Nursing News and Research

Latest Nursing News and Research

Conversation helps people with dementia

Researchers in Britain conducting a study of people with dementia living in residential and nursing homes, say talking helps patients with dementia.

3 Jun 2008

Aggression between nursing-home residents more common than widely believed

When people hear about elder abuse in nursing homes, they usually think of staff members victimizing residents. However, research by Cornell University faculty members suggests that a more prevalent and serious problem may be aggression and violence that occurs between residents themselves.

2 Jun 2008

Senate Democrats to move forward with bill that would halt 10.6% Medicare physician payment cut despite veto threat

Despite a veto threat from the White House, Senate Democrats plan to move forward in the next two weeks with a bill (S 1951) that would reduce payments to Medicare Advantage plans to offset delaying a 10.6% cut to Medicare physicians' payments, CQ Today reports.

2 Jun 2008

Study identifies most costly adverse events in children's hospitals

A large study of health records from 38 American children's hospitals has measured adverse events that most increase length of stay and overall cost. The researchers say their findings provide useful targets for hospital programs aimed at preventing harm to young patients.

2 Jun 2008

Researchers pinpoint gene mutations responsible for 10 percent of non-familial cases of schizophrenia

Scans of the genome of patients with schizophrenia have revealed rare spontaneous copy number mutations that account for at least 10 percent of the non-familial cases of the disease.

1 Jun 2008

FDA proposes drug label changes to provide more information on risks for women who are pregnant, nursing

FDA on Wednesday proposed changing its labeling system for prescription and over-the-counter drugs to provide more safety information for pregnant and breastfeeding women, the AP/Long Island Newsday reports (AP/Long Island Newsday, 5/28). On average, women in the U.S. take three to five medications when they are pregnant, and more than 90% of women who are breastfeeding take medications during the first week after delivery, USA Today reports.

30 May 2008

Quality of life predicts cancer survival

Head and neck cancer patients who reported lower physical quality of life were more likely to die from their disease, according to a new study from the University of Michigan Comprehensive Cancer Center. The findings could mean that identifying patients with poor quality of life could also identify patients with particularly aggressive tumors.

30 May 2008

Federal Judge prevents 'sneaky attempt' by Bush administration to implement Medicaid rule, editorial states

Judge James Robertson of the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia on Friday "slapped down a sneaky attempt by the Bush administration to impose an onerous Medicaid regulation despite the clear intent of Congress that it be deferred," according to a New York Times editorial.

28 May 2008

Medical errors - Is healthcare getting worse or better?

Most would say worse. And one of the many reasons is medical errors. Most Americans say the quality of care has not improved, and dissatisfaction among patients and caregivers has increased. The perceptions exist despite the efforts across the country to reduce medical errors.

28 May 2008

FDA proposes major revisions to the physician labeling for prescription drugs

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration today proposed major revisions to the physician labeling for prescription drugs (including biological products) to provide better information about the effects of medicines used during pregnancy and breast-feeding.

28 May 2008

Antipsychotic drugs dangerous for the elderly

A Canadian study has found that prescribing antipsychotic drugs for elderly people may be dangerous.

27 May 2008

Bliss Nipple Cream warning from FDA

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration is warning consumers not to use or purchase Mommy's Bliss Nipple Cream, marketed by MOM Enterprises, Inc., because the product contains potentially harmful ingredients that may cause respiratory distress or vomiting and diarrhea in infants.

25 May 2008

Louisiana Gov. Jindal's administration asks State Senate to restore millions in health care budget cuts

The administration of Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal (R) on Monday called on state senators to restore millions of dollars in health care program cuts that were approved last week by the House, the New Orleans Times-Picayune reports. The House approved a $30 billion state budget for fiscal year 2009 that includes $240 million less than Jindal's proposed budget.

22 May 2008

Elderly too often malnourished and unnoticed in hospital

New research has revealed the shocking plight of some of Australia's most vulnerable citizens.

21 May 2008

Michael Parkinson becomes a 'dignity' ambassador for the elderly

An initiative by the British Government to encourage more respect for older people in care has been given added impact by the recruitment of TV talk show host Sir Michael Parkinson as a "dignity ambassador".

21 May 2008

NYT examines limited options for disabled children who reach age 18

The New York Times on Wednesday examined how as "medical advances have allowed patients who might have died as children to survive into adulthood, the patients are falling into a void in a health care system that has yet to develop institutions for the young and 'medically fragile.'"

19 May 2008

House Committee holds hearing on concerns about nursing home ownership, inspections

The House Energy and Commerce Oversight and Investigations Subcommittee on Thursday held a hearing to examine the effects that the "increasingly veiled nature" of nursing home ownership and problems with inspections have had on the quality of care for elderly and disabled residents, CQ HealthBeat reports (Reichard, CQ HealthBeat, 5/15).

19 May 2008

Despondent nurse practitioners - disabling postmodern punishment

The essence of postmodernism theme is that of an epochal shift, discontinuity, or rupture with modernity, bringing new social conditions and sociological principles with it (Baudrillard, 1988). Postmodernism views that the authority and status of the medical professionals does not exist anymore in the area of health care consistent with the postmodern message about the deconstruction of traditional centers of postindustrial authority (Cockerham et.al, 1997).

19 May 2008

Nurse-administered prevention and management strategies can decrease incidence of lymphedema and improve quality of life in patients

A poster session presented by The University of Texas M. D. Anderson Cancer Center at the Oncology Nurses Society 33rd Annual Congress, found that early nursing intervention and implementation of effective strategies can lead to a decrease in the incidence of lymphedema, better management of chronic lymphedema and improved quality of life in breast cancer patients.

19 May 2008

Study finds patients overestimate cancer screening history

A new American Cancer Society study finds female African American patients tend to overestimate their level of cancer screening, indicating that current estimates of screening based on self-reported data may be lower than reported.

15 May 2008