Approaching Ostomy Care with Confidence

A first experience of as a nursing student.

I encountered my first stoma as a nursing student and the incident is seared into my memory. It was in the first semester of my medical–surgical nursing course. The patient was a middle-aged man three or four days post-op after a colon resection. I was very nervous, but figured my instructor would know what to do. My stomach dropped when she confessed that she was not all that familiar with stoma care but was confident we’d figure it out with some help from the staff.

Fortunately, the head nurse of the surgical ward (I’m dating myself: yes, it was a ward and yes, her title was head nurse, not nurse manager or patient care coordinator) was very experienced with new ostomy care. She helped both of us gather the correct supplies and briefed us on what to assess and do. We were able to competently change dressings, change the ostomy appliance, and make the patient comfortable. However, I don’t think I encountered another patient with an ostomy until a few years later. By then my knowledge had faded. I had to seek a refresher.

Stoma assessment and common complications.

Photo by Amelie-Benoist / BSIP / Alamy.

I am very pleased that Susan Shelton […]

2019-06-11T11:56:29-04:00June 11th, 2019|Nursing|0 Comments
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AACN: Going Strong After 50 Years

Once again, the American Association of Critical-Care Nurses (AACN) proves it knows how to host a gathering—especially when it’s celebrating its own birthday.

Around a kitchen table in Nashville.

It was in 1969 that nurse Norma Shephard invited several nurses to a meeting; sitting around her kitchen table in Nashville, Tennessee, they formed what has become one of the largest and most successful nursing specialty organizations in the world. Five years later, in 1974, the AACN held its first annual National Teaching Institute (NTI) in New Orleans (I was there!). Today, the AACN numbers over 200 chapters and 100,000 members.

Its annual May NTI meeting is one of the largest nursing meetings, and this year’s meeting in Orlando was no different, with about 8,000 attendees, 200 educational sessions, and 400-plus exhibitors of products, educational and health care organizations, and recruiters. It takes about two days to really “do” the NTI exhibit hall.

From ‘nursing as hospital expense to nursing as investment.’

“Our Voice Our Strength” was the theme chosen by AACN President Lisa Riggs, MSN, RN, […]

2019-06-06T12:11:05-04:00June 6th, 2019|Nursing|0 Comments
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Sickle Cell Disease: Complications and Nursing Interventions

Our cover photo this month features three-year-old twins Ava and Olivia. Both have sickle cell disease. In this tender shot, one twin is comforting her sister during treatment at Akron Children’s Hospital in Akron, Ohio.

How much do you know about sickle cell disease (SCD)?

Did you know:

  • that children with SCD can experience “silent strokes” that become clinically evident only as progressive neurocognitive deficits?
  • that renal complications account for 16%-18% of overall mortality?
  • or that SCD-induced priapism in boys and men is not only excruciatingly embarrassing and often painful but may require emergency treatment?

Recognizing common complications.

“Two of the greatest challenges faced by clinicians caring for patients with SCD are the lack of evidence-based guidelines…and the underuse of the few recognized disease-modifying therapies.”

In “Understanding the Complications of Sickle Cell Disease,” a CE feature in this month’s AJN, Paula Tanabe and colleagues provide us with readable and practical information about the complications of SCD.

If, like me, you are not an expert in SCD, this article is an excellent primer on how to recognize the most common complications of the disease, what treatments that are available, and where to find […]

2019-06-03T08:22:06-04:00June 3rd, 2019|family caregiving, Nursing, patient experience|0 Comments
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Healing Words: A Critical Care Book Club

I was always a reader. The days of the Scholastic book fair during elementary school were among my favorites. Although it doesn’t appear in my CV, my first job was working in the school store. With every shift I worked, the smell of blank sheets of paper, the thrill of a pencil awaiting to be sharpened to that perfect point, or the ballpoint and ink pens in a rainbow of colors stole my hard-earned quarters.

‘Is it on the NCLEX?’

But reading novels during nursing school was just plain hard. There were competing priorities, a brain brimming with vital information, and sheer exhaustion at the end of the day. Assigned readings presented an overwhelming amount of contextual information. And then there was the constant attention to evidence, protocols, and clinical practice guidelines. The “need to know” information took priority; the sheer pleasure of losing oneself in a story—whether novel or memoir—was lost.

During my senior year, in an advanced illness course, my professors assigned a novel-style memoir, Bed Number Ten by Sue Baier. To this day, I can remember the reactions to the assignment: “A book? Who has time for that?” “Are we going to be tested on this book?”

Or, most importantly: “Is it on the NCLEX?”

The influence of a patient’s story on a […]

2019-05-29T08:45:40-04:00May 29th, 2019|narratives, Nursing, nursing perspective, nursing stories|2 Comments
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June Issue: Sickle Cell Complications, Stoma Skin Care, Promoting Nurse Retention, More

“I am as grateful to the nurses who work in hospitals serving the sickest and most vulnerable patients as I am to the nurses who have chosen a path focused on policy and public service.”—Virginia Reising, author of the June Viewpoint column, “What Is a Nurse?“

The June issue of AJN is now live. Here are some highlights.

CE: Understanding the Complications of Sickle Cell Disease

In this evidence-based review, the authors examine the genetic, hematologic,
and clinical features of sickle cell disease and describe its major
health complications—as well as the nursing implications of each.

CE: Stoma and Peristomal Skin Care: A Clinical Review

Written for nurses who are not ostomy specialists, this article provides information about the care of stomas, including the normal stoma, with a focus on early and late complications of the stoma and peristomal skin.

Original Research: Exploring Working Relationships Between National and Expatriate RNs on Humanitarian Aid Missions: The Perspectives of Liberian Nurses

The authors of this qualitative study explored the perceptions and concerns of Liberian RNs who work for international nongovernmental organizations in Liberia, yielding insights on how to improve collaboration between national and expatriate nursing staff.

EBP 2.0: Implementing and Sustaining Change: Promoting Nurse Retention Through Career Development Planning

This second article in a new series on […]

2019-05-28T09:42:37-04:00May 28th, 2019|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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