It is not incumbent upon curative education nurses to make medical diagnoses and conduct medical examinations. However, as caregivers of people with disabilities, they are closely involved in the treatment process.In order to fulfill this complex activity, they have various instruments at their disposal. Within the scope of feasibility, they organize leisure activities and support artistic skills such as handicrafts, singing and dancing. The art-therapeutic approaches are undisputed in their healing effect and are therefore an important component in the care of people with disabilities and their educational support. Social integration through joint activities, as a basic human need, is also an essential aspect of the treatment process. As a result, people with disabilities come into closer contact with outsiders, also affected persons and other groups of people. This also includes the organization of open days, where contacts are made and outsiders receive well-founded information, which reduces inhibition thresholds. Curative education nurses also help to draw up support plans that cover the artistic and practical areas of life. Since they are in close contact with the persons concerned and therefore have a good insight into current problems, they often suggest therapeutic measures and work together with other professional groups such as doctors, psychologists, occupational therapists, etc. If medication is prescribed by a doctor, it is kept in safekeeping, ordered and dispensed appropriately by curative education nurses. However, the prescription of medication is the exclusive responsibility of physicians. However, this professional group can also provide valuable advice to physicians. Curative education nurses also prepare developmental and progress reports on the persons concerned and, if necessary, supervise them. Development and progress reports give other involved professional groups insight into the condition of the person with disabilities and provide clues for further best possible support. If physical disabilities are present that require special nursing skills, it is also incumbent on curative education nurses to intervene medically. For bedridden patients, for example, this may mean preventing bedsores or other physical damage. Patients who, due to a psychological predisposition, tend to injure themselves or others (for example, by scratching) must receive professional care. Medical-nursing knowledge is therefore also an elementary component of remedial nursing.