Nurse-Driven Process for the Successful Removal of Urinary Catheters Among Elderly Patients After Hip Fracture Surgery: A Quality Improvement Project.

Background: Hip fracture is a major health concern and the use of an indwelling urinary catheter (IUC) constitutes a significant burden on elderly patients undergoing hip fracture surgery.

Local Problem: The institution had a high rate of urinary tract infection (UTI) and IUC reinsertion after hip fracture surgery.

Methods: A pre/post-implementation design was used for this quality improvement initiative.

A New Paradigm for Nurse Leader Decision-Making Within Complex Adaptive Systems.

Health care is a complex and ever-changing environment for nurse leaders and other health care industry decision-makers. The prevailing leadership and decision-making models, rooted in Industrial Age principles, often struggle to adapt to the complexities of modern health care. This article explores the foundations of complexity science and its application to health care decision-making, highlighting the importance of understanding systems dynamics and embracing complexity.

Evaluating Factors Associated With Telehealth Appropriateness in Outpatient Rheumatoid Arthritis Encounters Using the Encounter Appropriateness Score for You (EASY).

Objective: Telehealth has been proposed as a safe and effective alternative to in-person care for rheumatoid arthritis (RA). The purpose of this study was to evaluate factors associated with telehealth appropriateness in outpatient RA encounters.

Methods: A prospective cohort study (January 1, 2021, to August 31, 2021) was conducted using electronic health record data from outpatient RA encounters in a single academic rheumatology practice.

Racial, Ethnic, and Gender Composition Among Neonatal Nurse Practitioner Faculty Ranks.

Background: Despite increases in nursing faculty diversity, representation is lacking in positions of higher faculty rank. Challenges for minority faculty include decreased awareness of promotion standards, less mentoring, and increased stress from being the sole representative of their respective underrepresented population.

Methods: The purpose of this study was to determine the racial, ethnic, and gender composition of neonatal nurse practitioner (NNP) faculty in the United States.

Color Does Matter: Nursing Assessment of Varying Skin Tones/Pigmentation.

Background: The observation of color is an integral part of the nursing assessment. However, the current understanding of individual skin qualities and pigmentation has not yet been integrated thoroughly into foundational assessment courses, clinical education, simulation, and textbooks.

Evidence Acquisition: Literature is scarce regarding racial groups, skin color, and physical assessment for patients across the lifespan, but even more so for the neonatal population.

Effectiveness of a Modified Nurse-Led COUGH Bundle for Obese Patients After Bariatric Surgery.

Background: Obesity commonly affects postsurgical pulmonary outcomes and is associated with increased oxygen usage, length of recovery and hospital stay, discharge to high levels of care, cost, morbidity, and mortality.

Local Problem: No standardized pulmonary care bundle for obese patients after bariatric surgery was available in the postanesthesia care unit (PACU) at a hospital in Singapore.

Methods: This quality improvement project was a prospective, single-cohort, pre- and posttest intervention design with 151 patients recruited.

How Subjective and Objective Factors in Research and Practice May Perpetuate Health Disparities Among Patients With Traumatic Brain Injury.

Research shows disparities exist in traumatic brain injury (TBI)-related outcomes and are associated with objective and subjective factors. Objective factors (e.g.

Caregiver Perspectives on Telemedicine for Postdischarge Care for Children With Medical Complexity: A Qualitative Study.

Introduction: The objectives of this study were to describe the perspectives of caregivers of children with medical complexity on telemedicine video visits (TMVV) for posthospitalization care and determine whether TMVV may be a viable alternative to in-person follow-up.

Method: Our qualitative descriptive study included semistructured telephone interviews with 12 caregivers. Data analysis was conducted using an adapted Colaizzi's descriptive phenomenological method for thematic construction.

The ALIGN Framework: A Parent-Informed Approach to Prognostic Communication for Infants With Neurologic Conditions.

Background And Objectives: Clinicians often communicate complex, uncertain, and distressing information about neurologic prognosis to parents of critically ill infants. Although communication tools have been developed in other disciplines and settings, none address the unique needs of the neonatal and pediatric neurology context. We aimed to develop a parent-informed framework to guide clinicians in communicating information about neurologic prognosis.

A Quality Improvement Project to Decrease CLABSIs in Non-ICU Settings.

Background And Objectives: Central line-associated bloodstream infections (CLABSIs) are a common, preventable healthcare-associated infection. In our 3-hospital health system, CLABSI rates in non-intensive care unit (ICU) settings were above the internal target rate of zero. A robust quality improvement (QI) project to reduce non-ICU CLABSIs was undertaken by a team of Doctor of Nursing Practice (DNP)-prepared nurse leaders enrolled in a post-DNP Quality Implementation Scholars program and 2 QI experts.

Sociodemographic and Biological Factors of Health Disparities of Mothers and Their Very Low Birth-Weight Infants.

Background: Black mothers and their very low birth-weight infants in the United States have increased risk of adverse neonatal and maternal health outcomes compared with White mothers and infants. Disparities in adverse birth outcomes associated with sociodemographic factors are difficult to quantify and modify, limiting their usefulness in assessing intervention effects.

Purpose: To test hypotheses that (1) the biological factors of maternal testosterone and cortisol are associated with sociodemographic factors and (2) both factors are associated with neonatal health and maternal mental health and healthy behaviors between birth and 40 weeks' gestational age.

Memes and Poetry: A Descriptive Analysis on Creative Arts Therapy to Reduce Health Care Worker Burnout.

Background: Health care workers (HCWs) face high levels of burnout, which can lead to workforce turnover and poor patient outcomes. Health care leaders should identify strategies to improve staff resilience.

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to describe HCWs' perspective on using creative arts therapy to reduce burnout and improve resiliency.

Assessing Depressive Symptoms in Patients With Cancer Treated With Interleukin-2: A Comparison of 2 Measures.

Background: High-dose interleukin-2 is a therapy available for individuals with renal cell carcinoma; however, it can produce adverse effects, specifically depressive symptoms. There is limited information regarding the trajectory of depressive symptoms and measurement-based care assessment of depressive symptoms.

Objective: The purpose was to describe the trajectory of depressive symptoms and compare 2 depression measures.

Improving Communication Between Hospital and Outpatient Psychiatric Providers.

Patients suffering from mental illness are often less likely to engage in treatment at an outpatient level. Lack of communication and coordination of care between providers has negative results for the health system and the patient. Improved communication has shown improved satisfaction of providers in health care.

A Quality Improvement Project to Increase Frequency of Skin-to-Skin Contact for Extreme Low-Birth-Weight Infants in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit.

Benefits of skin-to-skin contact (SSC) are documented but often delayed in the extremely preterm population due to medical complexity and staff misconceptions about safety. This quality improvement initiative was designed to increase SSC utilization among infants born before 29 weeks' gestation regardless of respiratory support by addressing nursing barriers inhibiting SSC. A pre-/postsurvey evaluated comfort level performing and perceived barriers to SSC utilization.

Symptom Monitoring in Children With Life-Threatening Illness: A Feasibility Study Using mHealth.

Children with life-threatening illness (C-LTI) experience considerable symptom distress. Mobile technology may offer opportunities to better obtain symptom data that will lead to better symptom management. A mixed-methods study was conducted to explore the feasibility of monitoring and visualizing symptoms using 2 mobile health devices in C-LTI.

A Case Report of Donnai-Barrow Syndrome.

Background: A genetic disorder should be considered when an infant presents with multiple congenital anomalies. Because of the acute presentation of an infant with multiple life-threatening defects, a genetic diagnosis of a rare disorder took weeks to delineate.

Clinical Findings: This case describes a late preterm infant who presented at birth with congenital diaphragmatic hernia, tetralogy of Fallot, cleft lip, low-set ears, and hypertelorism.

Gender differences in quality of life among community-dwelling older adults in low- and middle-income countries: results from the Study on global AGEing and adult health (SAGE).

Background: Quality of life (QoL) is an important component of individuals' general well-being, particularly in older adults. However, factors influencing QoL among older adults in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs) have not been fully examined. Furthermore, the role of gender differences in relation to QoL in multiple LMICs has also not been examined in detail.