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Home 2009
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110th Congress wrap up
The 110th Congress adjourns with a mixed record on healthcare.
2008 state legislative wrap-up
Legislatively, 2008 was a good year for nursing. In many states, safe nurse staffing laws, mandatory overtime restrictions, and safe patient-handling legislation got the thumbs-up.
2008: The year of pro-nurse advocates
To help elect pro-nursing candidates, volunteer for campaign work and urge everyone you know to vote.
A nurse’s inappropriate language—an ethical issue
To: Ethics Advisory Board
From: Concerned nurse manager
Subject: A nurse’s behavior frightens a patient
LR is a new graduate RN with 1 year of...
A question of conscience
To: Ethics Advisory Board
From: Concerned RN
Subject: Refusal to participate
Two nurses on my unit have submitted written notification stating that they would no longer...
A Year of Gifts
Our editor-in-chief reviews important accomplishments in the past year and presents a nursing "wish list".
Advocacy: A modest proposal
Nurses are with patients during some of the most important moments in their lives.
Advocating for patients in an era of drug-delivery problems
Learn what steps you can take to help patients avoid drug contamination and cope with drug shortages.
An invitation to error
What happens when you’re short staffed and there isn’t anyone to help?
ANA endorses Hillary Clinton for President
This has certainly been an interesting and exciting presidential election year. I hope many of you have been tuned in and by now have...
ANA endorses Kid Safe Chemicals Act
Acting on a directive from the 2006 House of Delegates, ANA has endorsed the Kid Safe Chemicals Act. The bill would ensure for the...
ANA President Attends White House Meeting
Karen Daley, PhD, MPH, RN, FAAN, newly elected president of the American Nurses Association (ANA), attended a meeting at the White House in recognition...
ANA Revises Two of Its Foundational Nursing Publications
In its role as the professional organization for all 3.1 - 3.6 million registered nurses in the United States, ANA is the author and...
ANA urges Congress to invest in domestic nursing education, not immigration
ANA urges Congress to invest in domestic nursing education, not immigration
As the nursing shortage continues to weigh on hospital administrators and patient care, the...
ANA urges Congress to invest in nursing workforce development. ANA endorses the Nursing School...
ANA has launched a campaign aimed at increasing federal funding for nursing recruitment and education by $50 million. If successful, this campaign would result...
Avoiding copyright violations in educational presentations
What you don’t know about copyright can get you into legal jeopardy.
Before blowing the whistle, learn to protect yourself
Don't let fear of reprisal stop you from reporting serious misconduct.
Beyond a box of chocolates
Often, patients and families express their gratitude for a special nurse's outstanding care with spoken thanks or heartfelt commendations written to a nursing supervisor....
Beyond a box of chocolates
Often, patients and families express their gratitude for a special nurse’s outstanding care with spoken thanks or heartfelt commendations written to a nursing supervisor....
Building the case for chemical policy reform
Over the past three decades, we have become increasingly aware of the impact that our environment, and chemical exposures in particular, has on our...
C-suite executives believe ACA will improve health care
A survey of 74 C-suite executives published in Health Affairs finds they are optimistic about the effects of the Affordable Care Act (ACA). The...
Caring for older lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender adults
Current discussions on the unique health issues of lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) populations have prompted the healthcare professions to reexamine their mission...
Carrots and sticks
The Stick—penalties for excess readmissions
Is your hospital on the list? Starting this month, over 2,200 hospitals are forfeiting up to 1% of their base...
Case study: Coerced consent
“Coercion is commonly said to invalidate consent, and that is always true if the source of the coercion is the physician.
Case Study: How much is enough?
Three-year-old Christy* has been in the hospital’s pediatric intensive care unit (PICU) since birth, when she was diagnosed with McCune-Albright syndrome and multiple other...
Chief nurse officer takes on full range of public health issues
Rear Admiral Carol A. Romano, PhD, RN, FAAN, is the Assistant Surgeon General and Chief Nurse Officer for the United States Public Health Service...
CMA lobbyists discuss hot topics in the states
In 2009, patient safety, health care, safe staffing, and nursing advancement will top ANA's list of legislative priorities.
CMS awards funding for APRN training
On July 30, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) announced the participants for a new initiative that provides funds to support clinical...
CMS broadens ‘medical staff’ concept to include APRNs
The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) has broadened the concept of "medical staff" so that hospitals can include other practitioners such as...
Congress considers mental health parity legislation
Legislation under consideration in the U.S. House and Senate would require group health insurers to cover mental health care at the same level as...
Congress passes National Alzheimer’s Project Act
Congress has passed the National Alzheimer’s Project Act, which as of Dec. 15 was ready to be signed by President Obama. The Act establishes...
Considering the COVID-19 syndemic
To: Ethics Advisory Board
From: An alarmed nurse
Subject: Nursing’s responses to pandemic-fueled inequities
I’m troubled that the COVID-19 pandemic has not only exposed...
Creating a Magnet® culture using the ANA Code of Ethics
One hospital’s Magnet workgroup used a Code of Ethics program to transform nursing practice.
Creating ethical environments in nursing
To uphold workplace ethics, leaders must send the message that unethical behavior is never acceptable, no matter who's demonstarting it.
Crime doesn’t pay
Fraud and abuse account for up to 10% of U.S. healthcare expenditures.
What should you do if you suspect potential healthcare fraud or abuse?
Dear Members of Congress
In an open letter to Congress, Dr. Cipriano urges legislators to leverage nurses’ knowledge, skills, and abilities to help bring order to a chaotic healthcare system.
Defending yourself through documentation
Complete, objective, and accurate documentation of the care you provide can help you avert or defend against lawsuits.
Documentation: You’ve got a lot to lose
According to the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, fraud is “the intentional deception or misrepresentation made by a person with the knowledge that...
Doing the most good
The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act of 2010 provides many benefits.
Drug errors harm 1.5 million people each year, report finds
In a new report, the Institute of Medicine concludes that at least 25% of harmful adverse drug events are preventable, and recommends specific preventive actions for nurses and other healthcare workers.
Editorial
To achieve higher quality of care and help transform our healthcare system, we need to don our customized tool belts, get to work, and be willing to abandon the outdated methods of the past.
Election Day 2006: It’s nurses’ time to be heard!
Make your voice heard on election day.
Environement, health, and safety
Bullying is an abusive behavior that threatens the safety of healthcare workers. Nurses should examine their own interactions to see if they are exhibiting this undesirable behavior.
Environment, health & safety
Read about the new guide to choosing safer products and chemicals.
Ethics and crisis standards of care
To: Ethics Advisory Board
From: Contingently confused
Subject: Conventional, contingency, and crisis standards of care
Throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, I keep hearing about different levels of care....
Ethics and the quality of care
Leah Curtin discusses the issue of quality care from an ethical perspective.
Ethics case study: ‘Just watch them die…’
According to the Associated Press, a Brookdale Senior Residence facility* worker who identified herself as a nurse, refused to administer cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) to...
Ethics case study: Poor staffing results in brain-damaged patient
Author Leah Curtin discusses the ethical issue of short staffing.
Ethics for nurses in everyday practice
In recent years, most of the world’s people have celebrated their diversity: different races and languages, religions and cultures, and social mores. These differences...
Ethics for nurses in everyday practice: How stupid can you get?
Staffing is an issue at this 150-bed proprietary acute-care hospital. More than 100 of the hospital’s nurses, led by Mary Sims*, RN, signed a...
Ethics for nurses in everyday practice: Insubordination in the ICU?
What happens when there is no room in the ICU for an ED patient?
Ethics in a pandemic
Decision-making during a healthcare crisis.
In a severe pandemic of an infectious disease, healthcare organizations will face a surge in demand for care to large...
Ethics is not punitive
Leah Curtin writes about finding your passion.
Ethics of bedside arraignments
To: Ethics inbox
From: Concerned RN
Subject: Bedside arraignments
I am a medical-surgical nurse and admitted a patient to my unit who was arrested and injured during...
Ethics, relatively speaking
To: Ethics inbox
From: Puzzled nursing instructor
Subject: “Putting away” your moral beliefs?
Recently, a nursing student wrote this as part of a course assignment: “Ethics...
Faith, community, and health: Partnerships with good neighbors
Our editor-in-chief turns a spotlight on faith and community partnerships.
FDA looks to improve medical device review process
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration plans to implement changes in 2011 designed to improve review of medical devices. Read more at http://www.fda.gov/NewsEvents/Newsroom/PressAnnouncements/ucm240418.htm.
FDA marks 50 years of Kefauver-Harris amendment
This year the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is marking the anniversary of the Kefauver-Harris amendment, passed 50 years ago. The legislation gave...
Federal legislative agenda
Promoting the critical role nurses play in the health of patients and the nation, as well as guaranteeing a strong nursing workforce into the...
Finance: It’s not a dirty word
Your chief nursing officer stops you in the hall. To your surprise, she asks, “Jen, why don’t you apply for that charge nurse position...
For once, ethics and the ‘bottom line’ agree
Author Leah Curtin discusses the dangers of bottom-line thinking.
Form of cinnamon used in U.S. contains higher concentrations of coumarin
A study in Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry has found that cassia cinnamon, commonly used in products sold the U.S., contains higher concentrations...
From apathy to political activism
When someone mentions the words politics and nursing in the same sentence, do you roll your eyes? Do you think to yourself or ask...
From our readers…Practical approaches to patient advocacy barriers
Nurses know that patient advocacy is an expected and important role for their practice, but the practical implications of acting as an advocate are...
From Your ANA President
ANA plans to grow stronger by staying ahead of the curve.
From Your ANA President
Nurses must step up and become a primary force in reshaping the
nation’s healthcare system.
From Your ANA President
The recently launched Initiative on the Future of Nursing seeks to address the challenges facing the nursing profession and to improve healthcare quality and delivery. It's time for all nurses to get involved in the effort and become part of the change.
From Your ANA President
November 6, 2010 marks the 10th anniversary of the Needlestick Safety and Prevention Act. ANA's new president reviews the progress made in reducing bloodborne pathogen exposures over the last decade.
From Your ANA President
As she ends her term as ANA President, Rebecca Patton urges nurses to demonstrate their leadership and help make the provisions of the new healthcare reform act a reality.
Genetic counseling, abortion, sex-selection, and autonomy
Author Leah Curtin discusses the implications of genetic testing for sex determination
Genetic counseling, abortion, sex-selection, and autonomy—a response to readers’ comments
Author Leah Curtin responds to readers' comments on one of her recent articles.
Genetic Information Nondiscrimination Act signed into law
The federal government bans genetic job discrimination; ANA backs the Kid Safe Chemicals Act.
Genetics and ethics in health care and nursing
Review these excerpts from anew book on genetics and ethics in health and nursing.
Headlines from the Hill
ANA supports the Medicare Patient Access and Quality Improvement Act, which would repeal the Medicare sustainable growth rate and reform Medicare Part B payment
Headlines from the Hill
ANA’s legislative agenda introduced in the 113th Congress
Headlines from the Hill
Election results: A “demographic time bomb”
Headlines from the Hill
Find out what has been accomplished during the 112th Congress and what healthcare professionals stand to lose if our country goes over the "fiscal cliff."
Headlines from the Hill
The RN Safe Staffing Act and what it means for you
Headlines from the Hill
To mark the 2-year anniversary of the Affordable Care Act, ANA took part in a celebration recognizing the law’s patient protections.
Headlines from the Hill
By taking part in ANA’s Lobby Day, nurses can join forces to educate elected officials on the critical issues facing nursing today.
Headlines from the Hill
CMS has proposed major changes to the rule for Medical Conditions of Participation, which can significantly affect nursing practice.
Headlines from the Hill
The August legislation that raised the debt ceiling was the first round in the government spending debate. Safety-net programs may be on the Congressional chopping block in the future.
Headlines from the Hill
ANA recently cohosted a Senate Nursing Caucus briefing to present final results from the 2008 National Sample Survey of Registered Nurses, and participated in a healthcare reform conference call with Michelle Obama.
Headlines from the Hill
ANA CEO “stars” with actress Jessica Alba in the fight against toxic chemicals.
Headlines from the Hill
Congress has reintroduced the Home Health Care Planning Improvement
Act, which would allow APRNs to order home health
services under Medicare.
Headlines from the Hill
The Republicans now control the House of Representatives. No matter what policy objectives either party tries to enact, ANA will continue to ensure that the voice of nursing is heard in Congress.
Headlines from the Hill
ANA's Lobby Day gave nurses the chance to meet congressional representatives and lobby in support of issues important to nursing.
Headlines from the Hill
By meeting in-person with their congressional representatives, nurses can garner support for the Home Health Care Planning Improvement Act, which would allow advanced practice nurses to order home health services under Medicare.
Headlines from the Hill
As one of three nurses in Congress, Representative Eddie Bernice Johnson (D-TX-30) has been a champion for nursing, introducing and cosponsoring bills to advance...
Headlines from the Hill
ANA supports two Congressional bills that would improve patient safety and protect RNs from debilitating injuries caused by manual patient lifting/
Headlines from the Hill Dollars and…sense?
As Congress nears the "fiscal cliff" and the so-called
sequester with its across-the-board spending cuts, ANA will continue to advocate for funding of programs important to nurses.
Healthcare reform: Resolve to increase your knowledge in 2014
Find out how the Affordable Care Act is reforming health care and how it could affect your practice.
Healthy and wise
A coalition of medical societies has joined together to put the brakes on healthcare overuse and excesses.
HHS releases modifications to HIPAA privacy, security, enforcement, and breach notification rule
On Jan. 17, the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) released “Modifications to the HIPAA Privacy, Security, Enforcement, and Breach Notification Rules under...
Higher education bill creates new opportunities for nurses and schools
Higher education bill created new opportunities for nurses and schools; House joins Senate in supporting advanced practice registered nurses in home health.
How do we get into morally questionable situations?
Leah Curtin discusses the dangers of bottom-line thinking.
How the candidates want to change health care
Web exclusive! See what Senators McCain and Obama say they'll do to fix our broken healthcare system.
How to avoid the pitfalls of social media
You may face serious consequences if you use social media and other new technologies inappropriately.
How to comment on government regulations
You can get directly involved in developing public health policy by submitting your comments on proposed government regulations to federal departments and agencies.
Incorporating nursing quality indicators in public reporting and value-based purchasing initiatives
Quality-improvement initiatives give short shrift to nursing-
specific indicators. The authors discuss obstacles to
incorporating such indicators and explore current initiatives to include them.
Is the Code of Ethics for Nurses a legal document?
To: Ethics Advisory Board
From: Concerned RN
Subject: Unethical practice error
What if I make an inadvertent, unethical practice error? Is the Code of Ethics...
Issues up close
Enduring and evolving: Code of Ethics for Nurses
Issues up close
Care coordination: Nurses lead the way.
Issues up close
ANA has joined the Partnership for Patients to improve patient safety.
Issues up close
This article details how patients are affected by APRNs’ current inability
to order home health services.
Issues up close
ANA’s House of Delegates recently approved a resolution supporting health
care for all. The author examines the social, economic, and political ramifications of undocumented immigrants’ lack of access to health care.
Issues up close
Family nurse practitioner (FNP) and nurse-midwife Karen Holder, FNP-BC, CNM, MHS, sees patients at a large primary care clinic in Flagstaff, Arizona, as well as at small satellite units in remote communities sprinkled around northern Arizona.
Issues up close
Nurses in the Department, Veterans Administration, Federal Nurses Association (FedNA), and other groups are collaborating to make sue the healthcare needs of active-duty military personnel and veterans are met.
Issues up close – Preparing for the worst is the key to surviving disasters
National Preparedness Month is a good time to learn about
national disaster-preparedness.
Leapfrog Group says hospital safety improvements too slow
The Fall 2013 update to The Leapfrog Group Hospital Safety Score shows many hospitals are making headway in addressing errors, accidents, injuries, and infections...
Legal nurse consultant: A career at the crossroads of health care and the law
The jurors file into the courtroom, avoiding eye contact with the attorneys and spectators. I hold my breath. The plaintiff’s attorney straightens his tie;...
Letters to the Editor – November 2008
Easy and inexpensive
Thank you for Susan Fetzer’s excellent article, “Putting a stop to postop nausea and vomiting,” in the August issue. One treatment that...
Managing our fears to improve patient safety
Leaders must develop a structured process for team learning and communication.
Many shades of grey
Leah Curtin discusses the effects of ambiguity.
Mary Naylor named to Medicare Payment Advisory Commission
Mary D. Naylor, PhD, RN, FAAN, of the University of Pennsylvania School of Nursing, has been appointed to the Medicare Payment Advisory Commission. MedPAC...
Medical futility: A nurse’s viewpoint
Caring for a medically futile patient can be a wrenching emotional experience. Learn how to cope with the complex medical, ethical, and legal issues and help patients and families make difficult decisions.
Medication errors after hospital discharge common
A study in Annals of Internal Medicine found that half of patients hospitalized with acute coronary syndromes or acute decompensated heart failure had "clinically...
Medication errors: Best Practices
A medication error can occur in any healthcare setting-with devastating consequences. The authors describe weaknesses in the key elements of medication use and propose ways to make drug therapy safer.
Medication name change proposed
The United States Pharmacopeia (USP) has proposed changing the name of hydromorphone to reduce medication errors caused by confusion with morphine. Read more about...
Michelle Obama, Mary Wakefield discuss Affordable Care Act
First Lady Michelle Obama and Mary Wakefield, PhD, RN, Administrator for the Health Resources and Services Administration held a conference call on Sept. 28...
NEJM interviews HHS Secretary on healthcare reform
The New England Journal of Medicine features an interview about healthcare reform with Health and Human Services’ Secretary Kathleen Sebelius. Read more at http://www.nejm.org/doi/full/10.1056/NEJMp1014722.
NEJM: Public views on Medicare and the budget deficit
The July 13 issue of the New England Journal of Medicine includes an insightful review of public polling on Medicare and how public opinion...
New guidelines for treatment of malaria
The World Health Organization has released new guidelines for malaria treatment to counter the misuse of anti-malarial drugs. Access the guidelines at http://www.who.int/malaria/en/.
No peeking allowed
Electronic health records give healthcare providers faster, more efficient access to patient information. Experts hope to make the data less vulnerable to security breaches.
Nurse Advocacy for chemicals policy reform gains exposure
Through resolutions, partnerships, and conferences, ANA's advocacy for chemicals
policy reform is gaining wider exposure.
policy reform is gaining wider exposure.
Nurse practitioners should be eligible to serve as “medical homes” for primary care
Nurse practitioners should be eligible to serve as “medical homes” for primary care
By Eileen Shannon Carlson, JD, RN
Congress is working to develop a comprehensive...
Nurse responsibility in advancing global health
To: Ethics Advisory Board
From: Volunteer RN
Subject: Global health outreach
With the recent earthquake in Haiti and the devastation that country has experienced, I feel...
Nurse voices are needed now more than ever
Nurses can help retool our healthcare system by telling government leaders what they need to know.
Nursing ethics for a gig economy
To: Ethics Advisory Board
From: Overworked RN
Subject: Freelance nursing
I’m exhausted. My unit is always short staffed. I’m asked to work longer hours and come in...
Nursing’s ethical commitment to effective patient communication
Nurses need more than solid technical skills to provide ethical care. A recent AMA Ethical Force Program report casts a spotlight on effective patient communication as an essential component of care. This article points out parallels between the AMA report and the ANA's Code of Ethics.
Nursing’s role in healthcare reform
The 2010 healthcare reform act (Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, or PPACA) gives nurses new opportunities to deliver care and play an integral...
Of artichokes and angry patients
How is an artichoke like an angry patient? What can you do to diffuse anger.
On the CUSP: How to implement a comprehensive unit-based safety program
This five-step program empowers staff to change unit culture and improve patient safety.
Our “knowing-doing” gap
Something as simple and low - tech as the checklist can help healthcare providers close the knowing - doing gap.
Our Readers Respond
How do we get into morally questionable situations?
I love this article. As a current student in the nursing program, I find it incredibly important...
Patton attends ceremonies to celebrate opening of 110th congress. ANA wants YOU! Apply to...
ANA pledges to work with new leaders of the 110th Congress. ANA seeks Nurses for its political action leader (N-PAL) program.
Physician supports APRNs in Atlantic article
John Rowe, a physician who is professor in the department of health policy and management at the Columbia University Mailman School of Public Health,...
Preventing physician fatigue
Learn about new recommendations for reducing physician fatigue
Principles to live and work by: ANA Crafts document to guide RNs in environmental...
ANA issues principles delineating RN's rights and responsibilities toward improving environmental health.
Problems with Privacy
Leah Curtin discusses how the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) has been misinterpreted to the detriment of patients.
Promoting civility in the workplace
To: Ethics Inbox
From: An ANA member
Subject: Bullying and incivility
Bullying and incivility are rampant on my nursing unit. My manager doesn’t address the situation,...
Protecting privacy while supporting nurses
To: Ethics Advisory Board
From: Concerned emergency department clinical manager
Subject: Patient/family privacy and nurses’ well-being
A patient was brought to our emergency department (ED) from...
Protecting yourself from malpractice claims
As nursing practice becomes more autonomous, nurses are becoming more vulnerable to lawsuits. Learn how to avoid being sued for malpractice and what to do if you are sued.
Quality-improvement initiative: Classifying and documenting surgical wounds
Interprofessional collaboration promoted a successful initiative to improve wound classification.
Quantum ethics: Coming to grips with the dark side
Nurses have an ethical duty to address the web of relationships,
expectations, and egocentrism that influences them.
Ready, set, go! How to return to the nursing workforce
Are you an RN who has been out of the workforce? Your talents, experience and expertise are needed in all healthcare settings. While technology...
Ready…Set…Go! My representatives are back home… What can I do?
During the August Congressional recess, many elected officials will be available in their district offices. This is a great opportunity for nurses to meet with them and perhaps make an impact on legislation involving nursing issues.
Research ethics: What nurses need to know
To: Ethics Advisory Board
From: Conscientious RN
Subject: Patient care during research
I’ve been asked to care for patients who are participating in a research study....
Science: A universal source of ethics?
“It really doesn’t matter whether you are Muslim or Christian or Jew. In every religion, in every country, in every region at every time,...
Searching for transparency at Guantanamo Bay
A tour of the detainee facilities at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba leaves key questions unanswered.
Social Security improvements results in longer life spans
A study published in the Journal of Public Health Policy found that Americans over the age of 65 experienced steep declines in the rate...
Standardized patient “hand off” reduces medical errors
Using the patient “hand off” tool I-PASS reduced medical errors by 40% according to a study at Boston Children’s Hospital. I-PASS stands for: I...
Study: Immigrants contribute more to Medicare than they take out
According to a study in Health Affairs, immigrants in the U.S. disproportionately subsidize the Medicare Trust Fund, probably as a result of the high...
Study: Medicaid expansion may reduce mortality
Expansion of Medicaid coverage may reduce mortality among adults, according to a study published in the New England Journal of Medicine. Read more.
Study: Nonsmokers benefit from smoking ban
A study presented at the European Society of Cardiology meeting on Aug. 26, found that introduction of smoking bans in Bremen, Germany, prevented one...
Study: Pay for performance doesn’t affect 30-day mortality
A study in The New England Journal of Medicine found that the hospital-based, pay-for-performance program Medicare Premier Hospital Quality Incentive Demonstration failed to reduce...
Study: Shortages of cancer drugs associated with medication errors and higher
A study in the American Journal of Health-System Pharmacy reports a survey of oncology pharmacists in the United States found that shortages of oncology...
Supporting our children’s access to quality health care and our nurses
A Congresswoman who's also a nurse describes her efforts to improve children's access to healthcare coverage.
Take Note – December 2006
CDC recommends HIV screening for everyone
New recommendations from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) call for routine human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) screening...
Take Note – May 2009
A monthly round-up of clinical and practice news and alerts.
Take Note – October 2007
Medicare to stop reimbursing hospitals for eight preventable conditions
Medicare will stop paying hospitals for the extra costs of treating eight conditions stemming from preventable...
Take Note – Sept/Oct 2009
Patients lose when nurse staffing is insufficient
Heavy workloads and insufficient staffing affect patient care, according to about 2,000 nurses surveyed worldwide by the International...
Taking it to the top
ANA and state associations promote health system reform
The importance of health system reform can seem like a distant memory when gas prices are going...
Tending to all their needs: Advance care planning for pediatric patients
B is a 12 year old boy who suffers from cardiomyopathy following an acute viral illness. His condition is stable, but without a heart...
The ‘state’ of state health insurance exchanges
Learn how these exchanges will work.
The Babies Doe: Finding middle ground
The author explores ethical questions about caring for a baby with profound birth defects and offers a nursing answer.
The code is in my briefcase
Applying the ANA's Code of Ethics to everyday nursing practice
The ethical will: A loving legacy
An ethical will serves as a vehicle for distilling a lifetime of wisdom and relaying messages of hope and love.
The evolving role of the forensic nurse
Even if they’re not portrayed on the TV shows "CSI" or "Law &
Order: SVU," forensic nurses are pivotal in real-life forensic cases.
Catch up on the dynamic, evolving specialty of forensic nursing.
The most expensive one percent: A case study
What would you do? Let author Leah Curtin know after you read this case study.
The patient engagement imperative
Engaging patients is essential to ensure optimal reimbursement. Here are tips for engagement that leaders can apply in their organizations
The quality nexus: Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology
In April, Farzad Mostashari, MD, ScM, became the fourth National Coordinator of Health Information Technology within the Office of the National Coordinator for Health...
To make health care better, I would…
To make health care better, I would...
...mandate every patient have a primary RN who knows the patient’s past health history, socioeconomic status, health risks,...
Update on Medicare Part D prescription drug program
Medicare's prescription drug program recuperates from its rocky debut; ANA endorses the Medicare Quality Enhancement Act.
Urge Congress to invest in nursing. Oppose the Healthcare Truth and Transparency Act.
The American Nurses Association (ANA) is seeking an increase of $25 million in FY 2007 funding for the Nursing Workforce Development programs administered by...
Viewpoint: Nurse’s refusal to force feed Gitmo prisoners triggers debate
Few Americans know that a U.S. Navy nurse may lose his 18-year career because he decided he could no longer in good conscience continue...
What price are you willing to pay?
Leah Curtin discusses the challenge of a moral problem.
What to do when you’re being investigated
Being under scrutiny can rattle even the toughest RN. Our legal expert, LaTonia Denise Wright, BSN, RN, JD, explains how to protect your rights if you're caught up in a regulatory or law enforcement investigation.
What you must know about minors and informed consent
Our expert, Mable H. Smith, PhD, JD, RN explains the subtleties of informed consent when your patient is a minor.
What’s in a name?
What’s in a name?
Editor’s note: The information below was provided by United States Pharmacopeial Convention (USP). It may be freely reproduced and distributed, for...
When closeness breeds cruelty: Helping victims of intimate partner violence
We may not realize it, but most nurses have frequent contact with domestic abuse victims. Shame and fear of reprisal keep many victims from reporting the problem. Caregivers' discomfort with the topic or unfamiliarity with its signs and symptoms can lead to missed opportunities to identify and help victims.
When does a nurse-patient relationship cross the line?
Our legal expert, LaTonia Denise Wright, BSN, RN, JD, responds to a reader's question about professional boundaries and the legal and ethical ramifications of crossing them.
When good people make hard choices…*
Leah Curtin discusses the difficulty of making choices in health care and includes a challenging situation she experienced as a student.
When nurses speak up, they pay a price
Leah Curtin discusses the effects of whistleblowing on nurses’ lives
When patient privacy endangers staff
Examine the ethical and legal issues of patient privacy.
When something goes wrong: how to disclose an error
How should patients learn about an error?
Why disruption can be a good thing
Seventy-two seconds into liftoff, a defective mechanical part set off a string of events that caused the Challenger space shuttle to tear apart as...
Most Recent Content
For Nurse Practitioners
Do Vitamins, Plants Help Uterine Fibroid Risk or Treatment?
A research team out of Poland recently undertook a comprehensive examination of published data to determine the role that vitamins and diet might play...