From NZ media this week
Nurses' prospects ailing
Tough economic times and longer careers for experienced nurses leave new graduates out in the cold. Sophie Bond reports.
http://bit.ly/gMG8k9
Primary Care Pilots To Tackle Kidney Disease - Media Release
A new initiative, which started with the appointment of a clinical nurse specialist in July 2010 at Waikato District Health Board to prevent and or delay the progression of diabetic end stage kidney failure, is an intensive education and monitoring programme run through the Midland Regional Diabetes Service at Waikato Hospital.
http://bit.ly/g1LSb2
Labour reshuffle puts first term MP in health hot seat
Labour first-term MP Grant Robertson has shot up to the front bench in the party's reshuffle announced today, replacing Hauraki-Waikato MP Nanaia Mahuta, who has asked for a lighter work load because she is having another baby.
http://bit.ly/hLH8rn
Oversight-failed-suicidal-student
MidCentral District Health Board has been spared the wrath of a coroner's findings into a suicide, even though a nurse was found to have made a mistake by not acting on a warning about the depressed man's state of mind.
http://bit.ly/i5C5kz
CDHB-aims-to-reduce-rate-of-seclusions
Nearly 200 Canterbury mental-health patients spent more than 8000 hours in seclusion last year.
http://bit.ly/fVcY1d
DHB-calls-for-1am-closing-in-bars
The Southern District Health Board wants 1am closing times in bars across Southland and Otago.
In its submission on the Government's Alcohol Reform Bill the health board has made several requests including lower limits for drink-driving, raising the drinking age to 20 and banning the sale of liquor in supermarkets
http://bit.ly/ebBA1Y
The-angel-of-Fairlie
OPINION: Florence Nightingale would be proud of Fairlie's Alison Neill. So should the rest of her community.
After a lifetime of nursing and caring for the elderly, and setting up something truly extraordinary in the Mackenzie town, a deserving Mrs Neill was named Senior New Zealander of the Year on Wednesday night, winning $5000 for her efforts.
http://bit.ly/ihbueI
Middlemore staff caught dirty handed by survey
More than a third of health workers fail to clean their hands every time they should, a snapshot of 10 wards at Middlemore Hospital indicates
http://bit.ly/gkvjJp
UN-rebukes-New-Zealand-for-child-poverty
The "staggering" rates of child abuse and poverty in New Zealand have been condemned in a United Nations report.
http://bit.ly/e4Fcv9
Public health issues
Drugs pouring into misbehaving children
Record numbers of children are being medicated because of behavioural problems despite lingering concerns about the safety and effectiveness of the drugs they are taking.
http://bit.ly/fvl1yc
Diabetes in pregnancy a risk years later
A type of diabetes that strikes during pregnancy may disappear at birth, but it remains a big red flag for mothers' future health - one that too many seem to be missing.
http://bit.ly/fsdhPo
Government health cuts hurting young people
A decision by the National Government to cut $8 million from sexual health programmes will cost New Zealand dearly in the long run, Labour Youth spokesperson Jacinda Ardern.
http://bit.ly/gj4TXB
From international media sources
Nurses should treat obese patients with 'more respect'
A US model of treating obese patients with “respect” should be rolled out across the UK, say nurses who have spent time studying the approach.
http://www.nursingtimes.net/5024880.article?referrer=e1
Expert Rehabilitation Nurses Available To Discuss Role Of Nurse In Brain Injury Recovery Process
Brain Injury patients and their families spend the majority of their rehabilitation time with rehabilitation nurses and yet, not once has the role of the rehabilitation nurse been noted in all the recent media features about recovery. Most likely this is because only those people who have been through this experience truly understand the unique role and very close relationship patients and their families develop with their rehabilitation nurse during this very difficult time
http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/215416.php
More Doctors Must Join Nurses, Administrators In Leading Efforts To Improve Patient Safety And Outcomes
Efforts to keep hospital patients safe and continually improve the overall results of health care can't work unless medical centers figure out a way to get physicians more involved in the process.
http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/215438.php
Most Facilities Have Standing Orders for Nurses to Immunize, According to Online Poll
The American Nurses Association would like to thank its website visitors who participated in the January 2011 'Have Your Say' online poll. The poll asked respondents if their facilities have standing orders for nurses to get immunized.
http://bit.ly/guIpTp
State offers 1400 extra nurses, payrise
AT least an extra 1400 full-time equivalent nurses could begin working in NSW hospitals if a state government offer to the NSW Nurses' Association (NSWNA) is accepted.
http://bit.ly/eYhMcn
Thousands of Victorian Nurses not Registered for Work Today
Thousands of Victorian nurses and graduate nurses will have a tough time convincing their employers that they are registered. Despite the January 31 extended deadline for all nurses and midwives to register with the new national registration and accreditation scheme for health professionals, many have still not received confirmation of their registration...
ttp://bit.ly/fqn2Ip
Report Questions Nurse Practitioner Training
The Royal Australian College of General Practitioners (RACGP) has publicized its concerns regarding the training and qualifications of nurse practitioners. The concerns correlate to the introduction of new laws allowing nurse practitioners to prescribe drugs listed on the Pharmaceuticals Benefits Scheme and claim Medicare rebates
http://bit.ly/dKukAp
More Concerns Raised by GPs over Nurse Practitioners
GPs have again expressed concern over the new laws allowing nurse practitioners to set up private practices. In addition to attracting nurses away from jobs in GP clinics, many doctors fear that the scope of collaboration required by the nurse practitioners with GPs is not clearly defined, nor are the nurses' limitations in regards to prescribing drugs.
http://bit.ly/ezWtPv
Performance-Based Payment Incentives May Not Foster Improved Conditions For Nurses
A new study, conducted by Ellen Kurtzman, R.N., M.P.H., FAAN, assistant research professor in the GW School of Nursing, and published in Health Affairs reveals that while nurses have been recognized as pivotal players in...
http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/215674.php
Emotional intelligence high among mental health nurses
Levels of “emotional intelligence” are higher than average among mental health nurses, say researchers.
http://www.nursingtimes.net/5025037.article?referrer=e7
CMA And CSA Seek Reversal Of Court Ruling On Nurse Anesthetists
The California Medical Association (CMA) and the California Society of Anesthesiologists (CSA) are pursuing an appeal and writ petition to seek reversal of a court decision that allows nurse anesthetists to administer anesthesia unsupervised by a physician. The appeal raises questions about how to protect patients undergoing surgery and the ability of physicians to provide quality medical care.
http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/215570.php
Articles of interest
Casualisation in the nursing workforce – the need to make it work
The aim of this paper is to highlight some of the challenges faced by the nursing profession in response to increased casualisation of its workforce and why the presence of casualisation needs to be viewed in a positive light.
http://www.ajan.com.au/ajan_28.1.html
Nurse practitioners are well placed to lead in the effective management of delirium
To acknowledge the detrimental impact that delirium continues to have on an individual and at the system level in an Australian acute inpatient setting and highlight the potential role that nurse practitioners can play in evidenced based prevention and management.
http://www.ajan.com.au/Vol28/28-1_Burge.pdf Differentiating the CNS and CNL roles
Nursing Management:
January 2011 - Volume 42 - Issue 1 - p 51–54
In 2004, the American Association of Colleges of Nursing (AACN) launched a new role called the clinical nurse leader (CNL).1 Quality and safety concerns, nursing shortage, and growing healthcare needs of a multicultural and aging population in the midst of a nursing shortage were among the issues cited in the rationale for this new role. The AACN focused not only on an inadequate quantity of nurses, but also on the need for nurses prepared for leadership at the "microsystem" level, with the knowledge required for implementation of evidence-based practice (EBP) and quality improvement, as well as skills in technology use for delivery of quality patient outcomes.
http://bit.ly/f0Mumb
Scope of emergency nurse practitioner practice: where to beyond clinical practice guidelines?
The aim of this paper is to discuss some of the issues around continuing development of the Emergency Nurse Practitioner (ENP) role in a Victorian metropolitan Emergency Department (ED) setting. More specifically the discussion will consider the evolving clinical practice of the ENP in relation to clinical practice guidelines (CPG) and optimal utilisation of ENP skills and expertise.
http://www.ajan.com.au/ajan_28.1.html
Online resources
Guidance on safe nurse staffing levels in the UK (PDF 1.7 MB)
Staffing levels have always been an issue. “What is the optimal level and mix of nurses required to deliver quality care as cost-effectively as possible?” is a perennial question. This report sets out the range of different factors that influence the total demand for staff and highlights the variety of methods for planning or reviewing staffing levels.
http://bit.ly/e5t9tO
Commissioning health services. A guide for RCN activists and nurses (PDF 658.9 KB)
Commissioners are increasingly under pressure to deliver improved services with fewer resources and hard decisions need to be made in the current economic climate. Activists who understand the commissioning process are in a strong position to influence decisions and protect the interests of patients and RCN members. The earlier activists and nurses get involved in these decision-making processes, the more likely it is that they will have a positive influence on behalf of patients and nurses. This publication covers what commissioning is, who leads commissioning and where it takes place, as well as detailing six keys to help activists and nurses in unlocking and understanding the commissioning process.
http://bit.ly/hvO63i
Competences: finding, using and managing information. Nursing, midwifery health and social care information literacy competences (PDF 1.4 MB)
The RCN recognised the need for information literacy competences to complement its clinical competence framework, helping nurses, midwives, health care assistants and nursing students develop their skills in using information and knowledge and apply this to their practice. These competences are intended to support the individual and the nursing team’s thinking about the information required to inform activities of varying complexity and are intended for use by staff in NHS career bands 1-9. For example, a nursing student on placement in a nursing home may use the competences to develop their understanding of the effects of a stroke and improve their patient care, a health
care assistant might use them to support the development of their portfolio on competent record keeping for NVQ level 2 in Health and Social Care, while a consultant nurse might use them to develop innovative evidence-based local protocols. Online resources which demonstrate how these competences can be used in practice by different members of the nursing team will be available later this year.
http://bit.ly/euIcXB
The Value of Close Calls in Improving Patient Safety.
Wu AW, ed. Oakbrook Terrace, IL: Joint Commission Resources; 2011. ISBN: 9781599404158.
Close calls (sometimes called near misses) pose unique challenges and opportunities when it comes to learning from mistakes. Because they are less dramatic than errors that lead to harm, they tend to be ignored in most institutional reporting systems. With a foreword by safety pioneer James Reason, this multiauthored book makes the case that close calls—which are significantly more common than true adverse events—can provide a unique window into an organization's safety hazards. Moreover, because there is less fear about liability and less shame associated with close calls, they may be easier for clinicians to talk about and learn from than true adverse events. By providing case studies from a variety of areas of medicine, this book illustrates the important role of close call reporting, education, and analysis in a robust safety program.
http://bit.ly/fMWbxD
Websites of interest
Professional supervision
Professional supervision can assist nurses and other professionals to grow and develop in their role and reduce burnout. Te Pou's professional supervision project is designed to increase the use of professional supervision in mental health nursing.
http://bit.ly/gZLz3g
Moving & Handling Association of NZ
The Moving and Handling Association of NZ is a non profit incorporated society whose aim is to promote safe moving and handling practice for workers in the health, disability, social and education sectors.
There is a high rate of injury amongst those involved in the manual handling of people and tasks related to their care.
We are an association of health professionals involved with addressing these workplace handling risks who would benefit from sharing resources and knowledge to create a safer work environment for all concerned.
http://www.mhanz.org.nz/
From the Nursing Council
Consultation document – review of current fees
The Nursing Council of New Zealand has recently undergone a review of all fees charged for services provided. The Council has released the draft fee structure for consulation, please
click here.
You are invited to submit your feedback on the proposed increases to the contact person listed in the document. Please note that submissions close at 5.00pm on Monday 21 February 2011.
http://bit.ly/fzdqZ2
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