A Nurse Practitioner Ethicist: A Nurse’s Journey to Advanced Practice and Clinical Ethics

We have all faced the challenges of moral distress and ethical dilemmas as nurses. As a young pediatric ICU nurse, I saw medicine and nursing help patients in their most vulnerable moments. I also occasionally saw health care extend suffering when palliation and relational care should have been prioritized. Those distressing moments are the ones that still haunt me.

Many nurses burn out and leave nursing after experiencing moral distress, especially in ICU settings. Others realize that nursing is a calling, and that gaining additional experience and knowledge can deepen our resiliency and our ability to give back to patients and health care colleagues.

I realized early on that I wanted to gain more decision-making authority and training in clinical ethics to provide my patients with the best care possible, to relieve the moral distress of colleagues, and to practice ethically. These aims led me on a journey to become a nurse practitioner (NP) and eventually to discover the role of the NP ethicist to provide a unique perspective to patient care.

The journey to a unique […]

2025-11-13T13:21:44-05:00November 13th, 2025|Nursing|0 Comments
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Chagas: An Unfamiliar and Emerging Disease

Ms. Stevens is a 32-year-old humanitarian aid worker. She recently returned to the United States after spending a month volunteering in rural Guatemala, where she was assisting with community housing construction. She reports having had multiple insect bites during her stay and occasional insects in her sleeping quarters. Six months after returning to the U.S., she developed intermittent low-grade fevers, malaise, and mild right eyelid swelling.

Chagas disease—also called American trypanosomiasis—is a potentially life‑threatening infection caused by the parasite Trypanosoma cruzi. The parasite is transmitted primarily through contact with an infected “kissing bug.” Transmission occurs when an infected bug feeds at night and defecates near the bite.

The bitten individual scratches or rubs the bite site and enables the parasites to enter the skin, or the eyes if rubbed. Other transmission routes include congenital (mother‑to‑fetus), blood transfusion, organ transplantation, laboratory accidents, and foodborne outbreaks from contaminated juices or foods. Illness has an acute phase that is often mild or asymptomatic and a chronic phase that can manifest decades later with a variety of cardiac and gastrointestinal symptoms.

Global and U.S. epidemiology

WHO map of global Chagas case distribution (based on 2018 […]

2025-11-07T15:01:57-05:00November 7th, 2025|infectious diseases, Nursing, Public health|0 Comments
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Recommended Reading from AJN’s November Issue: Using AI in Scholarly Writing, and More

The November issue of AJN is now live.

In its new fifth edition, published earlier this year, the Johns Hopkins Evidence-Based Practice (JHEBP) model streamlines its approach, addressing common barriers to EBP implementation and prioritizing simplicity, efficiency, and adaptability. The JHEBP team introduces the latest changes to the model, including rationales for the changes and implications for clinicians, students, and faculty, in a five-part series in this issue.

Despite the growing burden of heart failure with preserved ejection fraction, it remains difficult to diagnose and manage effectively. This month’s CE article, “Heart Failure with Preserved Ejection Fraction,” provides an overview of  pathophysiology, diagnosis, and treatment.

“Too often, people with disabilities have been left out of health equity efforts. Nurses are in a powerful position to change that,” writes Jae Chul Lee in his Focus on DEI column, “No Longer Optional: Addressing Disability Disparities in Nursing Practice.” See here for actionable steps nurses can take when providing care.

“Using Artificial Intelligence for Scholarly Writing” outlines recent research findings on the use of generative AI tools to support scholarly writing and provides guidelines for nurse authors on the appropriate use of AI in the preparation of manuscripts. (Open access)

This month’s Original Research articles include:

2025-10-23T10:21:43-04:00October 23rd, 2025|Nursing|0 Comments
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Honoring Hispanic Heritage: And Other Recommended Reading from AJN’s October Issue

The October issue of AJN is now live.

In recognition of Hispanic Heritage Month, AJN’s October cover features Wings That Remember, Wings That Resist, a work by artist Daniel Suárez-Baquero, PhD, MSN, BSN-RN, and graphic designer Nelson Martinez. Suárez-Baquero says that the image—a resplendent quetzal in flight—is a reflection on “migration, resilience, and freedom.” Read more here.

This month’s issue celebrates Hispanic Heritage Month. As noted by Tina Loarte-Rodriguez in her guest editorial, “The legacy of Hispanic and Latine nurses is one of courage, compassion, and an unwavering pursuit of justicia in health. Nursing must embody the equity it champions: by reckoning with racism, fostering healing within our profession, and elevating diverse nurse leaders who reflect and serve our communities.”

To that end, this special issue features:

2025-09-25T12:58:59-04:00September 25th, 2025|Nursing|0 Comments
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Turmoil at the CDC Endangers Public Health

Sowing distrust in the science behind CDC guidance.

The turmoil roiling the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) was on full view last Thursday at the Senate hearing convened to review the Trump administration’s health care agenda. The proceedings quickly descended into a shouting match as senators, both Republican and Democrat, challenged health secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. on his policies and recent actions, particularly regarding vaccines and the firing of CDC director Susan Monarez. Kennedy defended his positions while attacking the agency, as he has done repeatedly, accusing its medical experts and scientists of corruption and collusion with the pharmaceutical industry.

In late August, Kennedy called Monarez into his office and pressured her to resign, a mere 29 days after appointing her. At the time of her appointment, Kennedy lauded Monarez as “a public health expert with unimpeachable scientific credentials,” stating that he had “full confidence in her ability.”

Photo credit: Shutterstock

According to White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt, Monarez was fired because […]

2025-09-12T09:50:13-04:00September 12th, 2025|COVID-19, infection control, infectious diseases, Nursing, 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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