AMN Healthcare features

AMN Community Relations – 2011 Year in Review, Looking Ahead

February 1, 2012 - As the nation’s largest healthcare staffing company, AMN Healthcare is privileged to provide a business service that directly benefits our society at large by providing hospitals and healthcare clients across the country with the highest quality clinical professionals they need to deliver improved patient care and outcomes. We understand and appreciate the impact of our service as we make the connections that make healthcare work better every day, and help so many to achieve their professional and personal goals.

Health Literacy Improvement Efforts Necessary to Improve Outcomes and Quality

January 31, 2012 - It’s easy to make assumptions, such as assuming that one patient understands the directions on his medication bottle, and or that another patient will be able to follow all the discharge instructions that she received when leaving the hospital.

Lessons from Leapfrog’s ‘Top Hospitals’

January 20, 2012 - At the end of every year, the Leapfrog Group awards its prestigious “Top Hospital” designation to a select group of health care facilities, based on their safety practices and outcomes. The 2011 list included 65 hospitals, and marked the 11th year of the Leapfrog Hospital Survey.

Team Training Leads to Better Outcomes and Staff Morale

January 10, 2012 - Can a program that builds teamwork among a surgical team make a difference for patients and staff? A new study in Archives of Surgery suggests that it can.

Experts Outline Cost-saving Strategies for Hospitals

November 15, 2011 - U.S.-based hospitals struggle to make ends meet amid ever-shrinking operating margins and reimbursement dollars, prompting healthcare leaders to look for cost-saving strategies that balance the budget without compromising care.

Coaching for Physicians: A Game Plan for Success

October 25, 2011 - Physicians, especially those in official leadership positions, often find themselves called upon to delegate tasks, lead a staff of diverse people and help resolve conflict. However, not every physician has received any formal education to learn how to tackle those tasks.

Top Performing Hospitals Reveal Their Quality Care Secrets

October 11, 2011 - The Joint Commission has recognized 405 hospitals across the country as top performers on key quality measures in its annual report on quality and safety, entitled “Improving America's Hospitals.” While the leaders of those facilities indicate feeling honored and proud, for many the listing comes second to their true motivation--to improve patients’ quality of care.

Questions are the Answer: AHRQ Campaign Promotes Better Communication

October 3, 2011 - A simple, genuine question can be one of the most effective tools for fostering better patient outcomes. And a new initiative from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services’ Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ) aims to encourage clinicians and their patients to ask more of those questions--and to listen to what the answers reveal.

The Importance of Information Technology in the ACO Age

September 13, 2011 - As healthcare systems in America move toward the creation of accountable care organizations (ACOs), many questions remain about which ones will be successful and how long that success might take. One thing is certain, however: the need for strategically implemented healthcare information technology has never been greater. In fact, the success of the ACO model depends on it.

Building Strong Healthcare Teams

September 14, 2011 - How well do your clinicians work together? If their communication and performance could use some improvement, there are some initiatives that can make a difference. In fact, the efforts that go into building patient care teams that function at their best can reap substantial benefits for everyone in the organization—including clinicians, patients and the leadership team.

Risks of Cutting Nursing Staff

August 24, 2011 - Federal officials are looking to cut reimbursement. The uninsured are flooding the nation’s emergency departments. Times are tough for healthcare providers, and many are tempted to cut nursing staff to boost the bottom line, but experts agree that’s not the best approach to reigning in spiraling healthcare costs.

New Online Tool Helps Facilities Compare Nurse Labor Costs

August 24, 2011 - Good planning isn't just good business--today it’s integral to the bottom line. That’s why hospital leaders are looking for ways to reduce burgeoning costs, driven in part by health care reform and reductions in reimbursements which represent only a few of the challenges placing upward pressure on labor costs.

Good Communication Should Start Early for Physicians

August 24, 2011 - Like many top-tier medical schools, the Stanford University School of Medicine carefully screens applications for the best candidates they can find. The admissions staff looks for outstanding academic records and impressive résumés.

Why More Hospitals Are Outsourcing Their Healthcare Recruitment

August 3, 2011 - Today’s attention on healthcare reform and the need for greater efficiency is putting more pressure on healthcare executives than ever before to find cost-effective workforce strategies. Instead of business as usual, many are asking, “What can we do differently to help us meet our patient care and financial goals?”

Physician Engagement Trends Show Room for Improvement

July 13, 2011 - Although collaboration seems more important than ever, physician engagement with hospitals is not increasing, in large part due to the uncertainties associated with healthcare reform and reimbursement.

Strategies to Decrease Non-urgent ED Usage

June 21, 2011 - How can hospitals and healthcare systems decrease the non-urgent use of emergency departments in today’s healthcare climate? A new report by the U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO) outlines a number of strategies, including case studies of healthcare organizations that have been successful.

Physician Recertifications Adding to Early Retirement?

June 10, 2011 - Physicians are inching closer to retirement at the same time the country’s aging population greatly needs care, which will likely lead to shortages. But some would argue that the burdens of board recertification are forcing older clinicians to consider leaving their careers early.

Using Electronic Medical Records to Enhance Genetic Research and Public Health

May 11, 2011 - The growing focus on collecting and connecting personal health information from electronic medical records (EMRs)—or electronic health records (EHRs), as they are often called—has expanded the number of applications of this critical data in its aggregate form. Medical researchers and public health officials are already starting to tap this rich data mine and discovering how real-time access can advance efforts in their respective areas.

NEJM Study: Understaffed Nursing Shifts Drive Up Inpatient Mortality Rates

April 13, 2011 - Even the best hospitals can be affected by nurse staffing shortages during some shifts—and with deadly consequences—according to a new study published in the New England Journal of Medicine (NEJM). Even an ANCC Magnet-designated hospital.

The Aging Effect on Healthcare

April 11, 2011 - It’s no secret—America is aging, and older adults require more health services than young people, potentially driving up costs. And as demand for care increases, physicians also are aging and contemplating retirement.

Pharmacy Workforce Trends Show an Ongoing Evolution

March 23, 2011 - The role of the pharmacist is an evolving role, with great potential. But no one is yet certain how the future supply of pharmacists will stack up against the demand for their services.

Social Media and the CDC

March 9, 2011 - The use of social media is exploding across the globe, for both personal and professional activities. As healthcare organizations and healthcare professionals are embracing the new social media tools, hospitals are using Twitter, YouTube and Facebook to promote their services and discoveries. Now the federal government is making it even easier to forge these online connections.

Managed Staffing Services: Achieving Cost Savings Through Increased Efficiency

March 2, 2011 - With healthcare providers under pressure to improve financial performance and maintain quality, healthcare leaders need to find ways to continue to operate for long-term success, while achieving immediate cost savings. With labor representing a hospital’s single largest expense, one answer can be found in the adoption of managed staffing services at many facilities today.

Addressing the Problem of Hospital Violence

March 2, 2011 - Violent acts in a healing environment sounds oxymoronic, but hospitals and other health settings can be dangerous places, filled with individuals under stress, impatient or in crisis with little coping ability left from which to draw.

Call to Action: Limit Early Elective Deliveries, Improve Outcomes

February 7, 2011 - Could patient or physician convenience be threatening patient safety and driving up costs in your L&D and NICU wards? If so, policy changes regarding scheduled deliveries could make all the difference.

Growing Hospitals the Old-fashioned Way: Mergers and Acquisitions

January 19, 2011 - It happens all the time in business – mergers and acquisitions to achieve growth, improve the value of a company and ensure the future. Up until a few years ago, growth by merger or acquisition wasn’t really a strategy in the healthcare sector. It is now.

Improving Relationships Between Hospitals and Physicians

January 19, 2011 - Healthcare reform has many in the industry contemplating partnerships between hospitals and physicians in new accountable care organizations or sharing bundled payments, which is prompting more talk about improving hospital and physician relations. But some hospitals have made collaboration a priority in the quest for better patient outcomes.

‘Transforming Health Care’ Chronicles Successful Changes at Virginia Mason

January 19, 2011 - Everyone talks about transforming health care, but in the end, few organizations do anything about it. Virginia Mason Medical Center (VMMC) in Seattle is an exception. It has accomplished what few health systems have through thinking outside the box and adapting a tried-and-true production system from Japan that empowers all levels of staff to contribute ideas and make changes.

Preventing the Inappropriate Use of Prescription Drugs

December 1, 2010 - Prescription drug use continues to climb in the United States. The Kaiser Family Foundation notes that the number of prescriptions paid for increased 39 percent from 1999 to 2009, during which time the country’s population grew by just 9 percent. Many healthcare experts would like to reverse this trend, both to reduce costs and to improve the quality of care received by patients.

Everything Old Is New Again: Complementary and Alternative Medicine Grow Up

November 10, 2010 - Some of the names might be familiar: Linus Pauling, Robert Rodale, Adele Lewis and Euell Gibbons. Many are not. Despite being dismissed as “New Agers” by practitioners of traditional Western medicine, these doctors, naturopaths, researchers and naturalists continued to write and lecture about achieving and regaining health through diet, exercise, meditation, acupuncture and Reiki.

Creating Healing Environments Through Better Hospital Design

October 29, 2010 - What if the place everyone expects will make them better actually makes them sick instead? And it’s not because of nosocomial infections.

New Disease Registry Provides Real-time Information to Improve Patient Outcomes

October 22, 2010 - What if physicians didn’t have to wait for the latest medical research and disease tracking statistics to be published and disseminated through traditional channels? What if they could instead find real-time information online, compare cases and learn of successes from other medical facilities, and react quickly with the proper treatments?

The Making of a Great Hospital Leader

September 29, 2010 - What does it take to be the best?

A Matter of Trust: How Patients Feel About Their Doctors

September 28, 2010 - When patients aren’t happy with the care they’re receiving, it can put a significant strain on the patient–provider relationship. These less-than-satisfied patients are less likely to be compliant with treatment and prescribed medications. They’re also less likely to pursue follow-up care.

More Nurses Advancing into Healthcare Leadership

September 9, 2010 - While there are many paths that lead to healthcare administration, it seems that more and more future executives are starting out as registered nurses. And whether their administration roles were planned or reached simply because their careers evolved in that direction, the RNs who find themselves in charge credit education, opportunities and mentors with providing them the chance to reach the top.

Linking Patient Satisfaction with Healthier Facility Margins

August 26, 2010 - Hospitals with happier patients also tend to enjoy healthier bottom lines, according to a recent study from the American Hospital Directory.

The Joint Commission Recertifies AMN Healthcare with Health Care Staffing ‘Gold Seal of Approval’

August 16, 2010 - The Joint Commission has recertified AMN Healthcare and its companies with its “Gold Seal of Approval” for healthcare staffing services. And, for the first time, Staff Care, AMN’s locum tenens division, has been included in the certification process.

The Future of 21st Century Medicine: It’s All in the Data

August 16, 2010 - Put the terms “high-tech” and “healthcare” in the same sentence and visions of robots, gadgets and imaging technology pop into the collective imagination of many readers. Whether it’s using proton-beam therapy, implanting LVADs in patients’ chests, or employing robots to perform surgery, the stuff of science fiction is becoming more commonplace in healthcare.

The Drop in State Medicaid Funding for Graduate Medical Education

July 30, 2010 - As states seek ways to balance budgets, several have decided to curtail their Medicaid programs’ support of graduate medical education (GME) in academic medical centers, according to a recent report from the Association of American Medical Colleges.

Who’s the Boss? Trends in Hospital Employment vs. Private Practice

July 7, 2010 - In a few years, will most physicians be employed by hospitals instead of private practices?

Majority of Hospital Executives Believe Reform Will Hurt Their Financial Health and Patient Care

May 26, 2010 - Nearly three-quarters of healthcare executives surveyed in April say healthcare reform will have a negative financial impact on their facilities, while more than 60 percent note that reform will have a detrimental effect on the quality of care their facilities are able to provide.

Do Not Disturb: Cutting Down on Interruptions for Doctors and Nurses

May 24, 2010 - Call lights, phone calls, alarm bells, colleagues just wanting a minute of your time: interruptions have become a way of life for physicians and nurses on the front lines of healthcare delivery. Yet research shows interruptions can be dangerous. Several organizations have found ways to decrease the risk.

Top Factors in Nurse Retention

May 14, 2010 - Healthcare employers have a number of goals for their nursing staff. Along with building their clinical skills and improving patient outcomes, administrators also want nurses to feel more engaged within the organization, with the belief that this will help them feel pride in their work and stay on the job. But research conducted by a human capital firm has shown that the “engagement” factor is not as closely linked to nurse retention as many had believed.

Physicians Shifting to the Employment Model

May 5, 2010 - The bar to becoming a physician in the United States is set high. Four years of college, four years of medical school and three to six years of additional training. Most physicians do not push through this arduous process just to collect a paycheck..

Fewer Physician Hours + More Patients = Challenges in Primary Care

April 12, 2010 - The waiting lines in doctors’ offices may be getting longer.

Not Enough Nurses, Not Enough Time: The Crux of Nurse-to-Patient Ratios

March 24, 2010 - How many patients per nurse is the right number to ensure patient safety? Or is it more than just a numbers game?

Mobile Medicine: Doctors and Nurses Up the Apps

March 23, 2010 - Physicians, nurses and other healthcare professionals want to deliver the best care possible, and many are finding smartphones with mobile applications improve quality of care.

Keeping Nurses Safe from Workplace Violence

March 3, 2010 - Verbal and physical abuse continues to escalate in the whirlwind of healthcare change, compelling some nurses to question their calling.

Physicians Donate Their Skills to Help Haitians in Need

March 3, 2010 - Physicians and nurses from across the country have headed to Haiti, knowing their skills and knowledge could make a difference to the thousands injured in the January 12, 7.0-magnitude earthquake that hit the nation. Many found the magnitude of the suffering and long-term needs almost overwhelming.

While Reform Waits, Providers Can Find ‘Quick Wins’ for Improving Efficiency

February 11, 2010 -- With large-scale health care reform apparently stalled for now, hospitals and other providers can take the lead in increasing efficiency and wringing waste out of the system. Healthcare Briefings reached out to more than a dozen health care experts for their suggestions about what works and what providers can do in the current environment to improve efficiencies. Several themes emerged.

The Quality Staff You Don’t See

Jan. 20, 2010 - Worried about the qualifications of your temporary clinical staff? You don't have to be. The key is to have them prescreened and prepared to begin on day one, with the help of an experienced quality services team that is looking out for your interests. These professionals, who serve as the standards authorities of your staffing company, can work with you to prepare qualified staff with the right credentials, licenses and skills to begin immediately helping your patients.

The Current State of Health Information Technology

Dec. 2, 2009 - Is health information technology turning a new leaf? Despite some barriers, a new report says wide-scale adoption of electronic records at U.S. hospitals is "on the cusp of change."

10 Ways to Prepare Your Facility for Flu Season

Nov. 4. 2009 - Many of the nation’s healthcare facilities have already taken practical steps to handle the escalating number of patients with H1N1 and seasonal flu. Others are considering innovative or more drastic approaches to reduce the potential strain on staff and resources.

U.S. Physicians Lag Behind in IT Implementation

Oct. 14, 2009 - When it comes to implementation of health information technology (IT) and electronic health records (EHRs), the majority of primary care physicians in the United States remain far behind on the paper trail, according

What’s Next for Hospitals? Creating a New Game Plan for the Economic Recovery

It’s a hard time for U.S. hospitals right now.

As the recession drags on and healthcare reform seems stuck in the planning stages, medical centers across the country are experiencing declines in revenue, non-operating income and investment income. Hospitals have seen a drop in elective procedures and are finding themselves having to absorb more bad debts, wait longer for reimbursements and treat a growing number of patients who can’t afford to pay in the first place.

Structuring Compensation Models to Improve Physician Recruiting

How much should physicians be paid?

The Money Issue: How to Make Your Billing More Patient-Friendly, Effective

One of the most problematic traits of medical billing is that conversations about the cost of a procedure and the patient’s financial responsibility do not typically occur until after the patient has received the service. Not because hospitals and other medical providers are trying to hide costs, but because making accurate cost estimates can be difficult.

Federal Funding Aims to Spur Greater EHR Implementation

The federal government hopes to spur adoption of electronic health records (EHRs) and will invest nearly $1.2 billion in grants to help providers computerize their records. The funding is part of the government’s $787 billion economic stimulus package.

Healthcare Trends: Changing Roles in the Hospital’s C-suite

Three years ago, Sandy Dahl, RN, MBA, a chief nursing officer, met with her hospital’s chief operating officer, Russ Myers, to discuss a bold initiative: the integration of nursing and other clinical operations. Both recognized that nursing was only one part of the patient experience, and that delivering the best care required team-centered management.

Retail Medical Clinics are a Growing Health Care Phenomenon

Big-box chains like Wal-Mart and Target aren’t just for shopping these days. If you stop in for a gallon of milk or a set of new tires, you might want to have your cholesterol checked or have your daughter’s sports physical done at the same time. Both of these well-known retail chains, along with grocery and pharmacy chains across the country are adding retail health clinics to the array of products and services they offer.

The Nursing Workforce: Key Organizations Reveal Strategies for Building a Strong Future

In a recent nursing workforce report, prominent researchers Peter Buerhaus, Ph.D., RN, David Auerbach, Ph.D., and Douglas Staiger, Ph.D., announced that the nursing shortage has begun to ease as a result of the economic recession. But they cautioned policymakers and administrators against getting comfortable with this trend.

Documentation System Improves ED Communication, Efficiency

With emergency departments across the country feeling the strain of overcrowding and overburdened staff, workflow and communication issues are a constant concern. One tried-and-true method of overcoming these challenges is bedside documentation.

Healthy Design: How Facilities Can Contribute to Patient Outcomes

A brand new medical facility is something special. When the building’s design incorporates space planning and environmental features that can improve patient outcomes, it is even better.

Senate Committee Hears Testimony on Physician Shortages

According to healthcare experts, there are not enough physicians in the U.S. and the ability to train and support a sufficient number of new doctors over the next several years may lie in the hands of our country’s elected officials.

Nurses: Still Looking for Job Satisfaction

Nurses continue to be less satisfied with their jobs than other healthcare professionals, according to the latest Press Ganey Associates’ check-up report, Employee and Nurse Perspectives on American Health Care Organizations.

Online Records Help Patients and Clinicians Coordinate Care

Patients are taking a more active role in their healthcare with the use of online health records, and for some, this interactivity has been a life saver.

Going Green Helps Hospitals Save Money and Resources

Saving the environment hasn’t always meant saving money, particularly for hospitals. Finding new, ecologically sound methods that could maintain quality of care often seemed expensive and complicated. New programs, however, have made it easier for hospitals to take better care of their patients and the earth.

Social Networking Has Hospitals All a ‘Twitter’

While some people fear it, others revere it. It’s the next wave of marketing, customer service, sales and trendy technology all rolled into one. What is it? It’s social media and it is the next great marketing medium for the masses.

Nurses Hesitate to Report Errors

Nurses know the value of reporting errors but feel conflicted about disclosing a mistake, according to a recent study in the Journal of Patient Safety. "Error communication is important but doesn’t happen frequently enough for a variety of reasons, such as time, nurses thinking it was not serious enough to report and not knowing what happens to the reports after they are made," said Suzanne Brungs, RN, MSN, MBA, coauthor of the study and a health system specialist with the VA Healthcare System of Ohio.

More Hospitals Now Offer Complementary and Alternative Medicine

More hospitals than ever are now offering complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) modalities in addition to traditional medical care, according to a recent report from the American Hospital Association (AHA).

New Web Site Provides Information and Resources on Nation’s Healthcare Workforce

At a time when the shortage of healthcare professionals is reaching epic proportions comes the Health Workforce Information Center (HWIC)—a comprehensive online resource center providing up-to-date news, data and research on the nation’s health workforce.

Less Can Be More in Patient Care

More healthcare isn’t always the best medicine, according to a new study. Without proper coordination between healthcare providers, the transitions in care can seem disjointed and chaotic, causing patients to feel less satisfied with their care.

Single-patient Rooms Increase Safety, Capacity

Once thought to be a luxury, single-patient hospital rooms are quickly becoming more common. New hospitals are even designing emergency departments and intensive care units to allow for more patient privacy. While the up-front costs may seem high, some hospitals are finding that the practice may end up saving money and increasing capacity.

Surgical Fires More Common than Previously Estimated

A cry of "Fire!" is the last thing you would expect to hear in an operating room, yet every year between 550 and 650 patients awake from surgery to find that they have been at the center of a sudden blaze. Of this number, 10 to 20 of them suffer from serious and disfiguring burns and at least one to two patients die each year as a result of operating room fires. Previously thought to be a rare occurrence, these estimates from the Pennsylvania Patient Safety Reporting System reveal that surgical fires are five times more prevalent than previously estimated.

Hospitals Receive Beacon Award for Critical Care

Exceptional patient care is a primary goal of every hospital unit. For critical care units, taking care of patients often requires going above and beyond the call of duty. Every moment is precious and every decision is crucial. The American Association of Critical-Care Nurses (AACN) recognizes the nation’s top critical care units with the AACN Beacon Award for Critical Care Excellence.

Hospitals Explore Ways to Reduce Nurses’ Stress

When compared with many other jobs, healthcare professionals have higher rates of depression, anxiety and stress due to the life-and-death nature of their daily work. To help reduce the stress levels of their nursing workforce, a growing number of hospitals are exploring ways that nurses can unwind during their shift.

What Makes Nurses Happy?

Hospitals cannot function without nurses and many facilities have learned that retaining the nurses they have beats bringing in new ones. The key is finding out what makes nurses happy enough to stay.
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New Heparin May Improve Patient Safety

Medical errors are one of the largest expenses burdening today’s healthcare system. HealthGrades, a leading healthcare rating organization, reported earlier this year that medical errors cost the U.S. $8.8 billion between 2004 and 2006, and accounted for 238,337 deaths.

Oncology Nursing Advances along with Cancer Treatments

Working as an oncology nurse isn’t easy on the emotions, but the lessons learned on the job can last a lifetime.

Genetics: The New Nursing Frontier

Scientists are continuing to find genetic connections to common illnesses such as cancer, heart disease, diabetes and asthma. Some treatments already vary depending on a patient's genetic makeup and research is now underway to further tailor care according to genetic profiles.

Back to the Bedside with Relationship-based Care

About three years ago, the nurses at Barnes-Jewish St. Peters Hospital, northwest of St. Louis, Missouri, had about reached the limits of their patience. They were spending far too much time with paperwork and other tasks that kept them away from their patients' bedsides.

Hospitals Start Routine Rapid HIV Testing in ED

Along with taking a patient's vital signs, some emergency departments are now starting to routinely test for HIV, based on recommendations from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and financial support from government grants.

Aging Nurse Project Promotes Retention

Massachusetts General Hospital values its older, more experienced nurses and has a new initiative in place to not only retain these workers but to draw on their expertise in an effort to help keep newer nurses at the bedside.

Team Triage Speeds Up ED Throughput

With patients waiting long periods for treatment, Vanderbilt Medical Center's emergency department has created Team Triage, a multidisciplinary plan to decrease wait times.

Survey Finds Few Aware of Allied Worker Shortage

The shortage of allied health care professionals in California may be just as acute as the state's registered nurse shortage, but not as many people are aware of it. According to a survey commissioned recently by Fenton Communications, only 24 percent of respondents were aware of the shortage of allied health workers, compared with 69 percent who were familiar with the state's nursing shortage.

Health Coaches Lower Readmission Rates

Registered nurses serving as health coaches, providing high-risk elderly patients with one-on-one education, has led to a decrease in hospital readmissions at Dartmouth-Hitchcock Medical Center in New Hampshire and saved the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) $2.7 million.

97-year-old Texas Nurse Continues to Give Back to Community

When thinking about some of the most dedicated nurses in the healthcare industry, several come to mind—Florence Nightingale, the pioneer of modern nursing; Clara Barton, the Civil War-era nurse who organized the American Red Cross; and Ardis Martin, a 97-year-old nurse from Texas who continues her service today.

New Program Trains Mexican Nurses for U.S. Hospitals

A need for more nurses, particularly those able to speak Spanish, has led a group of Texas hospitals to fund a new program to prepare Mexican nurses to work in U.S. hospitals. Read More

Hospitals Take Softer Approach to Patient Care

Picture a patient lying under blankets in lavender-scented rooms, with soft music playing in the background, receiving a massage. This is the new era in patient care, where comfort and respect are given to patients and their loved ones, in greater and newer ways. Read More

RN-to-Patient Hospital Staffing Ratios Update

Following years of rallies, protests, public hearings and letter writing campaigns by the California Nurses Association/National Nurses Organizing Committee (CNA/NNOC), AB 394, the first RN-to-patient hospital staffing ratios law, became effective January 1, 2004 in all California acute-care, acute psychiatric and specialty hospitals. The law requires that no RN can be assigned responsibility for more patients than the specific ratio at any time, under any circumstances, based on patient acuity and scope of practice laws. Read More

States Consider Expanding Role of Advanced Practice Nurses

Advanced practice nurses across the United States may gain more independence in their practice, as bills make their way through legislatures in more than 20 states this year. Read More

Hospitals Turn Green with Bottom Line Envy

The old adage "it ain't easy being green," is no longer applicable to hospitals who are finding that reducing medical waste and adopting ecologically safer practices may actually be saving them money. Read More

Hospitals Borrowing Efficiency-Improvement Techniques from Industry

Hospitals aiming to work smarter and more efficiently are turning to quality assessment and improvement techniques pioneered in industry, deploying Six Sigma and Lean tools to change cultures and to improve results. Read More

Receiving Healthcare is a Matter of Luck in Oregon

The Oregon Department of Health Services found an innovative way to distribute healthcare to a portion of their low-income residents by offering insurance in a lottery. The prize for winning is state funded health insurance in the state's Standard health program, which was initially created for those who do not qualify for Medicaid but are unable to afford private insurance. Read More

Board Game Teaches Cooperation to Hospital Staff

A board game has been developed that hospitals across the country – as well as internationally – are using to provide training and insight for their staffs. Friday Night at the ER simulates a 24-hour day at a hospital and demonstrates the effects that short-term decision making and the actions of departments that operate independently from others can have on the hospital as a whole. Read More

Teen Pre-Med Club Founder Awarded Scholarship

The Health Care Communicators of San Diego (HCC) announced Alice Chung, a hospital volunteer and senior at Mira Mesa High School, as the winner of the 2007 Scholarship Essay. Chung received a $1,500 scholarship, courtesy of event sponsor AMN Healthcare, presented by Carol Burke, AMN’s Senior Director of Marketing and Communication, at the HCC Finest Awards Show gala, February 7, at the Del Mar Fairgrounds Turf Club. Read More

Spotlight on Risk Managers

On a quest to limit perils found in the health-care setting—for patients, staff and facilities—risk managers provide a wide variety of services that help their institutions identify and mitigate risk. Read More

Follow-up Sought for Health and Human Services Report on Physician-owned Hospitals

In a scathing report from the Department of Health and Human Services’ (HHS) Office of the Inspector General (OIG), physician-owned hospitals were accused of lacking in emergency care services. Subsequent reviews of the report suggest there was insufficient research and inconsistencies in the review process. While hospitals are questioning the validity of the report’s conclusions, OIG has pressed for further investigation of the facilities. Read More

Existing Interventions for Two CMS Hospital-Acquired Conditions

Set to go into effect October 1, 2008, a new Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) rule would deny Medicare payment to hospitals for care associated with six costly, yet preventable medical errors, specifically called hospital-acquired conditions (HAC) not present on admission (POA). The payment provision will apply only to acute inpatient prospective payment system (IPPS) hospitals and is intended to increase accountability and improve patient safety and outcomes. Read More

California Hospital Prices Vary Widely

Hospital charges to insurers vary widely in California, according to a new study analyzing pricing, costs and regional differences. Read More

Internet Sites Put Doctors on the Defensive

In an age where information is literally just a mouse click away, it’s not surprising that the healthcare industry has latched on to the World Wide Web. The Internet has made it easier than ever for doctors to diagnose rare illnesses, research pharmaceuticals and even download their patient’s chart at roughly the speed of light. Yet medical staff aren’t the only ones making a diagnosis via computer. Read More

Stored Blood Poses Problems for Patients

Hundreds of blood transfusions are given to sick people every year, all with the aim of helping them get better from whatever medical infliction they may be suffering from. But for some, having a blood transfusion only makes their conditions worse. Read More

New Technology Makes Important Strides in Pandemic Research and Prevention

Scientists from the Scripps Research Institute and IBM have teamed up in a collaborative effort to research, prevent and stop the spread of deadly pandemics like the avian flu by developing new technologies and programs. Read More

A Healthy Bottom Line: Linking Nurses, Patient Satisfaction and Profitability

Today’s healthcare consumers are better informed, more particular and more demanding than ever before, and healthcare providers must compete for their patronage. So where should hospitals invest their efforts to gain a competitive advantage and achieve a healthy bottom line? Recent legislative changes and a new report on healthcare staffing indicate that investments in the nursing staff may hold the key to attracting and keeping patients and ensuring a facility’s long-term profitability. Read More

Better Nurse Staffing Improves Pediatric Outcomes

Adding to the body of knowledge supporting what nurses intuitively know, better staffing leads to better care, a new study from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill found children have better outcomes after surgery in hospitals with high nurse-staffing levels, where registered nurses provide more hours of care. Read More

Students and Professionals Looking to Alternative Careers in Healthcare

The healthcare world is constantly reinventing itself and shifting to fit the ever-changing needs of the population it serves—whether it is in the careers that are most popular or the latest treatments and medicines that are in demand. Read More

AMN’s Travelers and Team Members: Running for a Cure

Laura Duffy, RN, and her fellow AMN Healthcare travel nurses and corporate employees laced up their running shoes in an effort to support the fight against breast cancer by participating in the 11th annual Komen Race for the Cure in San Diego, California, on Dec. 2, 2007. Read More

Medical Insurance Companies Score Low with Texas Doctors

Doctors in Harris County, Texas, recently voiced their opinions on the top six health insurance providers in their county in a survey conducted by the Harris County Medical Society and the University of Houston-Clearwater. The survey revealed discouraging results; that all six companies are severely lacking in areas of patient care and efficiency. Read More

New Program Eases Transition During Computer Conversions

Transitioning from paper files into the digital age, or even upgrading to a new system, is one of the biggest challenges facing medical personnel and hospital administrators. Aside from memorizing the program usage, adopting an entirely new system requires time, flexibility and concentration, all of which can take away time with patients. Read More

Low Wages Contribute to Nursing Faculty Shortage

There are a lot of reasons for the shortage in nursing today, but one of the greatest problems may be the lack of faculty available to teach those willing to join the profession. Read More

U.S. Health System Lags Other Nations in Safety and Access

Nurses and other health professionals know they work in a flawed health system, but just how does it compare to others around the world? Not as well as one would expect, given the money spent. A new Commonwealth Fund seven-nation survey found U.S. patients are more likely than people in other developed countries to report experiencing medical errors, to skip care because of costs and to want the system changed Read More

California Makes Progress in Addressing Nursing Shortage

With more nursing students graduating, California is heading for a better supply of registered nurses in the decade to come, something a new study attributes to collaborative efforts to ease the nursing shortage. Read More

Nurse Leaders in Pennsylvania Learn Keys to Success

The best nursing leaders in Pennsylvania will have a chance to sharpen their skills at the 2008 Rising Star Leadership Development Program held by the Pennsylvania State Nurses Association (PSNA). Read More

Diabetes Educator Leads National Organization in Fight to Conquer the Disease

Donna Rice, RN, BSN, MBA, CDE, is a crusader in the battle against chronic illness, particularly the diabetes epidemic. As president of the American Association of Diabetes Educators (AADE), she has high visibility and a strong voice for bringing attention to the disease. Read More

Preparing Expectant Parents for Perinatal Death

Pregnancy typically represents a time of joy and anticipation, but for women carrying a baby doomed to die, perinatal hospice nurses provide much needed support and education. Read More

Nurse Heads Effort to Change Healthcare

Believing that the current healthcare system needs a complete overhaul, rather than incremental changes, Laura Linn, RN, MN, has embarked on a journey bringing together nurses and other stakeholders to reinvent healthcare, turning it into a safer, more individual-focused, information-rich, transparent system. Read More

Workers Value Health Insurance as Numbers of Uninsured Rise

Forty-seven million Americans lack the security and ease of access to care offered by health insurance. Most Americans rely on employee benefits and nearly two-thirds of Americans consider health insurance the most valuable benefit offered by employers, according to recent studies. Read More

Evacuated AMN Travel Nurses Aid San Diegans during Wildfires

Evacuated from their homes, miles away from friends and family and unfamiliar with the area, several travel nurses on assignment from AMN Healthcare found themselves lost in a whirlwind of smoke and confusion during San Diego’s recent wildfires. Despite the chaos that raged around them, these nurses embraced the community and used their nursing skills to aid their temporary neighbors. Read More

Improving Mothers’ L&D Experience

Although most obstetric nurses would likely say they offer comfort, information and emotional support to laboring women, Childbirth Connection’s second national Listening to Mothers Survey found that only 56 percent of new moms thought they received such supportive care from the nursing staff. Read More

San Diego Wildfire Smoke Compromises Air Quality

The Southern California air that was once scented by sea salt and cool ocean breezes is now heavy with the smell of smoke and a feather soft rain of ash. The sky above is peppered with black clouds and a dark red sun that signal that the wildfires that have rampaged San Diego are far from over. Read More

Americans—and Health Care—Prepared for Disaster

A recent poll has found that the majority of Americans report being ready to deal with a natural disaster, and they believe their local hospitals are prepared as well. Read More

A Nurse’s Role in a Time of Tragedy

No one can adequately prepare for tragedy like the one that struck the Virginia Tech campus on April 16, but nurses nationwide can anticipate the need for compassionate care-giving during any emergency situation. Donna Mason, RN, MS, CEN, president of the Emergency Nurses Association, addressed the importance of a nurse's role in such times of tragedy. Read More

Cancer Navigators Help Patients Receive Timely Care

Receiving a cancer diagnosis is frightening. Patients might feel overwhelmed by the options and not know where to turn. That’s where patient navigators can help. Read More

No Override for SCHIP

Congress failed to override President Bush’s veto of the State Children’s Health Insurance Program (SCHIP) Act of 2007. The bill would have reauthorized and expanded the federal program, which will expire November 16 if no action is taken. Read More

Hospital Comparison Web sites Valuable but Need Uniformity

As the idiom “comparing apples to apples” implies, for items to be validly compared, they must be similar in nature, unlike “apples to oranges.” However, when researchers reviewed the quality of information on publicly available hospital comparison Web sites, they found inconsistent results because the hospitals used different and “suboptimal” standards to measure and score quality, according to an article in the September issue of the Archives of Surgery. Read More

Nurse and Patient Hygiene Measures Could Save Money and Lives
Hospitals and extended care facilities across the country are currently searching for improved infection prevention methods in response to the new Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) mandates which are scheduled to take effect in October 2008. The new mandates will stop reimbursements for eight hospital-associated conditions and are expected to cost hospitals millions of dollars in treatment and extended patient stays. Read More

Women Hold Several Misperceptions about Breast Cancer
Although more than three-quarters of American women consider themselves informed about breast cancer, a recent survey from the National Breast Cancer Coalition has shown that critical knowledge gaps still exist. Read More

ANA Urges Support of SCHIP
Unless federal elected officials reach an agreement by the end of the month to extend the State Children’s Health Insurance Program (SCHIP), more than 6.6 million children who received coverage from the program last year will join the 47 million Americans without health coverage. Read More

Teresa Russell Earns a Prestigious Certification in Wound and Ostomy Care
Teresa Russell, RN, MSN, NP-CNS, is a rarity among nurses. In June of 2006 she was honored at the annual conference of the Wound, Ostomy & Continence Nurses Society (WOCNS) as the first nurse in the country to earn advanced practice certification in wound and ostomy care. She did not aim to be a pioneer; she simply wanted to offer her patients the best care possible. Read More

Vickie Milazzo Inspires Nurses to Reach for Their Goals
A nurse to the core, Vickie L. Milazzo, RN, MSN, JD, now nurtures fellow nurses rather than patients, having pioneered a new nursing specialty that has brought nurses financial and career independence as certified legal nurse consultants. Read More

The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People with Diabetes
Just ask Donna Clark, APRN, BC, GNP, CDE, who has been working with diabetics for almost four decades. Ninety percent of her patients have Type 2 diabetes. Read More

Nurse Care Management Improves Depression Outcomes
It’s a prescription for success—by adding education and caring concern to a primary-care physician’s treatment plan, nurse care managers significantly improve depressed patients’ outcomes. Read More

Nurses Finally Embracing IT
Although slow to implement clinical information technology, United States hospitals are catching up, investing in computerized record keeping as part of a push to improve safety and efficiency, but some nurses fear online charting and other electronic changes to practice. Read More

Nurse Heads Effort to Change Health Care
Believing that the current health-care system needs a complete overhaul, rather than incremental changes, Laura Linn, RN, MN, has embarked on a journey bringing together nurses and other stakeholders to reinvent health care, turning it into a safer, more individual-focused, information-rich, transparent system. Read More

Experienced RN Takes the Reins as USPHS Chief Nurse
Serving as chief nurse officer of the U.S. Public Health Service caps the professional career of Rear Admiral Carol A. Romano, RN, Ph.D., FAAN, offering her the opportunity to positively influence health policy. Read More

Hospitals Cracking Down on HIPAA Violators
During the past four years, hospitals have become more comfortable with privacy provisions in the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA), and some are now tightening up enforcement. Read More

Hospice Patients Live Longer
Despite a common misperception that palliative symptom relief may hasten death, a new study found that hospice care may prolong the lives of some terminally ill patients. Read More

AONE Starts Nurse Manager Fellowship Program
Aiming to groom the next generation of nurse leaders, the American Organization of Nurse Executives has created a Nurse Manager Fellowship program Read More

Tennessee Commissioner of Health, Susan Cooper, RN, is a Trailblazer
On January 20, 2007, Susan Cooper, MSN, RN was sworn in as the Tennessee Commissioner of Health, becoming the first nurse ever to serve the state in that capacity. Read More

The AJN’s Editorial Head Extols the Importance of Nurses
If the position of press agent for the nursing profession existed, Diana J. Mason, Ph.D., RN, FAAN, would be perfect for the job. Read More

NLN’s New Leader Aims to Raise Organization’s Voice
During the course of more than three decades as a nurse Beverly Malone, Ph.D., RN, FAAN, has successfully cared for medical-surgical patients, opened her own private practice, led a school of nursing, served the president of the United States as deputy assistant secretary of health and ran the largest nursing union in the world. Now she faces a new challenge, as chief executive officer of the National League of Nursing, helping to steer the profession out of a nursing shortage. Read More

Nurse Privacy Officers Protect Patient Confidentiality
Nurses learn about the importance of patient confidentiality from the time they enter nursing school. It becomes an accepted part of the job, but for nurse privacy officers, upholding privacy standards becomes a full-time responsibility. Read More

Forgiveness: Another Tool for Healing
Experiencing a loss, such as those associated with a serious illness or accident, often brings past hurts and anger to the forefront, presenting nurses with an opportunity to help patients forgive, repair relationships and plan for the future. Read More

Campaign Aims to Decrease Premature Births
A new Prematurity Prevention Initiative will implement proven interventions aimed at stemming the increasing number of preterm births in a state where women often deliver their babies early. Read More

End-of-Life Wishes Not Expressed; How Nurses Can Help
What people say they want and what they do often differ. This holds true for Californians recently surveyed about end-of-life wishes. Respondents overwhelmingly thought it was important to put their desires in writing. However only 36 percent had drafted advanced directives and only about half had talked with loved ones about their preferences, according to a study by the California HealthCare Foundation. Read More

EMR Supports Changing Culture at Banner Estrella
Serving as a model for Banner Health’s Care Transformation initiative, Banner Estrella Medical Center in Phoenix, Arizona, introduced electronic medical records and team nursing to create an environment where nurses want to work. Read More

Nurses Love Working in Single-Room NICUs
Babies in single-room neonatal intensive care units seem to thrive in the quieter environment. Parents enjoy the privacy, and now a University of Florida study shows nurses assigned to single-room units experience greater job satisfaction and less stress than nurses in traditional open-bay NICUs. Read More

Nurse Artfully Applies a Special Kind of Care
If Sandra M. Walsh, RN, Ph.D., had her druthers, she’d put artist paint brushes in the hands of every patient, family member, caregiver and nurse that was physically able to hold them. Her reasoning: creating art is an act that promotes sharing, intimacy, altruism and serenity. Read More

Hospitals Not Equally Preparing for Bioterrorism
Nurses at teaching hospitals accredited by the Joint Commission have received more training in providing terrorism-related care than clinicians at other facilities, according to a new report from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention National Center for Health Statistics. Read More

Nightingale Metrics Improve Care and Satisfaction
Desiring to drill down and measure unit-specific outcomes of significance to nurses, patients and families, Children’s Hospital Boston initiated the Nightingale Metric Program, a quality improvement initiative aimed at enhancing patient care. Read More

More Than Science to This Specialty
Long before anyone thought of forensic nursing as a niche, Virginia A. Lynch, MSN, RN, was busy ensuring it would have a place in the history books. Read More

Improving Third-World Health through Education
Determined to improve world health, two deans of nursing have volunteered more than 4,000 hours each, flying halfway around the world to teach and train fellow nursing educators in Vietnam, Cambodia and Uganda with Health Volunteers Overseas. Read More

Nurses No Longer Working in the Dark, Thanks to Night Shift Committee
At AtlantiCare Regional Medical Center in Atlantic City and Pomona, New Jersey, night shift nurses no longer need to feel like they’re working in the dark. Read More

Joint-degree Program Offers More Growth to Nurses
Jakki Opollo constantly wonders why health care disparities exist and why poor patients often have bad health habits and worse outcomes. Read More

SCIP: Improving Surgical Outcomes
The Surgical Care Improvement Project, a national quality initiative aims to enhance patient outcomes by reducing preventable surgical complications by 25 percent nationwide by 2010. Read More

The Growing Need for More and Better Trained Medical Interpreters
Health care providers in hospitals across the country are increasingly dealing with language barrier problems as they try to communicate with patients. Multiple spoken languages, lack of tools and training resources, cost/reimbursement concerns and the inability to identify patients who need language services before they arrive at the hospital are some of the major barriers. Read More

Nursing Intervention Shortens NICU Length of Stay
Aiming to evaluate the affect of early nursing interventions on parents’ bonding with and ability to care for their premature infants, nursing research found the Creating Opportunities for Parent Empowerment (COPE) program not only decreased parental stress but led to shorter neonatal intensive care unit stays, saving on average $5,000 per baby. Read More

Fast-tracking to a Ph.D.
Nurses typically have spent years practicing before returning to school for a doctorate degree, shortening the length of time available to pursue research or teach. Hoping to reverse that norm, universities have begun offering accelerated Ph.D. programs. Read More

Two Nurse Legislators Introduce State Staffing Bills
Concerned about patient safety and nurse retention, nurse lawmakers in Washington State and Colorado have introduced legislation addressing staffing issues. Read More

Taking Simple Measures to Improve Outcomes
Sometimes clinicians seeking to improve outcomes must turn to technology or powerful new drugs, but when it comes to reducing potentially lethal catheter-related bloodstream infections, simple, low-tech measures, like hand washing and timely removal of unneeded catheters, can produce stunning results, according to a recent study reported in the New England Journal of Medicine. Read More

Half of ED Patients Admit PCP Could Have Handled Case
Patients and physicians agree that a primary care provider could have handled nearly half of all emergency department visits, if one had been available, according to a report from the California HealthCare Foundation. Read More

Many Nurses Not Comfortable with Evidence-based Process
Scientific studies offer opportunities to improve patient care and outcomes. Nearly two-thirds of nurses participating in a recent survey reported needing to find, access and provide care based on evidence-based practice. But only three in 10 expressed a high level of familiarity with the process, and about half reported a moderate comfort level with the steps involved. Read More

National Nurses' Group Advises on Issues
The shrinking supply of nurses in the workforce. The shortage of nursing school instructors. The affordability of nursing school. The role of nurses in a time of disaster. These are issues and problems that touch individual nurses as well as the entire nursing community, but who’s in charge of finding the solutions? Read More

CNA Forms National Disaster Response Network
Motivated by traditional disaster-response organizations’ failures to meet Hurricane Katrina victims’ health needs, the California Nurses Association and the National Nurses Organizing Committee have formed the RN Response Network and are appealing to nurses across the country to volunteer, joining a coordinated effort to quickly place nurses in areas of greatest assistance after a hurricane, earthquake or other unexpected event. Read More

Telemedicine Aids Arizona Trauma Victims
Designed to save lives, improve trauma patients’ quality of care and enhance efficiencies, the Telemedicine for Teletrauma & Critical Care program at the University Medical Center in Tucson will expand to nine sites in Southern Arizona with a $285,000 gift from Blue Cross Blue Shield of Arizona. Read More

Statewide, Real-time Resource Management Aids During Emergencies
Whether due to global warming, natural disaster or terrorism, emergency preparedness has entered our collective consciousness and become a “hot topic” among hospital administrators and state health agencies. These events can have a significant impact on the community. The effect can pass as the emergency passes. Or, the consequences can continue beyond the immediate danger. Read More

NP-Physician Care-management Teams save Money
Teamwork pays off. Care management teams of physicians, nurses and professionals from other health disciplines working together led to significant savings of health-care dollars, compared to a pure hospitalist model, according to a new study from the University of California at Los Angeles. Read More

Program Provides Help to Night-shift Nurses
It used to be that new nurses who worked nights in emergency at Jackson Memorial Hospital, in Miami, Florida, would not opt to stay on staff for long. When it came time to do a procedure not done before, there was no one to show them the way or answer questions, and the stress took its toll. Read More

Retraining Inactive Nurses Could Impact Shortage
Can health care systems entice enough inactive nurses back to the bedside to eliminate the nursing shortage? A recent study says no. Only 15 percent of nonpracticing RNs gave any indication they would consider returning to the profession. Read More

Service and Commitment to a Remote Island Community Wins Doctor a Prestigious Award
The Staff Care Country Doctor of the Year award recognizes the recipient's continuing contribution to rural health care and is presented annually to a physician who best exemplifies the spirit, skill, and dedication of America's rural medical practitioners. Dr. David B. Nichols was recently named the 2006 Country Doctor of the Year. Read More

Ascension Facilities QI Program Produces Striking Results
Ascension Health set a big goal, about two years ago, to deliver excellent clinical care without any preventable injuries or deaths by 2008. The 67-facility health system is well on its way to success, producing stellar quality improvement results by focusing on evidence-based practices, fostering a culture of safety and sharing successful practices across the system. Read More

Health Coaching Another Option for Nurses
Andrea Powers is a registered nurse who works 9 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. Monday to Friday. She doesn’t dispense drugs, give bed baths, or change dressings, and her feet aren’t tired at the end of the day. Read More

AMN Employee Celebrates 20th Anniversary
More than 20 years ago, Gloria Shaffer began working at AMN Healthcare, and she’s been at it longer than any other AMN employee. She recently became the first to reach the 20-year anniversary mark with AMN. Read More

Hospital Highlights for the Week of Feb 26, 2007
This week, read about the life-saving heart surgery performed on an 11-year-old Iraqi boy at Schneider Children's Hospital, LSU Medical Center of Louisiana at New Orleans Trauma Center returning to Orleans Parish for the first time since Hurricane Katrina and the new comprehensive rural health bill introduced by Minnesota Senator Norman Coleman aimed at strengthening the state's Critical Access Hospital System. Read More

Health Coaches Improve Care
Rapidly returning to the hospital after being discharge frustrates patients and runs up the cost of care. Some insurers have found employing nurses as health coaches can help patients transition from hospital to home, while decreasing emergency department visits and saving the payers money. Read More

Marketplace Forcing Electronic Patient Communications
While physicians and other health providers typically embrace new devices designed to better treat patients’ diseases, medicine, as a whole, has lagged behind the rest of the world when it comes to electronic communication. However, that has started to change, with online messaging giving physicians a competitive edge. Read More

The Truth about Vaccine Storage
Just imagine being the one re-administering vaccines to children that were previously vaccinated with a vaccine whose quality is suspect. Imagine quelling the anxieties of their parents and coaxing the children beyond their cries. Sound like a nightmare? Read More

Point-of-Care Testing to Improve Patient Care
Moving beyond glucose monitoring, point-of-care testing provides nurses with an array of almost instantaneous laboratory findings, speeding treatment decisions and enhancing patient care. Read More

Hospital Gardens That Help Heal
More and more, the concept of hospital gardens to aid in the healing process of patients is being accepted. Read More

Major Teaching Hospital Switches to Team Nursing
Trying to cope with the ongoing nursing shortage, a major teaching hospital turned to its nurses to come up with solutions, and they recommended converting from primary nursing to a team model of care, popular years ago. Read More

Hospital Highlights for the Week of January 29, 2007
This week, read about Children's Hospital of Philadelphia being named as the country's best pediatric hospital, Mission Hospital performing a revolutionary heart valve replacement surgery to save the life of a young college student, New York's Hospital for Surgery earning its second Magnet designation and Lutheran HealthCare's new cultural competency initiative. Read More

The Growing Need for More and Better-Trained Medical Interpreters
Health care providers in hospitals across the country are increasingly dealing with language barrier problems as they try to communicate with patients. Multiple spoken languages, lack of tools and training resources, cost/reimbursement concerns and the inability to identify patients who need language services before they arrive at the hospital are some of the major barriers. Read More

Three Nurses Shaping Policy at AARP
Assuming voluntary leadership roles at AARP, one of the country’s largest membership organizations, three nurses aim to tackle such tough topics as health care reform and provision of community-based services for America’s older adults. Read More

Hospital Highlights for the Week of January 15, 2007
This week, read about the 13 hospitals and health systems chosen to receive grants from the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation to develop programs aimed at retaining experienced nurses, the new adolescent bariatric surgery center at Morgan Stanley Children's Hospital and the Raritan Bay Medical Center RN gracing the Institute for Nursing's 2007 "Men in Nursing" calendar. Read More

Hospital Highlights for the Week of January 1, 2007
This week, read about the new hospital preparedness legislation signed by President Bush, New York Methodist Hospital winning the National Research Corporation's "Choice Award" and the UC Davis Health System's participation in a national program to improve language services for patients. Read More

No Holidays from Grief and Loss
Seasonal carols and media presentations reinforce societal expectations that joy, laughter and light hearts will prevail through the holidays. Through it all, nurses remain on the forefront, supporting and counseling others, often not taking time to care for themselves. Read More

Banking on Health Savings Accounts
As Health Savings Accounts (HSA) gain in popularity, it is becoming increasingly important for nurses to know what they are and how they work, not just for payment collection purposes, but also for advising patients on their health care spending and decision-making. Read More

Nurses May Help Relieve Pain, But Continually Suffer from It, Too
Persistent pain not only presents problems for patients but also for nurses, with more than half of nurses recently surveyed reporting having suffered job-related chronic pain and of those, 59 percent are considering leaving the profession. Read More

Hospital Highlights for the Week of December 18, 2006
This week, read about Good Samaritan Hospital in New York achieving Magnet status, the Orange County, California board of supervisors approving an additional $1.75 million in funds for ED care and the bold move Montefiore Medical Center has made to eliminate trans fatty acids from its menus. Read More

Hospital Highlights for the Week of December 4, 2006
This week, read about nurses from USC University Hospital voting to unionize, the new pediatric nursing research program at the Children's Hospital of Philadelphia and the $5-million gift received by Mission Hospital to build a new neuroscience floor. Read More

Caroline’s Room Provides Solace to Parents
When Gary and Jocelyn Doyens’ daughter Caroline passed away two months and one day after her birth nine years ago, she died in the neonatal intensive care (NICU), which had been her only home. In Caroline’s memory, the Doyens family started building Caroline’s Room in the Yale New Haven Children’s Hospital in Connecticut, where their daughter spent her short life. Read More

PACE’s Team Approach Keeps Elders Independent Longer
As America’s older population ages and becomes frailer, additional challenges to independent living present themselves, as providers struggle to deliver cost-effective care. The Program of All-Inclusive Care for the Elderly (PACE) model delivers all needed medical and supportive services to keep chronically ill elders in their own homes for as long as possible. Read More

ER One Moves Forward
Before 9-11 brought home the realization America was not immune to terrorism events, a team of health professionals at Washington Hospital Center in the District of Columbia began working on ER One, creating an emergency department that would serve daily needs and could quickly convert to an all-risk, mass-casualty treatment center. Read More

Native Americans are Combating Diabetes with Education and Exercise
A stealthy, insidious enemy is attacking America’s Native population—and that enemy is diabetes. It is estimated that 7 percent of our population is diabetic and the incidence of diabetes is increasing at an alarming rate. Read More

Educating Patients for Pharmaceutical Companies
With physicians pressed for time to teach patients, pharmaceutical companies have stepped up to fill the void, sending expertly trained nurses into medical offices and patients’ homes armed with the knowledge to ease patients’ fears and improve their adherence with treatment plans, which should lead to better outcomes. Read More

Hospital Highlights Week of November 20, 2006
This week, read about NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital being named "best hospital" in multiple categories by New York Magazine, Children's Hospital of Orange County being named to the first-ever "Leapfrog Top Hospital" list and Georgia hospitals contributing nearly $30 billion to the state's economy according to a new report by the Georgia Hospital Association. Read More

Research Honor Program Piques Undergrads' Interest
Committed to advancing nursing’s knowledge base, students enrolled in Johns Hopkins University School of Nursing’s new Undergraduate Research Honors Program are conducting trials to find answers to a variety of nursing questions. Read More

Hospital Highlights for the Week of November 6

This week read about more hospitals going tobacco-free, a California hospital being honored again and Minnesota hospitals' vast improvement in pneumonia prevention.
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Endoscopy Finally Gets a Home
After years of sharing space, the endoscopy specialty has finally got a place it can call home. Read More

Nurse Combines Prevention Outreach with Hands-on Stroke Care
After working an overnight shift tending to the acute and palliative needs of stroke patients, Janice Flewelling, RN, BSN, may very likely head off to give a presentation about stroke prevention and the importance of early treatment. Such dedication has earned her the highest honor for a nurse at The Methodist Hospital in Houston, Texas: the Brown Foundation Inc. Outstanding Nurse Award. Read More

Regional QI Initiative Involves Nurses
On the heels of its success in decreasing central-line infections in hospitals throughout the region, the Pittsburgh Regional Healthcare Initiative reached out to teach nurses how to employ the Pennsylvania coalition’s Perfecting Patient Care™ curriculum. Read More

New Program Allows LPNs To Do More
While long-term care providers embrace licensed practical nurses and consider them essential to care provision, hospitals have shied away, citing their limited scope of practice. A recent study concluded that greater employment of LPNs could help ease the nursing shortage. Read More

Hospital Highlights for the week of October 23
This week, read about the results of a new nationwide patient satisfaction survey, UCSD earning international recognition as a "Baby-Friendly" birth faciltiy and the updated Hospital Incident Command System just released by the California Emergency Medical Services Authority. Read More

Code of Silence Slowly Being Broken to Ensure Quality Care
The year 2003 was a public relations nightmare for the nursing profession, as Charles Cullen, a nurse in Bethlehem, New Jersey, was charged with killing at least 30 patients in both New Jersey and Pennsylvania. Read More

Hospital Develops Its Own Clinical Nurse Specialists
Faced with a need for more clinical nurse specialists but a dearth of applicants, a leading teaching hospital established a program that offers existing nurses an opportunity to move into this new role. Read More

Hospital Highlights for the week of October 9
This week read about the CDC's new report on crowded conditions in the nation's emergency departments, Scripps Memorial Hospital La Jolla being chosen as one of the nation's elite hospitals by consumers and Children's Healthcare of Atlanta being selected as one of the best hospitals for working mothers. Read More

Cat Quinn is a Nursing Super Star in the Global Health Community
A career in nursing and becoming a superstar are not necessarily synonymous but Catharine “Cat” Quinn, BSN, RNC, MPH, is a nurse who is a superstar—and she has the official designation to prove it. Read More

Spotlight on Geriatric Care Managers
An aging population has created opportunities for experienced nurses to venture into private practice as geriatric care managers, providing assessments and long-term monitoring of an older adult. Read More

Hospital Highlights for the week of September 25
This week, read about Massachusetts General Hospital making the AARP's 2006 list of "Best Employers for Workers Over 50," the veteran leader selected as the new CEO of Long Beach Memorial Medical Center and Miller Children's Hospital after an exhaustive 9-month search and the Washington State facility designated one of the five “best preparedness practice trauma centers” in the nation. Read More

Hospital Uses Perks to Retain Nurses
The shortage of nurses is doing something good for the profession: making nurses more appreciated, more coveted, and certainly more valuable. Read More

Safety Study Shows Nurses High in Teamwork
With communication breakdowns a leading cause of wrong-site surgeries, collaboration in the operating represents a critical factor in keeping patients safe. However, a recent study found perceptions of teamwork varies dramatically across disciplines. Read More

Hospital Highlights for the week of September 11
This week, read about the indictment of a former Cleveland Clinic employee in Florida on charges pertaining to identity theft and violation of HIPAA, the tentative agreement reached between the California Nurses Association and Kaiser that allows nurses in Central and Northern California to maintain union eligibility and the six "Physicians of the Year" selected by nurses at NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital/Weill Cornell Medical Center. Read More

Nurse Researcher Documents the Stresses, Contributions of Vietnam War Nurses
All nurses, in one fashion or another, face trauma and stress as part of the job. But one group of nursing professionals stands out as a population whose exposure to mass casualty events of historic proportions would cause long-term stress as a permanent reminder of their experience. The group is Vietnam War nurses, and one nurse researcher has made it her duty to tell their stories. Read More

Hospital Highlights for the week of August 28
This week, read about the collective bargaining agreement reached by the California Nurses Association and St. Mary Medical Center to boost RN salaries, the Shapiro Simulation and Skills Center at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center achieving accreditation and the new MRSA report sparking Pennsylvania hospitals to do more to eliminate nosocomial transmission. Read More

National Nurses Response Team Helps Lessen Danger's Destruction
When disasters strike, some nurses are tempted to grab their suitcases, hop the first planes out, and arrive at the site with no marching orders, but there is a safer and more effective way to answer the call for help. It’s called the National Nurses Response Team. Read More

Space Nursing Society Prepares for Future Flights
Looking forward to the day when tourists visit space and of prolonged space exploration by professional astronauts, members of the Space Nursing Society prepare to deal with health problems in orbit or on other planets. Read More

Hospital Highlights for the week of July 31
This week, read about HCA's multi-billion-dollar buyout, Orange Coast Memorial's plans for a new patient care pavilion and the Methodist Hospital in Houston achieving Magnet status for the second, consecutive term. Read More

Dining in Hospitals—Hotel Style
Adapting to patients’ changing and more discriminating tastes, hospitals have begun creating food service programs that allow patients to call and order whatever they feel like eating, improving nutritional intake and patient satisfaction, and saving nurses time passing trays or fielding patient complaints. Read More

Massage Technique Helps Relax Patients
Jane Buckle, RN, Ph.D., first understood the power of complementary medicine—and especially aromatherapy—about 25 years ago when her daughter, then four years old, asked to keep her security blanket during a hospital stay. Read More

Universal Beds Ease Patients’ Anxieties and Satisfy Nurses
The caring begins before admission at Memorial Hermann Northwest Hospital’s new open-heart surgery unit and continues with the same nurses through post-op recovery until discharge. Read More

Study Shows Contaminated Keyboards and How to Clean Them
Computers have put information at nurses’ fingertips, but a recent study found the keyboards can harbor harmful pathogens. However, the researchers identified which disinfectants produce the best results without damaging laptops or altering the letters on the keys. Read More

Hospital Highlights for the week of July 17
This week, read about Valley Health System's efforts to recruit nurses from the Philippines, Emerson Hospital breaking ground on Project SCORE and the top honors Scripps Memorial Hospital La Jolla in California received for its innovative cardiac care and diabetes management services. Read More

‘Most Wired’ Hospitals Assist Consumers with Connected Care
In the digital age, consumers have come to expect almost everything at their fingertips—including quality health care. This year’s 100 “Most Wired” hospitals, as named by Hospitals and Health Networks magazine, have all gone online to improve patient care. Read More

Case Managers Improve ED Care
Emergency departments in hospitals across the country are finding that adding an RN case manager or discharge planner to the team improves patient flow and decreases inappropriate admissions. Read More

Cell Phones in Hospitals May Enhance Patient Safety
Banning the use of cellular telephones in hospitals may delay critical communication and adversely affect patient safety, leading investigators of a new study to conclude that hospitals should allow physicians to use the mobile devices. Read More

Ascension Facilities' QI Program Produces Striking Results
Ascension Health set a big goal, about two years ago, to deliver excellent clinical care without any preventable injuries or deaths by 2008, and is producing stellar quality improvement results by focusing on evidence-based practices, fostering a culture of safety and sharing successful practices across the system. Read More

Hospitals Prepare for 2006 Hurricane Season
After surviving two years of devastating hurricanes, hospitals throughout Florida and the Gulf Coast have modified their storm plans—altering staffing, beefing up provisions and hardening their facilities—to prepare for what’s expected to be another bruising season. Read More

CNO Program Grooms Nursing Leaders
Hospital turnover of chief nursing officers hasn’t surged anywhere near the quit rate of registered nurses, but that’s no reason to be complacent, said Dell Oliver, RN, director of the CNO development program at HCA Inc.’s corporate office in Nashville, Tennessee. Read More

Hospital Highlights for the week of June 19
This week, read about which Southern California county approved a $10 million increase in health care funds for the poor, Pepin Heart Hospital's new digital bedside services and University Hospital's new LightSpeed VCT body scanner. Read More

Hospital Highlights for the week of June 5
This week, read about Six Southern California hospitals honored by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, the Methodist Hospital System buying nearly 10,000 gas gift cards for its employees and a new Colorado law requiring hospitals to report quality and patient safety statistics. Read More

HCA North Texas Launches HeartOne Network
Teaming up to share best practices and successful strategies, the nine HCA North Texas hospitals established the HeartOne network, in March, to enhance cardiac care and consumer knowledge about cardiovascular health. Read More

Hospital’s Hope Room Engages Cancer Patients
Responding to the knowledge that patients frequently find a cancer diagnosis overwhelming and treatment debilitating, Mother Frances Hospital in Tyler, Texas, has opened a Hope Room conditioning program to encourage a sense of control and improve stamina. Read More

Hospital Highlights for the week of May 22
This week, read about 10 hospital units that recently won AACN's Beacon Award for Critical Care Excellence, UMass Memorial's technologically advanced LifeFlight air ambulance, UCI Medical Center's new chair of surgery and the grand opening of White Memorial's highly anticipated specialty care tower in the historic Los Angeles community of Boyle Heights. Read More

Coping Kits Comfort Children in the Emergency Department
A pilot project to comfort pediatric patients and support their parents during visits to a hospital Emergency Department has been a resounding success, according to patients, parents and the ED’s staff members. Read More

Hospital Highlights for the week of May 8
This week, read about the successful collaboration between the University of Maryland Medical Center and the U.S. Army to make minimally invasive surgery services available to troops in Afghanistan, a proposed bill that would call upon the Department of Public Health to regulate nurse-patient ratios in Massachusetts and a $500,00 grant awarded to Hoag Hospital and Vanguard University to develop and launch several new nursing education programs. Read More

National Organization Proposes Changes to CNS Status
Aiming to unify advanced practice nurse standards across the states, the National Council of State Boards of Nursing released a vision paper, stirring up controversy throughout the profession with its view that clinical nurse specialists no longer be considered advanced practice nurses, unless they diagnose and prescribe. Read More

Nursing Schools Develop Innovative Minority Programs
Determined to increase the ranks of minority nurses and improve the health of patients from diverse backgrounds, schools of nursing have embarked on programs to support students from under-represented ethnic groups in their quest for professional caregiving or research careers. Read More

ANA President Blakeney Leads Nurse Force
Barbara A. Blakeney, MS, RN, president of the American Nurses Association, is one of the nation’s most influential leaders shaping health care policy today. She believes that the organization, which represents 2.9 million registered nurses through 54 constituent member associations, derives its strength through its large community of nurses working together. Read More

Hospital Highlights for the week of April 24
This week, read about Riverside Regional Medical Center's proposed incentives to reduce its critical nursing shortage, Kaiser Permanente's new state-of-the-art facility in Downey, California, and Poudre Valley Hospital's new emergency services director. Read More

Spotlight on Long-Term Acute-Care Nursing
Bridging the transition from intensive care to home, nurses in long-term acute-care hospitals draw on their critical-care skills while building professional relationships with patients and families. Read More

Hospitals Eliminate Ventilator-Associated Pneumonia
Toward its effort to save 100,000 lives in American hospitals, the Institute for Healthcare Improvement enlisted hospitals across the nation to implement six key interventions to improve patient care. In this first of a series of six articles spotlighting these interventions, representatives from three facilities outline the efforts they have made to dramatically reduce or eliminate cases of ventilator-associated pneumonia from their intensive care units. Read More

Hospital Highlights for the week of April 10
This week, read about Emerson Hospital's new wireless connectivity services for patients and visitors, Boston Medical Center's efforts to expand its successful legal aid program across the U.S. and Scripps Memorial Hospital Encinitas earning JCAHO stroke certification. Read More

Higher Education for Nurses Advocated by Polly Bednash
As its executive director, Geraldine (Polly) Bednash, PhD, RN, FAAN has been the driving force within the American Association of Colleges of Nursing (AACN) since 1989. Read More

Medication Aides Given the Green Light in More States
For years, nurses have considered medication administration a key function, requiring assessment and clinical judgment, but during the past several years, more states have granted unlicensed personnel the right to pass meds in nursing homes, assisted living facilities, correctional institutions and other facilities. Read More

Hospital Highlights for the week of March 27
This week, read about National Hospital Week, Medical City Hospital's new state-of-the-art critical care expansion project and the Health Care Coalition's call on congress to reauthorize GME programs for children's hospitals. Read More

Tulane University Hospital Reopens
With music in the air, sunny skies and warmth in their hearts, a jubilant team of nurses, physicians and hospital leaders celebrated the reopening of Tulane University Hospital & Clinic in downtown New Orleans. Before the much-needed facility unlocked the entrance to the emergency department, patients waited outside to receive medical care. Read More

Hospital Highlights for the week of March 13
This week, read about new study on the importance of hospitals to Southern California's economic health, University of Chicago Hospitals rated one of the nation's top 100 hospitals and Flagstaff Medical Center's new president. Read More

Nurses Serve on Health Care Reform Working Group
Three nurses tapped to serve on the nonpartisan Citizens’ Health Care Working Group will help shape recommendations presented to Congress and President George W. Bush to improve the health-care system. Read More

Hospital Highlights for the week of Feb. 27
This week, read about lives saved by increasing RN staffing, $105,000 in grants awarded by the Lance Armstrong Foundation and Seattle nurses cited for their excellence. Read More

Hospitals Taking Ecological Path
From Vermont to Minnesota to California, hospitals have begun taking a greater interest in ecology and how the environment affects public health. Read More

AMN Healthcare Helps Bring Smiles to Mexican Children
If ever an organization was aptly named, it is the Thousand Smiles Foundation, the charitable entity that for years has teamed with health care professionals to provide volunteer medical services for children with cleft palate defects. The resultant joy on the faces of the children and their parents is often matched only by the satisfaction of those sharing their talents. Read More

Hospitals Set Sights on Recruiting and Retaining Retired or Retiring Nurses
As the average age of the registered nurse workforce creeps toward 50, health care facilities are opening their eyes to the coming exodus of experienced workers. In an effort to retain retiring nurses and recruit retirees back to their facilities, hospital administrators are devising creative, effective programs that appeal to the aging worker. Read More

A Smart Idea for Patient Medical Records
Instantaneously accessing important medical information about patients in an emergency or when treating new patients with long medical histories has long been a dream of health care providers. That may well soon be possible. Read More

Hospital Highlights for the Week of Jan. 30
This week, read about a project aimed at surgical care improvement, a hospital debuting its new ICU department and clinicians participating in Alcohol Screening Day. Read More

Hospital Highlights for the Week of Jan. 16
This week read about how facilities can gauge the strength of their IT systems, hospitals being rewarded for their excellence, and others planning extensions. Read More

Book Provides Needed Insight to ‘Culture and Clinical Care’
Did you know that hospitalized Haitian men should be offered pajamas instead of a patient gown; that in the Arab culture, menopause is generally thought of as the “age of despair;” and that when meeting a Native American, a hard-grip or pumping handshake is inappropriate? Read More

Hospital Highlights for the Week of Jan. 2
This week, read about hospitals offering pagers to patients, receiving awards for excellence in critical care, improving asthma care with grant assistance and celebrating milestones. Read More

Book of 101 Answers May Leave Nurse Leaders Eager for More
Ever wonder about the best way to answer the telephone or respond to a call light? Would you like to know how to make physician phone calls more effective? Are you unsure about the difference between a manager and a leader? A new book, "101 Answers to Questions Leaders Ask" tackles these and other health-care leadership queries. Read More

Hospital Highlights for the Week of Dec. 5
This week, read about hospitals receiving grants for research projects and providing new services. Read More

Watching For and Overcoming Compassion Fatigue
Most nurses enter the field due to strong desire to mitigate people’s suffering, but too much caring, especially when confronted with legions of victims of a disaster or patients with grave illnesses, can result in compassion fatigue. Read More

Hospital Highlights for the Week of Nov. 21
This week, read about hospitals receiving grants for research projects, being honored for top services and celebrating milestones. Read More

Diabetes Lay Educator Program Provides Health Care Assistance for Migrant Workers
As one of the ethnic groups at increased risk of developing diabetes, Hispanic Americans are a population in great need of education on disease prevention and management. Recognizing the difficulties faced by a group of 7,000 Hispanic migrant workers in the northern United States, one North Dakota nurse developed a diabetes lay educator program to assist the nomadic group in caring for a chronic condition that affects them by the hundreds. Read More

Hospital Highlights for the Week of Nov. 7
This week, read about hospitals expanding their facilities, participating in research programs and training low-wage health care workers. Read More

Nurses Help Put Out the Smoke—Tobacco Smoke, That Is
November marks Great American Smokeout month, when the American Cancer Society challenges smokers to quit cigarettes for at least one day, in hopes that they will quit forever. In an effort to proactively promote smoking cessation, the Tobacco-Free Nurses initiative was created three years ago to help nurses stop smoking among themselves and their patients. Read More

Dealing with Disruptive Antics
Yelling, cursing, throwing things; this type of behavior has no place in a hospital. Unsettling outbursts can negatively affect patient care and nurse morale. Some enlightened hospitals no longer tolerate disruptive tantrums. Read More

American Arab Nurses Association Sets its Sights on Recruitment, Diversity
For 11 years, Rose Khalifa, RN, a native of Lebanon, received inquiries that she could not answer about the demographics of Arab American or Middle Eastern nurses in the United States. In 2002, she decided she couldn’t take anymore questioning—she had to find the answers. Her first step: forming the American Arab Nurses Association. Read More

Nurses Get to the Heart of Wellness
Heart disease is often mistakenly thought of as a “man’s” disease—one that women need not fear. But statistics show just the opposite. According to the American Heart Association, cardiovascular disease claims more women’s lives than the next six causes of death combined. One organization is aiming to change those statistics through innovative programming dedicated to increasing awareness and prevention of women’s number one enemy. Read More

Hospital Highlights for the Week of Oct. 10
This week, read about hospitals opening new specialized centers, providing above-par patient and clinical care and receiving grants to expand research capabilities. Read More

Florida Hospital Creates Publishing Department to Promote Health, Wellness
In an effort to put valuable health information into the hands of patients and the general public, Florida Hospital in Orlando, Florida, recently established a publishing department. Read More

Nurses Inspire Clinic Staff to Adopt Healthier Lifestyles
Knowing that health care professionals are at the forefront when it comes to informing patients that they need to adopt healthier lifestyles, two nurses at The Portland Clinic in Portland, Oregon, decided that they would put their words into action by implementing an exercise program for staff members called “12 Weeks to a Better You.” Read More

Hospital Shock Team Saves Lives, Empowers Nurses
Fewer patients are dying of septic and hemorrhagic shock these days at Good Samaritan Hospital. Nurses at the San Jose, California, facility have learned to identify early signs and symptoms of impending shock and sound a Shock Alert. Read More

Hospital Highlights for the Week of Sept. 26
This week, read about hospitals offering Web engines for their members, receiving recognition for information technology and more. Read More

New Color-Coded Uniforms Improve Patient Satisfaction
To help patients identify the roles of their caregivers, the Cleveland Clinic, based in Cleveland, Ohio, has issued more than 2,600 of their inpatient health care providers color-coded uniforms. Read More

Hospital Highlights for the Week of Sept. 12
This week, read about hospitals planning building projects, receiving grants and funding pilot programs. Read More

Transforming Care at the Bedside Spurs Innovation
Concerned about nurses’ work environments and care provided on medical-surgical units, the Institute for Healthcare Improvement and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation launched Transforming Care at the Bedside, in 2003, to address workplace quality and safety issues. Since then, nurses at 13 pilot hospitals have implemented a host of improvements. Read More

Critical Care Beyond the Bedside: The Collaborative Effort of the eICU Team
Patients, nurses and physicians in intensive care units across the country are benefiting from a technology that allows caregivers to keep close watch—even from afar. The eICU program has been implemented in more than 100 hospitals and more than 20 health systems nationwide, optimizing patient care, improving physician-nurse collaboration and extending the expertise of the critical care nurse far beyond the bedside. Read More

Schwartz Rounds Spur Multidisciplinary Dialogues
Life-and-death, family conflicts, demanding patients—all part of nurses’ professional careers—are issues many caregivers deal with on their own. Multidisciplinary Schwartz Rounds offers an opportunity to delve beyond the clinical aspects of challenging cases and discuss emotionally charged situations. Read More

Hospital Highlights for the Week of Aug. 29

New England Patriots Practice Facility Renamed the 'Dana-Farber Field House' The New England Patriots, in conjunction with Dana-Farber Cancer Institute in Boston, Massachusetts, recently announced that the team's indoor training facility will be named the “Dana-Farber Field House,” thanks to the generosity of Dana
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School-Based Centers Open Doors to Children’s Health
In most educational institutions across the country, the daily health care needs of sick children are met by the staff nurse. In two elementary schools in New York, however, the campus nurse is joined by a nurse practitioner, medical assistant, physician and even a dentist, all on hand to provide care to underserved students enrolled in their school-based health centers. Read More

Hospital Highlights for the Week of Aug. 15
This week, read about hospitals providing Spanish-language Web sites, planning building expansions, promoting health care to young people and more. Read More

Hospital Highlights for the Week of August 1
This week, read about hospitals opening new expansions, offering electronic records for foster children, tracking infections and more. Read More

Hospital Highlights for the Week of July 18
This week, read about hospitals receiving magnet designation, planning building expansions and earning awards for specialized care. Read More

AMN Healthcare Receives JCAHO Gold Seal of Approval
On June 2, AMN Healthcare Services, Inc., received official notification that it became the first multi-site temporary health care staffing company to receive the Gold Seal of Approval for Corporate Certification from the Joint Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations (JCAHO). Read More

AMN’s Skill Set Testing Aids Facilities
Often, facilities require testing of travel nurses and permanent staff as part of their hiring process. Many use their own exams in order to assess skills and learning needs of new staff members. Read More

Helping Patients Navigate the System
In today’s complex world of health care, consumers are barraged with overwhelming new diagnoses and treatments, complicated insurance plans and the pressures of making decisions about all three—often without much guidance. Thanks to a handful of businesses called patient-advocacy firms, however, a growing population of patients is being offered a helping hand navigating through the health care system. Read More