On this month’s cover is ephemeral snow, a painting by Pennsylvania medical–surgical nurse Ren Hernandez. See our “On the Cover” column to learn more about his work.

The September issue of AJN is now live.

“Through both happy and tragic moments, humor can change one’s perceptions of a situation, making it easier to face workplace challenges and demands,” write Edessa Cadiz and colleagues in this month’s Original Research article, “Exploring Nurses’ Use of Humor in the Workplace: A Thematic Analysis.” Their study findings clarify how humor serves as a coping strategy.

The September CE article, “Strengthening Nurses’
Influence in Health Policy,” introduces the Patton Zalon Ludwick Policy Assessment Framework that nurses across settings and roles can use to examine their knowledge and actions for expanding policy activities.

What does it mean to take an intersectionality-informed stance in nursing practice? Read editor-in-chief Carl A. Kirton’s Focus on DEI column to find out.

In “Professional Licensure: Protecting Your Nursing Livelihood, Part 1,” nurse and attorney Edie A. Brous explains why nurses are regulated and addresses common misunderstandings about the regulatory process. This article is the first of a three-part series on protecting one’s nursing license.

The second victim phenomenon describes the distress often experienced by health care providers after an unintentional medical error or unexpected adverse event. “Implementing a Peer Support Program for
Second Victims” discusses a pilot project that aimed to create a peer support program for health care providers experiencing this phenomenon.

See also the extensive health care news sections, the Drug Watch and Journal Watch sections, an In the Community article on expanding child health screenings through school–community partnerships, a Specialty Spotlight on radiology nursing, and more.

Browse and subscribe.

Some articles in this issue like the original research studies, news, and the editorial will be free to access; others will require log-in or subscription. You can subscribe to AJN, America’s most respected and oldest general interest nursing journal, for just $37.95 for a year (12 issues), so why not give it a try or give a subscription as a gift? We pay attention to appearance as well as content, and hope the cover of every issue will look good on a coffee table!