Corinne McSpedon, AJN senior editor

Multistate Outbreak of Life-Threatening Pulmonary Disease Amid E-Cigarette Use

Health officials are investigating an outbreak of severe pulmonary disease this summer that appears to be linked to the use of e-cigarettes, or vaping. One person has died, and many others have been hospitalized with a variety of symptoms in the days and weeks after they reported vaping. As of late August, 215 possible cases of e-cigarette–associated pulmonary disease have been reported in 25 states, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

Unknown Cause

On Friday, the agency released a Health Advisory that provides information about e-cigarette products, updated details about the outbreak, and recommendations for clinicians, public health officials, and the public.

Health officials noted that respiratory (cough, shortness of breath, chest pain), gastrointestinal (nausea, vomiting, diarrhea), or nonspecific constitutional (fatigue, fever, or weight loss) symptoms have been occurring in otherwise healthy people, many in their teens or 20s, since June.

The exact cause of the outbreak is unknown, but reports point to a common factor: e-cigarette products were reportedly used by those affected. Many, but not all, patients reported that they’d used tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) and other cannabinoid products. The CDC, along with the Food and Drug Administration and local and state health departments, continues to investigate the cause of the outbreak.

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Corinne McSpedon, senior editor2019-09-06T10:38:59-04:00September 5th, 2019|Nursing, Public health|0 Comments

Nurses Getting Things Done: A Red Cross Volunteer’s Experience

Providing support after a local disaster.

Red Cross volunteer nurse Debby Dailey hugging her client, Janetta Sconiers. Photo by Eddie Zamora for the American Red Cross

Most people are aware of the important role nurses play in the American Red Cross, from its founding by Clara Barton—138 years ago this week—to nurses’ contributions during national and regional disasters. Yet the varied work of these nurse volunteers is often unseen by other nurses, health care providers, and the public.

Within the Red Cross, nurses hold leadership, teaching, and crisis response positions, providing crucial and sometimes long-term follow-up assistance to people who’ve been affected by disasters.

Nurses “are in an ideal position to do this work.”

Debby Dailey is a nurse and former firefighter and emergency medical technician. She currently works as a nursing clinical instructor and has been a Red Cross volunteer for 40 years, responding to national disasters and playing an important role in all aspects of Red Cross work in her region, California’s Central Valley.

This month’s In the Community column, “Advocating for Janetta,” features a rare look inside a Red Cross nurse volunteer’s daily work. In it, […]

Corinne McSpedon, senior editor2019-05-24T10:28:11-04:00May 24th, 2019|Nursing|0 Comments

Measles Outbreaks, and an Unexpected Vulnerability

The second-greatest number of cases since ‘elimination.’

3D graphical representation of spherical-shaped, measles virus particle studded with glycoprotein tubercles. CDC/ Allison M. Maiuri, MPH, CHES

Last month, a state of emergency—which has now been halted by state court—was declared in nearby Rockland County, New York, barring children who hadn’t been vaccinated against measles from public places. The unprecedented step made worldwide news and highlights the public health measures being taken to stem the six currently ongoing measles outbreaks in the United States.

Measles was eliminated in the United States in 2000, but outbreaks have occurred since, increasingly so in recent years. The CDC reported this week that almost 400 cases of measles have been confirmed in 15 states during the first three months of this year alone. This is the second-greatest number of reported cases since eradication of the disease. The most—667 cases—occurred in 2014.

Public health authorities are clear about the cause of these outbreaks: people contract measles abroad and bring it back to the United States, where groups of people who are unvaccinated are particularly susceptible to developing and spreading this highly contagious disease. Up to 90% […]

Corinne McSpedon, senior editor2019-04-08T07:55:37-04:00April 8th, 2019|infectious diseases, Nursing, Public health|3 Comments

What Nurses Need to Know About Antidepressant Medications

Rising rates of major depression and suicide.

A recently published Health of America report from Blue Cross Blue Shield, Major Depression: The Impact on Overall Health, highlights a dramatic rise in major depression diagnoses—up 33%—from 2013 to 2016. According to the report, women were found to have major depression at twice the rate of men.

Perhaps most startlingly, rates of major depression have risen 47% among millennials, while among adolescents the increase has been 47% in boys and 65% in girls.

‘Sorrowing Old Man,’ by Vincent Van Gogh. Photo by Peter Horree/Alamy Stock Photo.

In an equally disturbing trend, the CDC has noted that the rate of suicide in the United States rose more than 25% from 1999 to 2016, with 45,000 people dying by suicide in 2016 alone. Suicide rates are higher among people who have mental illnesses, and suicide is of particular concern among those who have depression. Yet the CDC also points out that more than half of people who died by suicide had not been diagnosed with a mental health condition.

An antidepressants primer for nurses.

Given the rapidly rising rates of depression diagnoses, nurses are increasingly likely to […]

Corinne McSpedon, senior editor2018-09-14T10:19:30-04:00September 14th, 2018|mental illness, Nursing|0 Comments

Making Sense of the Breast Cancer Screening Guidelines Controversy

“In a time of uncertainty about breast cancer screening, the role of the nurse in communicating information to patients about screening’s health risks and benefits is more important than ever.”

Few diagnostic rituals loom as large—or generate as much anxiety—as an upcoming mammogram appointment. Until relatively recently, most of the concern surrounding the procedure was about what it might reveal. What most women older than age 40 haven’t generally questioned since routine screening began in the 1980s was whether they should have a mammogram each year.

Confusion for patients and providers.

Sandra Brennan, director of radiology at Memorial Sloan Kettering Westchester, West Harrison, New York, reads mammogram results with a technician. Photo courtesy Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center Graphics Team.

Yet many women, particularly those in their 40s, are now struggling with this very issue. Recent changes in the breast cancer screening guidelines of major organizations have moved away from a population-based approach to screening, which has historically begun at age 40 and been repeated annually for most women.

Based on data from clinical research and cancer registries, the current recommendations reflect […]

Corinne McSpedon, senior editor2018-07-09T07:57:28-04:00July 9th, 2018|Nursing|0 Comments

About Corinne McSpedon, senior editor

Multistate Outbreak of Life-Threatening Pulmonary Disease Amid E-Cigarette Use

Unknown Cause

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Nurses Getting Things Done: A Red Cross Volunteer’s Experience

Providing support after a local disaster.

Nurses “are in an ideal position to do this work.”

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Measles Outbreaks, and an Unexpected Vulnerability

The second-greatest number of cases since ‘elimination.’

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What Nurses Need to Know About Antidepressant Medications

Rising rates of major depression and suicide.

An antidepressants primer for nurses.

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Making Sense of the Breast Cancer Screening Guidelines Controversy

Confusion for patients and providers.

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