Carol J. Huston: For such a time as this
by Bessie Marquis
Above the doors of the administration building at California State University, Chico in California are the words “Today Decides Tomorrow.” As Carol Huston, professor of nursing at that university, begins her term as the 27th president of the Honor Society of Nursing, Sigma Theta Tau International, those words could also refer to “Leading Globally,” Huston’s proactive plan for guiding the organization toward its goal of being “intentionally global.” As Tim Porter O’Grady, past member of the honor society’s board of directors, observes, “She comes to the presidency in a transformational moment in the history of the honor society and will be just the right person at the right time.”
Nursing shortage update: A conversation with Peter Buerhaus
In 2000, Peter Buerhaus and colleagues David Auerbach and Douglas Staiger published in the Journal of the American Medical Association the results of their seminal research about a looming nursing shortage, then in its infancy. A follow-up article on the shortage by Buerhaus was published in Reflections on Nursing Leadership (RNL) in early 2001. Now, seven years later, in a conversation with editor James Mattson, Buerhaus brings RNL readers up to date on the current and future state of the shortage.
Renewal and retention: Strategies for addressing the nursing shortage
From “Sharing Nursing’s Knowledge,” published by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation
For nearly 10 years, the RWJ Executive Nurse Fellows program has invested in developing nurse leaders in health services, public or community health, and nursing education. One of those leaders is 2006 Fellow Cynda H. Rushton, RN, PhD, FAAN, associate professor at Johns Hopkins University School of Nursing and member of Sigma Theta Tau International. Learn more about Rushton and her R³ program—Renewal, Resilience and Retention for Nurses.
Nurse who fears heights scales Mount Everest on behalf of nursing shortage
by Jane Palmer
Many people talk about the nursing shortage. Patrick Hickey, University of South Carolina nursing professor, took it a step further—many steps further, in fact—to the very top of Mount Everest. When Hickey reached the top of Mount Everest in May 2007, he became the first nurse to achieve the Seven Summits—climbing the tallest mountain on each of the seven continents. He hopes that publicity surrounding his achievement will raise consciousness about the nursing shortage and that donations will be raised for a nursing scholarship—$1 for each foot to the 29,000-foot summit. Full story.
Retaining older nurses: One key to easing the nursing shortage
by Jennifer Joynt
As the nursing shortage worsens, the negative impact of older RNs leaving the workforce will only become more evident, writes this author, a senior consultant at Health Workforce Solutions in San Francisco, California. Forward-thinking hospitals, she observes, are focusing on how best to leverage the knowledge and experience of these older nurses.
Nurses, take the lead!
by Brenda B. Petersen
Although the severity of the nursing shortage may ebb and flow in the short term, now is the time for nurses to unite and seize opportunities for leadership.
DNA and You
by Jean Jenkins and Kathleen Calzone
The founders of the Genetic/Genomic Nursing Competency Initiative are passionate about translating the benefits of genetic/genomic research into improved patient care, and they want you to also become aware of the improved health outcomes made possible by genome research.
On the cusp of change: What does a nurse with a practice doctorate look like?
by Kimberly Adams Tufts and Elizabeth R. Click
Must a nurse hold a PhD to function as a quality faculty member? That’s the question asked by the authors. In answering it, they provide a composite of 18 nurses who have obtained practice doctorates and like what they see.
In caring for others, take care of yourself
by Darlene Sredl
A nurse, licensed pilot and author of Airborne Patient Care Management, an aviation health care reference manual adopted by Chile as its official air evacuation text, Darlene Sredl knows about taking proper precautions to avoid disaster. She almost died, though, when she took a little, innocuous-looking pill called ibuprofen to ease her throbbing feet after a weekend of three 12-hour night shifts.
Tamara McKinnon: Making international connections
by Linda Puffer
At age 18, with one semester of EMT to her credit, Tamara McKinnon was assigned to serve as the sole “nurse” to inmates of a jail in Tijuana, Baja California, Mexico. An experience she would never forget, it has shaped her passion for community health and international nursing.
Last updated: 12/17/07
