October Issue: Infections in Acute Care, Understanding ‘Omics’ Sciences, Countering Vaccine Misinformation, More

“What we . . . may consider a passing moment in the course of our day—a short exchange with a family member, a few words of encouragement to a patient—might very well be a pivotal life event. . . . we must choose our words and actions carefully.”—editor-in-chief Shawn Kennedy, in her editorial, “It’s the Moments That Matter“

The October issue of AJN is now live. Here’s what’s new:

CE: Infection in Acute Care: Evidence for Practice

The author reviews the evidence on preventing and treating common infections in acute care settings, focusing on community- and hospital-acquired pneumonia, surgical site infections, and Clostridioides difficile infection.

CE: Knowledge of Precision Medicine and Health Care: An Essential Nursing Competency

This article provides a background in precision health care and the “omics” sciences—those that use genomic technologies to investigate the molecules in an organism’s cells—and discusses the implications for nursing practice, research, and education. […]

2019-09-30T09:16:31-04:00September 30th, 2019|Nursing|0 Comments
Read More

Thoughts on Preventing Delirium During an ICU Stay

It’s well known that an ICU stay presents several risks to patients, whatever their reason for needing critical care.

  • Various infections are more likely to develop than in other care units.
  • Intense drug therapy can result in adverse drug interactions.
  • The excess stimulation and (often) windowless rooms increase the risk for delirium and its consequences.

Would you do anything to protect your own health if you knew that after surgery you would be spending time in an ICU?

In this month’s Viewpoint column, author Patricia Gavin describes how she coped with her own ICU stay, which she knew in advance would be part of her post-op care:

“…when I realized I would be there for a few days, I decided to create
my own ‘care plan’ to stave off delirium and its adverse outcomes.”

Does it help if the patient knows her own risk factors?

She goes on to explain what she knew about her own risk factors for delirium, and the things she could do to stave off the complication during this stressful time.

And she notes how one nurse made a particular difference in helping her to get through her stay without cognitive complications. Gavin reminds us of the practical strategies that nurses can employ, beginning with, “Extend […]

2019-09-26T10:31:05-04:00September 26th, 2019|Nursing, patient safety|0 Comments
Read More

Giving Feedback: Good and Bad

Most organizations require annual employee evaluations, which are often tied to how an employee is rated and influence future promotions and salary adjustment. For many employees, that’s the only formal feedback they receive about their performance. But that’s no longer thought to be the most effective way to manage and develop staff.

Beyond the traditional employee evaluation model.

In “The Art of Giving Feedback” (free until October 1) in AJN‘s September issue, author Rose Sherman describes the other types of feedback that managers should be doing routinely:

  • appreciation feedback, which acknowledges an employee’s work and effort
  • coaching feedback, which focuses on performance and developing employee skills

It’s easy to give feedback to a stellar employee, the one who consistently exceeds expectations. It can get uncomfortable for many managers when they need to give feedback to employees who need to improve in some areas. Some managers let things go, hoping the employee will improve over time or work around the issues.

The costs of avoidance.

But avoiding the issue can have consequences for everyone, according to Sherman:

“ . . . when problematic behavior is not addressed, it lowers the morale of the team and erodes trust in the leader. A failure to address performance issues on your team can have serious ramifications. When […]

2019-09-18T11:42:38-04:00September 18th, 2019|career, Nursing, nursing career|0 Comments
Read More

‘You Could Do This’: Heeding A Late Call to a Nursing Career

The daunting challenge of family caregiving.

Illustration by Eric Collins / ecol-art.com

“When I meet with families for the first time, I always remember the helplessness I felt as a new caregiver,” writes Linda Beall, the author of “A Clear Small Voice,” the Reflections essay in the September issue of AJN.

Beall, now a hospice nurse, is referring to the confusion she felt while caring for her mother during the week after her initial hospitalization with metastatic cancer:

I recall helping her into the car at the time of her discharge. She had difficulty taking even a few steps. Huge staples laddered down the front of her body from sternum to pelvis. She had a drain to be emptied. I had a handful of prescriptions that I took to the pharmacy, not really knowing what the meds were.

Beall was not yet a nurse at that point. In fact, she didn’t graduate from nursing school until age 47. What spurred her to consider beginning a nursing career far later in life than most?

A clear small voice, easily missed.

In this engaging essay, she describes the experience of caring for her dying mother, and how, in the midst […]

2019-09-16T07:46:02-04:00September 16th, 2019|Nursing|0 Comments
Read More

Bone Marrow Aspiration: A Nursing Procedure?

Too much to do already?

A few months ago, we asked on our Facebook page whether nurses would ever be interested in adding a new “medical” skill, such as lumbar puncture, to their practice.

Common responses to this question were along the lines of “Are you crazy? I have too much to do already!” But what if you used a new set of skills as part of a small team of nurse “proceduralists” in a nurse-led clinic, and received excellent training and ongoing support?

One team’s expertise.

In “Bone Marrow Aspiration and Biopsy Performed by RNs: A Review of Clinical Practice” in the September issue of AJN, Eryn Draganski and colleagues share the details of their hospital’s longtime success in using a team of specially trained nurses to perform bone marrow aspiration and biopsies. In addition to reducing costs and allowing for more timely scheduling, this practice has also provided patients with a team of nurses whose extensive experience in the procedure ensured excellent outcomes and patient support.

“…using a small team of nursing proceduralists… provides a unique opportunity to improve consistency in practice, which may result in better quality control and, ultimately, boost patient safety.”

Nursing scope of practice.

Nurse practice acts in many states don’t specifically address whether or not this […]

2019-09-13T11:42:36-04:00September 13th, 2019|Nursing|1 Comment
Read More

Comment ground rules

1. Please be respectful.
2. We moderate all comments.

Content disclaimer

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.
Go to Top