AJN The American Journal of Nursing - This Month in AJN

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December 2015 Highlights Nov 18, 2015

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Editor-in-chief Shawn Kennedy and Clinical Editor Betsy Todd present the highlights of the December issue of the American Journal of Nursing. This month’s cover features nurse Elie Kasindi Kabululu caring for a patient at Centre Médical Evangélique in Nyankunde, Beni, Democratic Republic of Congo. Our first CE, “Inside an Ebola Treatment Unit: A Nurse’s Report,” describes the author’s experiences working with MSF at an Ebola treatment unit in Liberia for five weeks, outlines the practices and teams involved, and aims to convey a sense of what it’s like to work during an Ebola outbreak and to put a human face on this devastating epidemic. Our second CE, “Incorporating Acupressure into Nursing Practice,” discusses potential clinical indications for the use of acupressure, describes the technique, explains how to evaluate patient outcomes, and suggests how future research into this integrative intervention might be improved. In “Cultivating Quality: Original Research: Implementation of an Early Mobility Program in an ICU,” the authors recount how an early mobilization program at a community hospital contributed to fewer delirium days and improvements in patient outcomes, sedation levels, and functional status. Finally, “iNurse: Nurses and the Migration to Electronic Health Records” presents the challenges and benefits of using electronic health records and provides tips for adapting to EHR systems. In addition, there’s News, Reflections, Drug Watch, Art of Nursing, and more.

November 2015 Highlights Oct 27, 2015

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Editor-in-chief Shawn Kennedy and Clinical Editor Betsy Todd present the highlights of the November issue of the American Journal of Nursing. This month’s cover features the third-place winner of AJN’s 2015 Faces of Caring: Nurses at Work contest, depicting a nurse caring for a patient at Clearview Cancer Institute in Huntsville, Alabama. Our first CE, “Adverse Late and Long-Term Treatment Effects in Adult Allogeneic Hematopoietic Stem Cell Transplant Survivors,” summarizes the identification, evaluation, and management of potential treatment-related effects in adult survivors of hematopoietic stem cell transplants. Our second CE, “Imagery for Self-Healing and Integrative Nursing Practice,” describes how imagery can be used to encourage patients’ healing process, and presents an imagery technique and a sample script to use in practice. In “Prescription Opioid Analgesics: Promoting Patient Safety with Better Patient Education,” the author uses a case study to examine the risks of nonmedical opioid use in postoperative patients and highlights the nurses’ role in patient education to avoid adverse outcomes. Finally, “Preventing Newborn Falls While Supporting Family Bonding” addresses the circumstances behind newborn falls in hospitals when infants are in the care of family members, and reports on steps hospitals are taking to effectively prevent these accidents. In addition, there’s News, Reflections, Drug Watch, Art of Nursing, and more.

October 2015 Highlights Sep 22, 2015

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Editor-in-chief Shawn Kennedy and Clinical Editor Betsy Todd present the highlights of the October issue of the American Journal of Nursing. This month’s cover celebrates AJN’s 115th anniversary with a collage showcasing archival photographs and past covers. Our first CE, “Integrative Care: The Evolving Landscape in American Hospitals,” provides an overview of some of the integrative care initiatives being introduced in hospitals throughout the U.S. and reports on findings from a survey of nursing leaders at hospitals that have implemented integrative care programs. Our second CE, “Catheter Ablation of Atrial Fibrillation,” gives an overview of the procedure, its possible complications, and best practices for nursing care. In “Intergenerational Lessons and ‘Fabulous Stories’,” Robert Wood Johnson Foundation senior adviser for nursing Susan B. Hassmiller, along with two nurse historians, shares five lessons learned from interviewing her mother, Jacqueline J. Wouwenberg, a 1947 graduate of the Bellevue Hospital School of Nursing, and being interviewed herself. “The NP: Celebrating 50 Years”—which includes an illustrated timeline from the Barbara Bates Center for the Study of the History of Nursing—highlights important events in the history of the NP and shows how the NP role has changed and expanded through the decades. Finally, “Pathfinding on the Frontier” describes the success of a patient care coordination program in a primary care practice in rural Kansas. In addition, there’s News, Reflections, Drug Watch, Art of Nursing, and more.

September 2015 Highlights Aug 25, 2015

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Editor-in-chief Shawn Kennedy presents the highlights of the September issue of the American Journal of Nursing. This month’s cover features the first place winner of our Faces of Caring: Nurses at Work photo contest: perianesthesia nurse Carolyn Benigno preparing a patient for surgery at Children’s National Medical Center in Washington, DC. Our first CE, “Acute Pain Management for Inpatients with Opioid Use Disorder,” reviews current literature related to the topic of acute pain management for inpatients with OUD and dispels common myths about opioids and OUD. Our second CE, “Sexually Transmitted Infections in the United States: Overview and Update,” provides an overview of the symptoms, screening, and treatment recommendations for the most common STIs in the United States and describes the most recent relevant findings in order to inform nursing practice. The Cultivating Quality feature, “Improving Pediatric Temperature Measurement in the ED,” discusses an ED staff-led quality improvement project conducted to determine the best method of pediatric temperature measurement. In “Perspectives on Leadership: Conflict Engagement: Creating Connection and Cultivating Curiosity,” the American Organization of Nurse Executives’ Leadership Column introduces an approach for practicing the skills needed for creating connection and cultivating curiosity when addressing conflict on the unit. Finally, “Ethical Issues: Teaching Crucial Knowledge vs. Helping Out on the Unit” explores the ethical considerations that occur when student education and urgent patient care needs are conflicting priorities. In addition, there’s News, Reflections, Drug Watch, Art of Nursing, and more.

August 2015 Highlights Jul 29, 2015

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Editor-in-chief Shawn Kennedy and Clinical Editor Betsy Todd present the highlights of the August issue of the American Journal of Nursing. This month’s cover shows a community nurse practicing health education with residents of a small fishing village in rural Uganda.. Our first CE, an original research piece, “‘I Am a Nurse’: Oral Histories of African Nurses,” features oral histories from African nurse leaders who describe what nursing practice and education meant to them during and after periods of colonization in Africa. Our second CE, “Nurses’ Role in Preventing Prescription Opioid Diversion,” highlights the nonmedical use of opioids and how nurses play a critical role in stopping this epidemic of opioid abuse. The clinical feature, “The Evolution of Physical Activity Promotion,” describes how nurses can promote physical activity in their patients, an important health issue that many Americans fall short of. In “Safety Monitor: Misplacements of Enteral Feeding Tubes Increase After Hospitals Switch Brands,” the Pennsylvania Patient Safety Authority reviews cases of misplaced tubes and offers guidance for how nurses can prevent such errors in their own practice. Finally, “Nursing Resources: Vaccine Safety Resources for Nurses,” describes how nurses can teach patients about the importance and safety of vaccines in a time when the public still has many concerns about vaccines. In addition, there’s News, Reflections, Drug Watch, Art of Nursing, and more.

July 2015 Highlights Jun 22, 2015

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Editor-in-chief Shawn Kennedy and Clinical Editor Betsy Todd present the highlights of the July issue of the American Journal of Nursing. This month’s cover shows the World Hepatitis Day logo. Our first CE, “Viral Hepatitis: New U.S Screening Recommendations, Assessment Tools, and Treatments,” reviews new screening, assessment, and treatment recommendations for viral hepatitis. Our second CE, “Nursing Management of Patients with Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome,” gives an overview of this hereditary tissue disorder. The feature article “In the Community: Effective Collaboration Among Magnet Hospitals: A Win-Win for Nurses and Institutions” describes how six hospitals helped each other achieve and maintain Magnet recognition. In addition, there’s News, Reflections, Drug Watch, Art of Nursing, and more.

June 2015 Highlights May 21, 2015

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Editor-in-chief Shawn Kennedy and Clinical Editor Betsy Todd present the highlights of the June issue of the American Journal of Nursing. This month’s cover shows nurses at the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute practicing mindfulness in a healing garden. Our first CE, “Early Percutaneous Endoscopic Gastrostomy Tube Dislodgment,” presents a real case of PEG tube dislodgement and subsequent sepsis leading to the patient’s death. Our second CE, “Epilepsy Update Part 2: Nursing Care and Evidence-Based Treatment,” addresses the most important aspects of assessing and caring for patients with epilepsy. The feature article “Cultivating Quality: Cultivating Mindfulness to Enhance Nursing Practice” describes a multifaceted mindfulness program introduced for members of a nursing team. And our “Culturally Competent Care: Using the ESFT Model in Nursing” article discusses the need for nurses to communicate effectively with diverse populations and how health care disparities can be reduced through culturally competent care. In addition, there’s News, Reflections, Drug Watch, Art of Nursing, and more.

May 2015 Highlights Apr 22, 2015

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Editor-in-chief Shawn Kennedy and Clinical Editor Betsy Todd, present the highlights of the May issue of the American Journal of Nursing. this month’s cover is a painting by artist Janis Wolf, one of the original participants in the program, Studio E, which blends art therapy and health community for people living with epilepsy. Our first CE, “Atrial Fibrillation: Updated Management Guidelines and Nursing Implications,” focuses on the prevention of thromboembolism and on symptom control, and stresses the importance of patient adherence to treatment plans in order to ensure better outcomes Our second CE, “Epilepsy Update Part 1: Refining Our Understanding of a Complex Disease,” discusses new research that has increased our understanding of epilepsy’s etiology and pathophysiology, new definitions that are changing the ways we evaluate and treat this disease, conditions that frequently present with epilepsy, and psychosocial challenges faced by people with epilepsy. Our series, “Advancing Health Through Nursing,” examines The Institute of Medicine’s report, The Future of Nursing: Leading Change, Advancing Health. Our “Perspectives on Leadership” series explores conflict engagement coordinated by the American Organization of Nurse Executives. And our “Critical Analysis, Critical Care” article is part of an ongoing series of columns from nurses at the University of Washington that will examine in depth the research related to critical care practices. In addition, there’s News, Reflections, Drug Watch, Art of Nursing, and more.

Apr2015 Highlights Mar 25, 2015

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Editor-in-chief Shawn Kennedy and Clinical Editor Betsy Todd, present the highlights of the April issue of the American Journal of Nursing. On our cover this month is Pablo Picasso’s Le Rêve (The Dream). Our first CE, original research, examines the efficacy of a nurse-led breathing training program in reducing depression and improving quality of sleep in patients on maintenance hemodialysis. Our second CE presents the dangers of the pervasive 12-hour nursing shift that have been hotly debated in recent years. Our series, “Advancing Health Through Nursing,” examines The Institute of Medicine’s report, The Future of Nursing: Leading Change, Advancing Health. And our “Perspectives on Leadership” series presents a model for addressing conflict based on recognizing the importance of relationships and the patterns they create. “Question of Practice: Clinical Challenges in Isolation Care,” reviews the results of a 2014 study that investigated nurses’ use of PPE in the care of a live simulated patient requiring contact and airborne precautions. In addition, there’s News, Reflections, Drug Watch, Art of Nursing, and more.

Mar2015 Highlights Feb 24, 2015

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Editor-in-chief Shawn Kennedy and Clinical Editor Betsy Todd, present the highlights of the March issue of the American Journal of Nursing. This month’s cover photo, taken on January 12, 1923, depicts several notable women in the field of nursing. Our first CE, “The Critical Care Recovery Center: An Innovative Collaborative Care Model for ICU Survivors,” describes the creation and implementation of a program aimed at maximizing the cognitive, physical, and psychological recovery of ICU survivors. Our second CE, “Early Localized Prostate Cancer,” examines the options available for men diagnosed with low-risk, localized disease and explains how nurses can help them and their partners make appropriate treatment decisions. Our new series, “Advancing Health Through Nursing,” examines The Institute of Medicine’s report, The Future of Nursing: Leading Change, Advancing Health. And our new “Perspectives on Leadership” series explores conflict engagement coordinated by the American Organization of Nurse Executives. In addition, there’s News, Reflections, Drug Watch, Art of Nursing, and more.