Ajn The American Journal Of Nursing - Behind The Article

Editor-in-chief Shawn Kennedy presents the highlights of the August 2011 issue of the American Journal of Nursing, which features two CE articles: one is a review article on prevention and treatment of osteoporosis in postmenopausal women (part two in our series on postmenopausal women’s health), and the other is a case study of a person who died from colon perforation from a fecal impaction. Other articles include a piece on an innovative patient teaching project using a smart phone; description of a screening tool for osteoporosis; a look at children’s psychological and emotional recovery six years after Hurricane Katrina; the final installment of our Letters from Afghanistan series by army nurse Christopher Vanfosson, describing his transition home; a profile of a nursing CNO and hospital colleagues who have a rock band; plus News, Drug Watch, Reflections and more. Also, there are podcasts with authors Vanfosson and Karen Roush, author of the osteoporosis CE article.

Editor-in-chief, Shawn Kennedy, speaks with U.S. Army nurse Major Christopher Vanfosson, author of our series, Letters From Afghanistan, which ends with the September 2011 issue. Major Vanfosson’s articles chronicled his year-long deployment to Afghanistan with a forward surgical team. In this interview, he talks about his experience, his homecoming and his current assignment.

Editor-in-chief Shawn Kennedy presents the highlights of the July 2011 issue of the American Journal of Nursing, which features two CE articles: one is original research, a study on social networking patterns of adolescents and internet sexual offenders, and another a review on current management of multiple sclerosis (MS). Other articles include a piece on maintaining sexuality in MS; a Cultivating Quality column about a project at Boston Children’s Hospital to teach nurses about insulin pumps; another installment from our very popular series, Evidence-Based Practice, Step by Step; an AJN Reports new trends in trauma care; plus News, Drug Watch, and more. There’s also a podcast with Elizabeth Dowdell, coauthor of the social networking study.

Editor-in-chief Shawn Kennedy discusses with Dowdell her ground-breaking research on risky Internet behaviors in adolescents and young adults and where it may intersect with the online activity of sexual offenders. The results are concerning and point to areas where safeguards and education are needed.

After investigation into a hepatitis C outbreak in Las Vegas revealed that nurses knew there were poor infection control practices but did nothing for fear of retaliation, the Nevada Nurses Association enlisted Lisa Black to survey Nevada nurses to determine their experiences and workplace attitudes about advocating for patients. AJN’s editor-in-chief Shawn Kennedy, along with senior editor Sylvia Foley, discuss the results with Black, including the survey’s use in successful passage of whistleblower protection laws in Nevada.

Interim editor-in-chief Shawn Kennedy and clinical editor Christine Moffa discuss the highlights of the June issue of the American Journal of Nursing, which features two CE articles:  original research of nurses’ attitudes towards advocating for safe practices that was used to support passage of whistleblower protections in Nevada, and a review of the evidence around menopausal hormone therapy.  Other articles include a piece on the rise of pertussis infections, and article on managing Kawasaki Disease, a piece on improving the nursing workforce in Malawi, a historical piece on the Italian device to protect the identify of unwed mothers giving their children up for adoption, and of course, News, Drug Watch, Art of Nursing, and Reflections. There’s also a podcast with the nurses portrayed on our cover – Anne Mitchell and Vicki Galle - the Texas nurses who were arrested for whistleblowing against unsafe medical practice.

Although Denmark and the United States have very different health care systems, the nursing issues are remarkably similar. Editor-in-chief Shawn Kennedy spoke with Grete Christensen about what the health and nursing issues are.

Editor-in-chief Shawn Kennedy speaks with Masitsela Mhlanga, former president of the Swaziland Nurses Association and the nurse credited with initiating the Swaziland Wellness Center for Health Care Workers. The center (which has now been replicated in other African countries) is credited for stemming the migration of nurses from Swaziland, which, with a prevalence of 26% of the adult population, has the highest prevalence of HIV in the world.

AJN’s editor-in-chief Shawn Kennedy interviews these flight nurses about their jobs, their career choices, and issues around providing care in a challenging environment.

Stephen Harvey is an assistant professor of anesthesiology at Vanderbilt University School of Medicine in Nashville, Tennessee. The poem is in homage to his mother, Betty Harvey, RN (pictured here with the author), who inspired and encouraged him on his journey through college and medical school. Editor-in-chief Shawn Kennedy and senior editor Sylvia Foley (who coordinates AJN’s Art of Nursing column) speak with Stephen about his career, his early memories of his mother, and his poetry.

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AJN’s Editor-in-chief Shawn Kennedy and clinical editor Christine Moffa present the highlights of the May issue of the American Journal of Nursing, which features two CE articles: one is original research, a survey of 388 non-ICU nurses in one medical center about their role and participation with medical emergency teams (also known as rapid response teams), and another on issues and practices around organ donation after circulatory death. Other articles include a QI report on one hospital’s implementation of standardized reporting and safety checklists, a feature article on early recognition and management of stroke, another installment from our very popular series, Evidence-Based Practice, Step by Step; an AJN Report on politics as a career for nurses. And, for Nurses Week, we bring you a poem “Nurse’s Son”, and an AJN Classic – a 1987 editorial by former editor Mary Mallison, answering the question, “How Can You Bear to Be a Nurse?” Of course, there’s also News, Reflections, Drug Watch, and more.

Editor-in-chief Shawn Kennedy and clinical editor Christine Moffa present the highlights of the April issue of the American Journal of Nursing, which features two CE articles: one is original research, examining data from the Nurses Health Study analyzing trends in remission or progression of urinary incontinence among black, white and Hispanic women, and another on evidence-based feeding strategies for people with dementia. Other articles include a feature describing an online tool to develop care plans for cancer survivors and another focusing on sexual concerns after breast cancer; an article explaining why and how to use social media sites; another article in our Letters from Afghanistan series; an interview with a nurse who helped her hospital “go green”. And there’s News, Drug Watch, and more.

Mary Townsend, ScD, author of the April original research, “Rates of Remission, Improvement, and Progression of Urinary Incontinence in Asian, Black, and White Women”, speaks with AJN’s editor in chief Shawn Kennedy and clinical editor Christine Moffa about her research. Townsend is an instructor at Brigham and Women’s Hospital and Harvard Medical School.

Texas Nurse Whistleblowers, One Year Later – Part 2 The second in a two-part podcast (see part 1 for description).

Texas Nurse Whistleblowers, One Year Later – Part 1 In this first part of a two-part interview, AJN editor-in-chief Shawn Kennedy talks with Texas nurses Vickilyn Galle, Anne Mitchell and colleague Naomi Warren about their roles and experiences as whistleblowers, when they felt patients were receiving unsafe and inappropriate care by a physician. The case involves small-town politics and collusion that resulted in arrest and criminal charges, prosecution of Anne Mitchell, and finally acquittal in February 2010 on all charges.

Editor-in-chief Shawn Kennedy and clinical editor Christine Moffa present the highlights of the March issue of the American Journal of Nursing, which features two CE articles: one is original research, a qualitative study of attitudes on intimate touch in nursing care, and another on how to use algorithms in managing persistent pain in older adults. Other articles include a feature examining the growing controversy around routine contact precautions; a companion article from the AJN archives on isolation procedures; another installment from our very popular series, Evidence-Based Practice, Step by Step; an AJN Report on reducing violent behavior in adolescents; a Cochrane Corner reviewing dietary interventions for rheumatoid arthritis, plus News, Drug Watch, and more.

AJN's editor-in-chief Shawn Kennedy caught-up with Mary Stachowiak, president of the fledgling Clinical Nurse Leader Association (CNLA), in Miami on January 21 at the 2011 CNL Summit. They discussed the fairly new role of the CNL and how these "advanced generalists" work alongside clinical nurse specialists and nurse managers.

Editor-in-chief Shawn Kennedy and clinical editor Christine Moffa present the highlights of the February issue, which features two CE articles: one on recognizing and safely intervening in human trafficking and the other is original research on comparing the effectiveness of buffered lidocaine with bacteriostatic normal saline for local anesthesia prior to IV catheterization. Other articles include Managing Pediatric Asthma in the ED, Atrial Fibrillation Ablation, and another installment in our series of missives, Letters from Afghanistan and of course, News, Drug Watch, Art of Nursing, and Reflections. There’s also a podcast with Donna Sabella, author of Combating Human Trafficking.

Through her work in a mental health clinic and trafficked victims she saw there, Donna Sabella became aware that few health care providers recognized the signs that a patient seeking help was a victim of sex or labor trafficking, and if they did, few knew how to proceed in a manner that protected their patients and themselves. Editor-in-chief Shawn Kennedy, along with AJN’s Sylvia Foley, discuss the issues with author Sabella, including the growing problem in the United States, and how nurses can help.