Investigating Nurse-Reported Missed Care: Recommended Reading in AJN’s September Issue

The September issue of AJN is now live.

This month features two Original Research articles:

“Exploring the Human Experience in Health Care,” the first article in a new series from health care performance improvement organization Press Ganey, discusses the emerging concept of human-centered care—and how data can be used to help deliver it.

Read “Pneumococcal Vaccination in Adults” to learn about updated pneumococcal vaccine recommendations from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, which include two new vaccines.

What can nurses do to protect patient safety and provide good care in light of record-high, ongoing national drug shortages? See AJN Reports to find out.

See also the extensive health care news sections, the Journal Watch and Drug Watch sections, a Specialty Spotlight column highlighting the role […]

2023-08-28T09:13:22-04:00August 28th, 2023|Nursing|0 Comments
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Telehealth in Rural Nursing: Embracing Change for Better Patient Outcomes

rural road Photo by Bradyn Shock on Unsplash

When I first heard of telehealth services coming to our rural hospital, no one was a bigger skeptic than I was.

Perhaps the main reason was the way I was educated as a nurse and how I learned to practice as an APRN. Honestly, I am “old school” in every way possible. My first thought was, “This is not good practice; how could it be? Won’t there be shortcuts? How about the lack of a physical exam? How can you properly physically evaluate someone over telehealth? How can you take safe care of patients and avoid missing something that’s potentially life-threatening if you can’t touch them? How could someone a thousand miles away help me way up in the mountains of the Eastern Panhandle? What could they know about the community here and their needs?”

These were just a few of the questions and concerns I had regarding telehealth coming to our rural community access hospital. When we assess our patients, we not only to listen to their heart and lungs, look into their eyes, hear their voice, feel the temperature of their skin, but we connect. We are building trust and ensuring support with looking, listening, and feeling.

The […]

2023-10-03T10:04:41-04:00August 25th, 2023|digital health, Nursing, nursing roles, patient experience, Patients|5 Comments
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Updated FDA Guidance on Blood Donation Screening: Where Are We Now?

Blood donation at Red Cross blood drive Photo by LuAnn Hunt on Unsplash

In July 2022, Velasco et al. brought attention to ongoing and systemic discriminatory policies regarding blood donation in the United States. The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) guidelines specifically targeted individuals who identify as men who have sex with men (MSM). The screening questions specifically asked men if they had sex with other men. A “yes” answer disqualified potential donors from donating blood even if they were in monogamous relationships where both partners were HIV-negative.

In December 2022, the FDA’s commissioned study (ADVANCE) wrapped, and news emerged that the study’s results prompted potential changes in the FDA-required screening policies. In a post on this blog titled Potential Changes to Blood Donation Policies for MSM in the United States, I reported the possible changes.

At the time, although we knew there would be potential change, we did not have full transparency or a final answer. Then in May 2023, the FDA updated the guidance for screening blood donors based on the results of the ADVANCE study. You can review those changes here. However, until August 7, some major blood donation centers, such as the American […]

2023-08-21T10:45:35-04:00August 21st, 2023|Nursing, Public health|0 Comments
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Empowering Nurses: Advocating for Better Health Care Policies and Patient Well-Being

Influencing patient health through advocacy.

Did you know that as nurses we have the power to influence allocation of government funds and the passage of government bills on health care? Through advocacy for federal policy and appropriations (funding), we can influence the health care of our patients. We have a voice that can be used to provide lawmakers with a new perspective on the reasons for supporting health care policy. Government policies and budget allotment affect the health of constituents.  Through legislative action, nurses can make changes that affect the lives of individuals, especially those with chronic diseases, minority background, and economic instability.

Not just for patients but for the community.

The ethical principle of beneficence means to do good. As nurses, we have the responsibility to not only do good towards our patients but to communities, expanding our focus from the nurse–patient relationship to a broader community health lens. Nurses can move from patient advocacy that makes changes for one patient to policy advocacy that makes changes for communities of patients. As nurses, we can discuss disparities seen in health care with legislatures to provide a new and personal perspective on support of different health care laws.

Drawing attention to sickle cell disease.

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2023-08-17T12:50:15-04:00August 17th, 2023|Nursing|0 Comments
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Why Should You Care About Malaria?

malaria parasite Colorized electron micrograph showing malaria parasite (right, blue) attaching to a human red blood cell. The inset shows a detail of the attachment point.

In June and July, eight locally acquired cases of malaria were diagnosed in the U.S.—seven in Florida and one at the southern tip of Texas. Cases in the two states appear to be unrelated, and all patients are recovering. In both geographic areas, it’s likely that malaria in people with travel-related cases was transmitted by local (U.S.) mosquitoes to the people who developed the locally acquired cases.

Malaria was endemic in this country until the early 1950s, when mosquito control programs and public health campaigns brought the disease under control. Since that time, virtually all cases in the U.S—now at almost 2000 per year—have been travel related.

Malaria transmission.

Malaria is caused by several species of the Plasmodium parasite, transmitted by the bite of a female Anopheles mosquito infected by the parasite. In less than one percent of cases, transmission occurs congenitally or via transfusion, organ transplant, or unsafe needle sharing.

Why it matters.

If you’re […]

2023-08-14T14:09:01-04:00August 14th, 2023|climate change, infectious diseases, Public health|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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