The AJN Podcast

It’s estimated that only 25% of veterans access care through the VA Health Care System, so it’s highly likely that nurses in all settings will find themselves at some point providing care to veterans. Editor-in-chief Shawn Kennedy speaks with this author about the unique health issues of recent veterans and what nurses should know and think about when they are assessing them.

Nurses often encounter patients who, despite best efforts by both the nurse and the patient, are unable to follow the treatment plan and may even pursue hurtful behaviors, like a patient with COPD who continues to smoke. Editor-in-chief Shawn Kennedy speaks with the author, who is also AJN ’s contributing editor for ethics, about this issue, how it can interfere with the nurse-patient relationship...

Editor-in-chief Shawn Kennedy and clinical managing editor Karen Roush present the highlights of the July issue of the American Journal of Nursing . In recognition of the recent lifting of the ban on women in combat, a female soldier appears on our cover this month, on a patrol in Southern Afghanistan. Our first CE describes important factors for nurses to consider when treating veterans in non-VA...

AJN editor-in-chief Shawn Kennedy interviewed outgoing ICN president Rosemary Bryant in Melbourne, Australia, site of the 25th Quadrennial Congress. Bryant, who is Australia’s chief nurse and midwifery officer, spoke about her accomplishments and challenges, including recent issues around dues, governance changes and the suspension of the Royal College of Nursing.

Sleep patterns are fairly well-established until adolescence when physiologic and social needs interfere with sleep cycles. Adolescents typically need about nine hours of sleep but typically get far less. AJN editor-in-chief Shawn Kennedy discusses the ramifications of sleep disruptions in this group with author Nancy George.

Ruth McDermott Nina Kaktins Barbara Sattler Fracking (high volume hydraulic fracturing) releases natural gas trapped below the earth and involves a process of drilling into the earth and pumping high volumes of water, sand and chemicals (some of which are known to be toxic) under pressure to release the gases. The water is then collected and stored in open air tanks until it can be decontaminated...

Editor-in-chief Shawn Kennedy and clinical managing editor Karen Roush present the highlights of the June issue of the American Journal of Nursing. A resident of Washington County Pennsylvania appears on our cover this month, holding tap water contaminated by fracking that began above her farm in 2005. Our first CE describes sleep deprivation and physiology in adolescents. The second CE is an orig...

In our May issue, we celebrate Nurses Week with this podcast on a program at Salem Hospital called Nurses Give Back. These projects addressed access to care and community health improvement activities (such as vaccination drives) and community building (working with Habitat for Humanity, for instance). Some were designed to provide money and in-kind contributions to chosen charities. Other project...

Editor-in-chief Shawn Kennedy and clinical managing editor Karen Roush present the highlights of the May issue of the American Journal of Nursing . Our cover photo comes from an award-winning 2005 Boston Globe series that included an article about the progress of a nursing student in Mass General’s eight-month ICU program. Our first CE is an article on hemodynamic indicators and their use for flui...

In our April issue, we give a nod to Earth Day (April 22) and its focus on the environment. The article, “Greening the ‘Proclamation for Change’: Healing Through Sustainable Health Care Environments” (free until May 8), by Laura Anderko and colleagues Stephanie Chalupka, Whitney Austin Gray, and Karen Kesten, highlights how hospitals can incorporate design elements and practices not only to reduce...

Editor-in-chief Shawn Kennedy and clinical managing editor Karen Roush present the highlights of the April issue of the American Journal of Nursing . AJN recognizes Earth Day with a cover photo of Phoenix Children’s Hospital new 11th story environmentally conscious patient tower for the calm and healing of patients, families, and staff. Our first CE is an original research article on mechanical pr...

“Acute kidney injury is an independent risk factor for both prolonged length of hospital stay and in-hospital mortality.” Incidence rates among patients in US ICUs ranges from 22% to as high as 57%. Vrtis talks with AJN editor in chief Shawn Kennedy about the importance of assessing early indicators and implications for nurses.

People with mental health issues are often labeled as mentally ill even though they may be functional and even successful in other areas. Author Sabella and AJN editor in chief Shawn Kennedy discuss how our view of mental illness focuses on definitions of pathology (which can change over time) and tends to be limiting in a holistic view of human reactions.

Sex in nursing homes? Why not. As author Katz explains, “we all have a fundamental need for touch and self-expression.” AJN editor in chief Shawn Kennedy speaks with Dr. Anne Katz about how most facilities haven’t addressed this issue and what might nurses and administrators consider.

While there’s been much in the literature about the importance of improving hand hygiene practices in acute care settings, there’s been little about this topic in the outpatient setting. AJN editor in chief Shawn Kennedy speaks with the lead author about this report on an intervention to improve hand hygiene practices among health care providers in two outpatient clinics.

Editor-in-Chief Shawn Kennedy and clinical managing editor Karen Roush present the highlights of the March issue. AJN’s cover features a lithograph titled A Map of the Open Country of a Woman’s Heart , linking to this month’s CE, “Update on Cardiovascular Disease Prevention in Women.” The second CE is an original research article that evaluates a hand hygiene campaign at two outpatient health care...

Medication regimens in patients with Parkinson’s Disease may be complex, partly owing to the short one-to-two hour half-life of the primary medication, carbidopa-levodopa (Sinemet). When these patients are subject to prolonged medication withholding because of NPO restrictions prior to surgery, symptoms become exacerbated quickly and patients can become agitated, hallucinate and suffer extreme rig...

The article details how a public health nurse (Matthews) teamed-up with a mother (Moore) who lost her young son to SIDS. Together, they helped change Arkansas child-care licensing regulations to mandate safe sleeping practices. AJN editor in chief Shawn Kennedy talks with them and pediatrician David Matthews (husband of Rebecca and Moore’s pediatrician) about their successful public health initiat...

Editor-in-chief Shawn Kennedy and clinical managing editor Karen Roush present the highlights of the February issue of the American Journal of Nursing. AJN’s cover features a color-enhanced X-ray showing chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) developing in the lungs of an 83-year-old man, tying in with one of this month’s CE articles on “COPD Exacerbations.” The second CE is a qualitative or...

We know that traditional health counseling for obese children and adolescents, in which we prescribe more exercise and better eating habits, hasn’t been all that successful. AJN editor in chief Shawn Kennedy speaks with Viewpoint author Bonnie Gance-Cleveland about her work with obese teens and their families that began with an initiative by NAPNAP in 1996 and has become her focus. She discussed u...

While growth in many other professions have seen more balance in the sexes, this has not been true for nursing. Men still represent fewer than 10% of licensed RNs since 2000. AJN’s editor in chief discusses the issues with the authors (in photo, Bonnie Schmidt with Brent MacWilliams, and Michael Bleich), examining what factors might be barriers to more men becoming nurses and how might the profess...

Editor-in-chief Shawn Kennedy and clinical managing editor Karen Roush present the highlights of the January issue of the American Journal of Nursing . This month’s cover features male RN Tung Tran, as part of this month’s focus on men in nursing and the unique challenges they face in the field. This issue also offers two CE features. The first is an original research article highlighting the haza...

Editor-in-chief Shawn Kennedy and clinical managing editor Karen Roush present the highlights of the December 2012 issue of the American Journal of Nursing. This month’s cover features Syrian children forced to flee from the violence in their country. This issue also offers two CE features: one on the importance of sufficient staffing during all shifts to avoid certain hazards. The second CE discu...

AJN’s editor-in-chief Shawn Kennedy talks with author Meredeth Rowe about her CE feature article this month, in which she explains the difference between missing incidents in people with dementia, and dementia-related ‘wandering;’ a distinction that is critical to assessment, intervention, and prevention.

Many people erroneously consider depression to be an inevitable part of aging, but this is untrue. AJN’s editor-in-chief Shawn Kennedy talks with author Cynthia Cahoon about her review article, in which she provides an overview of depression in older adults and offers information on screening, treatments and implications for nurses.