Public health nursing in Greece

Nursing is considered, as the main profession that covers the need for primary health care services, in cooperation with physicians and other health and social care professions. In Greece, public or community health nursing as a concept exists since the beginning of professional nursing in the seconf half og the 19 century. There are three professions in Greece that are mainly involved in the provision of community nursing services. These are general nurses, health visitors, and midwives. General nurses are educated at degree level in the university or polytechnics. Health visitors and midwives are separate professions, also educated at degree level in polytechnics. Although all general nurses are prepared to work at any level of health care provision, they are not considered adequately educated to perform their full role in the community, with just their existing knowledge and experience. It is therefore essencial that further education or specialization is needed, in order that they could practice independently or as members of the primary health care teams effectively, and be able to respond to public health needs of the population     

Developments in nursing practice in primary health care in Hong Kong: opportunities and challenges

The significance of primary health care to the health of individuals and communities has been well established but the development of primary health care and nursing practice within the context of primary health care remains varied in different countries and settings. This paper focuses on developments in nursing practice in primary health care in Hong Kong, using three community-based research projects to identify the opportunities and challenges created for nurses working in these settings. The projects were established in response to identified health needs and to target cancer education, HIV/AIDS and chronic health problems. Opportunities include the development of professional autonomy, innovative approaches to clinical practice, and developing skills in working with a diverse range of professionals and communities. Challenges include managing uncertainty and the development of evaluation systems to demonstrate health gains from nursing interventions.     

The development of advanced practice roles: implications in the international nursing community

This article examined the critical elements that have been identified in the development of advanced practice roles of nurses in four countries: Brazil, Thailand, the United Kingdom and the United States of America. Several sociopolitical and professional forces were examined for possible insights and ways in which they may have shaped the development and evolution of the roles of advanced practice nurses (APNs). These forces were: the socio-political environment; the health needs of society; the health workforce supply and demand; governmental policy and support; intra- and interprofessional collaboration; the development of nursing education; and documentation of effectiveness of the advanced role. The development of APN roles in the four social systems was reviewed to illustrate how socio-political and professional forces may have shaped nursing roles in each health care delivery system. Commonalities and distinguishing features across the four health and social systems were analysed to assess the predictive forces that may be identified as advanced roles in nursing have evolved in the global community.     

How many is too many? Collaboration of multiple nursing organizations for professional development

Representatives of 11 nursing organizations developed a unique consortium to produce an ongoing series of annual conferences focused on promoting professional nursing leadership among nurses in diverse practice areas including acute care, long-term care, community health, and nursing education. The consortium strategically added members and refined the format of the conferences based on participant feedback. The conferences feature a keynote speaker and practice-based breakout sessions designed to facilitate futuristic thinking among nurses. The conference is associated with a legislative roundtable to support interaction between nurses and legislators. Future expansion of the consortium will include representation of advanced practice nurses. The development of the consortium and its highly efficient methods of operation are described in this article as an example of multi-organizational collaboration to promote professional nursing leadership. Bonds have been formed between the consortium member organizations that are mutually beneficial to the members of all.     

The education of advanced practice nurses: a contemporary approach

The Advanced Practice Nursing of Adults and the Elderly graduate program at San Diego State University School of Nursing prepares experienced professional nurses with primary and specialized care (acute or critical care) knowledge and skills to deliver health care to adults and elders across practice settings as nurse practitioners and clinical nurse specialists. Emphasis is placed on health care that is research based and congruent with national standards of practice. This approach to graduate education is congruent with recommendations of professional nursing organizations and responds to the educational needs of professional nurses and the health care needs of adult and elders.     

International Nursing

Some Abstracts in this article
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Nursing and nursing education in Iraq: challenges and opportunities

BACKGROUND: There has been extensive damage to nursing education and training in Iraq over the last two decades through three international wars, counterinsurgency struggles in the north and south, 13 years of economic sanctions, dictatorship and foreign occupation. Fortunately, there is wide agreement that nursing is a key area for further attention. Many nursing leaders have emigrated and the numbers of nurses working in professional roles in Iraq declined sharply after 1990. ISSUES: The number of nurses per population has always been low in Iraq, and fell off precipitously after foreign workers left. There is less than one nursing staff of any kind for physician today. Few of the nursing staff are qualified to what would be minimal standards of professional practice in many countries. There is a strong educational base for nursing education in three Iraqi universities, but it relates little to other schools or hospitals. Military nurses, now being integrated into the public system of hospital care, are considered to have far more technical skill levels than non-military nurses. ACTIONS: Iraq needs a new generation of well trained nurses to develop primary care and health education activities. Programmes in nursing administration and community health nursing need to be developed. The World Health Organization has supported the development of training centres and short courses for nursing leaders. The former six levels of entry to nursing practice have been streamlined to three. Nursing salaries since the 2003 invasion have been greatly increased. These are good beginnings, and much more remains to be done to restore nursing in Iraq.     

The humanities interface of nursing and medicine.

In the 1970s, the field of medical humanities developed and included ethics, literature, history, integrative medicine, and other topics, most often described from a physician's perspective. During this same period of revolutionary changes in health care, nursing curricula did not seek to emphasize content in humanities, perhaps because stereotypical views of nursing as the "caring profession" made such coursework seem redundant. In 2001, as a result of the Institute of Medicine's call for all health professionals to be educated in interdisciplinary teams, there was a new focus on the importance of interdisciplinary education. Collaborative experiences in the humanities can foster professional relationships that lead to professional growth, promote collaboration, and enhance patient-centered care. The purpose of this article is to describe the relevance of humanities to the interdisciplinary education and practice of health care providers. This article extends the thinking about the value of interdisciplinary education beyond the traditional dimensions of evidence-based practice, quality improvement, and informatics to humanities. Ways to provide nurses and physicians with interdisciplinary humanistic experiences are illustrated through an overview of projects jointly developed by the School of Nursing and the College of Medicine at The Pennsylvania State University.     

Searching for collaboration in international nursing partnerships: a literature review

GEORGE E.K. & MEADOWS‐OLIVER M. (2013) Searching for collaboration in international nursing partnerships: a literature review. International Nursing Review 60 , 31–36 Background: Nurses from low‐income countries (LICs) face extreme nursing shortages, faculty shortages and a lack of professional development opportunities. Nurses from high‐income countries (HICs) can leverage their wealth of resources to collaborate with nursing colleagues in LICs to expand clinical, education and research capacity. In turn, nurses from HICs gain stronger competency in the care they provide, improved communication skills and an increased understanding of global health issues. Aim: The purpose of this literature review is to identify international nursing clinical, education and research partnerships among nurses from LICs and HICs and to analyse the degree of collaboration involved in each partnership using DeSantis' counterpart concept. Methods: We conducted a systematic review of international nursing partnerships in the scientific literature from January 2001 to July 2012. A total of nine articles met inclusion criteria for analysis. Findings: All of the articles discuss lessons learnt in building international nursing partnerships among nurses from HICs and LICs. However, the articles failed to meet the criteria set forth by DeSantis' counterpart concept to achieve fully collaborative nursing partnerships. Conclusions: International nursing partnerships require more foresight and planning to create partnerships in which the benefits derived by nurses from LICs equal those of their colleagues from HICs. By striving for such collaboration, international nursing partnerships can help build nursing clinical, education and research capacity in LICs.     

The Network for Nursing in Child Health

The Network for Nursing in Child Health was launched in 2006 building on earlier collaboration of a group of nurses in Latin America to study the needs for strengthening pediatric nursing curricula in the region. This Network is one of more than 10 specialty nursing networks being developed with support from the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO) as a mechanism for promoting collaboration and communication between nurses of different countries to improve nursing practice and health care. The initial goals of the Network for Nursing in Child Health are to share knowledge and experience related to child health nursing and to promote incorporation of guidelines related to the Integrated Management of Childhood Illnesses (IMCI) in nursing curricula. At this time, membership in the Network is open to all nurses interested in working toward the Network's objectives, although communications are in Spanish. This collaborative network demonstrates the power of nursing working in a concerted way to build on its strengths and increase the capacity of nurses and health care workers to address global health priorities related to children's health care.     

Differentiated practice: The evolution of professional nursing

Differentiated practice identifies and uses three distinct nursing roles to create a comprehensive nursing care delivery system that meets client needs across the health care continuum. Clearly defined associate degree in nursing, bachelor's of science in nursing, and master's science in nursing competencies present career opportunities for professional nurses at the bedside providing, integrating, or managing client care as well as options in management, education, and regulation. An evolutionary paradigm shift required of all nurses is the awareness that each nurse is not the whole of nursing, but rather each nurse contributes to the whole of nursing. A nursing community comprised of differentiated roles that are mutually valued and well integrated will position nursing as a powerful force in meeting the diversity and complexity of health care needs in contemporary society.     

Impact of Organisational Culture on Use of Scientific Knowledge in Nursing Practice

ABSTRACT The aim of this study was to answer the question: How does organisational culture influence nurses' use of scientific knowledge in practice? The culture of the health care organisation was analysed mainly in terms of professionals (nurses, physicians and managers). All three professional subcultures, medical, nursing and managerial, seem to be very important from the patients' point of view. Nursing subculture has, for example, different philosophy, knowledge and values about the purpose and practices of the work. Despite this, many nurses hold medical norms, values and expectations to be more important than those of their own subculture. Consequently, when caring for patients such nurses act and behave according to medical knowledge and cultural assumptions. The influence of cultural factors on use of scientific knowledge in nursing practice can be classified as follows: (1) the nursing subculture is strong but old-fashioned and conservative, (2) the nursing subculture is weak and nurses are expected to act according to some of the competitive subcultures, (3) the content and construction of the process of work socialisation prevent the application of new scientific knowledge. These results must be confirmed in further empirical studies to determine their general validity for the primary health care system in Finland. The cultural analysis of health care system provides new information about why systematic scientific knowledge has not changed nursing practice as much as expected.     

Practice nursing in Australia: A review of education and career pathways

Background  

Nurses in Australia are often not educated in their pre registration years to meet the needs of primary care. Careers in primary care may not be as attractive to nursing graduates as high-tech settings such as intensive or acute care. Yet, it is in primary care that increasingly complex health problems are managed. The Australian government has invested in incentives for general practices to employ practice nurses. However, no policy framework has been developed for practice nursing to support career development and post-registration education and training programs are developed in an ad hoc manner and are not underpinned by core professional competencies. This paper reports on a systematic review undertaken to establish the available evidence on education models and career pathways with a view to enhancing recruitment and retention of practice nurses in primary care in Australia.     

Addressing the need for education: curriculum development for nurses about intellectual and developmental disabilities

People with disabilities and national and international agencies are voicing their views, forcing health care providers to look at how people with disabilities are treated in the health care system and to find ways to help them achieve equal access to quality care. Education about nursing care of patients with I/DD is limited in basic nursing education programs and for nurses who are in practice. A number of developmental disabilities nursing projects are addressing this need with curriculum development that has validated the need for education and has begun testing the various methods of instruction. As the curriculum is disseminated in written or Internet-accessible formats, nurses in education and practice will be able to find resources that target a specific topic area or a set of comprehensive instructions to acquire a better understanding of the comprehensive needs of people with I/DD and better ways to provide care. There is a need for a greater integration of curriculum about nursing care of people with developmental disabilities into basic nursing education at all levels and further evaluation of the impact of this curriculum on nursing care for people with I/DD. The hope is that these efforts can improve the education of nurses and other health care providers for the direct benefit of individuals with intellectual disabilities.     

Nursing and medical student teaming for service learning in partnership with the community: an emerging holistic model for interdisciplinary education and practice

To meet the health needs of communities today, health professionals need to be trained in working with persons from various cultural backgrounds, practicing disease prevention and health promotion in community-based settings, and working in teams with other professionals. The article focuses on interdisciplinary teaming for education and practice. In this model, medical and nursing students partner with communities to plan and deliver health promotion education programs and activities. Four service learning projects providing collaborative teaming opportunities as part of the Health Professions Schools in Service to the Nation Program are described. Interdisciplinary service learning has benefits for the community, students, and faculty and will prepare nurses and physicians to have a positive impact on care through future interdisciplinary collaboration in community-based settings.     

New nurses' perceptions of nursing practice and quality patient care

During this time of nursing shortages, hospitals that want to maintain the competitive edge must seek ways to recruit and retain a competent nursing staff. This study was conducted in a large hospital that strives to be the primary health care provider and employer of choice in its geographic region. The purpose of the study was to assess new nurses' perceptions of nursing practice and their expectations for meeting professional goals. Sixty-seven new nurses from 13 hospital departments were interviewed. Comprehensive orientation, continuing education, and mentoring were important values identified by this group of nurses. Communication with physicians and fear of causing accidental harm to patients were expressed concerns. Data from this survey will be used by the organization to change orientation policies to better meet the needs of the nursing staff and improve recruitment and retention of nurses.     

International collaboration on genomics education for nurses

The International Society of Nurses in Genetics began in 1988 as a venue for nurses around the world to advance their knowledge and practice related to genomics. This article discusses how the organization has conducted an annual international nursing conference, promoted the incorporation of genomics topics into continuing education programs and professional nursing journals, assisted with the incorporation of genomics content into undergraduate and graduate nursing curricula, and defined genetics as a clinical nursing specialty. Genomics education is relevant to nursing practice in all specialty areas and significant to the future of health care.     

Specialist practice in community mental health nursing

Community mental health nurses (CMHNs) work in an increasingly complex health and social care environment. Over recent years, the evolving direction of general health service and specific mental health policy has directed CMHNs towards: the provision of clinically-effective interventions; a closer attention to meeting the needs of people experiencing severe and long-term mental health problems; the simultaneous provision of services to meet the needs of people experiencing a wide range of mental health problems presenting in primary care settings; greater collaboration with workers representing other disciplines and agencies; and the development of active partnerships with mental health service users. This paper explores the context within which CMHNs practise, and within which education programmes preparing specialist practitioners in community mental health nursing have been developed. One recently-validated specialist practice course for CMHNs is described in detail, with the intention of stimulating discussion and debate surrounding the practice of, and the educational preparation for, community mental health nursing.     

Madagascar nursing needs assessment: education and development of the profession

Purpose: To address how Madagascar is improving nursing education and the profession to strengthen their nursing workforce. Background: The sub‐Saharan Africa nursing workforce shortage is more than 600 000. Madagascar measures among affected countries. Nursing in Madagascar with reference to the Malagasy Lutheran Church Health Department (SALFA) is examined in this paper. The Malagasy Lutheran Nursing School (SEFAM) was established in 1956 to prepare nurses and midwives. The school recently relocated to better meet SALFA goals to increase nurses in the system and improve nursing education. A US nursing faculty and the SEFAM director proposed to conduct programme assessment to ensure that nursing and midwifery education meet health, social and community needs in Madagascar. Data source/methods: An in‐depth needs assessment of the school programme, facilities and resources occurred. Site visits and informal interviews were held. Field study visits to nursing schools and health‐care facilities in Kenya and Tanzania assisted the authors in learning how nursing developed in those countries. Data analysis included comparison of the authors' comprehensive notes for congruity and accuracy. Outcomes: Strategies are needed to support and maintain quality education, improve quality and quantity of nursing care services in hospitals and dispensaries, and improve conditions for nurses and other health‐care workers. Compared with Madagascar, Kenya and Tanzania have more well‐developed systems of nursing education and professional development. Limitations: There were limited written sources for some information but methods, such as verbal accounts, compensated for this limitation. Implications/conclusions: Implications include advantages, disadvantages, facilitators and barriers to nursing educational and professional development in Madagascar. Development of nursing education, regulation and the profession will continue with support from key stakeholders. Kenya and Tanzania can serve as role models for Madagascar nurses. Countries with similar nursing education and professional development issues can be informed by lessons learned in this project.