Engaging staff in the Magnet® journey: the key is communication Peg Pierson Nursing leadership at Saint Elizabeth Regional Medical Center in Lincoln, Nebraska, recognized from the outset that a successful bid to achieve designation as a Magnet[R] hospital would hinge upon the ability to engage staff and other stakeholders in the process. Leaders believed that […]
Category: MedSurg Nursing
Teams, Teammates, And Team Building Marlene Roman As nurses, part of our responsibilities include orienting new staff to our medical-surgical units. Unfortunately, nurses come and go. The make-up and dynamics of the unit staff changes as this occurs. As new staff nurses are hired, you may see the rhythm of the group change with the […]
Adult tube feeding formulas
Adult tube feeding formulas Linda M. Lord Adult tube feeding formulas vary considerably with respect to composition, administration, and cost. Selecting the best product for patients requires a careful analysis of specific patient requirements and resources. Objectives This independent study offering is designed for nurses and other health care professionals who care for and educate […]
Artificial Nutrition and Hydration at the End of Life Shirley Ann Smith Objectives This article is designed for nurses and other health care professionals who care for and educate patients regarding artificial nutrition and hydration at the end of life. The multiple choice examination that follows is designed to test your achievement of the following […]
The legal side of nursing
The legal side of nursing Dottie Roberts As nurses, we flirt with legal disaster every time we walk into a patient care area. Most of us have minimal training in the legal aspects of health care. However, we must be knowledgeable about issues such as patient confidentiality and informed consent, and be able to document […]
A Comprehensive Interactive Competency Program Part II: Implementation, Outcomes, And Followup Tatyanna Johnson A comprehensive interactive competency program was successfully developed and implemented at Northwestern Memorial Hospital, a 750-bed academic medical center in Chicago. The department of medicine/oncology nursing introduced this program to establish a consistent process for competency assessment and to identify areas of […]
Consequences of Fatal Medication Errors for Health Care Providers: A Secondary Analysis Study Joanne Farley Serembus For all health care providers involved in the process of administering medications, the potential for error exists (Hunt & Rapp, 1996; Potts & Phelan, 1996; Rolfe & Harper, 1995). Serious errors may occur in approximately 2 per 1,000 prescriptions […]
Calciphylaxis in Chronic Renal Failure Barbara Hahler Complications of renal failure are being seen more frequently by medical-surgical nurses as these patients are admitted for various problems. Calciphylaxis, a necrotic skin disorder, is a complication of renal failure that may go unrecognized by physicians and nurses. Tissue necrosis may be so extensive that death occurs. […]
Managing medication errorsa qualitative study Pamela Stetina The Institute of Medicine reports 44,000 to 98,000 people die in hospitals annually as a result of medical errors that could have been prevented (Kohn, Corrigan, & Donaldson, 2000). Medication errors accounted for 7,391 deaths in 1993, compared to 2,876 deaths in 1983 (Kohn et al., 2000). These […]
Theories of aging as basis for assessment Sheila Grossman In order for theories to be useful in a practice discipline such as nursing, a direct application is needed to guide the nurse in caring for a specific population in a given setting (Dickoff, James, & Weidenbach, 1968). A decision for nursing care evolves from the […]