By Jason Ford, via Flickr.
. . . and the PhD turns to her and says . . . (Sorry. That’s copyeditor humor—dangling modifiers and all that.)
My question for you is, should that nurse (let’s call her Beverly Smythe) be called Dr. Smythe? It’s an intriguing question, if only because it seems that some people think the answer is no. Diana Mason (PhD, RN, FAAN) mentioned this in her editorial last August. Read the rest of this entry ?
Photo by mezone, via Flickr.
“Patient dies, nurse cries.” That’s how we sometimes refer to the Reflections column, the personal essay about some aspect of health care that appears inside AJN’s back cover each month. It’s the kind of self-protective humor you develop at a nursing journal. We’re not making light of real pain. Often, in fact, we’re quite moved by submissions, both ones we accept for publication and ones we don’t. Nor is every Reflections actually about a patient dying or a nurse grieving. Most, probably, are not. Read the rest of this entry ?
“Nurses don’t have a monopoly on compassion,” writes Kim over at Emergiblog in a thought-provoking post about—among other things (including vintage nurses’ uniforms)—some words of wisdom from a doctor colleague on why people visit the ER over seemingly minor problems.
-Jacob M., AJN senior editor
Clare #5 by fotologic / Jon Nicholls, via Flickr.
Here’s a selection of sites and publications that AJN readers interested in narrative and poetry (particularly as it relates to health care) and in well-crafted writing might find worth a visit.
The Nieman Narrative Digest, a biweekly “compendium of narrative journalism” moderated by the Nieman Foundation for Journalism at Harvard University, presents often unusual, always riveting stories. Health care–related pieces are regularly featured. One recent selection, “Fixing Mr. Fix-It” from the Cleveland Plain Dealer, describes the rehabilitation of a truck mechanic whose arms were severed in a terrible accident. Read the rest of this entry ?
Nurses leaving for lunch break at Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston.
I get in a really bad mood when I’m hungry and can’t eat. According to the NY Times, I’m not alone. Before coming to AJN, I worked in a direct patient care setting and never seemed to find the time to eat, whether in the inpatient or outpatient areas. There was always something that needed to be done that couldn’t wait. Read the rest of this entry ?
A hopeful sign? The Voice of America reports that a group of former auto workers in Michigan, where the nursing shortage is acute, are training to be nurses. Says one, “I don’t have to come home smelling like oil.” The story doesn’t tell us what percentage of these former auto workers are men and what percentage women, but it might be interesting to know. –Jacob M., AJN senior editor
By Hugo90, via Flickr.
This post is a bit of a departure for the Word Curmudgeon (in that it’s neither very curmudgeonly nor about some arcane word usage question), but I think it’s a worthy departure and of particular relevance to both military nurses (abroad and stateside) and nonmilitary nurses—anyone, in fact, who treats women who’ve served in the U.S. military. Read the rest of this entry ?
"The Petrified"
I like Geneva. What’s not to like about a city that celebrates chocolate, watches, flowers, and Heidi? However, on this visit to attend meetings of the Global Advisory Group on Nursing and Midwifery at the World Health Organization (WHO), I used some of my free time for more serious pursuits as well.
"Broken Chair"
At United Nations Square, just across from the Palais des Nations, a sculpture of a 12-meters-tall straight-back chair with one broken leg looms over one corner of the square. Commissioned by Handicap International, “Broken Chair” (by artist Daniel Berset) is a monument to those who have lost limbs from land mines. It’s a powerful image.
Just off the square and up a small rise is the Musee International de la Croix-Rouge et du Croissant-Rouge (so much better in French than the “International Red Cross and Red Crescent Museum”). As you walk up the ramp to the museum entrance, you encounter a group of shrouded, life-size figures by Swiss artist Carl Bucher. The piece, called “The Petrified,” represents the faceless victims of human rights violations. The effect of the figures is sobering—a high school class walking up the ramp, clowning and laughing and chatting loudly, literally stopped in their tracks and fell silent. The teenagers behind them started yelling for them to move on, but then they too quieted down when they came into view of the figures. That tells you something . . .
–Shawn Kennedy, MA, RN, AJN editoral director
American Red Cross Headquarters, Washington, DC. Photo by Laura Padgett, via Flickr.
Sharon A. R. Stanley, PhD, RN, RS, has been named chief nurse and director of disaster health and mental health services by the American Red Cross. AJN is pleased to see that the Red Cross decided to renew the position of Chief Nurse—especially now that its Red Cross Nursing Service is poised to celebrate its 100th anniversary next month. As we reported in AJN last July, the organization’s leadership gave early retirement to Chief Nurse Nancy McKelvey, and cut the position as part of its plan to deal with a $200 million deficit. Our report was the basis for an emergency resolution at the 2008 American Nurses Association (ANA) meeting of its House of Delegates, in which the delegates directed the ANA to write and urge the Red Cross to reinstate the position. Read the rest of this entry ?
University of Miama President Donna Shalala. Photo by Knight Foundation, via Flickr.
The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation is supporting a new Institute of Medicine (IOM) Commission on the Future of Nursing. The chairperson will be University of Miami President Donna Shalala (also former Secretary of Health and Human Services under the Clinton Administration); the commission will include a few nurses but also others from various private and public sectors. The foundation has been investing significantly in nursing in recent years, with projects such as the Executive Nurse Fellowships, an interdisciplinary nursing research initiative, Transforming Care At the Bedside, and the AARP Center to Champion Nursing.
The commission is not expected to start its work until later this year, but nursing should applaud the RWJ Foundation for recognizing the importance of nursing and being willing to invest in it. My money is betting that this commission will result in significant recommendations—instead of unread and tepid reports designed to collect dust.
-Diana Mason, AJN editor-in-chief
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