AJN September Issue: Family Caregivers and Alzheimer’s, Older Adults and Driving, C. Diff. Prevention, More

The September issue of AJN is now live. Here are some articles we’d like to bring to your attention.

CE: Original Research: The Experience of Transitioning to a Caregiving Role for a Family Member with Alzheimer’s Disease or Related Dementia

This qualitative study explores the experiences of people who transitioned to the role of caregiver for a family member with Alzheimer’s disease or a related dementia. Vivid interview excerpts illuminate the inner struggles caregivers may experience as they navigate a radically changed existence as well as the strategies that have helped them find their way.

CE: Can Your Older Patients Drive Safely?

Many older Americans depend on their cars for independence and connection to the outside world. What are the driving risks associated with advanced age? What behaviors and situations put older drivers at greatest risk, and what are the key indicators of an older patient’s ability to drive safely? Nurses are in a position to raise patients’ awareness of these risks and inform them about transportation alternatives.

Six Things You Can Do Today to Prevent Hospital-Onset C. Difficile Tomorrow

What changes can you make in your practice to prevent transmission of this common bacterial infection?

Lessons Learned from Litigation: Legal […]

2017-08-25T09:03:28-04:00August 25th, 2017|Nursing|0 Comments
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AJN in September: Predicting Injurious Falls, Military Sexual Trauma, Recognizing MI, More

AJN0916.Cover.OnlineThe September issue of AJN is now live. Here are some articles we’d like to bring to your attention.

CE Feature: “Original Research: Predicting Injurious Falls in the Hospital Setting: Implications for Practice”

Despite years of research and increasingly evidence-based practice, falls continue to be the most commonly reported adverse events experienced by hospitalized adults. Yet most of the relevant research has focused on predicting and preventing falls in general; there has been little focus on injurious falls. In an attempt to identify which patient factors are associated with injurious falls in hospitalized adults, the authors of this retrospective study analyzed 10 variables. Their findings may help hospital clinicians to identify at-risk patients and create better fall-related injury prevention interventions.

CE Feature: “Military Sexual Trauma in Male Service Members”

The experience of military sexual trauma (MST), which can result from assault, battery, or harassment of a sexual nature, may jeopardize the mental health of service members. This article discusses the unique ways in which men may experience MST and examines how social stereotypes of masculinity, myths surrounding sexual assault, and military culture and structure often influence a man’s interpretation of an attack and his likelihood of reporting the incident or seeking treatment. It also describes current treatments for MST-related mental health conditions and addresses implications for nurses and other health care professionals.

2016-11-21T13:00:58-05:00August 26th, 2016|Nursing, nursing perspective|0 Comments
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Voluntarily Stopping Eating and Drinking (VSED): What Is It and How Does It Work?

Is there a legal end-of-life option for people who are terminally ill or whose quality of life has reached what they feel to be an unbearable level? Even in states without right-to-die laws, there is. It’s  called voluntarily stopping eating and drinking (VSED). Judith Schwarz wrote about VSED in the September 2009 issue of AJN. The article includes a case study. Here’s an excerpt:

Gertrude (not her real name; other identifying details have been changed) was 99 years old. Having survived the Holocaust and overcome many other challenges in her long life, she thought it ironic that she had to ask her children to help her die.

Although she was not terminally ill, the quality of her life was significantly diminished by many chronic ailments. Despite two hearing aids, her hearing loss was such that she could no longer indulge her one remaining pleasure: listening to classical music. She had fallen and broken a hip when she was 96 and now had to use a wheelchair when moving around her apartment. She had severe arthritis, and she rarely left her apartment except for medical appointments. All friends and many family members had long since died, and her deteriorating vision-a result of a recent bout of shingles-left her unable to read or watch television. After years of living with these and other chronic conditions, she told her family she was tired of life and was ready to leave. Her children and grandchildren told her to be patient. She was almost 100; […]

2016-10-23T10:59:26-04:00September 18th, 2009|Ethics, Nursing, Patients|1 Comment
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Views expressed on the blog are solely those of the authors or persons quoted. They do not necessarily reflect AJN’s views or those of Wolters Kluwer Health/Lippincott Williams and Wilkins.
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