About Betsy Todd, MPH, RN

Former clinical editor, American Journal of Nursing (AJN), and nurse epidemiologist

The Real and Evolving Threat of Superbugs: A Primer

pillsinspaceJust how super is the latest superbug? The good news is that the infected U.S. patient has recovered. The bad news:  mcr-1, the resistance gene identified in this strain of E. coli, has brought us another frightening step closer to a “post-antibiotic” era.

In recent years, antimicrobial resistance among Gram-negative bacteria (E. coli, Klebsiella, Pseudomonas, Acinetobacter, Salmonella, and others) has been a growing public health concern. Most of the increase in resistance has been the result of mobile genetic elements that can easily transfer resistance from one bacterium to another, allowing bacteria to “catch” antibiotic resistance from one another.

To make matters worse, resistance enzymes are often packaged together. One genetic “cassette” can carry multiple resistance determinants, thereby spreading resistance to more than one class of antibiotics at the same time.

Early on, we relied on the carbapenem class of antibiotics to treat infections caused by multidrug-resistant (MDR) organisms such as the “ESBLs” (extended-spectrum beta-lactamase-producing organisms). But carbapenemase-producing organisms soon developed, and resistance to carbapenems spread quickly.

In 2009, the emergence of a “super” kind of carbapenem resistance gene, ndm-1 (New Delhi metallo-beta-lactamase) was found to be highly resistant to many antibiotic classes, including:

  • the carbapenems and other beta-lactams (penicillin derivatives and cephalosporins)
  • the fluoroquinolones (ciprofloxacin, levofloxacin, et al)
  • the aminoglycosides (gentamicin, amikacin, et al).

These antibiotic classes include the main […]

2016-11-21T13:01:11-05:00June 6th, 2016|infectious diseases, Nursing, Public health|1 Comment
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Zika Virus Update: Epidemiology, Sexual Transmission, Pregnancy

By Betsy Todd, MPH, RN, CIC, clinical editor

A close view of a repellent product being sprayed on a person's hand in Brasilia, Brazil, 27 January 2016. The Brazilian government announced that repellent products will be given for free to pregnant women registered in the assistance programs to avoid Zika contagion. EPA/FERNANDO BIZERRA JR. Mosquito repellant being sprayed on a person’s hand in Brazil. EPA

Zika virus is now being actively transmitted in 42 countries, primarily in the Americas and on islands in the South Pacific. As of April 13th, there had been 358 travel-associated cases reported in the U.S., including 31 pregnant women.

While there are as yet no locally acquired U.S. cases, local transmission has been established in several U.S. territories (primarily, Puerto Rico). Travel-associated cases are expected to continue in the U.S., almost certainly leading to eventual limited local transmission.

Transmission. Most cases of Zika virus infection have been vector-borne—that is, they resulted from the bite of an […]

2016-11-21T13:01:17-05:00April 20th, 2016|infectious diseases, Nursing, Public health|11 Comments
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A Room with A View: Physical Environments and Healing

By Betsy Todd, clinical editor, MPH, RN, CIC

Illustration by Janet Hamlin for AJN. All rights reserved. Illustration by Janet Hamlin for AJN. All rights reserved.

Computers, alarms, automated drug dispensing, complex medical protocols—the ways in which we provide care have changed a lot over the past 30 years. Has forced multitasking made us forget that, buried beneath the printouts and data, there is a human being in need of support?

In this month’s AJN, author Joy Washburn shares the story of David, a man with advanced Parkinson’s disease whose medical condition results in his transfer from a cheerful rehab setting to a long-term care bed in the same facility. While his old room in rehab overlooked gardens and a children’s play area, the new room faces a parking lot. To make matters worse, no one seems to have prepared David for the move, and many nurses erroneously assume that his advanced physical disability means that he is also cognitively impaired.   […]

2016-11-21T13:01:18-05:00April 13th, 2016|Nursing, nursing perspective, nursing stories, nursing students, patient engagement, Patients|1 Comment
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Blood Glucose Meters in the ICU: Quick, Useful, But Regulatory Issues Still Unresolved

By Betsy Todd, clinical editor, MPH, RN, CIC

Photo © Life in View/Science Source. Photo © Life in View/Science Source.

Many time-saving clinical technologies are available today that were unheard of at the start of my nursing career. Have we always given careful thought to how this technology is applied? A controversy about the safe use of point-of-care (POC) blood glucose meters (BGMs) in the ICU is a case in point.

Quick, minimally invasive bedside blood glucose monitoring has become the standard of care in hospitals and nursing homes. Interestingly, though, the original FDA approval of POC BGMs was for at-home use only. But the agency waived any restrictions on inpatient use, as long as staff performing the tests were properly trained and the patients were not critically ill. The use of BGMs in critically ill patients is considered “off label.”

Early in 2014, the FDA proposed new regulatory requirements for BGM use in hospitals. Apparently in response to the FDA’s proposal, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services then issued a memorandum of intent to cite and even fine hospitals for the off-label use of BGMs in critical care. A huge outcry from clinicians ensued. […]

2016-11-21T13:01:19-05:00April 6th, 2016|Nursing, nursing perspective|2 Comments
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‘Applying QI to Care in Nursing Homes’: A Nurse’s Take on the Tools Needed for Change

nursing homeA colleague once remarked, “Isn’t it strange that the universal response to hearing that someone has gone into a nursing home is ‘Ugh’?”  As nurses, we might hazard a guess as to what kind of care the new resident may receive. But is there a way to reenvision the care that we provide in nursing homes?

In AJN‘s April Viewpoint essay, NP Heather Walker argues that there is, and that quality improvement (QI) can be an effective tool for change. Walker suggests that QI can do for nursing homes what it has done for acute care: focus attention on the systemic issues that stand in the way of good nursing. As she says in the article,

“QI doesn’t negate personal responsibility, but it broadens the focus so that systemic problems are taken into account.”

The QI process fosters reflection, accountability, and teamwork, which in themselves can improve the work environment and residents’ living experience. For more information about this approach, read the short article, here.—Betsy Todd, AJN clinical editor, MPH, RN, CIC

 

2016-11-21T13:01:19-05:00March 31st, 2016|career, Nursing|0 Comments
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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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