Improving cognitive care in our hospitals has become a national priority. The impact on service delivery systems will become increasingly evident as new standards for care and outputs from important national projects are enacted. Increased expectations for hospitals will require changes to systems of care and for all categories of staff to be informed and skilled. In this paper, I hope to raise awareness and stimulate rehabilitation nurses to take action by contributing to significant service developments required for patients with cognitive care needs in hospital. The benefit of introducing universal rehabilitative nursing practices into mainstream acute care settings needs promoting, as these practices are essential elements for person-focussed cognitive care.