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Readers Respond
Correction
The January 2013 article "Helping patients survive sepsis" mistakenly listed "respiratory rate slower than 20 breaths/minute" as one of the diagnostic criteria for systemi...
Advancing adoption of the electronic health record
They say health care is local and personal. I can attest to that. I moved from the private healthcare sector in Milwaukee, Wisconsin to the public national setting of Washington, D.C. to work in the O...
How to love and care for yourself unconditionally
Are you able to relax, have fun, and enjoy the simple pleasures of life? Or do you:
have trouble falling or staying asleep?
smoke, drink, or eat to reduce tension?
have headaches, back pain, or sto...
A probable meningitis case puts the ED on alert
William Mountain, age 54, arrives at the emergency department with the hallmarks of meningitis—fever, headache, and stiff neck. His wife tells you he has also been experiencing nausea, vomiting, photo...
Our Readers Respond
Shared governance
In the article “Quantifying the benefits of staff participation in shared governance” nursing empowerment is geared towards managing our nursing practice, work environment while sec...
Deep-brain stimulation: Hope for dystonia patients
Recently, the media have shone a spotlight on deep-brain stimulation (DBS) for the treatment of neurologically based movement disorders, including Parkinson’s disease and essential tremor. DBS also is...
Soothing the sorrow of psoriasis
Audrey, age 28, is admitted to the hospital for surgery. The nurse who assesses her notes a large amount of psoriasis on her knees, elbows, arms, neck, and chest. When she asks about this, Audrey begi...
Partner with interpreters to prepare patients for discharge
Many of our patients speak a language other than English, which can pose a challenge when we try to teach them information that is key for their well being after discharge. To facilitate communication...
Questioning common nursing practices: What does the evidence show?
To meet the needs of patients and their families, healthcare practice must be based on current research and the best evidence. Many definitions of evidence-based practice (EBP) exist. All share simila...
Just culture promotes a partnership for patient safety
Editor's note: This is first in a series of articles exploring the human side of patient safety.
Historically, hospitals have operated under the assumption that health care involves the isolated work...
Consider a career in nursing informatics
Have you found yourself frustrated with your nursing career? The problem might not be your career, but rather your specialty. Consider whether a change in specialty would help you revitalize your care...
Ensuring quality and saving time
IT’S A GIVEN that nurses want to provide quality care to our patients. But in the past few years, the stakes have been raised around quality and performance improvement, and ways to measure it. Health...
Behind the curtain: Creating an in situ simulation experience
It’s 7:15 AM and day-shift obstetric (OB) unit nursing staff members are receiving report from their colleagues who worked overnight. Suddenly, a call for help comes from room 306. The patient in this...
Preparing nurses for tomorrow's healthcare system
In the last few years, major healthcare and nursing initiatives have sparked important changes in nursing education. The Carnegie Foundation's 2010 report "Educating Nurses: A Call for Radical Tra...
From our readers: Nurses leading from the middle
Nurse leaders are needed at all levels of the organization, especially in "the middle," which is commonly used to describe mid-level management positions. Middle managers are essential to the...
The new normal
Many healthcare organizations are focusing on reducing costs to help them weather the coming months of shrinking budgets. Others are beginning to panic. For decades, hospitals have lived on a diet wit...
Strategies for a successful semester
These trying economic times provide opportunities for career changes. Perhaps you’re returning to college for your first degree or to obtain an additional one. Whether you’re studying for a bachelor’s...
Restraints, patient rights, and the confused patient
Eduardo Ruiz, a 70-year-old Mexican/American man was admitted to a California hospital for a urinary tract infection. At the time of his admission he was confused and restless, common symptoms related...
Maximize your reprocessing program
The healthcare industry is at a critical juncture. The quest to find solutions that deliver better care for less money is imperative. To address this challenge, there is much talk these days about ...
Issues up close Managing yourself
Learn to manage yourself before you try to lead anyone else. This was an important insight that 120 nurse managers in South Florida shared during interviews with our research team about leadership ski...
The healthy nurse
It sat idle on my desk for a few years, the white letters on the shiny red circle of the "Easy" button tempting me to approach. I couldn’t bring myself to indulge the urge to depress the circl...
What every nurse should know about hemophilia
As nurses, we know there’s no such thing as a simple patient. Essentially, every patient has more than one diagnosis. And as the U.S. population ages, our patients will have longer lists of chronic di...
Gorillas, restraints, and moral blind spots
Some years ago, I watched a movie in which the moviegoers were asked to count the number of times basketball players passed the ball to one another. I am proud to say that I counted them accurately. H...
Stigma and misconceptions related to addictive disease
What do you know about addiction to opioids? If you are like many clinicians you might have trouble sorting out the facts, which can affect your ability to identify and care for a patient who is addic...
From our readers: On being an oncology nurse, or humble pie by the slice
I came to oncology nursing in 1984 through what I perceived as bad luck; my goal was to get out of the field ASAP. A new RN, I was completing orientation on a medical-surgical floor when the hospital ...