Gerry Altmiller

Student Perceptions of INCIVILITY in Nursing Education: Implications for Educators

ABSTRACT This study explored the phenomenon of incivility in nursing education from the perspective of undergraduate nursing students and compared it to perspectives of educators as found in the literature. The sample consisted of 24 undergraduate junior and senior nursing students from four universities in the mid‐Atlantic states. Data from four focus groups were transcribed and content analyzed to reveal themes and subthemes. Students perceived that incivility in nursing education exists.They shared a common view with findings in the literature regarding incivility from the faculty perspective. Notably, an emerging student view was that faculty may contribute to the escalating incivility in nursing education, and that student incivility is justified when faculty are seen as uncivil.The implications for educators, consistent with the literature, are that students want professors to maintain classroom decorum and set the example for civility.

Improving Pediatric Temperature Measurement in the ED.

OVERVIEW ED care providers have long debated which of the various methods of temperature measurement of pediatric patients is best. While the efficacy and accuracy of temporal artery, tympanic membrane, axillary, and infrared temperature measurement have been studied, the gold standard has been rectal temperature measurement. But despite its accuracy, this method causes children with noninfectious complaints and their families unnecessary distress and adds significant time to the triage process. In response, a group of ED staff nurses at a multihospital health system conducted an evidence-based quality improvement project to determine the best practice for accurate temperature measurement in children younger than five years who presented to the ED. The project included an exhaustive literature search, a review of relevant studies, the development of a table of evidence, a presentation of the findings, and recommendations for practice change. This article describes the project and the adoption of temporal artery thermometry, a painless, noninvasive screening method that provided consistently accurate temperature measurement as well as increased patient and nurse satisfaction and a shorter triage process.

The Role of Constructive Feedback in Patient Safety and Continuous Quality Improvement

Constructive feedback is essential for personal and professional growth. It is an integral part of continuous quality improvement and essential in maintaining patient safety in the clinical environment. The perception of feedback can interfere with professionals giving and receiving feedback, which can have negative consequences on patient outcomes. Delivering and receiving feedback effectively are learned skills that should be introduced early in prelicensure education. Faculty have the opportunity to influence the perception of feedback to be viewed as an opportunity so that students can learn to appreciate its value in maintaining patient safety and high-quality care in clinical practice.

Content Validation of a Quality and Safety Education for Nurses-Based Clinical Evaluation Instrument.

Quality and Safety Education for Nurses (QSEN) has been prominent in nursing education for 10 years. Since its inception, faculty have used the QSEN competencies as a framework for developing teaching strategies and tools, but there are few findings available to support this practice. This article describes the process of developing a QSEN-based clinical evaluation instrument for a prelicensure nursing program and establishing content validation for its items using the content validity index.

Quality and safety education for nurses competencies and the clinical nurse specialist role: implications for preceptors.

Quality and Safety Education for Nurses came about through a grant from the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation. Its mission has been to transform nursing education by deliberately changing the focus of nursings professional identity. The purpose of this article is to discuss the recent adaptation of the Quality and Safety Education for Nurses knowledge, skills, and attitudes, originally developed for undergraduate education, into competencies for advanced practice nursing education. This article discusses the applicability of those competencies for graduate education as it applies to the spheres of influence in the clinical nurse specialist role and the implications for preceptors.

Development and testing of the patient safety test: current concepts.

To explore patient safety concepts applicable to clinical teaching in the current healthcare environment, the Patient Safety Test was created. Patient Safety Test assists nursing faculty members to assess their knowledge of safety and quality information. The authors discussed test development, implementation, and results.

2017 National Quality and Safety Education for Nurses Faculty Survey Results

The Quality and Safety Education for Nurses (QSEN) national initiative, started in 2005, has supported the adoption and integration of updated quality and safety competencies in nursing education. However, faculty needs regarding QSEN competency integration, and the degree to which QSEN competencies are reflected in current nursing curricula, have not been assessed nationally. This study (N = 2037) reports the findings of the 2017 National QSEN Faculty Survey and discusses implications for nurse educators and programs of nursing education.

A Nurse-Led Ultrasound-Enhanced Vascular Access Preservation Program

&NA; Insertion of peripheral iv catheters is a common practice in medical–surgical care settings. The frequency with which attempts are made to insert catheters causes rapid peripheral vessel depletion (a reduction in the number of usable veins), leading to the overuse of unnecessary central line catheters. Reducing central line–associated bloodstream infections is a national health care priority. In this quality improvement report, the authors describe the implementation of a nurse-led vascular access preservation program using ultrasound technology as a method to reduce the use of nonessential peripherally inserted central catheters.

Strategies for Providing Constructive Feedback to Students.

One of the most challenging responsibilities nurse educators face is providing feedback to students that will result in a meaningful outcome when student performance is not meeting expectations. Receiving constructive feedback as a student and as a nurse is essential for personal and professional growth, but for faculty, delivering feedback to students while continuing to nurture the student-teacher relationship can be difficult. Implementing effective communication strategies to deliver constructive feedback can support faculty in this important and necessary work. Failure to do so can negatively impact the learner, act as a trigger for incivility, and have deleterious effects on the professional comportment of new nurses entering the workforce.

Colostrum Swabbing as an Infection Prevention Strategy: A Retrospective Study

Critically ill neonates are prone to healthcare-associated infection (HAI) due to an immature immune system and need for multiple invasive diagnostic and treatment procedures. The purpose of this retrospective study was to determine the effectiveness of oral swabbing of colostrum as an intervention to provide immunity and decrease the incidence of neonatal HAI, particularly central line–associated bloodstream infection (CLABSI). The research study was informed by specific Caritas Processes, which are part of Watson’s Theory of Human Caring. Medical record audits were conducted for infants before, during, and after a 6-month pilot period for the clinical practice change of oral swabbing with colostrum, and data indicated the practice are safe, feasible, and effective in reducing CLABSI in critically ill neonates.