NURS440 Issues and Trends in Nursing

Week 1 Discussion

DQ1 Describe one situation you have encountered where your actions were guided by the Nursing Code of Ethics. If you have never encountered such a situation, imagine a possible situation you could face in the future. Link this experience to one of the elements in the code of ethics found at http://www.nursingworld.org/codeofethics.

DQ2 Why is the impaired nurse neither praised nor looked upon with reverence like his/her peers?

NURS440 Issues and Trends in Nursing

Week 2 Discussion

DQ1 How does the registered nurse use guided research in the clinical setting?

DQ2 Explore your clinical site and relate one quality improvement (QI) study currently being analyzed. What is benchmarked in the study? What role does the nurse play in the QI study?

NURS440 Issues and Trends in Nursing

Week 3 Discussion

DQ1 What stood out to you after exploring the Sigma Theta Tau website?

DQ2 Do you describe yourself as a lifelong learner? If so, why do you feel it is important?

NURS440 Issues and Trends in Nursing

Week 4 Discussion

DQ1 Does equating status with authority cause confusion? Why or why not?

DQ2 As a professional nurse, what are some ways in which you are able to reach out to members of the community who do not have access to healthcare reform?

NURS440 Issues and Trends in Nursing

Week 5 Discussion

DQ1 How do you feel about the Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) initiatives? Discuss ways a community nurse can help with the goals.

DQ2 Many resources are spent on recruiting foreign nurses. It is a fast-growing private sector business. If the United States and other industrial nations put their resources into fixing the problems that lead to this shortage of nurses, would the need to recruit foreign nurses decrease? Why or why not?

NURS440 Issues and Trends in Nursing

Week 6 Discussion

DQ1 What does professional commitment mean to you? Give an example.

DQ2 Do you believe that nurses as lobbyists are essential to the growth of nursing as a profession? Why or why not?

NURS440 Issues and Trends in Nursing

NURS440 Full Course Papers Week 7 Discussion

DQ1 Do you feel that nurses believe that there are ethical concerns related to nursing informatics?

DQ2 Discuss how the use of health information (HI) technology has influenced your current nursing practice. Give examples.

NURS440 Issues and Trends in Nursing

NURS440 Full Course Papers Week 8 Discussion

DQ1 Do you feel socializing with your colleagues is beneficial in creating a better learning environment? Why or why not?

DQ2 What are some key elements in motivating clients to improve health behaviors and outcomes? What role does the family play?

NURS440 Issues and Trends in Nursing

Week 1 Assignment  

Interactive Case Study Journals

Click on this link to complete the DNR Interactive Case Study for this week.

Associate what you have learned in your weekly materials with what was presented in the case study.

After you complete the case study, click on the “Interactive Case Study Journals” link to reflect upon what you have learned from the case study and related learning materials this week. Once opened, choose the DNR Interactive Case Study Journal and follow the instructions listed within the journal. Compare this case study to your nursing practice and give a similar example from your nursing experience in which you might have run into an ethical situation.

NURS440 Issues and Trends in Nursing

Week 5 Assignment  

Patient Safety Culture Pamphlet

Create a pamphlet using any type of publisher software you choose to educate clients on a current patient safety issue; for example, a currently aging adult and how to care for his/herself at home, medication-polypharmacy and how a patient can not make a self medication error, or other appropriate safety issues. If you have a question about a specific topic, check with your instructor.

Your pamphlet must include the following items:

Include at least 5 tips for preventive care for the patient.

Include information that should be shared with family or caregivers.

Include local resources in the community that might be available for this type of safety concern.

Include at least 3 current (published less than 5 years ago) references, in APA format.

NURS440 Issues and Trends in Nursing

Week 6 Assignment  

Interactive Case Study Journals

Click on this link to complete the Staffing Issues Interactive Case Study following the readings and presentation for this week.

Associate what you have learned in your weekly materials with what was presented in the case study.

After you complete the case study, click on the “Interactive Case Study Journals” link to reflect upon what you have learned from the case study and related learning materials this week. Once opened, choose the Staffing Issues Interactive Case Study Journal and follow the instructions listed within the journal. Compare this case study to your nursing practice and give a similar example from your nursing experience in which you might have run into on staffing or a similar situation.

NURS440 Issues and Trends in Nursing

Week 7 Assignment  

Intelligent Hospital Pavilion ICU Video Analysis/Reflection

Review the Intelligent Hospital Pavilion videos in the Week 7 Presentations folder. Write a paper in which you identify and describe elements that you feel are of benefit or risk to both patients and nurses. Explain the benefits/risks and why you do or do not support this type of available technology. Your paper should be a minimum of three pages and written in APA format with at least two outside credible references.

NURS440 Issues and Trends in Nursing

NURS440 Full Course Papers Week 8 Assignment  

Current Issue/Trend Paper

Choose a current issue/trend topic from the following list:

Technology in health care

Collective bargaining

The impaired nurse

The global nurse workforce

Mentoring and coaching in nursing

The trimodal model of 21st-century effective nurse leaders

Other instructor-approved topic

Create a 6- to 8-page paper in APA format including a minimum of 4 to 5 references. Explain how you would lobby your legislators or local government for funds to support your issue or trend. Include the following elements in your paper: share why you chose the specific topic, the current relevance of material, how it is integrated into clinical practice, and how the information is used in clinical setting.

 

MORE INFO 

Issues and Trends in Nursing

Introduction

Nursing is a profession that has been around for ages, but that doesn’t stop it from being constantly under scrutiny. New regulations and legislation are constantly added to help ensure patients get the best care possible. However, some of these policies may not be right for all situations, so it’s important to know what other types of nurses there are out there and where they stand on issues like pain management or patient-nurse ratio.

Patient-nurse ratio

• The number of patients for nurses is a critical issue.

• Nurses are overworked and underpaid.

• Nurses have been leaving the profession in droves, with many citing poor working conditions as their reason for leaving.

Patients’ health literacy

Health literacy is the ability to understand and use information to make decisions about your health. Patients with low health literacy are more likely to experience poor health outcomes, like being hospitalized or having a hospital stay longer than expected.

Patients with low health literacy also tend to have a lower rate of readmission after discharge from the hospital than those who have higher levels of ability in this area. This can be attributed to them being unable to find information about their condition once they leave the emergency room or doctor’s office, which could lead them back into care at an earlier stage than necessary if they had been given proper guidance on how best treat their condition.

Pain management

Pain management is a difficult subject, and it’s important that you’re prepared for the challenges ahead. The first step to effective pain management is knowing what your patients are experiencing. In many cases, you’ll have to rely on them for information about their symptoms and how they’re feeling emotionally as well as physically—and this can be difficult! However, there are some things nurses can do in order to help make this process easier for them:

• Ask about their overall health history (e.g., whether they’ve had surgery recently)

• Describe the type of pain being experienced (e.g., burning sensation versus dull ache)

• Explain that there are several different types of pain medications available (opioids vs non-opioids), but nothing works 100% effectively across all patients

Infection control

Infection control is a critical component of nursing. It’s important to follow these guidelines:

• Hand washing is the number one infection control method, and it’s something you should do anytime you’re in contact with patients.

• Alcohol-based hand sanitizers can help cut down on bacteria growth when used properly (read the instructions). Using gloves or gowns are also helpful for preventing cross-contamination, which can cause serious illness if left untreated.* Eye protection (glasses or goggles) is also recommended in some settings because there may be blood splatter on surfaces that could irritate your eyes.* Avoiding contact with patients who are sick or have been contaminated by others’ germs is key if you want to avoid becoming ill yourself!

Shortages of nurses and supplies

You may be surprised to learn that there are more nurses than ever before in the United States. In fact, there is a shortage of nurses right now. This is because of the aging population and fewer people entering the field due to higher tuition costs at nursing schools.

The number of new applicants is down by 40% over the last 10 years, while those who already have degrees are retiring early due to lack of job opportunities after graduation or moving out-of-state for work (which means less pay). This trend has been increasing since 2008 when it reached its highest point at nearly 14%.

What does this mean for you? Well if you’re hoping for a career as an RN then it could be tough since demand will continue growing as baby boomers age; meanwhile, employers want their employees’ skillset but not necessarily their salary level which makes finding work difficult even though there are plenty available positions opening up every day across all fields including nursing homes where many older adults reside today.”

Nursing has some trends that we have to be prepared for.

• Patient-nurse ratio: The patient-nurse ratio is the number of patients per nurse. As you can imagine, this can become quite high in hospitals and nursing homes. The Affordable Care Act (ACA) requires that health care facilities have ratios no greater than 1:2 or 1:3 respectively on average throughout the year.

• Patients’ health literacy: This refers to how well a person understands his or her own health needs and how he or she communicates those needs with doctors, nurses and other healthcare providers. According to recent studies done by the National Center for Health Statistics (NCHS), only about half of U.S.-born adults have adequate knowledge about their own condition—even though they may visit an emergency room if they feel sick enough!

Conclusion

As you can see, there are many issues that we have to be prepared for in nursing. There is a shortage of nurses and supplies, but there is also an increase in the number of patients with serious diseases like cancer or Alzheimer’s disease who need care. In addition, the patient-nurse ratio is getting worse every year. This means that our nurses need more training than ever before. They’ll have even more responsibility if they want their patients’ needs met within budget constraints imposed by healthcare organizations like hospitals or insurance companies.