RN Issue Briefs

Kansas Nurse, Aug 2004

NEW STUDY LINKS PATIENT SAFETY AND NURSES' WORK HOURS

A major study done on Staff Registered Nurses ' work hours and errors and near errors in the acute care setting has just been published in the July/August 2004 issue of the journal Health Affairs. You may access the article at www.healthaffairs.org, under Datawatch, or through a library. ANA has developed two documents to assist you in responding to inquiries about this study:

1) A summary of the research findings

2) ANA's news release citing the study findings as a call to action for Congress to pass the proposed legislation limiting mandatory overtime.

HRSA AWARDS $46 MILLION FOR HEALTH PROFESSIONS SCHOLARSHIPS

The Feds are again giving money to disadvantaged students enrolled in health professions education and nursing programs.

HHS' Health Resources and Services Administration has awarded $46 million in scholarship funds to support health professions education for disadvantaged students.

They are funded under HRSA's Scholarships for Disadvantaged Students program, which provides scholarships to financially needy students enrolled fulltime in health professions and nursing programs.

For more on the program, visit:

http://bhpr.hrsa.gov/DSA/sds.htm

VOLUNTEERS NEEDED FOR MISSIONS TO THIRD-WORLD COUNTRIES

Medical Wings International, a nonprofit organization that provides free health care services to people in third-world countries, seeks volunteer nurses to participate in upcoming missions. For more information, go to: www.medicalwings.org

U.S. NEWS AND WORLD REPORT "BEST HOSPITALS" SURVEY INCLUDES MAGNET* STATUS

For the first time since it began an annual survey of America's "Best Hospitals," U.S. News and World Report has included whether or not a health care facility has received Magnet* Recognition as one of the ranking criteria. The annual survey is in the current, July 12th issue of the magazine.

The Magnet* Recognition program is administered by the American Nurses Credentialing Center (ANCC) and is based on research conducted by the American Academy of Nurses in the early 1980s which identified 14 "forces of magnetism" that resulted in higher nurse recruitment and retention rates at certain facilities. More than 100 U.S. health care facilities have received

Magnet* Status since 1994. ANA and ANCC have worked with the editors of the survey for several years to include more nursing quality indicators in their assessment and are pleased that they have included Magnet* Status for the first time in 2004.

Other criteria used in the survey include: the mortality rate, the RN-to-patient ratio, the key technologies offered, the number of discharges, the patient/community services offered and the reputation of the hospital.

SURVEY FINDS 36 PERCENT OF U.S. ADULTS USE COMPLEMENTARY AND ALTERNATIVE MEDICINE

More than one-third of American adults are using some type of complementary or alternative medicine (CAM), according to a new survey by the National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine and National Center for Health Statistics. CAM is defined as a group of diverse medical and health care systems, practices, and products that are not presently considered to be part of conventional medicine.

The survey of more than 31,000 U.S. adults aged 18 years and over found 36 percent use some form of CAM. The 10 most commonly used therapies include natural products such as herbs and botanicals, yoga, chiropractic care, and diet-based therapies, such as the Atkins or Zone diets. CAM is most often used to treat back pain or problems, colds, neck pain, joint pain or stiffness, and anxiety or depression, the researchers found. Survey findings can be viewed at http:// nccam.nih.gov/news/camsurvey.htm

UPDATE ON ANA HEADQUARTERS RELOCATION TO SILVER SPRING, MD

View new pictures on building construction as it progresses in downtown Silver Spring, Maryland at:

http://nursingworld.org/about/move/silverspring.htmftphotos

ANA plans to move to the new facility on September 14, 2004.

American Nurses Association

8515 Georgia Ave.

Silver Spring, MD 20910-3402