AAN News & Opinion
Comparing residential long-term care regulations between nursing homes and assisted living facilities
The long-term care (LTC) sector is a major component of the U.S. health care system that continues to grow (Bureau of Labor Statistics, 2014; Congressional Budget Office, 2013). Most of this increase is due to growth in the population of oldest adults (85+), a group with limited capacity for self-care due to health conditions (Congressional Budget Office, 2013; NIA, 2015). In 2014, there were over 46 million Americans 65+ years, and 6.2 million 85+ years old (Federal Interagency Forum on Aging-Related Statistics, 2016).Nursing innovation: The joint effects of championship behaviors, project types, and initiation levels
Health care organizations worldwide strive to deliver safe, high-quality, patient-centered care while fostering a proficient nursing staff and maintaining fiscal accountability. To achieve these aims, these organizations promote innovation at various organizational levels and in various domains (Drach-Zahavy, Somech, Granot, & Spitzer, 2004; Kaya, Turan, & Aydın, 2015; Länsisalmi, Kivimäki, Aalto, & Ruoranen, 2006; Weng, Huang, Chen, & Chang, 2015). It is increasingly recognized that nurse champions, namely excellent front-line practitioners, come from within the organization and are passionate about improving quality of care, and serving as key agents in implementing innovation via self-developed or management-developed projects (Byers, 2017; McSherry & Douglas, 2011; White, 2011).Prescription drug abuse: Problem, policies, and implications
This article provides an overview on prescription drug abuse and highlights a number of related legislative bills introduced during the 112th Congress in response to this growing epidemic. Prescription drug abuse has emerged as the nation’s fastest growing drug problem. Although prescription drugs have been used effectively and appropriately for decades, deaths from prescription pain medicine in particular have reached epidemic proportions. Bills related to prescription drug abuse introduced during the 112th Congress focus on strengthening provider and consumer education, tracking and monitoring prescription drug abuse, improving data collection on drug overdose fatalities, combating fraud and abuse in Medicare and Medicaid programs, reclassifying drugs to make them more difficult to prescribe and obtain, and enforcing stricter penalties for individuals who operate scam pain clinics and sell pain pills illegitimately.Global health diplomacy: An integrative review of the literature and implications for nursing
The increasing interconnectedness of the world and the factors that affect health lay the foundation for the evolving practice of global health diplomacy. There has been limited discussion in the nursing literature about the concept of global health diplomacy or the role of nurses in such initiatives. A discussion of this concept is presented here by the members of a Task Force on Global Health Diplomacy of the American Academy of Nursing Expert Panel on Global Nursing and Health (AAN EPGNH). The purpose of this article is to present an integrative review of literature on the concept of global health diplomacy and to identify implications of this emerging field for nursing education, practice, and research.Conceptual models to guide best practices in organization and development of State Action Coalitions
The RWJF/AARP National Campaign for Action established a goal of establishing Action Coalitions in every state by 2012. Last year, a small Steering Committee formed in Nebraska and used two conceptual models to guide the organization and development of its Action Coalition. The purpose of this article is to present the Internal Coalition Outcome Hierarchy (ICOH) model that guided development of partnership and coalition building. The second model, Determining Program Feasibility, provided a framework for data collection and analysis to identify the opportunities and challenges for strategic program planning to accomplish identified key priorities for Nebraska.Where we are today: Prioritizing women’s health services and health policy. A report by the Women's Health Expert Panel of the American Academy of Nursing
There has been a recent resurgence of interest in women's health as evidenced by several federal and international policy-shaping reports that will impact women's health services. These reports include the 2010 Affordable Care Act, the formation of the National Prevention Council and Strategy, the 2011 IOM report on clinical preventives services for women, and the World Health Organization strategic plan for 2010-2015. In this paper, we summarize and discuss these reports and discuss implications of enacting the suggested health policies.Geospatial Linkage to Public Health Asthma Outcome
Background: In 2003, Canada and the United States unveiled a joint strategy aimed at improving border air quality and addressing related health concerns. This proposed international, multi-disciplinary, and multi-institutional study builds upon geospatial models developed at the University of Windsor to identify and predict environmental influences on health outcomes in Detroit and Windsor.Sleep Disturbance among Low-Income Minority Teens
Background: Sleep is particularly important for brain maturation and sleep deprivation in teens has a potent negative effect on behavior, emotion, and attention. Adolescents tend to experience more problems with sleep loss as a natural consequence of puberty, but teens from impoverished inner-city areas witness violence and experience stressors that are likely to affect sleep.Adolescent Use of Performance Enhancing Substances
Background: Consumer use of performance enhancing substances (PES) is a multi-billion dollar industry, fueling public health concerns regarding use in adolescents hoping to enhance athletic performance, body appearance, or fight obesity. PES may also be used for military, sexual, and intellectual performance enhancement. PES consumption can be viewed as a healthy fitness endeavor. Healthcare providers tend to be less familiar with PES than other forms of substance abuse. PES adverse effects can include violent behavior, suicide attempts, and premature deaths.Enhancing Diversity of Nursing Faculty Using Distance Technology
Background: Recruitment of faculty to colleges of nursing who represent ethnic, racial, and geographic diversity is critical to preparation of a culturally competent nursing workforce and development of nurse scientists to address issues of health disparities. The lack of doctorally-prepared faculty from minority backgrounds and rural locations prevents realization of this goal. Barriers to pursuit of PhD education are prevalent in minority and rural nurses: family obligations that preclude long commutes or relocation, requirements for full time study, need to maintain employment during doctoral study, lack of geographic access to programs with the desired research focus, and reticence to commit to loan programs to finance doctoral study in light of the faculty salary levels that commonly are less than clinical salaries.American Academy of Nursing Senior Scholar at the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality
From July 1999 to July 2000, I was the American Academy of Nursing Senior Scholar at the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ) (formerly the Agency for Healthcare Policy and Research). During this time, I spent half time at the agency, alternating weeks at the agency and the University of Michigan. My goals for this experience included the following: increasing emphasis on occupa-tional health issues and concerns at the agency, promoting collaboration between the agency and the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH), and gaining a greater understanding of the activities and operations of the agency.Political action: Genetic testing appointment
The letter from Secretary Shalala appointing me to the Secretary's Advisory Committee on Genetic Testing (SACGT) was dated April 12, 1999. The date would have been my sister's 50th birthday, except my sister had died of cystic fibrosis shortly before her sixth birthday. A brother, who had been born a year before me, had died at age 2 weeks, and it was only after my sister's diagnosis that we learned his meconium ileus also had been due to cystic fibrosis. Clearly, genetic illness has had a large impact on my family.Policy leadership training institute—another successful year
Twenty-five outstanding nurses benefitted from a Helene Fuld Foundation grant given in 1998 to the American Academy of Nursing (AAN) and the American Nurses Foundation's (ANF) Institute for Nursing Leadership (INL). The Policy Leadership Institute was provided by the George Mason University's Center for Health Policy, Research and Ethics during the Annual Health Policy Institute June 5-13, 2000. Through a collaborative partnership between the INL and the Center for Health Policy, Research and Ethics, we are pleased to announce that 35 graduates have completed this program since its inception in 1999.
