California continues to move forward with the Future of Nursing: Campaign for Action initiatives within the state, and in so doing is also providing leadership to other Action Coalitions around the country. Twenty one new Action Coalitions were just announced (Arkansas, Delaware, Georgia, Hawaii, Kentucky, Kansas, Maryland, Massachusetts, Minnesota, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, North Carolina, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Carolina, Texas, West Virginia, Wisconsin, Wyoming), and that ...

Last week, the Future of Nursing/Campaign for Action, AARP and the UC Davis Betty Irene Moore School of Nursing hosted a town hall in Sacramento to discuss steps being taken by the California Action Coalition, as well as work needed in the future. The meeting was very well attended by nurses and consumers alike, and there was standing room only for this important discussion. Helen Thomson, RN and Kim Van Ysseldyk, RN, NP gave moving examples of nursing practice beyond traditional boundries and ...

The California Action Coalition is moving forward with great enthusiasm to develop and implement strategies associated with the 8 recommendations in the Institute of Medicine's Future of Nursing Report, and there is an event coming up that will allow nurses and consumers to identify the necessary actions needed to improve health in California and the role nurses should take to advance this vision. The discussions at this event will align with the recommendations contained in the report and should ...

California was chosen as one of the first five states in the nation to form an Action Coalition with the express directive of implementing the recommendations included in the Institute of Medicine's (IOM) Initiative on the Future of Nursing (IFN). This report, funded by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation which remains active in the implementation stage, outlines changes needed in practice, education, policy, data collection, and involvement at all levels of decision making related to nursing and ...

A unique opportunity is coming your way to participate in a National Day of Dialogue on June 29, 2011 from 1 PM - 3 PM (Eastern Daylight Time) regarding the Institute of Medicine/Robert Wood Johnson Foundation's landmark report, "The Future of Nursing: Leading Change, Advancing Health". During these two hours, a panel of nurses in practice, education, government, as well as nursing students, will discuss the report and its implications for future nursing education.
Please plan ...

The call for a highly educated nursing workforce has been delivered by nurse experts, supported by studies conducted by the Institute of Medicine and Carnegie Foundation, and endorsed by professional nursing organizations. Yet, we still drag our feet when it comes to returning to school.

One of the most common excuses I hear from nurses about returning to school is that it is too expensive. Over the past year, more attention has been devoted to whether a college education is a wise ...

Last week I found myself in Annapolis, MD standing before the Senate Executive Nominations committee discussing my recent appointment to the Governor’s Wellmobile Advisory Board. I am extremely proud to be affiliated with this nurse-led care initiative, managed by the University of Maryland School of Nursing, that brings health care to underserved communities throughout Maryland. Using mobile vans, hypertension, diabetes, and cancer screenings, health education, medication assistance, and other ...

As a member of the nurse leader team at Gannett Healthcare Group, I have an opportunity to talk with nurses across the country. Recently, I have noticed our conversations turning to the issue of compassion fatigue.

I find that nurses are anxious to share their feelings, frustrations, and fears as it relates to this topic. However, one important concept that I have learned is that burnout is often confused with compassion fatigue.

Although the symptoms can be similar, ...

Celebrating nursing excellence is near and dear to our hearts at Nurse.com and once again we are seeking nominations of nurses who deserve to be honored at the 2011 Nursing Excellence Awards Galas.

I am certain that you know nurses who exemplify all that nursing should be — nurses you would want to care for you or your loved ones, who have advanced the profession, taught or mentored you as you progressed along your career path, or gone beyond the call of duty to improve the lives ...

Among the new members of 112th Congress sworn in on January 4, 2011 were four nurses – Renee Elmers, R-NC, Diane Black, R-Tenn, Ann Marie Buerkle, R-NY, and Karen Bass, D-Calif – bringing the total number of nurses currently serving in Congress to seven. In addition, many nurses serve in elected and appointed positions in state legislatures and local governments across the nation.

Yet, nurses remain largely invisible in policy making circles.

For years nurses quietly ...

Have you noticed that every January we are bombarded with advertisements for exercise equipment and diet aids? As a nation, we engage in many unhealthy behaviors and struggle to modify our lifetstyle choices. Personallly, I find it alarming that obesity is expected to be our next major health battle. But as a nation, we are trying to improve. According to a Consumer Reports phone survey, 90% of American adults believe that they ate healthfully, despite data that suggests otherwise.

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Just before the Thanksgiving holiday, my mother was hospitalized. Her surgery went well and she is recuperating as expected. However, the event occurred at a time when I was deep in thought about the future of nursing and creating an exemplary healthcare experience.

As I sat at my mother’s bedside in the ICU and later in the step-down unit, I observed the nurses and other members of the healthcare team and contemplated the experience through the lens of a family member instead of ...

Almost every week I am asked my opinion regarding healthcare reform (Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, or PPACA). Frequently the person asking me also has an opinion and this has led to some lively discussions, particularly if the individual thinks the PPACA is a bad idea. I happen to believe health care reform is not only a good thing, but it is also long overdue. It is astouding to me that a progressive country, such as ours, has not had a planned healthcare approach for all its citizens, ...

Post Traumatic Stress Disorder is considered the most prevalent mental disorder among military personnel returning from deployment in Afghanistan and Iraq. Surveys show 12.6 percent of veterans of the Iraq war and 6.2 percent of Afghanistan veterans have been diagnosed with PTSD. When the US Department of Veteran Affairs asked the Institute of Medicine to review the literature on the best interventions for PTSD, their report, Treatment of PTSD: An Assessment of the Evidence (2007), found there ...

In the midst of the 1980s nursing shortage, the American Academy of Nursing embarked on a study to examine why some hospitals acted as magnets that attracted and retained RNs. This seminal work became the foundation for the creation of the Magnet Recognition Program and was based on the premise that better nursing work environments produced better patient outcomes.

Today, the term Magnet is synonymous with excellence.

Over the course of the past 20 years, the number ...