Nursing Archives - Page 166 of 406

Nurse-Led Evidence-Based Sleep Program Helps Hospitals and New Mothers Keep Babies Safe

Photo © Associated Press.

I can remember, when I was pregnant, reading everything I could get my hands on about every mother’s fear—sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS). My mother, who followed the norms of her time when I was born, was surprised that my son’s crib was bare—no blankets, pillows, toys, or bumpers. He wore a sleep sack and was placed on his back to sleep until he began to roll over by himself.

To add to what I learned from my preparatory reading, the nurses at the hospital I gave birth in set a standard for how to care for my newborn—explaining the abovementioned safe sleep tips, and much more. After all, nurses are probably a mom’s first stop for this information, helping new mothers navigate the choppy waters of caring for their newborns.

This month’s Cultivating Quality article, “

Amy M. Collins, managing editor2016-11-21T13:00:48-05:00November 18th, 2016|Nursing, patient safety, pediatrics|11 Comments

Remembering a Tough NYC Detective on the 41st Great American Smokeout

AJN editor-in-chief Shawn Kennedy

My uncle Joe embodied the persona of the old-time tough NYC Irish detective—he was over six feet tall, had piercing blue eyes and white hair, always wore a tan raincoat, and always had a cigarette in his hand. As a child, my siblings and I were always a little bit afraid of him. That image faded, though, and my last image of him was hunched over, with an oxygen cannula, trying to breathe. All those cigarettes added up, and after a lifetime of smoking, he died from chronic lung disease. This was before the landmark report on smoking and health issued by the U.S. surgeon general in 1964. Tiffany, 35, Louisiana; quit smoking at 34; smoke-free since January 2012. (CDC)

Today is the 41st annual Great American Smokeout—the day created by the American Cancer Society (ACS) to help encourage smokers to quit smoking. According to the

Shawn Kennedy, MA, RN, FAAN, editor-in-chief (emerita)2016-11-21T13:00:49-05:00November 16th, 2016|Nursing, personal health practices, Public health|0 Comments

Taking Skin Tear Prevention and Management Seriously

In the Past, Approaches to Skin Tears Were Inadequate

Many years ago, when I worked in a skilled nursing facility, it seemed my patients were always experiencing skin tears. We didn’t have wound care specialists then. My approach to these injuries, which I didn’t see as serious, was to cleanse them with saline and awkwardly attempt to reposition the detached flap. In retrospect, the nursing care I provided didn’t amount to much more than “a lick and a promise.”

Greater Awareness of Risks, Dangers of Skin Tears

Today, we know that skin tears can evolve into serious, complex wounds. Available data indicate that in long-term care settings, these injuries affect up to 22% of residents. Wound care specialists have developed a classification system for skin tears—as for pressure injuries, specific recommendations from wound care specialists guide our nursing care.

In this month’s AJN, author Sharon Baranoski and colleagues from the International Skin Tear Advisory Panel detail the assessment and management of skin tears in “Preventing, Assessing, and Managing Skin Tears: A Clinical Review.” While the authors emphasize the need to involve wound care nurses in the management of these injuries, many readers may find the product selection guide in this article to be especially useful. […]

Betsy Todd, MPH, RN2016-11-21T13:00:49-05:00November 14th, 2016|Nursing|3 Comments

All Saints’ Day Blessing for Health Care Providers

Autumn Angel / photo by Julianna Paradisi 2016

November is the strangest of months. Its days are shorter, darker. It begins with All Saints’ Day, a day of remembering our dead, of loss and grief, followed late in the month by Thanksgiving, America’s celebration of abundance with gratitude.

This year on All Saints’ Day I attended a discussion of health care professionals. The audience included nurses, physicians, pharmacists, social workers, and hospital administrators. The conversation ultimately centered on the emotional difficulties of patient care.

It wasn’t a debriefing as much as collective acknowledgment that, rather than accepting help, some patients or their family members view us as the enemy, sometimes disrupting our best efforts in the name of misguided advocacy.

Nurses spoke of being labeled as “bad” and played against each other by angry patients or family members. Physicians related episodes of verbal abuse from patients or family members demanding inappropriate procedures, medications, or dosing. Some spoke of needing to take refuge to center their thoughts before ordering the appropriate care.

Like most nurses, I’ve experienced similar treatment at the hands of difficult patients, but physicians don’t generally discuss with us how they are treated. Nurses and physicians suffer silently, instead of lending support […]

Julianna Paradisi, RN, OCN2016-11-21T13:00:49-05:00November 10th, 2016|Nursing, Patients|1 Comment

AJN November Issue News: Maternal Mortality, Nurses’ Salaries, Double Mastectomy, More

AJN’s monthly news section covers timely and important research and policy stories that are relevant to the nursing world. Here are some of the stories you’ll find in our current issue (news articles in AJN are free access):

Photo by Dennis MacDonald / Alamy Stock Photo.

Maternal Mortality in U.S. on the Rise

In 48 states and the District of Columbia, the maternal mortality rate increased by 26.6% between 2000 and 2014. (Texas was analyzed separately; its rate doubled between 2010 and 2012.) California–which saw a decline in maternal deaths–was the exception. While there’s no clear cause for the increase, researchers have several ideas about factors that may have prompted it.