Welcome to the
College of Nurses – News Update.
No. 201 Wednesday 7 May 2014
From NZ media this week
Trainee Nurse Aims to Make a Difference
Nursing practice experience
in Hawke’s Bay hospitals has shaped final-year degree student Nayda Heays’
ambition to work in an acute nursing setting like intensive care.
http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/GE1405/S00020/trainee-nurse-aims-to-make-a-difference.htm
Study shows hospital bias
New research from Massey University shows smaller hospitals
"seem to selectively treat" patients with complicated health conditions
in order to benefit from population-based funding.
http://www.stuff.co.nz/national/health/10004267/Study-shows-hospital-bias
Embarrassing bladder cured by Botox
Botox is famous for freezing the faces of celebrities, but it
could also ease the desperate urge to pee felt by half-a-million New
Zealanders.
http://www.stuff.co.nz/national/10006319/Embarrassing-bladder-cured-by-Botox/
Big gains in weight-loss procedure - surgeons
A record number of Kiwis are undergoing weight-loss surgery
on the public purse as our obesity rate soars.
http://www.stuff.co.nz/national/health/10004128/Big-gains-in-weight-loss-procedure-surgeons
Nine defining moments of midwifery care in NZ
Today is International Day of the Midwife and
we reflect on the changing face of midwives in New Zealand. It has been a
journey from autonomous carers, to assistants and back again, fraught with
politics, medical conflicts and women's rights.
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=11249784
Work
to do on hospital hand hygiene scores
Nelson Marlborough District Health Board hand
hygiene compliance is up 20 per cent but still remains under the national
average.
http://www.stuff.co.nz/marlborough-express/news/10010240/Work-to-do-on-hospital-hand-hygiene-scores
Oncologist says bowel screening benefits real
Scientific
evidence supporting the merits of bowel screening is stronger than that for
breast or prostate screening, Dunedin oncologist Christopher Jackson says.
http://www.odt.co.nz/news/dunedin/301084/oncologist-says-bowel-screening-benefits-real
Fresh look at old remedies likely
More
interest in alternative remedies is likely to feature in a post-antibiotic
world, a University of Otago infectious diseases authority says.
http://www.odt.co.nz/campus/university-otago/300929/fresh-look-old-remedies-likely
International media
More than $1.8 Billion in Savings Possible;
Limitations Hurting Poor, Rural Communities
With more than 3.3 million more Californians
now covered by the Affordable Health Care Act and Medi-Cal, granting full
practice authority to nurse practitioners is “one of the most effective steps”
California can take to increase the supply of primary care providers while
maintaining high quality health care and driving down costs, according to a report released today by the Bay Area Council.
http://canpweb.org/news-room/press-releases/report-backs-full-practice-authority-for-nps/
What Is the Role of Nurse Practitioners?
The concerns raised in “Nurses Are Not Doctors,” by Sandeep Jauhar (Op-Ed, April 30), are unfounded.
Decades of third-party research have shown that nurse practitioner outcomes are
equivalent to those of physicians.
http://www.nytimes.com/2014/05/03/opinion/what-is-the-role-of-nurse-practitioners.html?_r=1
Replacing registered nurses
isn’t the answer to rising health costs
A
shortage of qualified nursing staff and rising health costs have led to an increase in the employment of
unregulated nursing workers.
http://bit.ly/1kPDq7i
Patient Flow Checklist for Nurses
While nurses can't
completely control patient flow, there are several things they can do to
improve bed availability and reduce length of stay, according to a blog post
from TeleTracking Technologies. Nurses can:
1. Advocate for proper
patient placement.
http://www.beckershospitalreview.com/capacity-management/patient-flow-checklist-for-nurses.html
Teenage patients need nurses 'trained in both adult care and
paediatrics'
Nurses with
qualifications in both children’s and adult nursing have a key role in
improving health services for young people, according to a an independent group
of experts.
http://www.nursingtimes.net/5070435.article?WT.tsrc=email&WT.mc_id=Newsletter1
Nurses hold key to providing quality care to older LGBT adults
Even though LGBT populations are often grouped
together, each is a distinct group with specific health care needs, authors of
a new study say. This is especially true with older LGBT persons and involves
issues ranging from housing and long-term care placement to home-health and the
selection of health promotion practices. More than 2 million older adults
identify as lesbian, gay, bisexual or transgender, and they have specific
physical and mental health needs of which nurses need to be aware.
http://bit.ly/1iUDRyL
AORN Releases New Guidelines on Perioperative Nurse Staffing
The Association of periOperative Registered
Nurses has revised and released official position statements on safe staffing
guidelines and on-call practices.
http://www.beckershospitalreview.com/capacity-management/aorn-releases-new-guidelines-on-perioperative-nurse-staffing.html
The Changing Nurse Workforce: What Hospitals Need to Know
Changes in healthcare are starting to have a
dramatic impact on the nursing workforce, which should concern any hospital
that wants to retain top nursing talent.
http://www.beckershospitalreview.com/workforce-labor-management/the-changing-nurse-workforce-what-hospitals-need-to-know.html
Survey: Nurses Feel Patient Overloads, Short Staffing Detract From Care
A new survey from
Jackson Healthcare shows that while nurses are generally satisfied with their
work, they have a negative future outlook due to staff shortages and increases
in patient volumes. Findings from the report include:
http://www.beckershospitalreview.com/capacity-management/survey-nurses-feel-patient-overloads-short-staffing-detract-from-care.html
Graduate nurses and midwives should get jobs first: ANMF
Hundreds of home grown graduate nurses and midwives struggling
to find work should be employed in Australia before overseas nurses and
midwives, according to the Australian Nursing and Midwifery Federation (ANMF).
http://www.ncah.com.au/news-events/graduate-nurses-and-midwives-should-get-jobs-first-anmf/2075/
Mental health
'Focus needed' on youth mental health
There is a need for on-going youth mental
health monitoring and interventions, given a small decline in aspects of
self-reported mental health among New Zealand secondary school students.
http://www.voxy.co.nz/health/focus-needed-youth-mental-health/5/189387
Public health
Good Asthma Control For
Patients Is Often Sabotaged By Factors Beyond Their Control
World Asthma Day, on Tuesday May 6, is an annual event
organised by the Global Initiative for Asthma (GINA) to improve asthma
awareness and treatment around the world. Asthma affects approximately 235
million people and causes an estimated 250,000 deaths annually worldwide. The
theme for 2014 is You can control
your asthma.
http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/GE1405/S00005/asthma-sabotaged-by-factors-beyond-patients-control.htm
Teen illness a hidden killer
Rheumatic
fever is leaving many teens with hidden heart damage, with some calling it a
health "timebomb".
A
district health board-backed ultrasound screening pilot of Porirua children has
uncovered four previously undetected cases of rheumatic heart disease for every
known case.
http://www.stuff.co.nz/the-press/news/10008083/Teen-illness-a-hidden-killer
Living with a broken heart
For Buxton Popoali'i,
rheumatic fever not only cut short a promising rugby career, it nearly cost him
his life.
At 24, the former
Wellington and Highlanders back has already had heart surgery twice, most
recently in March when he was given a 50/50 chance of survival.
http://www.stuff.co.nz/national/education/10007939/Living-with-a-broken-heart
Call to regulate TV to stop
kids getting fat
Two Otago University researchers have called
for government intervention to stop children watching so much television
http://www.stuff.co.nz/life-style/wellbeing/10009279/Call-to-regulate-TV-to-stop-kids-getting-fat
Vaccination recommended
The
recent outbreak of a disease that had largely disappeared in New Zealand shows
the benefits of immunisation, Public Health South public health physician Keith
Reid says.
http://www.odt.co.nz/news/dunedin/301083/vaccination-recommended
Social media
Insights into health system costs of living
and dying in New Zealand – New study
A study in the NZ Medical Journal shows
how public spending on health varies markedly by age and proximity to death (Blakely et al 2014, health system costs). It raises interesting questions about the best use of
taxpayer funds for preventing and treating ill health. In this blog we detail
the main findings of this study and reflect some of the possible
implications.Our study used linked administrative health data, with costs
attached – so called HealthTracker, an amazing resource for New Zealand
analysts, planners and researchers. We looked at how health system expenditure
varied by age and whether people were within six or 12 months of death.
One analysis simulated health expenditure over a Kiwi’s lifespan, assuming
2007-09 costs by age applied. The results are in Figure 1(click on it for
higher quality image).
https://blogs.otago.ac.nz/pubhealthexpert/2014/05/02/insights-into-health-system-costs-of-living-and-dying-in-new-zealand-new-study/
Articles of interest
Deaf culture: Competencies and best practices
To successfully navigate in the hearing world, deaf
individuals must be able to read and write to bridge the gap when others do not
know American Sign Language. Unfortunately, 90% of deaf children are born to hearing
parents and do not develop language skills early on, which negatively impacts
their ability to access health information and healthcare. Healthcare providers
must ensure they provide culturally competent care and their practices
accommodate the needs of deaf patients to mitigate communication barriers and
ensure equitable care with positive health outcomes.
http://journals.lww.com/tnpj/Fulltext/2014/05000/Deaf_culture__Competencies_and_best_practices.6.aspx
Publications and Reports online
Full Practice
Authority for Nurse Practitioners Increases Access and Controls Cost
Expanding
access to and improving the quality of primary care is critical to controlling
healthcare costs for businesses and consumers. It is also
essential
to respond to the greater demand for healthcare from the coverage
expansion of the Affordable Care Act and the aging of our
population.
Granting full practice authority to nurse practitioners (NPs) is
one of the most effective steps that states can take to increase the
supply
of primary care providers while maintaining high quality and driving down
costs
http://www.bayareaeconomy.org/media/files/pdf/BACEI_NPs_CA_Final.pdf
Consultations
Draft for public
comment
DR100397 - Reprocessing of reusable medical devices in health service
organizations (Revision of AS/NZS 4187:2003)
To ensure that RMDs that are reprocessed by HSOs are adequately
cleaned, disinfected and/or sterilized to protect patients. Correct
reprocessing of a RMD prior to or between patient use produces a RMD that is
able to be used safely without risk of transmission of infectious agents.
http://bit.ly/1njg9vm
From the Ministry of
Health
Hauā Mana Māori - Living unique and enriched
lives
The aim of this research
project was to examine the barriers that hauā Māori and their whānau may
experience in accessing these services; and to identify elements that could
make accessing services easier.
The research focused
specifically on the needs of disabled Māori and their whānau in the
Murihiku/Southland region. The research drew from a range of sources including
a community survey, a literature review and consultation with service providers
in the area.
Four key themes identified
that correlate to increased feelings of wellbeing and health: feeling
valued; being connected; a strong sense of self identity and worth; and access
to appropriate resources.
Conversely, factors that
left hauā Māori feeling the opposite included: not being valued; experiencing
negative impacts of discrimination, colonisation, and disconnection; lack of
self-worth; and poor access to resources.
http://www.health.govt.nz/publication/haua-mana-maori-living-unique-and-enriched-lives
Enrolling Babies at Birth
2014 - A resource for
general practice
This resource provides
general practice with practical suggestions to support the process of ensuring
newborns are enrolled with general practice as close to birth as possible and
no later than two weeks after birth.
It is important that
newborns are enrolled close to birth to ensure childhood immunisations are
given on time and to maximise the child’s health as they grow.
On 1 October 2012,
the preliminary newborn
enrolment policy (the
B code) was implemented to improve the timeliness of enrolment. It
enabled general practices to pre-enrol newborns following an NIR notification
that they have been chosen as the newborn’s general practice. This
resource complements the 2012 policy changes.
The Ministry of Health
established a working group, comprising a range of stakeholders to look at
improving the timeliness of enrolling newborns in general practice and inform
the development of this resource. The group focused on the process of
transferring birth information from hospital systems to theNational Immunisation
Register (NIR) and from NIR to
general practice based systems if the GP has been identified as the nominated
provider. District health boards (DHBs) are also working to improve their
systems and processes.
http://www.health.govt.nz/publication/enrolling-babies-birth
The above information has been collated for the
College of Nurses Aotearoa (NZ) Inc by Linda Stopforth, SNIPS and is provided
on a weekly basis. It is current as at
Tuesday 6 May 2014
If you have any
feedback about content - what parts are most useful or what you would like
added - please email admin@nurse.org.nz
For more up to date news and information
follow SNIPS at:
Facebook: Snips
Info
twitter:
@SnipsInfo
Back to blog entries
Menu