Nurses Week: Time to Celebrate (Not Denigrate) Nursing’s Worth

shawnkennedyBy Maureen Shawn Kennedy, AJN editor-in-chief

So, on the cusp of Nurses Week, the week when Americans are encouraged to think about the value that nurses bring to health care, readers of the New York Times were treated to an op-ed written by physician Sandeep Jauhar. According to the byline, Jauhar is a cardiologist and the author of an upcoming memoir about his disillusionment as a physician. The title of the piece was “Nurses Are Not Doctors.” While the author makes sure to reassure us that he thinks nurse practitioners (NPs) have a valuable role to play in health care, he makes the usual charge that NPs are not qualified to practice primary care without physician supervision.

Jauhar conveniently ignores the many studies that have refuted this argument, while basing his case largely on weak anecdotes and one study from 1999 that showed NPs ordered more diagnostic tests. His conclusion: the NPs in the study ordered too many expensive tests because they lack the experience and knowledge of physicians (he concedes in passing that “there are many reasons the NPs may have ordered more tests”). I can’t help thinking that this piece’s publication was purposely timed to take some of the shine off Nurses Week.

I’m surprised that the Times published such a weak letter. First, […]

2018-03-28T10:24:54-04:00May 5th, 2014|career, nursing perspective, nursing research|4 Comments
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If You Really Want to Get That Letter Published

By Karen Roush, PhD, RN, FNP, AJN clinical managing editor

via Wikimedia Commons via Wikimedia Commons

We love getting letters to the editor . . . really . . . whether it’s to agree or disagree, applaud or admonish. With some articles we actually feel a sense of excited anticipation—this should get some letters!—not because we like to create controversy (though we don’t shy away from it either when there’s something important at stake), but because we want to create dialogue among our readers.

That’s what the Letters to the Editor column is for: to add to the conversation by pointing out nuances, adding support from personal experience, expressing a dissenting view of a topic, or offering corrections or clarifications.

A good letter to the editor contains:

• a point of view
• a sense of the writer and why they were moved to write a letter
• additional information that clarifies, corrects, or enhances the original text (and the evidence backing it up)
OR:
• a reasoned, respectful argument (and the evidence to back it up) against some aspect of the original text
OR:
• a narrative that gives a clearer sense of the human implications of the original text

These are the main criteria we look for in the letters we receive.

We are glad when you enjoy an article or are pleased to see […]

2016-11-21T13:04:53-05:00April 28th, 2014|career, nursing research|0 Comments
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The Power of Imagination: Helping Kids with Sickle Cell Disease to Cope with Pain

By Sylvia Foley, AJN senior editor

Many people with sickle cell disease suffer from both acute and chronic pain, which can be severe. Although the exact mechanism isn’t known, the pain is believed to result when sickled erythrocytes occlude the vascular beds, causing tissue ischemia. Such pain, which often begins in early childhood, arises unpredictably. Although some pain crises may require ED visits, hos­pitalization, opioid treatment, or a combination of these, most are managed at home. Yet little is known about at-home pain management in people with sickle cell disease, especially children.

Table 2. Changes in Self-Efficacy, Imaging Ability, and Pain Perception in School-Age Children After Guided Imagery Training Table 2. Changes in Self-Efficacy, Imaging Ability, and Pain Perception in School-Age Children After Guided Imagery Training

Cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) has shown promise in helping patients with other chronic illnesses to cope with pain. Cassandra Elaine Dobson and Mary Woods Byrne decided to test guided imagery, a form of CBT, among children enrolled at one sickle cell treatment clinic in New York City. They report on their findings in this month’s original research CE, “Using Guided Imagery to Manage Pain in Young Children with Sickle Cell Disease.” The abstract below offers a quick overview; if you click the image above, you’ll see an enlarged view of one table showing key results.

Objectives: The purposes of this study were to test the effects of guided imagery training on school-age children who had been diagnosed with […]

2017-07-27T14:47:16-04:00April 2nd, 2014|nursing research, pain management, patient engagement|0 Comments
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AJN’s April Issue: Sickle Cell Anemia, Telehealth, Systematic Reviews, FOAMed, More

AJN0414.Cover.OnlineAJN‘s April issue is now available on our Web site. Here’s a selection of what not to miss, including two continuing education (CE) articles that you can access for free.

Coping with pain in sickle cell anemia. Our April cover features a painting of red flowers in a vase. But on closer inspection, you might notice that the flowers are actually red blood cells, painted by a young girl who suffers from sickle cell anemia. Afflicting about 90,000 to 100,000 people in the United States, sickle cell disease often causes acute and chronic pain syndromes described as being on par with cancer-related pain. Cognitive behavioral therapies, such as the use of guided imagery, have shown promise in changing pain perception and coping patterns in people with chronic illnesses. April’s original research CE article, “Using Guided Imagery to Manage Pain in Young Children with Sickle Cell Disease,” suggests that this technique can be effective for managing pain in school-age children with the disease.

Implementing advances in telehealth. New technologies such as remote monitoring and videoconferencing often emerge before a facility is ready to efficiently integrate them. Sometimes referred to as disruptive innovations, these technologies, while convenient and easy to use, may not be readily accepted. “Telehealth: A Case Study in Disruptive Innovation” discusses the many applications of telehealth, a means of delivering care that is […]

2016-11-21T13:05:06-05:00March 28th, 2014|nursing perspective, nursing research|0 Comments
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Sexual Assault Survivors, SANEs, and the Nonreport Option

Figure 1. Process in the nonreport optionBy Sylvia Foley, AJN senior editor

Until recently, survivors of sexual assault had to make quick decisions about whether to report the assault to law enforcement. Those who chose not to report it weren’t entitled to a free medical forensic examination, and many felt further traumatized by this situation.

The Violence Against Women and Department of Justice Reauthorization Act of 2005 changed this. It added a “nonreport” option, which mandates that survivors be given medical forensic examinations even if they choose not to cooperate with law enforcement or the criminal justice system; states must pay for these medical examinations, regardless. In order to receive certain federal funds, states had to comply by 2009. States have responded in various ways. (Click the image above for an enlarged view of the steps followed in Texas.) But there has been little investigation into the impact of the new provision.

An important question. How has the nonreport option affected survivors, sexual assault nurse examiners (SANEs), and victim advocates? To learn more, Laurie Cook Heffron and colleagues conducted a study in Texas. They report on their findings in this month’s original research CE, “Giving Sexual Assault Survivors Time to Decide: An Exploration of the Use and Effects of the Nonreport Option.” The following abstract offers […]

2017-07-27T14:47:35-04:00March 14th, 2014|nursing perspective, nursing research|0 Comments
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