Using an academic-community partnership model and blended learning to advance community health nursing pedagogy.

This article describes a model of teaching community health nursing that evolved from a long-term partnership with a community with limited existing health programs. The partnership supported RN-BSN students' integration in the community and resulted in reciprocal gains for faculty, students and community members. Community clients accessed public health services as a result of the partnership.

Burnout and coping strategies of polytrauma team members caring for veterans with traumatic brain injury.

Objective: The aims of this national study were to (1) examine the extent of job burnout among VA Polytrauma team members engaged in the diagnosis and treatment of traumatic brain injury (TBI); and (2) identify their coping strategies for dealing with job-related stress.

Design: A cross-sectional sample of 233 VA Polytrauma team members completed the Maslach Burnout Inventory (MBI) and identified strategies for coping with work stress as part of an online survey.

Results: VA Polytrauma team members experience moderate levels of emotional exhaustion, but low levels of depersonalization and high levels of personal accomplishment.

Practice makes perfect: tips for successful institutional review board submissions.

As the nursing profession seeks to develop evidence-based practice, nurses are being encouraged to embark on research in their institutions. Staff nurses and nurse clinicians often struggle with the process of obtaining institutional review board approval for their projects. When classes are available, the focus is frequently on informing nurses about the federal regulations for protection of human subjects.

Time out.

This biannual department, sponsored by the Council on Graduate Education for Administration in Nursing (CGEAN), provides information updates to nurse leaders on educational trends, issues, and research important for effective health system administration. The CGEAN Web site can be accessed at http://www.cgean.

Creating a safety culture through the application of reliability science.

The discussion of patient safety in delivering healthcare services is an important topic given the current state of the healthcare system. The current organizational cultures of many healthcare organizations do not support a culture of patient safety and do not employ a specific framework in delivering safe, reliable patient care. This article discusses the principles of reliability science and the use of these principles in creating a culture of patient safety.

Collaboration: education-service affiliation agreement.

This biannual department, sponsored by the Council on Graduate Education for Administration in Nursing (CGEAN), provides information updates to nurse leaders on educational trends, issues, and research important for effective health system administration. CGEAN's Web site can be accessed at (http://cgean.org).

Toward a new future for healthcare and nursing practice.

The healthcare trends described in this article will eventually lead to transformation of healthcare delivery and nursing practice. The nursing profession needs to be proactive in creating new models of care delivery and in redefining the work of nursing. The authors describe 2 examples of emerging models and principles for the creation of future models, related leadership challenges for nurse executives, and strategies for leading change.