On the cover of AJN‘s July issue is the 2015 logo for World Hepatitis Day, which takes place on July 28. About 400 million people around the globe live with viral hepatitis, a disease that kills 1.4 million people every year—approximately 4,000 a day. While incidences of hepatitis A and B have declined in the United States in recent years, hepatitis C infection, formerly stable or in decline, has risen at an alarming rate. To learn more about hepatitis in the U.S.—and the role nurses can play in prevention and treatment—read our July CE, “Viral Hepatitis: New U.S. Screening Recommendations, Assessment Tools, and Treatments.”
The article reviews the epidemiology and diagnosis of viral hepatitis, new screening recommendations and innovations in assessment and treatment, and an updated action plan from the Department of Health and Human Services, in which nurses can play an important role in the coordination of care.
Some other articles of note in the June issue:
• CE feature: “Nursing Management of Patients with Ehlers–Danlos Syndrome.” An often debilitating condition, Ehlers–Danlos Syndrome (EDS) refers to a group of hereditary connective tissue disorders that has historically been misunderstood and underdiagnosed due to a lack of familiarity with its signs and symptoms. As awareness and recognition of the syndrome improve, nurses are increasingly likely to care for patients with EDS. This article gives an overview of the syndrome and provides guidance on ways to manage symptoms, recognize and prevent serious complications, and improve patients’ quality of life.
• This month’s In the Community column: “Effective Collaboration Among Magnet Hospitals: A Win-Win for Nurses and Institutions.” Sharing best practices and collaborating on research and educational projects across health care institutions can help nurses bring about meaningful change and improve both patient and provider outcomes. This article describes how six hospitals helped each other achieve and maintain Magnet status through effective collaboration.
• From our Perspectives on Leadership column: “Conflict Engagement: A Relational Approach” (log-in or purchase required). The fourth article in a six-part series on conflict engagement for nurse managers and emerging nurse leaders. While the first three articles focused on understanding conflict dynamics in complex systems, this article shifts focus to understanding an individual’s own responses to conflict and improving those responses over time.
But there’s much more in July issue, such as the editorial, “Willful Blindness.” Writes AJN editor-in-chief Maureen Shawn Kennedy, MA, RN: “Individually and collectively, we must address our blind spots, however inconvenient this may be.”
Click here to browse the July issue’s table of contents and explore the issue on our Web site.
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