Australian Nursing Journal articles from September 2004

Australian Nursing Journal archives from September 2004

Policy can make a difference.(nursing )(Editorial)
September 1, 2004... I have had the opportunity over the past couple of months to talk to a lot of nurses from all areas of practice. The things uppermost in their minds were very similar, no matter where they lived or worked: * they wanted time to spend with...

Keep persevering!(mail)(Letter to the Editor)
September 1, 2004... In response to Alice Jewell's concerns ('EN training farce', ANJ, July 2004, p.3), I too trained at a Victorian university as a mature student four years ago. From the very start of class, the lecturers stressed we would work in aged care...

Calling enlightened managers.(mail)(Letter to the Editor)
September 1, 2004... In these days of supposedly improved communication, managers continue to make sweeping decisions with no consultation or communication with their staff. This undermines staff confidence and morale plummets. Are there any enlightened...

Missing.(mail)(Letter to the Editor)
September 1, 2004... I am currently in Myanmar, Burma doing volunteer work, and I have a Myanmar assistant named Gumja Naw from Indaw. Gumja Naw is looking for an Australian nurse named Rosemary who provided sponsorship for him when he was a boy in the 1970's....

ENs before PCs.(mail)(Letter to the Editor)
September 1, 2004... As a registered nurse of more than 25 years experience, I am disappointed with myself, my profession and my union, because we now have care being given by barely trained assistants in nursing or personal carers (AINs or PCs), while...

Delegates first to hear policy.(New South Wales Nurses Association's conference)(Brief Article)
September 1, 2004... Hundreds of nurses gathered in Randwick in Sydney recently for the 59th Annual conference of the New South Wales Nurses Association (NSWNA, ANF NSW). Energetic discussions on health policy and industrial and professional Issues dominated the...

Undecided nurses weigh up policies.(NAT)(Brief Article)
September 1, 2004... More than 50% of nurses have not decided who they will vote for in the next federal election, and over 70% say they will be influenced by the political parties policies on aged care, according to an ANF survey. The survey, conducted through...

Students pay more.(news)(Brief Article)
September 1, 2004... Funding for subsidised places at universities in Australia has fallen considerably in the last decade, with students paying $2,137 per year more on average toward the cost of a government subsidised place in 2003 than they did in 1996. A...

Hunt for community nurses.(news)(Brief Article)
September 1, 2004... The Royal District Nursing Services in SA has been forced to launch a national recruitment campaign to address critical shortages. The organisation estimates it needs to increase staffing levels by around 20% to meet demand. RDNS human...

Nursing a heavy load.(news)(Brief Article)
September 1, 2004... Australia's obesity epidemic is placing nurses at risk when they are forced to lift heavy patients, according to NSW Nurses Association (NSWNA, ANF NSW) occupational health ands safety coordinator Trish Butrej. NSW Health is developing...

New CNO for NSW.(news)(Brief Article)
September 1, 2004... Adjunct Professor Kathy Baker has been appointed to the position of Chief Nursing Officer in NSW Health. Professor Baker was previously the area director of nursing for the Northern Sydney Area Health Service, and has a background in education...

Anger over Sydney University mounts.(NAT)
September 1, 2004... Anger over the proposed closure of the nursing faculty at the University of Sydney has intensified, with the announcement that a private university is to receive Australian Government funding for nursing and medical places. Prime Minister...

Recruitment success in Melbourne.(VIC)
September 1, 2004... A Victorian metropolitan health service has won a national award for successfully implementing a range of recruitment strategies that enabled it to reduce its nursing vacancy rate by 90%. The Nursing Support Unit at Southern Health has won...

Bali survivor praises nurses.(VIC)(Brief Article)
September 1, 2004... AFL footballer Jason McCartney, who survived the Bali bombing despite receiving second and third degree burns to 50% of his body, addressed delegates at the ANF Victorian Branch Delegates Conference. His wife Nerissa McCartney also spoke...

Aged care accounting questioned.(NSW)
September 1, 2004... Nursing home operators in NSW have been accused of sloppy accounting practices and failing to account for bonds in their reporting of revenue, the NSW Industrial Relations Commission has heard. Accounting expert from the University of New...

NP or practice nurse?(news)(Brief Article)
September 1, 2004... Even nurses are confused about the titles of nursing roles such as nurse practitioner, and practice nurse, according to the Nurses Board of Victoria. The new title 'nurse practitioner' (NP) may be used by licensees whose scope of practice is...

Food risk in aged care.(news)(Brief Article)
September 1, 2004... The majority of outbreaks of food poisoning in Australia occur in aged care facilities, accounting for 57% of national food related gastrointestinal infections, a new report has found. OzFoodNet, a surveillance network of the Australian...

Palliative care overlooked.(news)(Brief Article)
September 1, 2004... Almost half of all cancer patients who need palliative care are not being referred on because of confusion among health professionals about what constitutes palliative care. New research from The Cancer Council has found up to 47% of cancer...

Help in Vietnam.(news)(Australian Vietnam Veterans Reconstruction Group )(Brief Article)
September 1, 2004... Nurses wishing to assist their colleagues in Vietnam can do so by participating in the Australian Vietnam Veterans Reconstruction Group (AWRG). The group supports the education of Vietnamese nurses by organising conferences and in-service...

DONs face axe.(WA)(Brief Article)
September 1, 2004... The ANF WA Branch has called on the WA Industrial Relations Commission to reverse a state government decision to abolish 17 director of nursing positions in southwest WA. Under the plan, the director of nursing positions will be replaced...

Gold, gold gold ... but at what cost?(NAT)(Brief Article)
September 1, 2004... Aussie athletes may well have done Australia proud at the recent Olympic Games In Athens, but what did it cost the nation's taxpayers to get them there? A recent paper in the Medical Journal of Australia found on a per capita basis,...

Maternity services review.(QLD)
September 1, 2004... The Beattie Government has begun its promised statewide review of maternity services to look at improved models of care to provide better choices to Queensland's expectant mothers. The Australian College of Midwives has welcomed the review,...

Abbott rejects calls for health reform.(NAT)(Brief Article)
September 1, 2004... Despite calls for national health funding restructuring, Federal Health Minister Tony Abbott said he would only consider reform if the states were prepared to hand funding powers to the Commonwealth. 'If the states do not think they are...

Indigenous policy boost.(NAT)(Brief Article)
September 1, 2004... The launch of a new institute for Indigenous policy research and development in Cairns by the Australian Government Minister for Education, Science and Training, Dr Brendan Nelson, and the Queensland Premier, Peter Beattie has fuelled hopes for...

Nursing celebrates 20 years of higher education.(issues)
September 1, 2004... On 24 August 2004, nursing celebrated 20 years since the Australian Government, under Prime Minister Bob Hawke, announced the transfer of nursing education to the higher education sector. Health Minister at the time, Dr Neal Blewett,...

Community care strategy.(professional)
September 1, 2004... We have recently heard a great deal about residential aged care with the release of the Hogan Report on pricing arrangements. We now have the Australian Government's strategy for community care, The way forward: A new strategy for community...

Superannuation is union business.(industrial)
September 1, 2004... The major banks and financial institutions have been lobbying the federal government for some time now to deregulate industry superannuation. Recently they have had some success, with the government legislating a greater degree of choice...

Canadians fight for Medicare.(world)(Brief Article)
September 1, 2004... A broad coalition of professionals has called on the Canadian government to stop the privatisation of health care and support the public health system of Medicare. The alliance includes the Canadian Federation of Nurses Unions (CFNU), who...

Prepare students for violence.(world)(Brief Article)
September 1, 2004... Researchers have called for comprehensive solutions to assist NZ graduate nurses combat horizontal violence after research revealed more than 50% had suffered covert horizontal violence. The survey of 550 graduates revealed violence was a...

Singapore shortage eases.(world)(Brief Article)
September 1, 2004... The shortage of nurses has eased in Singapore, with recent figures suggesting the nursing vacancy rate now down to 3.4% (from 6.6% in 2001). Applications for nursing courses have increased substantially, as improvements in nurses' pay and...

Overtime risks lives.(world)(Brief Article)
September 1, 2004... A new study of USA nurses has found working shifts beyond 12 hours greatly increases the risk of error. The survey, published in Health Affairs, revealed nurses almost always worked longer than scheduled and around 40% of shifts were beyond 12...

California nurses win.(world)(Brief Article)
September 1, 2004... More than 8,000 RNs at 11 hospitals in California have reached a new agreement, which will provide pay increases of up to 29%, a ban on mandatory overtime, protection against 'floating', and the appointment of a neutral third party for any safe...

Inspector nurse.(world)(Brief Article)
September 1, 2004... A senior nursing advisor will be appointed to the body inspecting care homes in England. Dame Denise Platt, chair of the Commission for Social Care Inspection, said the nurse would ensure inspectors without a nursing background were...

Latex glove allergy in health care.(clinical update)
September 1, 2004... Introduction Wearing latex gloves is part of everyday working life for all nurses. Natural rubber latex (NRL) gloves are nearly always provided a cheap and effective way of preventing transmission of infectious agents between nurses and...

Federal Election 2004: Australian Nursing Federation.(Nurses for health care)(Brief Article)
September 1, 2004... The 2004 Federal Election campaign gives the ANF the opportunity to raise issues of concern to nurses with the various political parties, as nurses decide how they will vote. During the campaign, the ANF has been lobbying the political...

Nurses for aged care: nurses want an aged care system that truly values older people and the nurses who care for them.(Federal Election 2004)(Brief Article)
September 1, 2004... AGED CARE Older people in Australia have a right to expect quality care in aged care facilities. This should be a goal of all governments. Quality aged care can only be provided if there is adequate funding and quality nursing care can...

Nurses for health: nurses want a health system that is properly funded, universal and well coordinated.(Federal Election 2004)
September 1, 2004... HEALTH Australians have had universal access to health care under Medicare since 1984 and most people agree the system has worked well. Bulk billing is a key component of universal access. Medicare was intended as and should remain a...

Nurses for nursing: nurses want a commitment to develop a skilled and sustainable nursing workforce.(Federal Election 2004)
September 1, 2004... NURSING There is an acute shortage of nurses in Australia. It is imperative that plans are put in place to retain the nurses we have, encourage nurses back into the workforce, and substantially increase the places available in nursing...

Teamwork & technology in theatre: working in a perioperative setting means you never stop learning, for as RN Teresa Edwards explains, the only constant in this environment is change.(working life)
September 1, 2004... Digital technology; robotic and computer assisted surgery; live telecasts of operations and satellite conferencing are now the norm in many metropolitan theatre suites, where perioperative staff can be simultaneously technician and educator,...

Nurses BP more accurate.(research)(Brief Article)
September 1, 2004... A Spanish study has found nurses take more accurate blood pressure measurements than doctors. Published in Blood Pressure, the study found systolic blood pressure (SBP) readings taken by doctors were on average more than 5mm Hg higher than...

Staffing affects outcomes.(research)(Brief Article)
September 1, 2004... Patients affected by lower nurse staffing levels and cared for by fewer registered nurses are at greater risk of pneumonia, shock, cardiac arrest, and urinary tract infections, a review of research studies has indicated. Lower nurse...

Midwives want IT solutions.(research)(Brief Article)
September 1, 2004... A study of the use of electronic health records by midwives shows a tension between patient care and documentation in an interruption-driven work environment. The University of Queensland study found common complaints from midwives about...

Computers aid genetic decisions.(research)(Brief Article)
September 1, 2004... An interactive computer program was more effective than standard genetic counselling for women at high risk of hereditary breast cancer, studies published in the Journal of the American Medical Association have found. A comparison of...

Patient choices disregarded.(research)(Brief Article)
September 1, 2004... Patient directives about end-of-life choices are not always respected by their health professionals, with treatment decisions commonly disregarding patient preferences, according to research published in the Archives of Internal Medicine. In...

Mental health nurses enjoy career.(focus)
September 1, 2004... Psychiatric nurses regard their job as challenging but interesting and largely satisfying, with autonomy and rewards from teamwork making it a positive career choice, according to a survey of mental health nurses in regional Victoria RN...

Black Dog seeks nursing expertise.(focus)(Brief Article)
September 1, 2004... The Black Dog Institute, a not-for-profit clinical, research and educational facility specialising in mood disorders, is seeking the help of nurses and other health professionals to create a website providing high quality mental health...

Understanding self harm.(focus)
September 1, 2004... Deliberate self-harm (DSH) is common among Australian youth, especially in young women, according to research published in the current issue of the Medical Journal of Australia. Professor Diego De Leo, Director of the Australian Institute...

Toxic communities.(Focus Briefs)(Brief Article)
September 1, 2004... The prevention of violence in Indigenous communities is a priority, a conference in Melbourne has heard. Chair of the Congress of Aboriginal and Tortes Strait Islander Nurses, Sally Goold, told the One World; Many Childhoods conference that...

Families overlooked.(Focus Briefs)(Brief Article)
September 1, 2004... The families of people with mental illnesses are often overlooked by health professionals, and face significant barriers to providing support for their relative, nursing research has found. Focus groups conducted in the USA found professional...

Review required.(Focus Briefs)(Brief Article)
September 1, 2004... Changes to the organisation of mental health services and the education of mental health nurses has led to the erosion of 'essential knowledge and skills for safe professional practice', according to a Melbourne academic. RMIT's Dr Anthony...

Mental health myths.(Focus Briefs)(Brief Article)
September 1, 2004... Schizophrenia is more variable than previously thought, according to a review led by the University of Queensland's Professor John McGrath. The review, a systematic summary of more than 160 scientific papers on schizophrenia published...

Home life helps in schizophrenia.(focus)
September 1, 2004... Helping people with schizophrenia set up a house could be more important to their long-term happiness than spending money chasing an elusive cure, according to new research from the Queensland University of Technology. Nursing researcher...

Mental health untreated.(Focus Briefs)(Brief Article)
September 1, 2004... An international survey has found people with mental illness often go untreated, particularly in developing countries, but changing the allocation of resources could substantially improve outcomes, according to the authors. The World...

Ovarian cancer guidelines.(Focus Briefs)(Brief Article)
September 1, 2004... Australia's first guidelines for health practitioners caring for women with ovarian cancer have been launched. The clinical practice guidelines for the management of women with epithelial ovarian cancer were developed by the National Breast...

Medicine mistakes line.(adverse drug reactions can be reported over phone)(Brief Article)
September 1, 2004... The Adverse Medicine Events Line enables consumers to report adverse medicine events with prescription, over-the-counter or complementary medicines directly and anonymously over the phone. An initiative of the Australian Council for Safety...

Depression and diabetes.(Focus Briefs)(Brief Article)
September 1, 2004... Research has found depression is twice as common among patients with diabetes as it is in the general population, with 15-30% of diabetes patients meeting the criteria for depression. Patients who suffer from both diabetes and depression are...

Positive experiences key to recruitment.(nursing students' willingness to join mental health facilities)
September 1, 2004... A recent study undertaken by Melbourne University's Centre for Psychiatric Nursing Research and Practice (CPNRP), with the support of senior nursing staff from Victoria's Area Mental Health Services, has confirmed the importance of sound...

Nurses can influence health policy.(focus)(Brief Article)
September 1, 2004... Changes in health service delivery have dramatically increased the capacity of the nursing profession to influence change, a conference on nursing leadership has heard. Professor John Daly from the University of Western Sydney told the...

Online suicide prevention training.(Australian Institute for Suicide Research and Prevention at Griffith University offers new course)(Brief Article)
September 1, 2004... The Australian Institute for Suicide Research and Prevention (AISRAP) at Griffith University in NSW has launched a new online course in suicide prevention and mental health training for nurses, psychologists, guidance counsellors, teachers,...

Driving approaches to mental health.(roundabout model to help health personnel to treat mentally ill and substance addicted)(Brief Article)
September 1, 2004... A new model for thinking about mental health conditions is using images of car travel to help people visualise their path to mental health services. The roundabout model has been developed by mental health researchers at the University of...

Refugee mental health.(focus)(Brief Article)
September 1, 2004... Health care professionals should exercise non-judgemental attitudes, consult with families and use an interpreter as much as possible in dealing with migrants and refugees with mental health problems, a mental health expert has advised. ...

Good preceptorship the way forward.(recruitment of nurse students for mental health services)
September 1, 2004... The nursing profession is well aware of the difficulties experienced in recruiting enough graduate nurses into the mental health field. With a rapidly ageing mental health nursing workforce, the situation is only likely to worsen. While...

Calendar.(Calendar)
September 1, 2004... Distance education courses for RNs Conducted by the College of Nursing (incorporating the NSW College of Nursing) The College of Nursing, Locked Bag 3030, Burwood, NSW 1805 Ph: (02) 9745 7500 Childbirth education training programs Programs...

A place to start.(nursing care management)
September 1, 2004... I like to make lists. I am forever doing it. There are always at least two lists stuck to the fridge door, and a new one in my diary each day. As far as I am concerned, they order your life, and give you a sense of where you are at a point...

Carry on nursing.
September 1, 2004... We've made a list. So have we! [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED]