By Jenna
Posted in Nursing, Nursing Jobs, Nursing News, Nursing Specialties
A new book focusing on American nurses is nominally a book of portraits, intended for coffee tables. But a doctor writing in the New York Times, Abigal Zuker, found the the narrative to be the most affecting part, hitting her “in the solar plexus.” For example, she appreciated the observation of a hospice nurse named Jason Short in rural Kentucky who has had a number of jobs, including auto mechanic and commercial trucker. He turned to nursing when the…
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By Jenna
Posted in Nursing, Nursing News
Nurses are often strong advocates for their patients, but have traditionally been less effective in advocating for their own needs. Advocacy can be defined as supporting a cause — it’s as simple as that. Advocates are people who identify a need or an issue that must be addressed, then work through different channels to achieve a goal. Political lobbyists have perfected advocacy, but nurses have been slower to mobilize and understand that real change in healthcare is possible when…
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By Jenna
Posted in Nursing, Nursing Jobs, Nursing News, Nursing Specialties
“Healthcare is political,” says a nurse quoted in this article on Nurse.com. The article looks at why some nurses have become politically active. Pat Barnett was motivated to get involved in the legislative process in 1976, when she was a young nurse working for a state psychiatric hospital. At the time, deinstitutionalization was underway, with attempts by the state to move people from state facilities to the community. Barnett felt that she couldn’t just stand by and watch what…
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By Jenna
Posted in Nurse Safety, Nursing, Nursing News
Rhode Island has officially become the first state in the United States to mandate flu shots for all healthcare workers, despite objections from unions and the local affiliate of the ACLU (American Civil Liberties Union). This means that all healthcare workers employed by hospitals, nursing homes, home care agencies, or any other healthcare organizations in the state will be forced to roll up their sleeves. Of course, anyone who has a valid medical reason can be exempted from getting…
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By Jenna
Posted in Nursing, Nursing Jobs, Nursing News, Nursing Specialties
October 1st, 2012 Jenna Fischer This article on the Boston Channel website looks into the increasing popularity of nurse-midwives after a period of decline. For example, a woman named Carla Tonks decided to switch to a nurse-midwife program when she was pregnant with her first child seven years ago. She hadn’t been impressed with her experience with the ob-gyn, especially the long waits at his office that resulted in actually seeing the ob-gyn for only 10 minutes. She switched over…
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By Jenna
Posted in Nursing, Nursing Jobs, Nursing News
As nurses, we are sometimes guilty of making a little too much noise, especially at shift change when our numbers temporarily swell, and during the night when we are attempting to stay awake using any means at our disposal. Sometimes noise is not entirely our fault, such as when a confused patient cries out in the night, oblivious to others who are trying to rest. Let’s face it — hospitals can be noisy places, and while certain noises can…
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By Jenna
Posted in Nursing, Nursing News, Nursing School
September 17th, 2012 Jenna Fischer A pilot mentoring program based in Nevada is hoping to accomplish at least two things. First, help nurses figure out how to take their “book learning” from nursing school and put it into practice. The program also aims to help the experiences nurses who will serve as mentors to rekindle their own excitement about the profession. The program is called the Nevada Nurses Association Mentoring project, and is sponsored by a grant from the American…
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By Jenna
Posted in Nursing, Nursing News, Nursing School
September 12th, 2012 An interesting question was raised online in Nursing Times: Do nurses have time for reflective practice? Reflective practice can be defined as reflecting on experiences in order to critically evaluate what you do well and how you might improve your personal nursing practice (i.e. skills, communication, interpersonal relationships, professionalism, beliefs, values and behavior). It involves the process of critical thinking. Nursing students are encouraged to perform reflective practice throughout their nursing education; in fact, reflective practice is…
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By Jenna
Posted in Nursing, Nursing News, Nursing Specialties
This is a fascinating case study. It opens with a woman being dangled by her feet by a “giant” in the Emergency Room. Various ER personnel are alarmed and try to get the seven-foot-plus man carrying her to put her down already, but both the (very tall) man and the (very small) woman insist that she needs to stay in her inverted position. Dr. Louis F. Janeira comes on the scene and tries to make sense of things. He eventually…
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By Jenna
Posted in Nursing, Nursing Jobs
Guest post by Marietta Faris, BSN Maybe it happens for everyone and for every career, but it seems to me that nurses have their careers questioned more than others do. It could be that I have been a nurse for more years than I wish to state, and that every one of those years I see the question of “why” come up yet again. I do think it’s a good question though, and I even use it as an interview…
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