Competent and Safe Practices: A Profile of Disciplined Registered Nurses

Nurses are monitored by state boards of nursing to answer the public demand For safe and competent practitioners. Initial competency is determined by successful completion of the NCLEX examination, and continued competency in most states is assured through continuing education requirements. Thus established, the right to practice nursing may be revoked or restricted if an individual is found to be in violation of the state Nurse Practice Act or convicted of certain state and federal laws. Grounds for disciplinary actions include fraud, criminal act...., substance abuse, mental incompetence, unprofessional actions incompetent acts of care, negligence, and other willful misconduct such as the diversion of narcotics. Revocation of licensure generally occurs for serious offenses that either threaten the health of Consumers or represent a serious breach of law Other disciplinary actions that could be imposed include temporary revocation, restriction of practice, or voluntary surrender of a license. The majority of nurses practice within the boundaries of state practice acts, providing safe and competent care, According to the National Council of State Boards of Nursing. However, the number of disciplinary actions issued annually to registered nurses (RN’s) has risen 21% in the last 5 years. The causes of increasing numbers of disciplinary actions include the increasing complexity of the work role, starring patterns, managed care constraints, and an increase in the willingness of employers and others to report offenses. These stresses potentially affect all nurses, but only a small percentage is disciplined by the state board of nursing. The demographic characteristics of disciplined health providers in many states, including Ohio, has not been examined to identify at risk groups or individuals. Such information may assist educators, managers, and state boards in raking proactive measures to minimize disciplinary actions

Nurses\u27 Spiritual Care Practices: Becoming Less Religious?

Research indicates that nurses do not consistently provide spiritual care, feel ill equipped to do so, and there is a lack of information as to the type of spiritual care practices nurses use. This exploratory descriptive study surveyed nurses (N = 123) about their spiritual care practices and perceptions of effectiveness, followed by qualitative interviews with volunteers (n = 5) from the surveyed group. The nurses favored spiritual interventions that are not overtly religious, but conveyed concern and support, such as listening and providing comforting touch

Technology in Nursing Education

Before writing this article, a computerized literature search was clone using online library services, articles were printed from e-journals. and a word-processing program was accessed on a lap-top personal computer. Such use of technology is well established and pervasive in higher education. It is so common as to be often transparent. For the past 30 years. the world has been host to a phenomenon the RAND organization calls the information revolution. The United States has been a leader in developing and absorbing the new technologies into the patterns of everyday life. Most Americans. if they think about it at all. would say that the information revolution is inevitable. irresistible. and of benefit to society.\u27 This article presents five axioms for nurse educators trying to adjust to the changes in nursing education inspired by technology

Technology in Nursing Education

Before writing this article, a computerized literature search was clone using online library services, articles were printed from e-journals. and a word-processing program was accessed on a lap-top personal computer. Such use of technology is well established and pervasive in higher education. It is so common as to be often transparent. For the past 30 years. the world has been host to a phenomenon the RAND organization calls the information revolution. The United States has been a leader in developing and absorbing the new technologies into the patterns of everyday life. Most Americans. if they think about it at all. would say that the information revolution is inevitable. irresistible. and of benefit to society.\u27 This article presents five axioms for nurse educators trying to adjust to the changes in nursing education inspired by technology

A Peer-reviewed Program for Senior Proficiencies

Many nursing program require a review and retest of skilled procedures before graduation. In this way the nursing school takes steps to ensure a competent graduate practitioner. At Cleveland State University this testing is known as Senior Proficiencies, and is done in the spring semester of senior year. In the past, this has been a time-consuming task for nursing resource laboratory personnel and a stressful event for students. In their course evaluations many students expressed concern and dissatisfaction regarding their infrequently used skills and the stress associated with the retesting. The skills evaluation was a negative experience for both faculty and students. Faculty members felt frustrated and students were not afforded an opportunity for professional growth and personal development. Additionally, the logistics of moving a large number of students through a variety of scenarios to test multiple selected skills from multiple prior courses, with adequate supervision and review from nursing resource laboratory personnel and faculty, became burdensome and was nor cost effective. A change in the way Senior Proficiencies were done was necessary

A Peer-reviewed Program for Senior Proficiencies

Many nursing program require a review and retest of skilled procedures before graduation. In this way the nursing school takes steps to ensure a competent graduate practitioner. At Cleveland State University this testing is known as Senior Proficiencies, and is done in the spring semester of senior year. In the past, this has been a time-consuming task for nursing resource laboratory personnel and a stressful event for students. In their course evaluations many students expressed concern and dissatisfaction regarding their infrequently used skills and the stress associated with the retesting. The skills evaluation was a negative experience for both faculty and students. Faculty members felt frustrated and students were not afforded an opportunity for professional growth and personal development. Additionally, the logistics of moving a large number of students through a variety of scenarios to test multiple selected skills from multiple prior courses, with adequate supervision and review from nursing resource laboratory personnel and faculty, became burdensome and was nor cost effective. A change in the way Senior Proficiencies were done was necessary