Symbiosis--undergraduate research mentoring and faculty scholarship in nursing.

Although teaching is the major focus of academia, research and professional publications frequently determine faculty eligibility for promotion and tenure. In universities where funded research is scarce, faculty need creative means to accomplish research goals. Research is an essential part of baccalaureate nursing education.

Smoking too young: students' decisions about tobacco use.

Purpose: To describe college students' decisions related to tobacco use.

Study Design And Methods: A sample of 49 smokers and 51 nonsmokers were asked about the smoking continuum of starting smoking, continuing to smoke, and tobacco cessation. An investigator-developed questionnaire was used to determine tobacco use and whether prevention and cessation messages were perceived as effective.

Clinical immersion: a residency model for nursing education.

The education of future generations of nurses is in need of philosophic and programmatic transformation in keeping with the rapidly changing health care delivery system. The Nurse Residency Model is one baccalaureate nursing program's response to calls for reform. Rooted in a spirit of collegiality and lifelong learning, the three facets of its philosophy include enhanced socialization, improved transition to practice, and increased student accountability.

An educational framework to support gerontological nursing education at the baccalaureate level.

Building gerontological content into a nursing curriculum will help meet the rising nursing care needs of older adults. An educational framework used to support innovative teaching and learning strategies is presented. Using this framework, strategies for developing and teaching a new undergraduate nursing elective include exposure to and interactions with older adults, national conference attendance, and use of film to investigate issues of aging.

Using the Omaha System to document the wellness needs of the elderly.

Capturing health promotion, education, and disease prevention outreach service data and outcomes is difficult. The rapid pace of health fairs that offer free health services challenges record keeping. To address this issue, the University of Delaware Nursing Center developed short, efficient survey tools using the Omaha System of documentation.

Time, tact, talent, and trust: essential ingredients of effective academic-community partnerships.

Building strong partnerships between academic institutions and community health agencies requires a commitment to time, tactful communications, talented leaders, and trust. The essential elements of partnership building are discussed based on experiences of a mid-Atlantic nursing center, an academic health center established to provide care to underserved and vulnerable populations.

Racial disparities in hospitalized elderly patients with chronic heart failure.

The purpose of this study was to examine the impact of race on length of hospital stay (LOS) and number of procedures on elderly persons hospitalized with chronic heart failure (CHF). Secondary data analysis was used to obtain data on 99,543 hospitalized Medicare patients with CHF age 65 years or older. MANOVA was utilized to examine the effects of race, age, and total hospital charges on LOS, number of procedures, and diagnosis.

Clinical education initiative in the community: caring for patients with congestive heart failure.

With greater numbers of chronically ill clients cared for in their homes rather than in acute care hospitals, nursing schools need to create and implement innovative strategies for experiences in the community setting. A telephone intervention program was initiated in the last semester of the medical-surgical clinical course to promote the health of patients with congestive heart failure and provide meaningful community experiences for senior nursing students. Students' journals from this semester-long clinical experience were analyzed and showed outcome benefits to both patients and students.