Stressed Out Nurses

Texas nurse to stand trial for reporting physician

Tami Swartz — Mon, 08 Feb 2010 21:23:22 +0000

This will be an interesting trial to follow for nurses and all healthcare professionals, sure to set some precedent about nurse and physician reporting. Anne Mitchell, a former administrative nurse at Winkler County Memorial Hospital in Kermit, TX, will stand trial in a week at a state courthouse for “misuse of official information” after she anonymously [...]

Half of nurses surveyed plan to change careers

Tami Swartz — Fri, 05 Feb 2010 19:49:40 +0000

A recent survey found that one-third of registered nurses say they won’t be working in their current job one year from now, and almost half say they plan to change career paths or reduce their direct patient care hours through a less demanding job within the next three years, according to AMN Healthcare–a healthcare [...]

Nurse goes to Haiti to teach class, comes back with invaluable lessons

Tami Swartz — Fri, 29 Jan 2010 18:47:22 +0000

What an incredible story by The Missoulian about nurses’ connections throughout the world. The article tells the story of Michele Sare, RN, founder of Nurses for Nurses International, who arrived in Haiti on January 12with the purpose of teaching a local public health class. Less than an hour later, the 7.0 magnitude earthquake struck, and [...]

Smoker? No need to apply

Tami Swartz — Fri, 22 Jan 2010 19:42:02 +0000

Many employers try to discourage their employees from smoking, but what about denying employment because the applicant smokes? Memorial Hospital in Chattanooga, TN, will no longer hire employees who smoke, reports The Chattanooga Pulse. The hospital plans to drug-screen prospective employees for nicotine. If tested positive, the hospital will rescind its offer of employment. Brad Pope, [...]

New nurses helped with sleep education program

Tami Swartz — Fri, 15 Jan 2010 17:13:35 +0000

An interesting piece written by Rebecca Hendren for HealthLeaders Media bridges nurse retention and sleeping. The article highlights a new graduate nurse retention program in Lynchburg, VA, that offers a formal sleep education class that explains how to get better sleep and why sleep is important. The program was created after the nurse retention coordinator, [...]

NCSBN raises standard of NCLEX-RN exam

Tami Swartz — Wed, 06 Jan 2010 17:05:44 +0000

The National Council of State Boards of Nursing, Inc., otherwise known as NCSBN, has raised the passing standard for the NCLEX-RN Exam. The new passing standard is -0.16 logits (the unit of measure for the exam) on the logistics scale. The standard is 0.05 logits higher than the previous standard of -0.21. The new standard takes [...]

Hospital sees increased patient satisfaction through nurse handoff program

Tami Swartz — Wed, 30 Dec 2009 16:41:21 +0000

Communication between staff members in hospitals is a topic that has been studied and practiced in great detail. One particular concern has always been the handoff: when a one staff member leaves a shift and another comes in. How do you ensure that all critical information gets passed along-and is understood-to ensure patient safety? An interesting [...]

New tool offers online portfolio for nurses

Tami Swartz — Thu, 24 Dec 2009 16:20:47 +0000

Nurses who are looking for a new job, professional development, or a way to keep career information and important documents organized might be interested in Critical Portfolio. It’s an electronic professional portfolio that captures all professional development data and supporting documents over the course of your career. The portfolio keeps all the information you would [...]

Temp agencies fail to verify nurse credentials

Tami Swartz — Fri, 18 Dec 2009 20:04:35 +0000

Temporary nursing agencies that supply the nation’s short-staffed hospitals with nurses often fail to verify credentials, keep important licensure records, and interview applicants before hire, according to an interesting piece in the Los Angeles Times. According to the article, “An investigation by the nonprofit newsroom ProPublica and the Los Angeles Times found dozens of instances in [...]

One hospital focuses on quieting things down

Tami Swartz — Fri, 11 Dec 2009 18:56:51 +0000

A new movement is quietly creeping into healthcare, and its silencing effect is being felt at one New York hospital. Press Ganey reports, which measure patient satisfaction, have long included noise level on it surveys, and some hospitals, like St. Elizabeth Medical Center in Utica, NY, are working to ensure noise doesn’t disrupt a patient’s stay. [...]