Assessing and Improving Medical-Spanish Language Proficiency Among Nursing Students.

Language discordance among health care providers and patients has been shown to result in poor patient outcomes. Health care providers who identify as being proficient in the native language of their patients may decline the use of professional interpreters due to their self assessment of language proficiency. More information is needed about whether providers who speak Spanish are proficient in medical Spanish.

The role of maternal and child healthcare providers in identifying and supporting perinatal mental health disorders.

Background: Perinatal depression (PND) is underdiagnosed in the clinical setting. This study explores the role of obstetricians, and other primary care providers of maternal and child healthcare in detecting, screening, and referring women during the perinatal period identified as depressed, anxious, or exhibiting other symptoms of mental health disorders.

Method: Information was gathered from obstetricians (n = 16), and other primary care providers (pediatricians, nurse practitioners, physician assistants) (n = 85), on identifying and supporting childbearing women with symptoms of perinatal depression using an online survey.

Applying Comfort Theory to Improve Outcomes for People in Sickle Cell Crisis.

When people with sickle cell disease in vaso-occlusive crisis need hospitalization, they often experience fragmented and disparate treatment. Racial, gender, and socioeconomic treatment bias by providers, including nurses, is complicated by the current reactionary United States (US) controlled substance policies. To provide high-quality and respectful care, nurses can use Kolcaba's Comfort Theory as the framework for a holistic plan to assess, deliver individualized interventions, and evaluate outcomes for people experiencing vaso-occlusive crisis.

"Ditch the white coats": What LGBTQ+ patients prefer in their primary care provider.

Background: Health disparities in lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer and other sexual and gender minority (LGBTQ+) individuals are well documented, and there is a dearth of primary care providers (PCPs) with the knowledge, skills, and attitudes to sensitively care for this diverse population.

Purpose: The purpose of this research study was to ask LGBTQ+ patients what qualities they prefer in their PCP. The findings will be used to better prepare nurse practitioners (NPs) to care for this diverse community and inform the training of future NPs to provide patient-centered care to LGBTQ+ individuals.

Paid Mentors Develop Leadership Skills and Promote Socialization Into Nursing.

Peer mentoring encourages relationships among novice and senior nursing students, provides emotional support, and develops leadership skills. The research design was a pretest/posttest, interventional study to evaluate a supervised peer-mentoring program among nursing students to determine socialization of mentees into the nursing discipline. The second purpose was to evaluate if financial reimbursement was an incentive for participation by mentors.

Barriers and Facilitators to Success in Undergraduate Nursing Education Among Minority Students: A Systematic Review.

Background: Underrepresented minority (URM) students in nursing education are essential to address health disparities.

Purpose: To determine barriers and facilitators to success among URM students in nursing education.

Methods: CINAHL, PubMed, Embase, and PsycINFO were searched for English language research studies published between 1980 and 2020, which focused on barriers and facilitators to success in nursing education in the United States among URM students.

Home health aide perceived information needs for dementia-specific care plans.

Home health aides (HHAs) are a vital workforce essential to meet the complex care needs of the persons living with dementia (PLWD) who remain at home. Care plans for PLWD in the home healthcare setting should incorporate HHAs perspectives. We sought to understand HHAs' perspectives about their information needs in caring for PLWD, from June to August 2020, semi-structured interviews telephone interviews (n = 25) with English and Spanish-speaking HHAs with limited English proficiency in the New York metropolitan area.

Facilitators of COVID-19 vaccine acceptance among Black and Hispanic individuals in New York: A qualitative study.

Background: Black and Hispanic individuals experience poorer outcomes related to coronavirus disease (COVID-19), yet have alarmingly lower uptake of the COVID-19 vaccine compared to non-Hispanic White individuals.

Objective: To explore the perceptions of barriers and facilitators of COVID-19 vaccine acceptance among Black and Hispanic adults in the New York.

Methods: A qualitative study consisting of one-on-one semistructured interviews with Black and/ or Hispanic adults in New York state was conducted.

HIV care continuum interventions for Black men who have sex with men in the USA.

Disparities persist along the HIV care continuum among Black men who have sex with men (MSM) in the USA. As part of an initiative funded by the Health Resources and Services Administration's HIV/AIDS Bureau (US Department of Health and Human Services), we searched for recently published interventions focused on improving HIV care continuum outcomes among Black MSM with HIV in the USA. Our search identified 14 interventions, all of which were associated with at least one statistically significant outcome.

All alone: A qualitative study of home health aides' experiences during the COVID-19 pandemic in New York.

Background: Despite their integral role, Home Health Aides (HHAs) are largely unrecognized as essential to implementing effective infection prevention and control practices in the home healthcare setting. We sought to understand the infection prevention and control needs and challenges associated with caring for patients during the pandemic from the perspective of HHAs.

Methods: From June to August 2020, data were collected from HHAs in the New York metropolitan area using semi-structured qualitative interviews by telephone; 12 HHAs were interviewed in Spanish.

Opioid Use in Adults With Sickle Cell Disease Hospitalized During Vaso-Occlusive Crisis: A Systematic Review.

Background: While pain is the hallmark of sickle cell disease (SCD), healthcare personnel are often ill-equipped to adequately treat patients who present in vaso-occlusive crisis (VOC). Although symptom severity varies from individual to individual, SCD is characterized by intervallic pain as a result of oxygen deprivation in tissues and organs. Regardless of pain severity, SCD patients are often viewed as drug seekers by healthcare personnel who have concerns regarding patients' dependence on opioids which may lead to addiction.

Impact of state scope-of-practice laws on nurse practitioner-provided home visits.

Millions of older Americans receive nurse practitioner (NP)-provided home based primary care (HBPC). Little is known about how state scope-of- practice (SOP) laws may impact use of NP-home visits. Using 2017 Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services Provider Utilization and Payment Data Public Use File (PUF), we examined the impact of state SOP laws on the use of NP-home visits.

Nursing Faculty Perceptions Regarding Students With Physical Disabilities.

Background: Students with physical disabilities continue to face barriers seeking entry into nursing programs even as the nursing profession advocates vigorously for the rights of these individuals.

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to identify faculty perceptions that create barriers for students with physical disabilities to meet the requirements of a BSN education.

Methods: Nursing faculty (n = 111) completed an online survey about the ability of a student who uses a wheelchair for mobility to meet required outcomes.

Documentation of Hepatitis B Immunity in Nursing Students.

Because of the risk of occupational exposure, preparation for nursing student clinical placement includes documentation of the hepatitis B immunization series. Requiring a hepatitis B antibody titer is less common. Immunity from the hepatitis B vaccine decreases over time, particularly for those immunized as infants.

Pharmacoprevention of Human Immunodeficiency Virus Infection.

This article reviews the disparities in human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) incidence, presents evidence on the efficacy of preexposure prophylaxis (PrEP) and nonoccupational postexposure prophylaxis (nPEP), provides an overview of clinical guidelines for prescribing PrEP and nPEP, discusses strategies to promote efficient use of these effective interventions, and reviews best practices in treatment retention for people at high risk for HIV. Nurses are optimally positioned to prevent new HIV infections. When working with sensitive topics such as sexual practices and substance use, nurses excel at building rapport, making shared decisions, and educating about risk reduction with an affirming, nonjudgmental approach.

Development of a Black Caucus within the HIV Prevention Trials Network (HPTN): Representing the Perspectives of Black Men Who Have Sex with Men (MSM).

Black men who have sex with men (MSM) have disproportionate HIV disease burden in the United States. Black MSM have been underrepresented in biomedical research, including HIV clinical trials, due to a myriad of socio-structural, socio-cultural, and psychosocial factors. The HIV Prevention Trials Network (HPTN) 061, a feasibility study of a multi-component HIV prevention intervention for Black MSM in six US cities, incorporated the development and implementation of a Black Caucus as a culturally grounded model for the integration of Black MSM in clinical trials and research in HPTN.

Graduating nurses' knowledge of palliative and end-of-life care.

Background: Generalist nurses frequently care for people who have advanced chronic diseases in decline, or who are dying. Few studies have measured graduating nurses' knowledge about end-of-life (EoL) care.

Aims: To measure and compare knowledge about EoL care using the palliative care quiz for nurses among two cohorts of graduating nurses in a baccalaureate nursing programme.

Perioperative accountable care teams: Improving surgical team efficiency and work satisfaction through interprofessional collaboration.

The purpose of this performance improvement project was to design, implement and evaluate an interprofessional education initiative intended to improve surgical team efficiency, communication and work satisfaction. The development of interprofessional perioperative accountable care teams in three surgical specialties, cardiothoracic, neurosurgery and orthopedics, demonstrated a reduction in turnover time, increased staff, patient and surgeon satisfaction, and increased operating room (OR) revenue generated by the surgical specialties within one year of implementation.

Teaching end-of-life care to baccalaureate nursing students: lessons learned.

End-of-life (EoL) care is increasingly provided by nurses outside of traditional hospice environments, yet many general nurses have limited education in EoL care. This article describes the development and evolution of an EOL care course in a baccalaureate nursing program, and the resources and strategies the faculty used to facilitate student engagement and learning. The original EoL course was then eliminated and replaced by the inclusion of EOL care education within existing courses.

A Pilot Study: Testing of the Psychological Conditions Scale Among Hospital Nurses.

Objective: The aim of this study was to test the reliability and validity of the Psychological Conditions Scale (PCS), a measure of drivers of engagement in hospital-based nurses.

Background: Research suggests drivers of engagement are positive links to patient, employee, and hospital outcomes. Although this scale has been used in other occupations, it has not been tested in nursing.

A Descriptive Study Assessing Quality of Life for Adults With a Permanent Ostomy and the Influence of Preoperative Stoma Site Marking.

Diseases or anomalies of the genitourinary or gastrointestinal tract often require removal of organs and creation of an artificial opening (stoma) to allow for elimination of urine or stool. Preoperative stoma site marking can affect quality of life (QoL). A descriptive study was conducted to assess the relationship between QoL and preoperative stoma site marking in adults with a permanent ostomy.

Integrating palliative care into primary care for patients with chronic, life-limiting conditions.

As longevity increases, individuals with chronic, life-limiting conditions will live longer with disease burden and functional decline. Nurse practitioners can integrate symptom management, early decision-making, and supportive care into the primary care setting to improve quality of life and decrease economic and emotional impact at the end of life.