N urse practitioners (NPs) have been practicing for nearly 50 years (American Association of Nurse Practitioners [AANP], 2014). So why is there still confusion over who we are and what we do? Why do we consistently get questions from patients such as " Are you my nurse? " or " Are you my doctor? " or " Are you the assis-tant? " And perhaps even more confounding, why is there still confusion abo...

Problem based learning (PBL) is well established within the field of health-care education for professionals worldwide, although little has been done to explore the experiences of students undertaking a PBL course in mental health nursing. Without firm evidence of the benefits of PBL, educationalists in mental health might be reluctant to view it as an option in curricula design. This U.K. stud...

Nurses in all settings interact with individuals often identified as vulnerable or marginalized, and at times are frustrated by their own inability to "make a difference." By allowing oneself to listen, a fuller appreciation of the individual circumstance, or that which is unwritten, can be appreciated. Storytelling is a way to set the stage for experiences to be shared and can provide insight ...

Matching residential setting with cognitive and physical abilities is crucial for the provision of a supportive long-term care (LTC) environment. This study compares the cognitive and functional care differences of LTC residents on skilled nursing units designed for dementia care, chronic care, or ambulatory care, and an assisted living setting using the Minimum Data Set (MDS) Texas Index of Le...

BACKGROUND To address the shortage of Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)-prepared nursing faculty, universities in the United States offer direct-entry Bachelor of Science in Nursing (BSN)-to-PhD nursing programs. Little research has been conducted to explore students' perceptions of these programs and to formally evaluate the successes and opportunities for growth of this academic track. METHOD Focu...

Despite several attempts to define what foundational science is required by and for the nursing profession, uncertainty has long existed in this area. Several attempts have been undertaken to elicit the appropriate level and depth of foundational science with the only clear result being that science has been recognised as key to good practice. The aim of this research was to review the amount o...

This paper argues that more critique is required in our nursing journals. I begin by distinguishing between conservative 'old' critique which functions to maintain the status quo in the academic discipline of nursing, and radical 'new' critique which challenges it and pushes at its boundaries. I then identify three reasons why I believe so little radical critique is published in nursing journal...

AIM To reveal nursing home employees' views on dying and death among older people they cared for. BACKGROUND Palliative care stakeholders recently included more groups in their definition of palliative care; older people constitute one such group. Consequently, palliative care systems, which will serve a large, aging cohort, will require new skills. The first stage in skills acquisition is to...