New RNs’ “Reality Shock”: And Other Recommended Reading from AJN’s April Issue

On this month’s cover is a prototype for Horizon Hospital—a “sustainable hospital of the future”—created by Gensler, a global design and architecture firm. Read “On the Cover” to learn more.

The April issue of AJN is now live.

This month’s CE article, “Nursing and Climate Mitigation: Decarbonization,” reviews climate change causes and what is required to mitigate greenhouse gas pollution, outlines actions nurses can take in all practice settings, and discusses the roles of nursing education and professional nursing organizations in tackling this critical challenge.

“While the academic–practice gap in nursing is widely acknowledged, substantive research exploring it from the perspective of new graduate RNs’ transition into practice is lacking,” writes Amy Zipf, the author of “The New Graduate RN Speaks, Again: A Mixed-Methods Study.” Learn about her study—which explores the specific gaps experienced by new graduate RNs working in medical–surgical hospital-based settings—here.

“AJN Reports: The Shadowy Middlemen Shaping Drug Prices” takes a close look at the role of pharmacy benefit managers in determining how
much consumers pay at the pharmacy counter and influencing which drugs they use.

“Gamified Interventions for Obesity and Overweight Prevention and Treatment: A Scoping Review” explores, maps, and investigates gamified tools to address obesity […]

2025-03-27T11:45:11-04:00March 27th, 2025|Nursing|0 Comments
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The Many Ways Nurses Can Become Champions of Sustainability

Putting concerns about the environment into practice.

Matthew Lindsley

Matthew Lindsley, MPH, MSN, RN, PHNA-BC, is a lieutenant commander in the U.S. Public Health Service Commissioned Corps and is engaged in clinical trials as an oncology nurse at the National Institutes of Health. He spends his weekends working the soil, caring for animals, and volunteering with a sustainable agriculture initiative to improve the quality and resiliency of local food systems in his community. He is one of a growing legion of nurses who are putting their concerns about the environment into action both inside and outside the workplace.

Our AJN Reports article in the April edition of the American Journal of Nursing, “Nurses Step Up to Address Climate Change and Health,” profiles nurses like Lindsley who are researching the effects of rising temperatures on farmworkers, educating the public about air quality, advocating for policy change, and reducing the waste and emissions generated by the health care sector. The nurses in the article speak about their work and why nurses are well suited to tackle environmental challenges.

Farmer, nurse, researcher, connector.

Lindsley—or “Farmer Matt,” as colleagues know him—is currently pursuing a doctorate at the Johns Hopkins University Bloomberg School of Public […]

2024-04-02T09:27:43-04:00April 2nd, 2024|environmental health, Nursing|0 Comments
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May Issue: Addressing Nurse Burnout, New Chest Pain Assessment Guidelines, More

“This is the third Nurses Day celebrated since the start of the pandemic and nurses’ work has gotten more recognition than ever. But is that recognition enough?”—AJN senior clinical editor Christine Moffa in her editorial, “Honoring Nurses Where They Need It”

The May issue of AJN is now live. Here’s what’s new. Some articles may be free only to subscribers.

Original Research: Combating the Opioid Epidemic Through Nurse Use of Multimodal Analgesia: An Integrative Literature Review

This review presents strong evidence on the benefits of multimodal analgesia in reducing opioid use for pain management in the acute care setting.

CE: Chemicals in the Home That Can Exacerbate Asthma

The authors describe how the use of cleaning and disinfectant products may affect asthma and asthma-related symptoms and report the findings of a recent study they conducted that identified how these products could reduce asthma control in older adults.

Effective Holistic Approaches to Reducing Nurse Stress and Burnout During COVID-19

This quality improvement project evaluated the use of serenity lounges—dedicated rooms where nurses can take workday breaks to relax and rejuvenate—and massage chairs on nurses’ anxiety, stress, and burnout.

[…]

2022-04-25T09:32:36-04:00April 25th, 2022|Nursing|0 Comments
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April Issue: Trauma-Informed Care, Nurses’ Experiences During COVID-19, More

“As nurses we all care. It’s what we do. We care until our hearts hurt like an overused muscle.”—Eileen J. Glover in her Reflections essay, “The Suffering of Simone”

The April issue of AJN is now live. Here’s what’s new. Some articles may be free only to subscribers.

Original Research: Losing the Art and Failing the Science of Nursing: The Experiences of Nurses Working During the COVID-19 Pandemic

The authors of this qualitative descriptive study sought to understand nurses’ work experiences in various U.S. health care settings during the first six months of the COVID-19 pandemic, and to learn more about barriers to and facilitators of their work.

CE: Trauma-Informed Care in Nursing Practice

This article presents the six foundational principles of trauma-informed care, using a case study to discuss the application of these core principles in nursing.

Improving Accuracy in Documenting Cardiopulmonary Arrest Events

The authors describe a quality improvement initiative to compare the timeliness and accuracy of paper-based versus electronic documentation of live cardiopulmonary arrest events.

[…]

2022-03-30T09:43:18-04:00March 30th, 2022|Nursing|0 Comments
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Celebrating Earth Day: Connecting Health and the Environment

Photo by Fateme Alaie via Unsplash

Earth Day, celebrated on April 22, is an annual event to demonstrate support for environmental protections. First held in 1970, it now includes a wide range of events coordinated in more than 192 countries across the globe. The Earth Day celebration that stands out most for me was the 20th anniversary held in Central Park in New York. The event was estimated to have drawn more than 750,000 people—a big incentive being the free concert, which included a performance by the B-52s (who doesn’t love “Love Shack”?).

This year marks the 41st Earth Day, and amidst a global pandemic, activities will look a lot different. (Click here for more information on the virtual events taking place this year.)

Free articles from our environments and health column.

In honor of Earth Day, AJN would like to offer free access to the below selection of articles from our Environments and Health column until May 15. There’s a lot to unpack in these articles—from steps to reduce waste at the hospital level, to how nurses can get involved in fighting climate change, to how patients’ health can be affected by our environment, particularly the mental health conditions that may arise amid extreme changes […]

2021-04-22T14:42:23-04:00April 22nd, 2021|climate change, environmental health, environmental health, Nursing|0 Comments
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