INQRI Blog

Nursing's Impact Beyond Care: Nurses Help Fight Crime

2012-01-26T09:21:00.002-05:00

Yesterday, Jerry Large, of The Seattle Times, reported on a innovative program that aims to reduce crime and poverty by utilizing visiting nurses in low-income communities. King County's initiative, the Nurse-Family Partnership, utilizes 24 registered nurses that work with young women during their first pregnancies and through the baby's second birthday. Results of this initiative have been promising, with studies showing that the initiative has led to improved health and education for the mothers and children impacted by the outreach effort.

Click here to read the article.

Video: Function Focused Care: Optimizing Function and Activity Among Older Adults

2012-01-25T10:10:00.006-05:00

Two weeks ago, INQRI grantee, Barbara Resnick, PhD, RN, CRNP, FAAN, FAANP, guest lectured at the University of Pennsylvania's Institute of Aging. Dr. Resnick's presentation focused on her work addressing function focused care and the outcomes associated with this cost-effective intervention. We encourage all of you to view this candid lecture on how function focused care can improve the lives of elderly individuals in assisted living, skilled-nursing facilities as well as acute care.

Click here to view the video.

Nursing Programs Aim To Help Seniors

2012-01-24T10:02:00.003-05:00

This past weekend, Amanda Cuda, reporting for CTpost.com, detailed how universities in Connecticut have altered their curriculum and training efforts to address to prominent issues for the geriatric population, medication management and fall prevention. These programs reflect the evolving care trends as the baby boomer generation continues to age.

Click here to read the article.

Click here to read other blogposts relating to medication management.

Click here to read other blogposts relating to fall prevention.

Nursing Schools Adapt Programs' Foci To Reflect Change in Nursing Workforce

2012-01-23T09:30:00.002-05:00

This past weekend, Sarah Bruyn Jones, reporting for The Roanoke Times, discussed the new educational pathways nursing schools in Virginia are creating in order to better prepare their students for the changing role of nurses in the healthcare workforce for the 21st century. The article highlights how some universities are cutting back on their undergraduate programs and emphasizing advanced practices degrees, which aligns with recommendations made in the IOM's Future of Nursing: Leading Change, Advancing Health report.

Click here to read the article.

Click here to read other blogposts relating to the IOM's report.

Nurses Use IPhones For Work At Boston Hospital

2012-01-20T11:30:00.002-05:00

This past week, Massachusetts General Hospital introduced an innovative clinical communication technology that is used on smartphones. This communication device allows nurses to recieve care alerts, make phone calls over the hospital's Wi-Fi network and manage workflow through text messages. Nurses at Mass General have already heralded the software's impact on their efficiency in responding their patients' needs.

Click here or here to read more about the new technology implemented at Mass Gen Hospital.

Innovative Program Run By Nurses Assist Troubled Teens Graduate High School

2012-01-19T09:57:00.004-05:00

Yesterday, Kim Vallez, of local FOX affialiate KASA, detailed a program being conducted at the University of New Mexico Hospital to address low graduation rates among teenagers in high schools in the surrounding area. The program, "Nursing Diversity Pipeline", teaches teenagers from low graduation rate areas the basics of health care including CPR and first aid, as well as educating them about all the different professions that help a hospital run. So far, the program has been rather successful with around 80% of participating teenagers completing the program and graduating high school.

Click here to read the article.

New York State Initiative to Educate The Nursing Workforce: "BSN in 10"

2012-01-18T09:40:00.004-05:00

A few weeks ago, we reported on the proposed legislation in the New York State Senate that would require Registered Nurses to obtain a BSN within 10 years of initial employment. Following up on this post, we are sharing another article with you that discussed the significance and challenges associated with this legislation. Christine Loman, of the The Evening Tribune, discussed the importance of nurses with associates degrees obtaining their BSNs and how this will be beneficial to not only the nurses themselves, but the patients they care for. This proposed legislation addresses the fourth recommendation in the IOM's Future of Nursing: Leading Change, Advancing Health report that proposed an increase in the proportion of nurses with a baccalaureate degree to 80 percent by 2020.

Click here to read the article.

Click here to read the blogpost from a couple weeks ago also addressing the "BSN in 10" initiative.

Nursing Practices Reduce Errors

2012-01-17T10:41:00.004-05:00

We are pleased to share with you a recent news article, written by Stephanie Bouchard, Associate Editor for healthcarefinancenews.com, that gave an overview of a recently funded INQRI study. The article highlights a study conducted by Dr. Linda Flynn and her colleagues at Rutgers University that focuses on identifying nursing care practices and work environment management practices used by nurses on medical-surgical units that prevent medication errors and improve patient safety.

Click here to read the full article.

Click here to read other blogposts discussing the work of INQRI grantees.

Northeast Florida Hospitals Reducing Readmissions With Nurse Intervention

2012-01-12T09:52:00.006-05:00

Yesterday, the Florida Times Union reported on the implementation of a new discharge intervention at St. Vincent’s HealthCare. The intervention, which includes an educational component for patients in the health system, utilizes follow-up phone calls and care in an effort to reduce readmission rates among high risk patients. The intervention also includes a dedicated nurse practitioner who provides transitional care for heart failure patients, which includes home visits and follow-up calls as previously noted.

Click here to read the full news article.

Click here to read other blogposts related to readmissions.

Nurse Leaders on Boards Video Interviews

2012-01-10T09:34:00.002-05:00

The Center to Champion Nursing in America has recently released a set of twenty-four video interviews with various nurses serving on boards. The website also includes a link to a complementary PowerPoint presentation that highlights the importance and significance of nurses taking up these type of leadership roles.

Click here to view the interviews.

Click here to view the PowerPoint presentation.

Non-Profit Nursing Home Staff Happier Than Their For-Profit Counterparts

2012-01-09T09:39:00.005-05:00

Last week, Paula Span, of the New York Times, detailed the findings of a recently published study that found nursing home ownership status was significantly related to job satisfaction. The study, published in the September 2011 issue of The Gerontologist, was conducted by a research team that included INQRI grantee, Linda Flynn, PhD, RN, FAAN, as well as INQRI NAC member, Linda H. Aiken, PhD, RN, FAAN. While this study may not have been published in 2012, Ms. Span's discussion of the study's findings in last week's New York Times demonstrates that this issue will be of great importance as the baby boomer generation continues to age and more adult children are faced with the task of finding the best care facilities for their loved ones.

Click here to read Ms. Span's article.

Click here to read the study as published in The Gerontologist (subscription required).

Counting on Nurses to Fill New Jersey's Primary Care Gap

2012-01-05T09:27:00.002-05:00

During the holiday break, Patricia A. Barnett, Chief Executive Officer of the New Jersey State Nurses Association & Institute for Nursing, wrote an editorial that detailed how allowing nurse practitioners to practice to the full extent of their training will ease the upcoming primary care shortage plaguing New Jersey. The suggestions made by Ms. Barnett align with the recommendations made by IOM's Future of Nursing: Leading Change, Advancing Health report, which seek to bolster the nursing field while improving health care in the United States.

Click here to read Ms. Barnett's editorial.

Click here to read all blogposts relating to the IOM's report.

Two INQRI Blogposts To Help Ring In 2012

2012-01-04T09:59:00.003-05:00

We are pleased to share with all of you two blogposts written by an INQRI grantee and INQRI's Program Associate that were recently featured on RWJF's Human Capital Blog.

The first blogpost is written by INQRI's Program Associate, Heather Kelley-Thompson, MA, whom many of you may have corresponded with over the years.

Click here to read Ms. Kelley-Thompson's collective New Year's resolution.

The second blogpost is written by INQRI grantee, Nancy E. Donaldson, RN, DNSc, FAAN. Dr. Donaldson's blogpost discussed how self-empowerment and the IOM's Future of Nursing: Leading Change, Advancing Health report has, and will continue to shape her New Year's resolution through 2012.

Click here to read Dr. Donaldson's New Year's resolution.

New York Bill Would Require Four Year Registered Nursing Degrees

2012-01-03T09:13:00.004-05:00

We hope that everyone had a safe and happy holiday season!

Last week, The Washington Post reported on a new bill being considered by the New York State Senate that will require all registerd nurses to obtain bachelor’s degrees within 10 years in order to keep working in the state. This intiative, “BSN in 10”, is supported by major nursing and health policy organizations across the country. The proposed legislation also directly addresses recommendation #4 made in the IOM's Future of Nursing: Leading Change, Advancing Health report.

Click here to read the article.

Click here to read all blogposts relating to the IOM's report.

INQRI's Five Most Read Blogposts of 2011

2011-12-23T10:24:00.003-05:00

On behalf of the INQRI program staff and leadership team, we would like to wish all of you a safe and happy holiday & New Year.

Below you will find the five most read blogposts from 2011.

Please feel free to comment and share your favorite post from this year!

Interdisciplinary Pilot Study Suggests Nurses Can Help Chronically Ill Patients Properly Manage Medication after Being Discharged from Hospital Nurses Bridged Gap Between Leaving Hospital with Prescriptions and First Visit with Primary Health Care Provider

New Study Shows Higher Nurse Staffing Levels in Hospitals Can Reduce Rates of Infection, Improve Outcomes for Patients

INQRI Project Featured in Health Services Research

Expanding Nurses' Scope-of-Practice in the News

The Future is Now for Nurse Practitioners

Please Thank Your Nurse This Holiday Season

2011-12-22T10:55:00.002-05:00

Yesterday, Anthony Youn, M.D., wrote a heart warming blog piece about the importance giving thanks to nurses who provide quality care during the holiday season.

Click here to read the Op-Ed.

Nursing Claims Costs Rise Again After Falling

2011-12-21T09:58:00.003-05:00

Yesterday, claimsjournals.com reported that the average total paid per claim in the nursing profession averaged over $200,000 in 2010. This is number is comparable to the all-time high experienced in 2008 and significantly higher than the average paid per claim in 2009, which was around $150,000. The article also detailed a study conducted by the CNA, which examined claim costs from 2006 to 2010 and addressed which nursing professions are more likely to see higher claims.

Click here to read the full article.

New Nursing Program Promises to Advance Patient Care Quality and Safety

2011-12-20T09:28:00.003-05:00

Yesterday, the Johns Hopkins University School of Nursing announced the acceptance of a new grant, funded by The Helene Fuld Health Trust of New York, that will prepare 200 new clinical nurses over the next five years in quality improvement and patient safety that is firmly grounded in leadership development. This initiative will specifically focus on the vulnerable elderly population, who are the responsibile for a high percentage of redadmissions in hospitals nationwide. This education intiative aligns with recommendations to bolster the nursing workforce made in IOM's Future of Nursing: Leading Change, Advancing Health report.

Click here to read the news article.

Click here to read other blogposts related to the IOM's report.

Nurse Practitioners Fill a Gap in Rural Health Care

2011-12-19T09:34:00.003-05:00

Over the weekend, Robert Joiner, a staff writer for the St. Louis Beacon, discussed how the demand for advanced practice RNs is expected to rise due to the projected growth of patients in need of primary care. The article also explained in concise detail the concern over advanced practice nurses' scope of practice restrictions, as well discussing how many of the reccomendations made in the IOM's Future of Nursing: Leading Change, Advancing Health report can improve care delivery.

Click here to read the article.

Click here to read other blogposts discussing the IOM's report.

Hospitals Try To Control Readmissions, Even When It Hurts Profits

2011-12-15T10:46:00.003-05:00

Yesterday, Fred Mogul, of WNYC, in collaboration with NPR and Kaiser Health News, reported how hospitals nationwide have implemented a variety of programs to curb costly readmissions. Starting in the fall of 2012, the Department of Health & Human Services is planning to begin penalizing hospitals for readmissions for patients discharged after experiencing heart attacks, heart failure or pneumonia. With one in five Medicare patients being readmitted to hospitals within 30 days of their initial discharge and research suggesting that 75% of these readmissions are preventable, hospitals have adopted care programs that aim to curb readmissions, improve transitional care from acute care facilities to the patient's home, and help the hospital avoid penalties from the HHS.

Click here to read the full news article.

Newly Licensed Registered Nurses' Geographic Immobility

2011-12-14T09:20:00.002-05:00

The December issue of Health Affairs featured two articles highlighting surprising trends related to the nursing workforce. We have already posted about one of the studies that investigated the growth in the nursing workforce among young adults, which you can access here. The other research article, which we are sharing with you today, discussed the relative immobility of recently licensed Registered Nurses and the issues that may arise from the lack of new RNs unwilling to relocate for employment. The study found that 52.5 percent of newly licensed RNs work within forty miles of where they attended high school, which can potentially affect rural areas that may not have an adequately trained workforce in their local area.

Click here to read the article as it appears in Health Affairs.

Nursing homes: A Caring Staff Makes All The Difference

2011-12-13T09:45:00.004-05:00

Earlier today, Robin Erb and Kristi Tanner, of the Detroit Free Press, published the final article of their three piece series focusing on the quality of care in nursing homes. The article gave a personalized view of how caring, compassionate staff can positively effect the quality of life experienced by nursing homes' residents.

Click here to read the article.

Click here to read the first article in the series.

Click here to read the second article in the series.

Publish Post

National Council of State Boards of Nursing Extends Electronic Licensure Exam to Canada

2011-12-12T09:37:00.004-05:00

Last week, the National Council of State Boards of Nursing (NCSBN) announced that the NCLEX-RN® Examination, a RN licensure exam used in foreign countries for the purpose of domestic licensure in the United States, was chosen by ten provincial nurse regulatory bodies in Canada. The adoption of this electronic exam in Canada has the potential to drastically change the nursing workforce in both Canada and the United States, as nurses would technically be licensed to work as a RN in either country. In response, the Canadian Nurses Association (CNA) has expressed disappoint with the choice made by the provincial regulatory bodies as they fear that many qualified Canadian nurses may be lured by the promise of higher paying positions in the United States. Additionally, the CNA fears that licensure content specific to Canada may be excluded from the exam and thus, lower the quality of care in Canadian healthcare facilities.

Click here to read the NCSBN's press release.

Click here to read the CNA's response.

Nurse Midwives Empower Patients With Delivery Options

2011-12-08T10:16:00.002-05:00

Yesterday, Linda Friedel, reporting for Kansas City Community News, detailed the strong bonds nurse midwives foster with patients. The article, which included personal reflections of different certified nurse midwives experiences, discussed the varying roles midwives play throughout their patients' pregnancy and how this role contributes to patient empowerment and autonomy.

Click here to read the full article.

Reflecting On Dr. Berwick's Tenure As CMS Administrator

2011-12-07T09:48:00.006-05:00

In this month's edition of Health Affairs, Harris Meyer wrote a fascinating piece reflecting on Dr. Don Berwick's short tenure as the head of the Center for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS). In the article, Ms. Meyer discussed the praise Dr. Berwick's body of work at the CMS received from numerous professional organizations and highly respected health leaders.

Click here to read the Health Affairs article (freely available to all).

Study Finds Surge In Young Nurses Over Past Decade

2011-12-06T09:24:00.003-05:00

Yesterday, the USA TODAY reported the results of a recent study that found between 2002 & 2009, the number of full-time-equivalent registered nurses ages 23–26 increased by 62 percent. This research, which was recently published in the December issue of Health Affairs, shows that the nurse workforce is projected to grow faster during the next two decades than previously anticipated and in turn, help close the looming nursing shortage that many in the healthcare industry have been anticipating.

Click here to read the USA TODAY article.

Click here to read the manuscript as it appears in Health Affairs.

Nebraska Still Grappling With Nursing Shortage

2011-12-05T09:38:00.002-05:00

Last week, Joanne Young, reporting for the Lincoln Journal Star, detailed Nebraska's efforts to reduce nursing shortages that are plaguing 73 of the 93 counties within the state. One of the most pressing issues for the state is the lack of available nurse educators to train and mentor nursing students. Many of the issues Nebraska is experiencing are addressed in the IOM's Future of Nursing: Leading Change, Advancing Health report, which is also cited in the news article.

Click here to read the full news article.

Click here to read other blogposts relating to the IOM's report.

Study Finds Low Staffing and Poor Quality of Care at Nation’s For-Profit Nursing Homes

2011-12-01T09:08:00.003-05:00

Yesterday, Elizabeth Fernandez, from the University of California, San Francisco, detailed a newly released study that analyzed the quality of care at nursing homes around the country. The study focused on the ten largest for-profit chains in the country, which control over 2,000 nursing homes, and this research is the first to study this specific group of for-profit nursing facilities. The research team found that these for-profit facilities kept labor costs low to increase profits, and with staffing levels being one of the strongest predictors of patient quality, the results may reflect the commitment to high-level patient care by these large institutions.

Click here the full news article with quotes from the study's authors.

Click here to directly access the article from Health Services Research (subscription required).

Recommendations For Enhancing Quality Improvement Efforts In Health Care

2011-11-30T08:59:00.003-05:00

A newly released paper from the Urban Institute reviewed the evolution of QI initiatives, the current evidence about whether QI interventions work, QI’s promise for the future, and how to help it find success in health care. The paper, which was funded by the Robert Wood Johnson's Quality/Equality Portfolio, made numerous recommendations geared towards a variety of stakeholders that can improve quality improvement efforts and thus, lower costs while improving patient care.

Click here to access the article summary and brief.

New RWJF Video Highlights Health Providers Working in Teams To Provide High-Quality Patient Care

2011-11-29T09:12:00.003-05:00

Earlier this month, the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation's Human Capital Portfolio released a video highlighting the positive impact multidisciplinary collaboration can have on patients' lives. This video features Children's Medical Services in Southeast Florida, where interprofessional collaboration has been highly effective in treating medically fragile children.

Click here to read more about this video and other similar projects being funded by RWJF's Human Capital Portfolio.

Nursing Workforce Education Efforts Honored

2011-11-28T08:36:00.002-05:00

Last week, the Midland Daily News reported that MidMichigan Health, a healthcare provider located north of Lansing, has been recognized for its overall workforce strategies that promote advanced education of nurses. MidMichigan Health has recently established a regional collaboration with Mid Michigan Community College to launch the Licensed Practical Nurse (LPN) to Registered Nurse (RN) Step Up program. These efforts, which have been recognized by RWJF's FUND project, align with reccomendations made by the IOM's Future of Nursing: Leading Change, Advancing Health report.

Click here to read the full news article.

Click here to access other blogposts relating to the IOM's Future of Nursing campaign.

Click here to find out more information about available funding opportunities related to the Future of Nursing's Campaign for Action.

Georgia Perimeter College' Nursing Capstone Project Addresses Patient Diversity

2011-11-23T10:16:00.003-05:00

With patient-centered care being a topic of interest in health care as of late, Georgia Perimeter College's School of Nursing has embraced this concept, and integrated patient-centered care into its curriculum. Yesterday, Laura Raines, of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution, detailed the implementation of a senior capstone project to make nursing students more culturally aware of the multicultural population nurses work with on a daily basis.

Click here to read the full article.

Click here to read other blogposts with news stories from the AJC (they cover nursing issues on a consistent basis and are regularly featured on our blog).

"Saving By the Bundle" - An Op-Ed by Ezekiel Emanuel, Keynote Speaker at INQRI's Upcoming National Meeting

2011-11-22T12:20:00.007-05:00

Last week [yes we know we are a bit behind], renowned bioethicist and newly appointed Penn Integrates Knowledge University Professor, Ezekiel Emanuel, M.D., Ph.D., wrote a fascinating Op-Ed in the New York Times discussing how savings in health care can be achieved through the use of a bundled payment system.

Dr. Emanuel will be serving as the keynote speaker at INQRI's national conference, slated to take place on April 26-27 2012, at the Madison Hotel in downtown Washington D.C. Please join us for this FREE event that will celebrate INQRI's work over the past six years; registration information will be available soon. For more information about the event, please contact Heather Kelley-Thompson at hkelley@nursing.upenn.edu or by phone at 215-573-2981.

Click here to read Dr. Emanuel's Op-Ed.

Interdisciplinary Group of Students at the University of Kansas Collaborate To Improve Patient Care

2011-11-21T10:02:00.004-05:00

Last week, Donna Peck, writing for the Kansas University Medical Center news, reported on a collaborative intiative being undertaken by students at the University of Kansas School of Medicine, Nursing and Pharmacy that utilizes all three students expertise at a family clinic. The interdiscplinary clinic, which launched in August 2011, allows third-year medical students, senior nursing students, sixth-year pharmacy students and KU law students to work together as a team, with faculty supervision, to diagnose and recommend treatment to patients at the KU family medicine clinic. This innovative program fosters interdisciplinary collaboration that these students can continue to develop as they progress throughout their career.

Click here to read the full news article.

Click here to read other blogposts about interdisciplinary collaboration.

Adding A Nurse Practitioner To Hospital Staff Can Reduce Unnecessary Emergency Department Visits

2011-11-17T09:29:00.003-05:00

With national nurse practitioner week coming to an end, we thought it would be appropriate to share with all of you research that demonstrates the positive impact nurse practitioners can have on patient care and efficiency.

Last week, in a newly released study published in Surgery, researchers at Loyola University Health System found that adding a nurse practitioner to a busy hospital staff can decrease preventable emergency department visits. Additionally, the researchers also found that the addition of the nurse practitioner to the hospital staff resulted in an improved use of resources and financial benefits for the health system.

Click here to read the full news article.

The Need for Cost Information

2011-11-16T09:18:00.003-05:00

Last week, the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation's Aligning Forces for Quality (AF4Q) program posted a new video that examines three different perspectives on the need for cost data. The video analyzes the need and potential impact of cost data on patients, providers, and employers' decision making.

Click here to access the video.

INQRI Program Officer, Lori Melichar, PhD, Featured In This Month's Journal of Nursing Education

2011-11-15T09:23:00.003-05:00

It is with great pleasure to share with all of you a guest editorial by Dr. Lori Melichar, Senior Program Officer at the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation (RWJF) and the INQRI program. The editorial, which is featured in the November edition of the Journal of Nursing Education, detailed previous RWJF initiatives that have transformed care at the bedside, and how continuous quality improvement can transform nursing education.

Click here to read Dr. Melichar's guest editorial (subscription required).

National Council of State Boards of Nursing Launches Interactive APRN 'Map'

2011-11-14T09:30:00.004-05:00

Earlier this morning, the National Council of State Boards of Nursing (NCSBN) launched a new feature on their website that contains information regarding states' laws and regulations that affect Advanced Practice Registered Nurses. The website, which is a graphical depiction of the United States, includes information about APRN's scope of practice, certification requirements and title used to represent APRNs in each respective state.

Click here to access the interactive map.

Click here to read more about the NCSBN's consensus model for APRN regulation.

Facilitating The Use of Research Evidence

2011-11-10T09:40:00.003-05:00

A new issue of the Milbank Quarterly has recently been made available free of charge that is focused on facilitating the use of research evidence. This issue, which includes articles from 2002 - 2011, discussed the importance of research translation and dissemination, as well as the application and use of comparative effectiveness research. INQRI grantee, Dr. Robin Newhouse, and her colleagues' work, which discussed a transdisciplinary model of evidence-based practice, are also featured in this issue.

Click here to access the full list of articles.

Click here to directly access the article that included the work of INQRI grantee, Dr. Robin Newhouse.

Study: Nurse Safety, Patient Safety Linked

2011-11-09T09:37:00.003-05:00

While we have previously dedicated numerous blogposts to this issue, we feel as though new studies that provide further insight into the topic of nurse and patient safety should continue to be shared.

Yesterday, UPI.com detailed a recently published study that found that a safe working environment for nurses is also a safe environment for the patients in their care. The study, which can be found in the October edition of the BMJ Quality and Safety, was conducted by Dr. Jennifer Taylor of the Drexel University School of Public Health.

Click here to read the news article.

Click here to read the journal article (subscription required).

Click here to read other blogposts relating to nurses' work environment and patient safety.

INQRI Grantee Awarded Episteme Laureate Award From Sigma Theta Tau International

2011-11-08T09:23:00.004-05:00

It is with great honor to share with all of you that last week, Kathleen R. Stevens, EdD, RN, FAAN, received the Episteme Laureate award from the honor society of nursing, Sigma Theta Tau International. Dr. Stevens, who was a co-PI of a previously funded INQRI study, is nationally recognized for her involvement in improvement science and the dissemination of evidence-based practices. Dr. Stevens is also the founding director of the Academic Center for Evidence-Based Practice (ACE) at the University of San Antonio Health Science Center where the Star Model of Knowledge Transformation was created.

Click here to read the full recap of Dr. Steven's award presentation.

Click here or here to read more about Dr. Steven's INQRI work.

Click here to find out more information about the ACE.

A New Tool to Compare Hospital Performance

2011-11-07T09:38:00.003-05:00

Last week, Tom Avril and Dylan Purcell, of the Philadelphia Inquirer, reported on the Center of Medicare & Medicaid Services' hospital performance measurements for Philadelphia area hospitals. The Inquirer has created its own health portal for Philadelphia area residents to obtain performance data on eight serious, generally preventable conditions that may influence which facility they chose to obtain health services from when necessary.

Click here to access the Philadelphia Inquirer's hospital performance data.

Click here to read the news article regarding hospital performance measurements.

Click here to read more about INQRI teams' work addressing quality/performance measurement.

Click here to access the CMS hospital compare website.

Nurses Key to Reducing Readmissions

2011-11-04T11:07:00.004-04:00

Yesterday's article on HealthcareITNews.com, "Readmissions have hospitals stymied," discussed a recent Dartmouth Atlas Project report which indicated that little progress has been made in reducing hospital readmissions for Medicare patients over a five-year period. In addition, the report demonstrated that readmissions for patients with some conditions are actually increasing.

The work of INQRI researchers at Marquette University suggests that increasing the number of nurses involved with discharge might reduce some of those readmissions. Marianne Weiss, Olga Yakusheva and their team found that having more registered nurses working on a hospital unit and reducing the amount of nurses' overtime hours are correlated with fewer patients being readmitted or visiting the emergency department within the first 30 days after hospital discharge. They also found a positive correlation between the number of nurse staffing hours and patients’ satisfaction with the quality of discharge teaching and subsequent readiness to go home.

Click here to learn more about the Marquette study.

Hospital Delirium, Another Hospital Hazard for the Elderly

2011-11-03T09:13:00.002-04:00

Yesterday, Susan Seliger wrote about her personal and family's experience with hospital delirium. Hospital delirium, a brain dysfunction characterized by sudden confusion and inattention, is not very well known yet very common in elderly patients who are admitted to a hospital. Each year 20% of all elderly patients in hospitals develop delirium and this serious illness is still not being identified or treated as effectively as it can be. The article, which appeared in the New York Times' New Old Age blog section, is not only related to the work of INQRI grantee, Dr. Michele Balas, but also included a quote from her regarding this serious topic.

Click here to read the full article.

Breastfeeding Tied To Lower Blood Pressure Risk

2011-11-02T09:45:00.004-04:00

Following up on our post from Monday, a new study, published in the American Journal of Epidemiology, found that mothers who breastfeed for the recommended period of time, at least six months exclusively, may have a somewhat lower risk of developing high blood pressure later on in life. The study, which observed over 55,000 women, adds to evidence that breastfeeding might have benefits for mothers as well as babies.

Click here to read Reuters' coverage of the study.

Click here to read the journal article (subscription required).

Click here if you missed Monday's blogpost and want to find out more information about online communities that encourage the sharing of breast milk.

Remembering Joyce Clifford

2011-11-01T09:14:00.002-04:00

A little over a week ago, Joyce C. Clifford, PhD, RN, FAAN, a respected nurse researcher and colleague of many INQRI grantees, passed away at age 76. Dr. Clifford advocated a partnership of equals between doctors and nurses in the treatment of patients, and introduced the "primary nursing" model in 1975 at Beth Israel Hospital in Boston.

Yesterday, Paul Vitello, of the New York Times, wrote a fascinating piece detailing the accomplishments Dr. Clifford achieved throughout her respected career.

Click here to read the story.

Online Communities Allow Memphis-Area Nursing Women To Share Milk Supply

2011-10-31T09:39:00.003-04:00

New mothers living in the Memphis area now have an online resource to look for advice, share stories and even share breast milk. Lindsay Melvin, of The Commercial Appeal, detailed how online milk sharing is becoming a popular resource for mothers who are unable to provide their baby with enough breast milk. Ms. Melvin discussed the growing influence and use of websites such as Eats on Feets and Human Milk 4 Human Babies that connect mothers' with an abundant supply of breast milk to other mothers who are unable to produce enough for their newborn. This innovative, community based approach is available in many cities nationwide and we recommend that you forward these websites to any new mother you think may be interested in participating.

Click here to read the full article.

RWJF President and CEO Honored This Weekend

2011-10-28T13:06:00.002-04:00

Congratulations to RWJF President and CEO Risa Lavizzo-Mourey, MD, MBA, who will accept APHA’s 2011 Presidential Citation Award for outstanding leadership in public health policy at the American Public Health Association Annual Meeting this weekend. If you are planning to attend, please stop by booth 2051 to learn more about RWJF. Follow along on Twitter #APHA11.

Social Media Partners

2011-10-28T10:46:00.003-04:00

Thank you to Terri Schmitt for the kind words she shared about the commitment to social media shared by RWJF and INQRI in her recent interview on Nursing-School-Degrees.com.

Terri encourages her students to use social media to network with others and collaborate about ideas. You can follow her efforts on her blog, "Nurse Story" and you can catch her at the upcoming Sigma Theta Tau International Convention where she will present as part of a panel on use of social media in nursing education.

Local Philadelphia Hospital Working With School Nurses To Improve Care

2011-10-27T09:24:00.004-04:00

Following up on two posts (here & here) from last month, Kristen Coppock, reporting for phillyburbs.com, detailed how a local hospital is providing educational resources to school nurses to better address health issues presented by students. Cooper University Hospital's, Cooper in Schools program, has been active for about three years. The multidisciplinary program pairs schools with Cooper professionals to address medical and social issues. The free service provides symposiums, literature and guest speakers while allowing school staff to accumulate professional development credits.

Click here to read the full article.

Florida Hospitals, Nursing Homes Team Up To Cut High Readmission Rates

2011-10-26T09:28:00.002-04:00

On Monday, Letitia Stein, of the St. Petersburg Times, detailed how Florida hospitals are collaborating with local rehabilitation and nursing facilities to prevent costly readmissions. With readmissions estimated to cost the US health care system an extra $4 billion, around half of which are preventable, Florida care providers are establishing initiatives to prevent readmissions and lower health expenditures. This month, several hospitals and nursing homes in Tampa Bay are testing out a new tool, a discharge form that seeks to put all health care providers on the same page.

Click here to read the full article and find out more information about new initiatives being undertaken at Florida hospitals.

Click here to read previous blogposts relating to reducing readmissions.

Click here to read previous blogposts discussing improvement efforts for care coordination.

Nurses Can, and Should, Play a Larger Role in Meeting the Needs of Patients

2011-10-25T09:24:00.003-04:00

This past weekend, Cathryne A. Welch and Robert O'Connell coauthored an op-ed piece in the Times Union, describing the numerous roles nurses can take on to reduce the primary care workforce shortage as well as other recommendations made in the IOM's Future of Nursing: Leading Change, Advancing Health report. The two authors, both of whom are leads of the Future of Nursing: New York State Action Coalition, clearly explained the recommendations made in the report and attempt to garner public support of these initiatives.

Click here to read the full op-ed piece.

Click here to read other blogposts relating to the IOM's report.

Click here to learn more about research opportunities available to address the recommendations made in the IOM report.

Skilled Nursing and Post-Acute Care Has Improved in 9 of 10 Quality Areas

2011-10-24T09:15:00.003-04:00

Last week, the Alliance for Quality Nursing Home Care and American Health Care Association, released their annual report that showed America's nursing facilities are continuing to build upon quality improvements reported in previous years, including measurable improvements in nine out of 10 quality measures since 2009. In the past year, nursing facilities have improved in all short-stay measures, which include patient delirium, pain and pressure ulcers, and a vast majority of long-stay measures including measureable improvements in activities of daily living (ADL), high-risk pressure ulcers, resident mobility and pain. It should also be noted that INQRI program leader, Mary D. Naylor, Ph.D., RN, FAAN, and her team at the University of Pennsylvania, greatly contributed to the findings in this report.

Click here to read the full press release.

Click here to access the full report (in e-book format).

Healthcare Jobs Drive Employment First Nine Months of Year

2011-10-20T09:19:00.004-04:00

With the economic recession still greatly affecting many US citizens, individuals are looking for industries with significant job growth. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, hospital job growth in the first nine months of 2011 is four times what it was in all of 2010. Additionally, 42 percent of all new jobs in September were from the healthcare sector. This spike in job growth has been attributed to an emphasis on less invasive procedures, more outpatient care, and as a result, a higher utilization of visiting nurses. For example, leading travel nurse agency, American Traveler, announced in October a year-over-year increase of 56 percent in nurse job employment. With such a large growth in the nursing field, it is imperative that nurses continue professional development and obtain higher degrees in order to stand out and carve their own niche in the burgeoning industry.

Click here to read the full press release.

Click here to find out more about the IOM's recommendations in their report, Future of Nursing: Leading Change, Advancing Health.

Hospitals Utilize Visiting Nurse Practitioners To Lower 30-day Readmission Rates

2011-10-19T09:47:00.005-04:00

Early this morning, Misty Williams, of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution, detailed how Atlanta area health systems are utilizing visiting nurse practitioners to improve care coordination, lower readmission rates, and as a result, reduce costs for the patient and hospital. With Medicare cuts that will reduce payments to hospitals with excessively high readmission rates scheduled for next year, hospitals are turning to visiting nurse services to ensure that patients are adhering to their medication and treatment regimens, as well as bridging the communication gap between hospital and patient that often results in a patient's readmission within 30-days of their hospital discharge.

Click here to read the full news article.

Click here to read similar blogposts discussing the importance of reducing readmissions.

Morehead Hosts Live Webcast on Creating a High-Performing RN Workforce

2011-10-18T08:49:00.003-04:00

Next Tuesday, Morehead Associates, Inc., will host a free, hour-long webcast on creating an efficient and effective RN workforce by attracting high-performing nurses from outside organizations or building an engaged workforce from within. The webinar is intended to identify the organizational factors associated with a high-performance environment, as well as give participants a better understanding of the impact a high-performance environment can have on nurse engagement and retention.

Click here to find out more information on the webinar.

Oregon Nurses Use "Lean" Technique To Cut Waste, Improve Care

2011-10-17T09:39:00.004-04:00

This past weekend, Nick Budnick, reporting for The Oregonian, detailed a new technique Oregon nurses are implementing to curb patient falls. The technique, loosely based on lean manufacturing techniques made popular by Japanese carmakers, has already cut waste, improved efficiency and will save one nursing unit over 250 labor hours in the upcoming year. This technique has become so successful that it is now being developed for hospitals in Alaska, Canada, Washington, California and Colorado.

Click here to read the full news article.

HHS Awards $82 Million to Strengthen Nursing Workforce

2011-10-13T09:19:00.006-04:00

Earlier this week, the Department of Health & Human Services Secretary, Kathleen Sebelius, announced $82 million in awards to bolster nursing scholarship and education loan repayment programs. The awards will provide financial support to nurses and nursing students in exchange for service at health care facilities with a shortage of nurses. These awards support the recommendations made in the IOM report, Future of Nursing: Leading Change, Advancing Health, which seek to strengthen nurse education and training.

Click here to read the full breakdown of the awards given by the HHS.

Click here to find out more information about other topics that can be addressed in the Future of Nursing's Research Agenda

New Nurses Can Be Breast-Cancer Patients' GPS

2011-10-12T10:14:00.003-04:00

Earlier this week, Karen Garloch, of the Seattle Times, discussed the growth of nurses involvement in what is known as, "patient navigation". Hospitals across the United States are hiring nurses to help patients navigate their way through the medical system including, scheduling doctors' appointments; answering questions patients might have regarding their cancer; as well as counseling patients through this difficult time. With no additional payment required, nurse navigators can provide these complimentary services with no additional financial burdens for the patient.

Click here to read the full article.

Click here to read a previous blogpost discussing another article about nurse navigators that appeared in the Wall Street Journal.

Study Shows That Nursing Home Medicaid Recipients Have Higher Hospitalization Rates

2011-10-11T09:49:00.003-04:00

In a recently published study in the journal, Medical Care Research and Review, Helena Temkin-Greener, PhD, MPH, and her colleagues found that nursing homes may be enticed to send Medicaid recipients to the hospital for care due to financial incentives. The study identified that Medicaid reimbursement for hospitalizations are almost half that of Medicare reimbursements and as a result, may motivate decisions when determining if a patient needs to be transferred to a higher level of care.

Click here to read the full news article.

Click here to access the study (subscription may be required).

When the Nurse Wants to Be Called ‘Doctor’

2011-10-10T09:26:00.003-04:00

Last weekend, Gardiner Harris, reporting for the New York Times, detailed the growing role for nurses with doctoral degrees in the health care field. While the growth is high-level degrees in nursing is encouraging, Ms. Harris also points out that insurance companies have not altered their reimbursement schemes to reflect the more well trained nursing workforce. The rise in nurses obtaining their doctorates aligns with recommendations made in the IOM report, Future of Nursing: Leading Change, Advancing Health. Additionally, there is also much work that needs to be done to expand nurses' scope of practice and alter reimbursement schemes for Nurse Practitioners and Nurse Specialists, which can be addressed in research proposals submitted to the Future of Nursing's Research Agenda.

Click here to read the full article.

Click here to find out more information about other topics that can be addressed in the Future of Nursing's Research Agenda.

PCORI Funding Announcement: Pilot Projects Grants

2011-10-06T09:34:00.002-04:00

It is with great excitement that we share with you a funding announcement from the Patient-Centered Outcomes Research Institute (PCORI), which was established with the passage of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (PPACA). The purpose of this call for proposals is to further develop and enhance national research priorities for patient-centered care, collect preliminary data that can be used to advance the field of patient-centered outcomes research, and identify methodologies that can be used to advance patient-centered outcomes research as well as identify gaps where methodological research needs further development.

We would also like to note that INQRI grantee, Dr. Robin Newhouse, is a member of the Methodology committee for PCORI.

Click here to read more about the Pilot Project Grants.

Click here to read the full funding announcement.

Join Us Today For A One Year Progress Report On The Future Of Nursing: Campaign For Action

2011-10-05T09:33:00.002-04:00

At 2pm EST this afternoon, T heFutureofNursing.org will be hosting a twitter chat reflecting on the first year of the progress of achieving the recommendations set forth by the IOM report, Future of Nursing: Leading Change, Advancing Health. This chat will be led by Sue Hasmiller, Director of the Future of Nursing Campaign for Action, as well as staff from the Center to Champion Nursing in America. Many of the topics that will be discussed during this Twitter chat are addressed in the recent Future of Nursing Research Agenda.

Click here to find out more information about the Twitter chat.

Make sure to use #FutureRN in all your tweets and follow us at @INQRIProgram & @CFAResearch.

Patient-care Study Listens To The Kids

2011-10-04T09:10:00.002-04:00

Following up on a post from last week, Misti Crane, of The Columbus Dispatch, reported on the results of an INQRI supported study that examined children's satisfaction with nursing care. The study, conducted by INQRI grantee, Dr. Nancy Ryan-Wenger, found that children were concerned about how often a nurse checked on them and explained instances when children might feel sad, scared or annoyed when nurses did things that hurt, or when they woke them up. This article also featured a snippet from Heather Kelley, INQRI Program Associate, in which she discussed the importance of measuring quality through patient satisfaction.

Click here to read the article.

Click here to learn more about this and similar studies INQRI has supported that focus on nurses' role in managing and treating pain.

INQRI Study: RN Staffing Linked To Safe Practices Adoption

2011-10-03T09:20:00.002-04:00

Last week, nurse.com, reported that an INQRI supported study found more nurse-hours per patient and larger percentages of RNs on staff as factors in higher adoption levels of safe practices. The publication, co-authored by Dr. Jayani Jayawardhana and INQRI grantees Drs. Richard Lindrooth & John Welton, examined the higher likelihood of designated Magnet hospitals, when compared with non-Magnet hospitals, to adopt National Quality Forum Safe Practices.

Click here to read the article.

Click here to access the journal article published in the Journal of Nursing Administration (subscription required).

Education Study Committee Sends Georgia Governor Recommendations To Increase Nurse to Student Ratio in Schools

2011-09-30T09:24:00.003-04:00

Following up on a post from last week, a Georgia education committee, consisting of legislators and educators, made recommendations to improve school nurse programs. The article, written by Nancy Badertscher, of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution, detailed the numerous recommendations made by the committee to improve public education in the state of Georgia. While the recommendations were not all related to school nurses, many of the suggestions addressed issues that have been burdening public school nations around the state. The committee recommended that the state become a 50-50 partner in school nurse costs, which a majority is currently being covered by local school districts. The committee also recommended to improve the student to nurse ratio from 1 nurse to 2,300 students, one of the worst ratios in the country, to 1:750 in elementary schools and 1:1,500 in middle and high schools.

Click here to read the full news article.

INQRI Study Examines Preventing Readmissions With Nurse Intervention

2011-09-29T09:22:00.004-04:00

On Tuesday, INQRI alumni, Dr. Linda Costa and her team's INQRI supported study was featued on healthleadersmedia.com. The article, written by Rebecca Hendren, detailed how Dr. Costa's study sent nurses on home visits to discuss medications and solve problems that prevented patients from sticking to their regimens. This nurse-led intervention found that talking with patients and their families improved their understanding of their medication regimen and increased compliance.

Click here to read the full article.

Click here to read other blogposts relating to medication management.

Please Join The Future of Nursing First Year Progress Twitter Chat Next Wednesday, October 5th from 2-3pm EST

2011-09-28T09:14:00.003-04:00

A week from today, T heFutureofNursing.org will be hosting a twitter chat reflecting on the first year of the progress of achieving the recommendations set forth by the IOM report, Future of Nursing: Leading Change, Advancing Health. This call will be led by Sue Hasmiller, Director of the Future of Nursing Campaign for Action, as well as staff from the Center to Champion Nursing in America. Many of the topics that will be discussed during this Twitter chat are addressed in the recent Future of Nursing Research Agenda.

Click here to find out more information about the Twitter chat.

INQRI Supported Study Underscores Importance of Encouraging Children to Evaluate Quality of Care During Hospitalization

2011-09-27T09:11:00.001-04:00

Yesterday, INQRI Alumnus Drs. Nancy Ryan-Wenger and William Gardner's INQRI supported study was featured on HealthNewsDigest.com. The study, which revealed that soliciting children’s perspectives on the nursing care they received can be helpful in evaluating and identifying ways to improve that care, will be published in the January 2012 issue of the Journal of Nursing Care Quality and will also be available online before the issue is printed and distributed.

Click here to read the full press release that provides more in-depth details of the study.

Click here to learn more about this and similar studies INQRI has supported that focus on nurses' role in managing and treating pain.

Today is National Falls Prevention Awareness Day!

2011-09-23T09:24:00.003-04:00

September 23rd is not only the first official day of Fall but also National Falls Prevention Awareness Day. INQRI has continued to support research studies examining ways in which to prevent falls.

Click here to access the National Council for Aging's National Falls Prevention Awareness Day website which includes numerous resources to learn more about falls and how to prevent them.

Click here to access a JAMA article published by an INQRI supported team comprised of Dr. Patricia Dykes, Dr. Blackford Middleton and colleagues, that examined fall prevention in acute care hospitals.

Click here to read more about Dr. Maria Titler & Dr. Gary Rosenthal's study investigating linkages between the level of professional nursing practice and adoption of evidence-base practices, fall prevalence and injury from falls.

Click here to read about Dr. Maria Titler's current INQRI project examining the implementation of a risk specific fall prevention bundle to reduce falls in hospitals.

School Nurse:Student Ratios Greatly Differ Around The United States

2011-09-21T09:22:00.002-04:00

This week, Jacque Wilson, reporting for CNN.com, detailed the varying nurse to student ratio in the United States. With some school nurses being responsible for the health and safety of over 4,400 students in some school districts, it can be rather difficult for some nurses to handle the increased workload while providing sufficient care to students.

Click here to read the article.

WIHI Free Audio Event on Thursday, Sept. 22, Focuses on Medication Management

2011-09-20T10:49:00.003-04:00

This upcoming Thursday, the Institute for Healthcare Improvement (IHI) hosts another WIHI free audio program that focuses on managing medication shortages during a crisis. This event will feature: Frank Federico from the IHI, Michael Cohen from the Institute for Safe Medication Practices, and Lynn Eschenbacher from WakeMed Health & Hospitals. These individuals are pharmacy-trained improvers who've tapped their medication safety expertise to help hospital staff effectively manage crisis situations.

Click here to register for the event.

Click here to read other blogposts relating to medication management.

Raising Care Standards Behind Bars

2011-09-19T11:02:00.003-04:00

Last week, Heather Stringer, reporting for nurse.com, detailed efforts by nurses to provide specialized, sensitive treatment to the growing number of female inmates in the United States prison system. A recent study, conducted by Angelina Chambers, RN, PhD, CNM and colleagues, confirmed the belief that further efforts are necessary to develop more prison nursery programs that allow inmates to keep their babies for a finite period of time. By establishing these programs, prisons can reduce seperation anxiety and depression that many incarcerated mothers experience after giving birth.

Click here to read the full news article.

Call For Proposals: Evaluating Innovations in Nursing Education

2011-09-16T09:00:00.000-04:00

Earlier this week, the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation's Human Capitol Portfolio announced their third Call for Proposals for the Evaluating Innovations in Nursing Education (EIN) research initiative. This current Call for Proposals is seeking applications for research projects studying nursing faculty issues that are critical to achieving the recommendations outlined in the 2010 Institute of Medicine report The Future of Nursing: Leading Change, Advancing Health.

Click here to find out more information about the EIN Call for Proposals.

Click here to find out more information about The Future of Nursing's Research Agenda, which is currently accepting proposals relating to the IOM Future of Nursing report..

Recommendations for Developing Safe Nurse Staffing Models on Inpatient Psychiatric Units Issued by American Psychiatric Nurses Association

2011-09-15T09:27:00.006-04:00

This morning, The American Psychiatric Nurses Association (APNA) released a position statement on staffing inpatient psychiatric units that calls for the development of new staffing models to promote the optimal use of psychiatric mental health nurses in hospital settings. The position statement, which includes numerous policy recommendations, also suggested that a committee, which includes direct-care RNs and nursing administrators, should develop, implement, and evaluate a staffing plan that considers the multiple variables that affect staffing needs.

Click here to read the press release, via prweb.com.

Click here to read the position statement (PDF).

Click here to read about a recent INQRI funded study that found higher nurse staffing levels in hospitals can reduce rates of infection, improve outcomes for patients.

INQRI Grantee Announced as American Academy of Nursing 2011 Honorary Fellow

2011-09-14T10:48:00.003-04:00

In late August, current INQRI grantee, Nancy Dunton, PhD, was announced as one of four honorary fellows of the American Academy of Nursing. Dr. Dunton has been recognized for her body of research as well as the contributions she has made to the nursing field as the Director of the National Database of Nursing Quality Indicators®. The four honorary fellows will be celebrated during the American Academy of Nursing's Annual Conference and Meeting on October 15th.

Click here to read the full AAN press release.

Click here to register for the AAN's 38th annual conference and meeting.

Click here to read more information about Dr. Dunton's current INQRI project.

Systematic Review Finds Advanced Practice Nurses Provide Comparable Care To Physicians

2011-09-13T09:31:00.007-04:00

This month, the upcoming September/October edition of Nursing Economics will feature a systemic review conducted by current INQRI grantee, Robin Newhouse, PhD, RN, NEA-BC, and colleagues. The systemic review found that not only do APRNs provide effective and high-quality patient care but also the use of clinical nurse specialists in acute care settings can reduce length of stay and cost of care for hospitalized patients. The findings of this systemic review support the recommendations made in the IOM's Future of Nursing report. Additionally, these findings are related to the Future of Nursing's Campaign for Action research agenda.

Click here to access a PDF version of the article.

Click here to read other blogposts relating to the IOM's report.

Click here to find out more information abot the Future of Nursing's research agenda.

Nearly Half of Office-Based Physicians Work With NPs and PAs

2011-09-12T10:16:00.002-04:00

Earlier this morning, Victoria Stagg Elliott, of amednews.com [the news arm of the AMA], reported that nearly 50% of all office-based physicians works in a practice that includes physician assistants, nurse practitioners and/or certified nurse midwives. This statistic, which was obtained from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's National Center for Health Statistics, was originally reported in a data brief released on August 17 and reflects the recent growth of higher educated nurses acting in coordination with physicians and other health care professionals. The utilization of advanced degree nurses aligns with recommendations made by the IOM's Future of Nursing report.

Click here to read the news article.

Click here to read blogposts relating to the IOM's report.

Click here to read about a new funding initiative specifically targeting recommendations made in the report.

August Issue of RWJF's Charting Nursing's Future Focuses on Education

2011-09-09T09:24:00.003-04:00

Earlier this week, RWJF's monthly online publication, Charting Nursing's Future, focused on how to dramatically increase the formal education of America's nursing workforce by 2020. This issue is the first of a four-part miniseries on the IOM's Future of Nursing report and discussed the educational progression recommendations in the report and offer an early look at how key players are responding.

Click here to the August issue of Charting Nursing's Future.

Click here to read blogposts relating to the Future of Nursing report.

WIHI Free Audio Event Today

2011-09-08T09:43:00.004-04:00

Later today, the Institute for Healthcare Improvement will be hosting one of their WIHI free audio events, "Always Events^®: Raising Expectations for Patient Experience". This event will start promptly at 2pm EST and will feature the following presenters:

Lucile O. Hanscom, Executive Director, Picker Institute

Dale Shaller, MPA, Principal, Shaller Consulting Group

Martha Hayward, Lead for Public-Patient Engagement, Institute for Healthcare Improvementl;

Gaye Smith, Chief Patient Experience and Service Officer, Vanderbilt University Medical Center

Anthony M. DiGioia, MD, Founder, The Orthopaedic Program and Innovation Center, Magee-Womens Hospital of UPMC

Click here to register for the event.

Temp ER Nurses a Safety Threat to Patients, Study Shows

2011-09-07T09:06:00.004-04:00

According to new research from Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, temporary emergency room nurses who are unfamiliar with their surroundings may inadvertently be a threat to the patients they serve. As reported by John Commins, for HealthLeaders Media, the study found that the temporary help was twice as likely as permanent staff to be involved in medication errors in the hectic and fast-paced environs of the ER.

Click here to read the news article.

Click here to read additional blogposts related to nurse staffing.

Public Health Nurse Program Expands To Idaho

2011-09-06T09:45:00.002-04:00

Last week, Alison Boggs, of The Spokesman-Review, highlighted the introduction of a program that has been proven to improve the lives of low-income, first-time mothers and their babies. The program, known as the Nurse-Family Partnership, puts public health nurses into the homes of pregnant, first-time mothers for weekly or biweekly visits until the baby is born. The nurses then continue regular visits until the child turns 2. With the program saving $5 for every $1 invested in families' care, the Nurse-Family Partnership not only increases the quality of care low-income mothers receive but cuts expenditures for the state and federal government.

Click here to read the news article.

Nurses study is vital boon to women's health

2011-09-02T09:00:00.000-04:00

Earlier this week, Shari Rudavsky, of Indystar.com, discussed the continued success of the Nurses Health Study that has been run by Harvard University for the past 35 years. The study of 238,000 nurses across the nation is the largest, longest-running investigation of women's health ever. Ms. Rudavsky detailed the positive effects the study has had on not only patients, but countless health care professionals.

Click here to read the full news article.

Community Health Center Nurses Fill Needed Niche

2011-09-01T09:00:00.002-04:00

Last week, Paul Restuccia, of the Boston Herald, discussed the continued success of neighborhood clinics and how these clinics have expanded to serve a growing demand among communities across Boston. Mr. Restuccia also pointed out that patients often like to come to neighborhood clinics because they feel more comfortable with the distinct cultures many clinics serve, whether it’s Chinese, Haitian, Hispanic or gay and lesbian.

Click here to read the full news article.

Don't Forget to Register for the IHI's Next Audio Event: "Always Events®: Raising Expectations for Patient Experience"

2011-08-31T09:00:00.004-04:00

Next week, the Institute for Healthcare Improvement (IHI) will be hosting a free audio event on September 8th, 2-3pm EST titled, "Always Events^®: Raising Expectations for Patient Experience". This event is designed to introduce the public to one of the most innovative health concepts developed in the last few years by Picker Institute, Always Events^®. First conceived in 2009, Always Events^® are activities and processes that should routinely be part of patient care and the patient and family experience, to ensure optimal communication, discharge, handoffs, transitions, health literacy, and more.

Distinguished professionals participating in the audio program include:

Lucile O. Hanscom, Executive Director, Picker Institute
Dale Shaller, MPA, Principal, Shaller Consulting Group
Martha Hayward, Lead for Public-Patient Engagement, Institute for Healthcare Improvement
Gaye Smith, Chief Patient Experience and Service Officer, Vanderbilt University Medical Center
Anthony M. DiGioia, MD, Founder, The Orthopaedic Program and Innovation Center, Magee-Womens Hospital of UPMC

Click here to register for the free audio event.

Ohio Hospitals Demand Higher Educated Nurses

2011-08-30T09:00:00.000-04:00

Last week, Christopher Magan & Ben Sutherly, of the Dayton Daily News, detailed how major health-care employers in Ohio are requiring more education of their nurses, a trend that has prompted two local colleges to discontinue their associate degree programs for the profession. The authors also addressed some of the discussions that have begun about passing a state law by 2015 that would require nurses to obtain a bachelor’s degree in nursing within 10 years. This effort, by both hospitals and educational institutions, supports the reccomendations presented in the IOM's Future of Nursing report.

Click here to read the news article.

Click here to read other blogposts relating to nursing education.

Clinics Focused on Medicare Patients Making a Difference

2011-08-29T11:03:00.002-04:00

Over the weekend, Rosemary Shinohara, of the Anchorage Daily News, reported about the recently opened Alaska Medicare Clinic. The clinic was established with the intention of holding down costs and improving patient satisfaction by utilizing interdisciplinary teams, made up of registered nurses and medical aides, that spend a great deal of time with patients before they are seen by the lone physician on site.

Click here to read the full news article.

Nurses Can Ease Challenges of Distance Caregiving

2011-08-26T09:40:00.003-04:00

Being able to emotionally support a family member undergoing cancer treatment is no easy task, especially when a loved one is hundreds or thousands of miles away from the caregiver. The number of caregivers providing instrumental and emotional support to an ill loved one who is geographically distant is expected to reach approximately 14 million by 2012. Delicia Honen Yard, of oncologynurseadvisor.com, has reported about a study of the new and complex phenomenon of distance caregiving in the advanced cancer population. The research revealed the stressors that burden distance caregivers, and suggested ways in which nurses might be able to help these persons.

Click here to read the article.

Burnout In ICU Could Be Decreased By More Female Nurses

2011-08-25T10:17:00.003-04:00

Yesterday, Grace Rattue, of medicalnewstoday.com, detailed the findings of a study conducted by Swiss researchers and published in the American Journal of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine that sought to establish a correlation between higher female nurse staffing ratios and decreased employee burnout. With over 3,000 people in 72 Swiss ICUs evaluated, the study found that not only were higher ratio of female nurses associated with a reduced overall risk of burnout, but female caregivers were also more likely to say they experienced stress.

Click here to read the full article.

Click here for a direct link to the journal article.

Health Care Taps The Brake On Job Creation

2011-08-24T09:13:00.003-04:00

On Monday, Reed Abelson & Katie Thomas, of the New York Times, wrote an interesting guest piece in The Seattle Times discussing the health care industry's reliable job growth during tough times. The journalists also point out that although the industry has continued to grow, looming Medicare & Medicaid reimbursement cuts will have an affect on hospitals' expansion and hiring plans. The article concludes with a few paragraphs regarding the current and future need for nurse assistants, registered nurses and nurse practitioners & midwives.

Click here to read the article.

Nurse Navigators Help Patients Through Maze of Cancer-Treatment Decisions, Fears

2011-08-23T09:00:00.000-04:00

Last week, Laura Landro, of the Wall Street Journal, detailed how nurse navigators can help patients make informed medical decisions and assist them with treatment options, tests and laboratory work and appointment scheduling.

Click here to read Ms. Landro's article.

New Study: Advanced Practices Nurse Outcomes

2011-08-19T08:14:00.000-04:00

According to the study, "Advanced Practice Nurse Outcomes 1990-2008: A Systematic Review," nurse practitioners, nurse midwives and other advanced practice nurses have the skills needed for autonomous practice that can help bridge the expanding gap between need and health care services. The study findings reflect the distinct, but complementary prisms through which nurses and physicians view patients.

Click here to read more about this study on the Health Justice Network.

IHI Expedition: Reducing Avoidable Readmissions

2011-08-18T15:36:00.002-04:00

Poor coordination of care across settings results in rehospitalizations that are costly, potentially harmful, and often avoidable. Since hospital readmissions adversely affect patients, payers, and providers, the solution requires the involvement of all stakeholders across the continuum of care.

Through its work with the STate Action on Avoidable Rehospitalizations (STAAR) initiative, the Institute for Healthcare Improvement (IHI) has seen first hand how engaging cross-continuum teams in co-designing front-line care processes and in leading the improvement work can improve care transitions and ultimately reduce avoidable rehospitalizations.

Discover the evidence-based strategies tested in hospitals nation-wide to by participating in IHI’s new Expedition, Reducing Avoidable Readmissions, beginning on September 7, 2011.

Click here to learn about INQRI researchers, Marianne Weiss and Olga Yakusheva and their compelling work on the impact of nurses on readmission.

Nurses Aim to Take More Effective Role in Health Care

2011-08-17T09:00:00.000-04:00

Last week, Kathy Robertson, Senior Staff Writer for the Sacremento Business Journal, discussed the strategies that are currently being utilized by The Future of Nursing's California Action Coalition to transform the way health care is delivered in the state of California. In the article, Ms. Robertson discussed how the California Action Coalition is working tirelessly to have recommendations made by the IOM report, The Future of Nursing: Leading Change, Advancing Health, implemented across the state.

Click here to read the article.

Click here to read other blogposts discussing The Future of Nursing's Campaign For Action.

Federal Grant to Strengthen State’s Nursing Workforce

2011-08-16T09:00:00.000-04:00

Last week, Whitney Burdette of local CBS affiliate, WTRF, reported that nurses across West Virginia will now have access to education and training, thanks to a federal grant that aims to bolster nursing education at all levels and prepare faculty to teach the nursing workforce. The Nurse Faculty Loan Program assists registered nurses in completing their graduate education to become qualified nurse faculty.

Click here to read the full news article.

Click here to read similar blog posts relating to nurse education.

Q&A With Previous INQRI Grantee, Mary Blegen

2011-08-15T09:00:00.000-04:00

Diana Austin of Healthcanal.com, published an interview with previous INQRI grantee, Mary Blegen, RN, PhD, FAAN. In this interview, Dr. Blegan, who currently is the Director of the Center for Patient Safety in the UCSF School of Nursing, discusses the importance of interdisciplinary teamwork in improving patient safety in the nation's hospitals.
Click here to read the full interview with Dr. Mary Blegan.

To read more about Dr. Blegan's research team and other INQRI grantees' study results regarding nurse staffing and environment, click here.

Patient-Centered Medical Home Poised to Transform Health Care

2011-08-12T09:00:00.001-04:00

A recently released policy paper, written by the Urban Institute’s Robert Berenson, Kelly Devers and Rachel Burton, examines the promise of the medical home model of care and concludes it has the potential to transform health care delivery, but that organizations promoting the model should tread carefully. The paper reviews the positive feedback it has received but warns that providers, policy-makers and others should wait to implement it before evidence of the model’s effectiveness is available.

The paper notes that stakeholder organizations have yet to agree on a definition and set of standard components for a practice to be considered a medical home. The model is currently being tested in dozens of pilots nationwide that could answer questions about whether medical homes actually improve the quality of care and the health outcomes of patients, which components of the medical home model have the largest impact on these outcomes and what levels of reimbursement are needed to get providers to engage in the desired activities.

Click here to read a summary of the paper.

Click here to read the paper in its entirety.

Interdisciplinary Pilot Study Suggests Nurses Can Help Chronically Ill Patients Properly Manage Medication after Being Discharged from Hospital

2011-08-10T16:43:00.004-04:00

Nurses Bridged Gap Between Leaving Hospital with Prescriptions and First Visit with Primary Health Care Provider

Medicare will soon release new rules requiring hospitals to focus more attention on patients after they are discharged. Readmissions have cost Medicare $26 billion a decade and the program plans to cut payments to hospitals that have high readmission rates. Nonadherence to medication regimens may be one factor in high readmission rates. After leaving the hospital, patients are not always likely or able to adhere to the medication regimens they were prescribed, sometimes with disastrous results. Without supervision from a health care provider, some patients either never take the prescribed medication, or take the wrong dosage. One study found that more than seven in ten (72 percent) of adverse events after a patient left the hospital were related to medication.

A new study, conducted by an interdisciplinary research team based at The Johns Hopkins Hospital including two nurses and a pharmacist, and funded by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation Interdisciplinary Nursing Quality Research Initiative (INQRI), indicates that the solution may lie with having a registered nurse oversee medication management during that transitional period. The study is in the current issue of the Journal of Nursing Quality Care.

“It can be days, weeks or even months before a patient sees his or her primary care provider after leaving the hospital,” said Linda L. Costa, Ph.D., R.N., N.E.A.-B.C., nurse researcher at The Johns Hopkins Hospital and assistant professor at Johns Hopkins University School of Nursing. “Very often, during that time, no one is checking to be sure that the patient is taking the right doses of the medication at the right times, or even that the patient is taking medication at all. And even if they meet sooner with their primary care providers, there’s not always a guarantee that the provider will have access to the hospital records for that patient in a timely fashion. Having a nurse coordinate care during this period can literally make the difference between remaining at home or going to the emergency room in some cases.”

The researchers conducted a pilot study using a hospital-based nurse-pharmacist team to provide care during the transition from hospital to home and from hospital health care provider to primary care provider. The study focused on inner city residents with limited education and financial means.

The nurses in the study consulted with a clinical pharmacist on patients’ medication regimens and were responsible for ensuring that the home list of medications was complete and correct in patients’ electronic health records. Nurses were expected to call patients 48 hours after discharge from the hospital and visit patients in their homes within 14 days of discharge to conduct a structured interview about medication. The nurses observed whether patients had obtained the prescribed medication, how they were organizing various drugs in order to reduce confusion, how often and how they were taking the medication and whether they obtained refills.

Nurses also spoke with patients’ families in and out of the hospital, when possible, and coached whoever served as the primary caregiver about the medication prescribed.

The research team found that nurses were able to detect medication discrepancies and help correct them, and encourage patients to fill and take their prescribed medications in the correct dosages. The study also revealed that nurses could facilitate transferring information to primary care providers. Furthermore, in-person meetings with patients and their families after discharge were more helpful than phone calls when it came to providing education and coaching about medication and helping patients develop plans and systems to help them adhere to their prescribed medication regimens.

In addition to Costa, the research team included her co-principal investigator, Robert Feroli, Pharm.D., F.AS.H.P., medication safety officer for the Johns Hopkins Hospital; Stephanie Poe, D.N.P., R.N., director ,nursing clinical quality and Chief Nursing Information Officer at The Johns Hopkins Hospital; and Mei Ching Lee, M.S., B.S.N, research fellow at the Johns Hopkins University School of Nursing.

INQRI supports interdisciplinary teams of nurse scholars and scholars from other disciplines to address the gaps in knowledge about the relationship between nursing and health care quality. It is helping to advance the recommendations of the Institute of Medicine’s landmark report, The Future of Nursing: Leading Change, Advancing Health, which include fostering interprofessional collaboration and preparing and enabling nurses to lead change. By requiring research teams to include a nurse scholar and at least one scholar from another health care discipline, INQRI not only fosters interprofessional collaboration, the Initiative also ensures that diverse perspectives are brought to bear in research.

The Interdisciplinary Nursing Quality Research Initiative is funded by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation. To learn more, visit www.inqri.org, or follow on Twitter at @INQRIProgram.

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The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation focuses on the pressing health and health care issues facing our country. As the nation's largest philanthropy devoted exclusively to health and health care, the Foundation works with a diverse group of organizations and individuals to identify solutions and achieve comprehensive, measureable and timely change. For nearly 40 years the Foundation has brought experience, commitment, and a rigorous, balanced approach to the problems that affect the health and health care of those it serves. When it comes to helping Americans lead healthier lives and get the care they need, the Foundation expects to make a difference in your lifetime. For more information, visit www.rwjf.org.

Hazard Alerting Loop Proving Successful in Washington

2011-08-10T08:26:00.000-04:00

The Washington Hospital Center is successfully using a "Hazard Alerting Loop" system (HAL) to avoid patient safety problems. HAL is a reporting system which allows front-line personnel to report potential problems to the HAL coordinator who can then address the issue with supervisors and staff.

Click here to read more in the Washington Post article, "Washington Hospital Center safety program seeks to catch ‘near-misses.'"

Medicare Changing Payments to Hospitals with High Readmission Rates

2011-08-09T12:41:00.004-04:00

As has recently been reported, Medicare is planning to release a rule to encourage hospitals to address issues related to readmission. Attempting to reduce costs while improving care quality, the agency is planning to cut back on payments to those hospitals with high readmission rates.

Given this major shift in payments, the work of INQRI researchers from Marquette University could not come at a more important time. Led by Marianne Weiss and Olga Yakusheva, this interdisciplinary team have been studying what hospital-based nurses do to influence outcomes after a patient is discharged from a hospital. Specifically, they identified the contributions that nursing staff make to the quality of discharge teaching and the impact of that teaching on patient outcomes, readiness and readmission rates of patients who are discharged home. They have found that when units had more RN hours per patient day, fewer overtime hours and fewer vacancies, the discharge teaching was of higher quality, patients reported greater readiness for hospital discharge, and post-discharge utilization of readmission and emergency room visits was lower.

Click here to read "Medicare Prepares Rule To Penalize Hospitals With High Readmission Rates" from Kaiser Health News.

Click here to read the Weiss-Yakusheva team's article "Quality and Cost Analysis of Nurse Staffing, Discharge Preparation, and Postdischarge Utilization" in Health Services Research.