In August, Jo Smith, another Associate Editor of EBN, wrote a blog about Ebola. The question was whether it was a global health problem. At that time, the disease had been largely a scourge in West Africa. Since then, we’ve seen the first cases of Ebola in the US and, it feels like only a […]
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Option Grids: Expanding our toolkit for supporting shared decision making
I am always looking for new ways to improve the way we support patients to make informed choices about their healthcare, using the best available evidence from research. Shared decision making necessitates information sharing and giving patients a voice in decision making. It is often easier said than done and both patients and care providers […]
Why is pain still not managed effectively?
Due to unforeseen circumstances this week’s Twitter Chat focusing on the care of people with learning disabilities has had be postponed. Watch this space for details of its rescheduled date. Given this I am taking the opportunity to report on some of my reflections while at the World Congress on Pain. Along with several thousand […]
Patient-centred Renal Care – A Multidisciplinary Approach to Holistic Health
The 43rd European Dialysis and Transplant Nurses Association/European Renal Care Association (EDTNA/ERCA) International Conference was held in Riga, Latvia in September 2014 (see http://www.edtnaerca-conference2014.com/). This annual event brings together members of the renal healthcare team who strive to improve the care offered to people with renal disease and their carers. The conference is a place […]
Patients need help to navigate the maze of healthcare
Each time I enter the healthcare system from the other side (that is the side of the patient or family member) I am reminded how vulnerable patients and families are when there is no one advocating for them. I am reminded of how important good communication is between patients and care providers, and how critical the flow […]
Mentoring and supporting student nurses by Suzanne Van Zyl, Senior Sister Critical Care Unit, The London Clinic
I work in a critical care unit and one of my roles is to organize the overall support and mentoring for student nurses on placement on my unit. Having undertaken this role for a number of years. I know that there are different types of learners, auditory (hear), visual (see) and kinesthetic (touch) (Honey and […]
RN Staffing in Hospitals…Are We Asking the Right Question?
By Roberta Heale, Associate Editor I’ve been working with a number of students in a nursing masters program who have chosen to study teamwork. One study includes a survey question about the percentage of time that a nurse feels that his/her unit is appropriately staffed. I’ve been thinking about this issue and I think that […]
Outcome measurement and valuation – what is it and why do we need it?
Last week I spent a couple of days in York, England exploring outcome measurement and valuation for Health Technology Assessment with academics from the Centre for Health Economics at the University of York. People attended from across the world and I sat beside colleagues from many countries including India, Ghana, Switzerland, Greece, Denmark, Spain and […]
The elevator pitch for midwifery care
A few days ago I was sitting on an aircraft on my way to the International Confederation of Midwives 30th Triennial Congress in Prague. In an effort to reduce my pre-flight anxiety, I was chatting to the person beside me, who happened to be the father of three young children, one of whom was only a […]
The physical health of individuals with serious mental illness Josephine Bardi (RMN), MSc Public Health candidate Twitter @JoBardi01
“The problem of physical health in individuals with severe mental illness remains a global public health concern” (World Psychiatric Association, 2009, p.1). Individuals with severe mental illness (SMI) particularly those with schizophrenia, schizoaffective disorder and bipolar disorder are vulnerable to poorer physical health which results in higher rates of mortality and morbidity when compared to […]