People enter professions for different reasons. Some do it for money. Some do it because of a natural skill or talent. Some do it because they can’t think of anything better. But sometimes, people enter professions because they seem destined. Erin Nestor, our $500 scholarship winner at StressedOutNurses.com, is one of those people. After a 25-minute conversation with her last week, it was clear she was born to do one thing: be a nurse. Nestor...  Read More »

By Richard Freedberg, RN, MSN, MPA Can we take a quick inventory of your life? Let’s see, you might be just starting nursing school, in the thick of it, or just out of it. Since college is expensive, you may be working in addition to attending class. Then, there is the family and friend situation, those people you care about and need to spend time with. Could we agree that many of us have way too much to do and far too little time...  Read More »

The bond between a mother and a child is like no other. Sometimes it takes a nurse to strengthen it. "[Nurses] can actually improve the lives of the children, the mothers, and our communities," says Brenda Graves, RN, BSN, CLC, supervisor of the Fort Collins, CO-based wing of the nurse-run non-profit Nurse-Family Partnership (NFP) program. The NFP program partners low-income, first-time mothers with nurses who visit the mothers...  Read More »

Our Last Semester columnist, Chelsea, is no longer in her last semester. She’s no longer looking for a job, either. After passing the NCLEX a couple of weeks ago, Chelsea is quickly moving on to the next phase of her life. Here’s a look inside her first REAL nursing gig: Not only am I a real nurse, but now I actually have a job! (This grown-up stuff isn’t quite so scary anymore.) I came to the realization that my first...  Read More »

By Richard Freedberg, RN, MSN, MPA My family is already asking me for advice! What should I do? Hmmm, only part of the way through nursing school and you are already being hit up for free healthcare advice. Anyone else out there running into this type of situation? Absolutely! This is a common circumstance. Think about your own experiences. There is a certain nice guy with construction experience in my family who saved me from disaster when...  Read More »

Editor’s note: Author Kathleen Bartholomew will be speaking at the 26th annual NSNA MidYear Conference in November in Reno, NV. Until then, we’ll occasionally be featuring excerpts from some of Bartholomew’s captivating and influential publications. Here’s one from Stressed Out About Communication Skills: Of all the professions on the planet, those of us in nursing have the honor of dealing with the most challenging...  Read More »

Six months after the telemetry unit at Sts. Mary & Elizabeth Hospital in Louisville, KY, implemented hourly nurse rounding, the number of patient falls decreased, patient satisfaction increased, and call light use dropped by more than 3,000 per month. "The managers round on all of the patients every day," says Amy Robinson, RN, a nurse manager at the 200-bed facility. "One of the questions we ask the patient is, ‘Does...  Read More »

Staff at Loyola University Medical Center in Maywood, IL, always put the patient care experience first, but they wanted to do more. They wanted to spend more time, pay more attention, and have time for more care. At Loyola, they call this "magis." Magis is a Latin term meaning "to do more," which is a perfect description of the new patient care model they developed to reflect the organization’s values. "We...  Read More »

Working in healthcare is dangerous for your health, says Daniel Johnson, PhD, a clinical psychologist in Macon, GA. The profession is dangerous because of the enormity of the daily challenges staff face (e.g., the responsibility of caring for seriously ill people, lack of support, shift conflicts, resource constraints). These daily challenges can build up and affect resilience to stress and strain. The daily challenges experienced by nurses...  Read More »

by Deanna R. Miller, RN, MSN/Ed, HCE, manager of inpatient units at University Hospitals Geneva (OH) Medical Center My experiences as a hospital patient—in relation to nursing care—have never been negative. I received my medications on time, and the nurse came in each shift and assessed me. But what was lacking with my care was complete and effective patient education. Each day, as my nurse was performing an array of tasks, I...  Read More »