Rehabilitation Specialty Hospital Conversion to Support a COVID-19 Pandemic Surge: Nurses' Perceptions.

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to understand the novel experience of a rehabilitation specialty hospital conversion to acute medical/COVID-19 patient care from the perspective of rehabilitation nurses.

Design: A descriptive qualitative study was conducted.

Methods: Thirty-six nurses employed by the rehabilitation specialty hospital were invited to participate.

Predictive Ability of the Dynamic Appraisal of Situational Aggression-Inpatient Version (DASA-IV) in Medical-Surgical Units.

Background: Workplace violence persists in health care with nurses reporting physical and verbal abuse from aggressive patients causing emotional stress and lost workdays. The Dynamic Appraisal of Situational Aggression-Inpatient Version (DASA-IV) was developed to measure risk for aggression in patients with behavioral health conditions in psychiatric and emergency department settings. The DASA-IV has not been validated with adult patients admitted to medical-surgical units.

Nurse-led implementation of awake prone positioning.

This article discusses the pathophysiology of COVID-19 acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS), the evidence supporting the use of awake prone positioning (APP) for adult patients with COVID-19 ARDS cared for in acute care medical units, and a quality improvement initiative to support a standardized APP process on a COVID-19 medical unit.

Implementation of Interprofessional Meetings Preparing Caregivers of Patients With Brain Injury for Discharge: A Pilot Study.

Purpose Of Study: Caregivers are often unprepared to care for patients discharged with brain injury. Interprofessional team meetings with the caregiver used in some specialties improve discharge planning. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the effect of a standardized interprofessional caregiver meeting on caregiver readiness for caregiving.

ECMO survivors' quality of life and needs after discharge: A descriptive, comparative cross-sectional pilot study.

Objectives: To describe gender differences in health-related quality of life and characterise discharged patients' perceptions of follow-up needs after extracorporeal membrane oxygenation.

Research Methodology/design: A descriptive, comparative cross-sectional pilot design was used. Adult patients receiving extracorporeal membrane oxygenation discharged between January 1, 2016 and March 31, 2018 participated in telephone interviews.

Effect of a Scheduled Nurse Intervention on Thirst and Dry Mouth in Intensive Care Patients.

Background: Thirst is a common, intense symptom reported by hospitalized patients. No studies indicate frequency of use of ice water and lip moisturizer with menthol to ameliorate thirst and dry mouth. In an audit of 30 intensive care unit patients at a 580-bed community teaching hospital, 66% reported dry mouth with higher thirst distress and intensity scores than in published studies.

Going Along With It: Neonatal Intensive Care Nurses' Views of a Donor Milk Practice Change.

Background And Purpose: Donor human milk (DHM) is used when a mother's own milk is not available. Donor human milk is available as a frozen pasteurized or commercially sterilized product. An abrupt change in practice in use of donor milk products raised concerns among nurses caring for infants in the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU).

Effect of the Salary Model on Sustainability of a Professional Practice Environment.

Objective: This replication study examined differences in RN perception of the professional practice environment (PPE) between salary- and hourly-wage compensation models over time.

Background: A previous study demonstrated that nurses in a salary-wage model had a significantly higher perception of the PPE compared with their peers receiving hourly wages.

Methods: A descriptive, comparative design was used to examine the Revised Professional Practice Environment (RPPE) scale of nurses in the same units surveyed in the previous study 2 years later.

A comparison of salary-wage and hourly-wage acute care nursing units: a pilot study.

Objective: This pilot study examined differences in RN perception of the professional practice environment and financial indicators between salary-wage and hourly-wage compensation models.

Background: There is a dearth of current information regarding use of salary-wage models for compensation for direct care nurses.

Methods: A descriptive, comparative design was used to examine the Revised Professional Practice Environment Scale (RPPE) and financial indicators of nurses in a nonprofit healthcare system over a 6-month period.

Improving quality and efficiency of postpartum hospital education.

The purpose of this study was to investigate the implementation of an evidence-based, streamlined, education process (comprehensive education booklet, individualized education plan, and integration of education into the clinical pathway) and nurse education to improve the quality and efficiency of postpartum education during hospitalization. A one-group pretest-posttest design was used to measure the quality of discharge teaching for new mothers and efficiency of the education process for registered nurses before and after implementation of an intervention. Results indicated that a comprehensive educational booklet and enhanced documentation can improve efficiency in the patient education process for nurses.

Translating an evidence-based algorithm to decrease early post-operative urinary retention after urogynecologic surgery.

The implementation of an evidence-based algorithm along with comprehensive nursing education supports effective clinical decision-making in the prevention of post-operative urinary retention and bladder distention for women who have undergone urogynecologic surgery.

An evidence-based approach to decrease early post-operative urinary retention following urogynecologic surgery.

The Johns Hopkins Nursing evidence-based practice model and guidelines were used to translate evidence into a practice algorithm for the prevention of urinary retention with bladder distention during hospitalization in women having undergone urogynecologic surgery.

Improving care of patients with insulin pumps during hospitalization: translating the evidence.

The purpose of this quality improvement project was to determine whether implementation of an evidence-based standardized protocol would enhance documentation and management of blood glucose levels for patients using continuous subcutaneous insulin infusion during hospitalization. Using a comparative design, documentation and blood glucose control measures were assessed before and after implementation of the protocol. Although some improvements have been recognized, we continue to refine the process and anticipate stronger outcomes in the future.