Comparative Study of Psychiatric Nurses’ Life Quality

Asthesocietyadvances,thesimplemodelofbiology -medicineismovingtowardthedirectionofcombinationofbiolo gy,psychologyandsocialmedicine .Peoplenotonlypayattentiontotheirphysicalhealth ,thesecurityandextentionoftheirlives,butalsoattachmoreimportancetoimprovementoftheirlifequality .Thelifequalityofnursesnotonlyaffectthemselves,butwillalsoinfluencesmedicalquality[1] .Inrecentyears,therehasbeenmoreandmoreresearchonthefactorsinfluencencingnurs es’psychologyandthepressurenursesfacing ,butastothelifequa…     

Nurses’ knowledge within the context of pain management

A small-scale study determined the level of pain management knowledge of general surgical and orthopaedic nurses in three designated wards. Qualified nurses completed a questionnaire. For the surgical nurses, a set of five tutorials encompassed all aspects of pain management. The orthopaedic nurses were given no extra education. Twenty-six out of a possible 55 surgical ward nurses attended one or more of the tutorials. A repeat of the first questionnaire was given to all nurses who had attended tutorials and to the orthopaedic nurses who had completed the first questionnaire. The response was poor and inconclusive as to whether the education for surgical nurses had made a difference to their knowledge of drugs and their uses. The questionnaires from the orthopaedic nurses showed a positive shift within some of the questions.     

Developing a Virtual Nurses’ Station for Community-Based Nurses

Nurses who work throughout the community need a nurses' station, just as nurses who work in a hospital. The nurses' station is the area where communication, information sharing, and documentation occur. This article describes how a virtual nurses' station was created using Blackboard technology to meet the needs of nurses who are scattered throughout a geographic area. These nurses work in several urban neighborhoods to conduct the outreach services offered through an academic nurse-managed wellness center to community-dwelling older adults. Results have been positive as the virtual nurses' station provides the nurses an area to exchange data and information, print patient health care information, and access nursing policies. Satisfaction surveys from the nurses give valuable input on the design and use of the virtual nurses' station.     

Nurses’ perceptions of dealing with death in the emergency department

BackgroundProviding end-of-life care to patients and their families in the emergency department (ED) is challenging, with high workloads, the busy environment, and a focus on providing lifesaving treatments to patients at odds with providing end-of-life and palliative care.AimThe purpose of this study was to investigate nurses’ experiences of providing end-of-life care in EDs, including their perceptions of the most vital elements of care, ability to provide aspects of care, as well as perceptions of their role, communication processes, family presence/involvement, and the ED environment.MethodsNurses (n = 211) working in Australian EDs for at least 12 months completed an anonymous online survey.FindingsNurses identified vital elements of care for dying patients including adequate pain control and a move away from burdensome treatments, sensitive care of families and family access to loved ones, and a quiet environment. However, nurses were not always able to provide such care to their patients. Often, the ED was seen as an unsuitable place for end-of-life care or care of families once the patient had died, and communication between staff and between staff and families was challenging.DiscussionThe ED physical environment, lack of staff training and debriefing, and lack of time to communicate with family, particularly after death, may compromise nurses’ ability to provide end-of-life care that is satisfying to them, their patients, and families.ConclusionThere is a need for focus on the ED physical environment, staff training, and consideration of the emotional experiences of frontline nurses caring for patients at the end of life.     

The Beat Goes On: Emergency Nurses’ Song of Resilience

Since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, emergency nurses have been on the frontlines. Not only were emergency nurses caring for patients with physical symptoms, they were also confronted by anxiety, depression, stress, and uncertainty in patients, peers, and themselves. Even as nurses cared for patients seeking their help, they were dealing with their own struggles as members of the larger community and the organization. The purpose of this study was to examine emergency nurses’ resiliency and to provide nurse leaders a different lens for viewing resilience. Five interconnected elements surfaced through direct observations with live environmental music therapy, focus groups, and essays with emergency room nurses. Fostering the elements of emergency nurses’ song of resilience: harmony, melody, rhythm, silence/rest, and beingness may enhance individual, team, and organizational performance. Nurse leaders can support resiliency and promote healthy work environments by perceiving resilience creatively and through reflection.     

Survey of Nurses’ Use of the Clinically Aligned Pain Assessment (CAPA) Tool

BackgroundLimited research is available on tools for assessing pain and its effect on function in the acute care setting.AimThis research's purpose is to describe nurses’ use of the Clinically Aligned Pain Assessment (CAPA) tool and their beliefs about its utility for assessing pain compared to the numeric rating scale (NRS) in a hospital where CAPA had been used for 6 years.DesignA cross-sectional self-report survey.MethodsNurses (N = 110) from 13 adult inpatient units in an academic center participated in this survey describing frequency of CAPA and NRS use, CAPA domains documented, and how nurses asked about pain and distinguished between categories when coding for documentation. Beliefs about the tools’ effectiveness were also reported.ResultsMost nurses used CAPA routinely for assessments; almost half used the NRS at times. They believed both tools were effective for assessment, but CAPA was more effective to determine what intervention was needed. They also believed patient report using CAPA was more likely to match the nurse's assessment; a majority reported incorporating their observations into CAPA documentation. Most asked the patient about pain without using CAPA words, although many used the specific words. Practice varied in how nurses determined which category to select in the comfort domain and which domains were assessed routinely.ConclusionsAlthough many nurses believed CAPA was effective, variation existed in how it was used to assess and document pain, increasing potential for inconsistent assessments and interpretations of pain and pain management.     

Emergency Room Psychiatric Services: A Qualitative Study of Nurses’ Experiences

Emergency nurses working in general emergency divisions (EDs) are primarily trained to assess and treat acute physical problems. However, ED nurses often care for psychiatric patients and the perceptions of nurses in EDs regarding their experiences with psychiatric patients have not been well-studied. Using focus groups, the purpose of this study was to explore and describe ED nurses’ experiences, and feelings caring for patients with mental illness. Krueger and Casey's qualitative analysis for focus groups was utilized to code and categorize phrases and identify themes from transcribed interviews. Four themes emerged; powerlessness best captured the overarching and substantive experience of the participants. Based on the findings, implications for emergency room care of psychiatric patients are described.     

What is Good Mental Health Nursing? A Survey of Irish Nurses

The practice, theory, and preparation associated with nursing people with mental health issues has changed in profound ways in recent decades. This has in part been reflected by a shift in nurses identifying as being mental health rather than psychiatric nurses. Context, theory, and values shape what it means to be a mental health nurse. Thirty experienced mental health nurses in Ireland completed a survey on what good mental health nursing is and a definition induced from their responses. Mental health nursing is a professional, client-centered, goal-directed activity based on sound evidence, focused on the growth, development, and recovery of people with complex mental health needs. It involves caring, empathic, insightful, and respectful nurses using interpersonal skills to draw upon and develop the personal resources of individuals and to facilitate change in partnership with the individual and in collaboration with friends, family, and the health care team. This appears to encapsulate the best of what it meant to be a psychiatric nurse, but challenges remain regarding how to reconcile or whether to discard coercive practices incompatible with mental health nursing.     

Nurses working outside of nursing: societal trend or workplace crisis?

The phenomenon of career inactivity in professional nursing has been historically portrayed in the literature as a major cause of disequilibrium in the registered nurse labor market. However, there remains a general lack of understanding of the diverse forces that shape the inactive nurse pool and the likelihood that this population will return to nursing. The purpose of this study was to examine the population of registered nurses who are active in the labor market but work in nonnursing employment. Specifically, this study sought to determine the relative importance of nonworkplace- and workplace-related reasons for working outside of nursing. The results demonstrate that dissatisfaction with the nursing workplace is the key reason cited by actively licensed nurses for working outside of nursing employment. These findings suggest that policy and employer remedies are needed to improve the nursing workplace.     

Nurses’ communication regarding patients’ use of complementary and alternative medicine

Background

: Many people integrate complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) into their health care. Nurses potentially play a significant role in communicating with patients about their CAM utilisation.