Michelle H. Cheshire

An Innovative Approach to Health Promotion Experiences in Community Health Nursing: A University Collaborative Partnership

The number of nurses working in community-based practices with a population focus is increasing rapidly, whereas the rate of employment for nurses in hospitals is expected to grow more slowly. The shift in health care toward primary health care and health promotion requires nurse educators to ensure that students learn to practice in collaborative partnerships in community settings. This article describes an innovative collaborative partnership with the Capstone College of Nursing and the Office of Health Promotion and Wellness at The University of Alabama. Through this partnership, community health nursing students provide health promotion for university employees in the Universitys wellness program. The program provides nursing students with a unique opportunity for interprofessional collaboration while improving their clinical and communication skills. This innovative collaborative approach serves as a useful model for nursing faculty members when delivering community health instruction.

Comparing traditional measures of academic success with emotional intelligence scores in nursing students

Objective: Emotional intelligence (EI) is the ability to perceive emotions, to access and generate emotions so as to assist thought, to understand emotions and emotional knowledge and to reflectively regulate emotions so as to promote emotional and intellectual growth. EI is increasingly discussed in healthcare as having a potential role in nursing. The purpose of this descriptive study was to examine the causal relationship between EI scores and the traditional academic admission criteria (GPA) and evaluation methods of a baccalaureate nursing program. Methods: The sample included second semester upper division nursing students (n = 85). EI was measured using the Mayer-Salovey-Caruso Emotional Intelligence Test (MSCEIT). Results: The results of the statistical analysis (MANOVA, ANOVA and Pearson correlational coefficient) found no significant relationships or correlations with the current methods of evaluation for admission to nursing school or the evaluation methods used once students are in the nursing program. Conclusions: These results imply that assessing a nursing student′s EI is measuring a different type of intelligence than that represented by academic achievement. Based on the findings of this study and the current state of nursing education, EI abilities should be included as part of the admission criteria for nursing programs.

Incorporating End-of-Life Content Into the Community Health Nursing Curriculum Using High-Fidelity Simulation

Because nurses are the healthcare providers who spend the most time with patients and their families at the end of life, baccalaureate nursing students should be adequately prepared for this role before they graduate. However, many undergraduate nursing programs fail to provide adequate end-of-life content, and many undergraduate nursing students often do not have the opportunity to care for dying patients during clinical rotations. Faculty in an undergraduate community health nursing course incorporated an end-of-life clinical experience using high-fidelity patient simulation to allow students to provide holistic care to a dying patient and his family in a safe learning environment. The simulator was used to play the role of the dying patient, and a course faculty member acted as the patient’s daughter. Students were given the role of the hospice nurse. At the end of the experience, students expressed a greater understanding of the pathophysiology at the end of life, as well as enhanced communication skills. Because many nursing students may not encounter an actively dying patient during their clinical rotations, high-fidelity patient simulation is an effective mechanism for providing students with exposure to end of life.

Clinical Judgment During Simulation: A Comparison of Student and Faculty Scores

Abstract This study utilized the Lasater Clinical Judgment Rubric (LCJR) to investigate the relationship between the student’s self-assessment of clinical judgment skills and the faculty’s assessment during a human patient simulation. The study used a quantitative design with baccalaureate nursing students (n = 94) enrolled in an adult health course as participants. The data revealed a positive correlation between evaluator and student scores on the LCJR. The findings support the use of the LCJR in combination with simulation to evaluate nursing students’ clinical judgment skills and to quantify competency levels.