http://medicalxpress.com/ en-us Medical Xpress internet news portal provides the latest news on Health and Medicine. At a time when the U.S. health system is facing both an increasing demand for primary care services and a worsening shortage of primary care physicians, one broadly recommended strategy has been to increase the number and the responsibilities of nurse practitioners. In 2010 an Institute of Medicine (IOM) committee recommended that "advance practice registered nurses should be able to practice to the full extent of their education and training" and that nurse practitioners should be able to admit patients to hospitals and hospices, lead medical teams and medical homes, and receive reimbursements similar to what physicians receive for providing the same services. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2013-05-disagreement-role-primary-nurse-practitioners.html Health Wed, 15 May 2013 17:01:25 EST news287856078 When hospitals hire more nurses with four-year degrees, patient deaths following common surgeries decrease, according to new research by the University of Pennsylvania School of Nursing's Center for Health Outcomes and Policy Research as reported in the March issue of the prestigious policy journal Health Affairs. Less than half the nation's nurses (45%) have baccalaureate degrees, according to the most recent data available (2008). http://medicalxpress.com/news/2013-03-bsn-nurses-patient-deaths.html Health Thu, 07 Mar 2013 11:26:37 EST news281877990 Nurses are the largest group of health care providers in the U.S., and health care leaders and experts agree that engaging registered nurses (RNs) in quality improvement (QI) efforts is essential to improving our health care system, patient care and our nation's health. Unfortunately, despite studies demonstrating the value of nurse-led quality improvement efforts, far too few nurses are involved in these efforts, and the number is not growing, according to a study published in the Journal of Nursing Care Quality. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2013-01-early-career-registered-nurses-hospital-quality.html Health Mon, 28 Jan 2013 06:39:07 EST news278577461 (HealthDay)—Web-based learning is effective at standardizing training for triage skills of registered nurses (RNs), according to a review published in the January issue of the Journal of Emergency Nursing. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2013-01-web-nurses-triage-skills.html Other Thu, 17 Jan 2013 17:00:01 EST news277660157 Reports indicate that Michigan faces a physician shortage much larger than the national average, and it will grow as millions of Americans qualify for insurance under the Affordable Care Act. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-11-nurse-practitioners-prescription-ease-doctor.html Health Mon, 12 Nov 2012 16:30:03 EST news271959440 Extended work shifts of twelve hours or longer are common and popular among hospital staff nurses, but a new study reports that nurses working longer shifts were more likely to experience burnout, job dissatisfaction, and patients were more dissatisfied with their care. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-11-shifts-nurse-burnout-dissatisfied-patients.html Health Tue, 06 Nov 2012 10:44:02 EST news271421030 New findings from a 15-year series of studies led by care providers at Scripps Whittier Diabetes Institute reveal that culturally tailored community-created programs are effective at reducing health-related costs and delivering higher quality care. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-11-community-based-diabetes-key-lowered.html Diabetes Mon, 05 Nov 2012 16:34:53 EST news271355660 Patients treated in magnet hospitals (specially designated for their nursing excellence) had 14 percent lower odds of death than those in non-magnet hospitals in a four-state study of 564 hospitals led by the University of Pennsylvania School of Nursing. The magnet designation, determined by the American Nurses Credentialing Center, recognizes high-quality patient care, high levels of nurse education, and nursing innovation. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-10-patient-deaths-surgery-hospitals-good.html Health Mon, 22 Oct 2012 13:32:02 EST news270131504 According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, each year nearly 100,000 hospitalized patients die from infections acquired while undergoing treatment for other conditions. While many factors may contribute to the phenomenon, nurse staffing (i.e., the number of patients assigned to a nurse) has been implicated as a major cause. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-09-links-hospital-infections-nurse-burnout.html Health Thu, 27 Sep 2012 13:31:23 EST news267971472 (Medical Xpress)—A new national survey of more than 1,000 registered nurses suggests that serious barriers - including resistance from nursing leaders - prevent nurses from implementing evidence-based practices that improve patient outcomes. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-08-nurse-leader-resistance-barrier-high-quality.html Health Wed, 29 Aug 2012 16:27:29 EST news265476440 (HealthDay)—Two new studies paint a complex portrait of aspirin's impact on cancer risk and mortality, with one suggesting the drug may lower the risk of dying from prostate cancer and the other seeing no significant drop in the risk for developing breast cancer. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-08-daily-aspirin-prostate-cancer-breast.html Cancer Mon, 27 Aug 2012 17:20:02 EST news265303971 Nurse burnout leads to higher healthcare-associated infection rates (HAIs) and costs hospitals millions of additional dollars annually, according to a study published in the August issue of the American Journal of Infection Control, the official publication of the Association for Professionals in Infection Control and Epidemiology (APIC). http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-07-nurse-staffing-burnout-linked-hospital.html Health Mon, 30 Jul 2012 09:58:37 EST news262861110 Growing evidence suggests that Parkinson's disease (PD) often starts with non-motor symptoms that precede diagnosis by several years. In the first study to examine patterns in the quality of life of Parkinson' disease patients prior to diagnosis, researchers have documented declines in physical and mental health, pain, and emotional health beginning several years before the onset of the disease and continuing thereafter. Their results are reported in the latest issue of Journal of Parkinson's Disease. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-07-years-diagnosis-quality-life-declines.html Parkinson's & Movement disorders Mon, 02 Jul 2012 11:03:02 EST news260445768 Ninety-six per cent of women who attended a preconception clinic before undergoing IVF had three or more lifestyle problems and risk factors, according to a study in the May issue of the Journal of Advanced Nursing. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-04-percent-women-ivf-preconception-multiple.html Health Thu, 19 Apr 2012 10:30:01 EST news254049685 Dementia -- an acute loss of cognitive ability -- can be marked by memory loss, decreased attention span, and disorientation. It occurs in severe disorders such as Alzheimer's disease. Despite the fact that the condition is common, especially among older persons, there is still a lack of effective treatment. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-03-advocates-behavior-based-treatment-option-dementia.html Alzheimer's disease & dementia Tue, 27 Mar 2012 13:10:56 EST news252072650 Researchers estimate nearly 800,000 preventable adverse drug events may occur in nursing homes each year. Many of these incidents could be prevented with safety practices such as medication reconciliation, a process in which health care professionals, such as physicians, pharmacists and nurses, review medication regimens to identify and resolve discrepancies when patients transfer between health care settings. In nursing homes, both registered nurses (RNs) and licensed practical nurses (LPNs) often are responsible for this safety practice. A recent study by a University of Missouri gerontological nursing expert found, when observed, these nurses often differed in how they identified discrepancies. Recognizing the distinct differences between RNs and LPNs could lead to fewer medication errors and better patient care. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-03-collaboration-nursing-home-rns-lpns.html Health Wed, 14 Mar 2012 13:38:01 EST news250951074 If organisations want to retain qualified nurses they need to tackle the different work factors that are important to the three key age groups and build on the strong attachment that many nurses feel to the profession. Those are the key messages to emerge from a large-scale survey of nurses published in the January issue of the Journal of Advanced Nursing. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-01-retention-key-factors-affecting-nurses.html Health Tue, 17 Jan 2012 10:50:24 EST news246019819 (AP) -- New registered nurses would have to earn bachelor's degrees within 10 years to keep working in New York under a bill lawmakers are considering as part of a national push to raise educational standards for nurses, even as the health care industry faces staffing shortages. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2011-12-ny-bill-require-bachelor-degrees.html Health Fri, 30 Dec 2011 06:26:07 EST news244448750