Two more steps to add to your eye drops care procedure.

The article on 'How to administer eye drops and eye ointment' omitted two important parts of the procedure (art & science, May 25).

Minister didn't say government won't support safe staffing bill.

I am afraid your report on the progress of the safe nurse staffing levels bill, 'Minimum staffing ratios failed to gain Welsh Government support' (News March 11) may give an unnecessarily pessimistic picture of the situation.

The RCN's 8,500 retired members still have much to contribute.

Zeba Arif led a debate at last year's RCN congress urging the college's council to use the talents of retired RCN representatives. The proposed resolution - 'retired not redundant' - was passed with a majority of almost 96 per cent.

Getting eHealth into basic nursing education: report of the RCN information in nursing project.

This paper reports the results of a project undertaken in 2008 by the Royal College of Nursing's Information in Nursing Forum. The project, undertaken by the RCN IN Forum in association with the RCN Education Forum and the RCN Association of Nursing Students, was in two parts. The first part consisted of an on-line survey of nursing students to discover their "readiness" for working in an electronic environment. The second part consisted of a workshop for invited stakeholders - organisations responsible for commissioning and providing basic nursing education, regulators, nurse teachers, and nursing students themselves - the objective of which was to consider the results of the survey and other information, in order to develop a consensus on how best to incorporate eHealth issues into basic nursing education. The survey was undertaken during April 2008 via the RCN website. Students were asked how well they felt their nursing education had prepared them for competencies set out in a previously published model curriculum. 1,120 students responded. 565 students who had used electronic patient records during their most recent clinical placement were asked about their experience. Students rated their basic computer skills much higher than their understanding of eHealth. While they felt competent to document assessments and care plans using paper records, few felt competent to do so using electronic records. Few know anything about telehealth (remote diagnosis and delivery of healthcare) or telecare (assistive technology in people's homes). Among those who had used computers in their most recent clinical placement there were clear breaches of the protocols designed to ensure security and confidentiality. Twenty seven invited participants attended the workshop held in October 2008, plus 12 members of the participating Forums and relevant RCN staff. Following presentation and discussion of the findings of the survey, participants worked in three groups to identify and discuss issues arising from the survey, and to identify barriers using a Force Field Analysis. All participants agreed eHealth should be an integral part of nursing education and not an "add-on", and that the responsibility for "Getting eHealth into basic nursing education" had to be shared by university based educators, placement supervisors, and regulators.

Capturing nursing information in the United Kingdom through use of a conceptual model.

The adoption in the United Kingdom (UK) of SNOMED CT means that the core activities of nursing will need to be described using standardized nursing languages. Work already undertaken in Bangor University has proposed a "Conceptual model for Nursing Information". These authors have argued that the use of this conceptual model allows nurses to describe and measure outcomes of nursing care, using standardized language, in such a way as to provide a maximum data set. This maximum data set captures the totality of nursing activity in such a way as to be highly relevant, not only to nurses, but to other key stakeholders, not least of whom is the patient. This paper will present how the model was developed, the progress to date, and the future challenges of integrating the model into mainstream nursing practice.

A Conceptual Model for Nursing Information.

PURPOSE: This Conceptual Model for Nursing Information describes the core activities of nursing, the collection of information about these activities, and argues that these activities must be described using standardized nursing languages. DATA SOURCES: Relevant literature, both national and international, was reviewed and summarized. DATA SYNTHESIS: A maximum data set for nursing was developed. CONCLUSIONS: In the United Kingdom, a new and radical approach to the process of nursing is required; one that demonstrates that nursing is the decision-making that takes place in all core activities of nursing. IMPLICATIONS FOR NURSING PRACTICE: Unless nurses have a clear view of what the profession requires from technological solutions for the recording of nursing activities, less than optimal solutions will be forced upon the profession.

Changes in society at national and international levels.

Many societal changes will influence the future nature of nursing, nursing informatics and health. Among these are environmental changes, increasing globalization, industrialization of developing countries, and educational developments. The paper considers these issues, and in particular the 'bold transformation' of nurse education that will be necessary if the profession is to be able to deal with the future. The paper concludes with a series of recommended strategic changes.

The Welsh Nursing Academy: a focus for excellence.

This article traces the development of the Welsh Nursing Academy (WNA) and links this to other changes that have occurred within the professions of nursing, midwifery and heath visiting, as well as the political landscape of Wales. The mission of the WNA is to serve the people of Wales by promoting excellence in nursing and health care through the generation, synthesis and dissemination of nursing knowledge. How this will be translated into practice through the activities of its membership will be shown in relation to each of the academy's five purposes. This is the first nursing academy to be established in the UK and it is likely that others will follow in England, Scotland and Northern Ireland. As the article concludes, this may lead to a federation of academies across the UK which will collaborate and support each other and link up with existing nursing academies in other countries.

Developing a comprehensive cancer center rehabilitation program.

As more oncology care is provided in the outpatient setting, cancer centers and oncology healthcare professionals are presented with greater opportunities to substantially enhance the quality of care given to patients. A diagnosis of cancer is a life-changing event that has many implications for the patient, as well as his or her family members. The stress of dealing with a new cancer diagnosis and the ensuing medical treatment can be overwhelming. Treatment for cancer may involve complex protocols, leaving patents mentally and physically exhausted. A multidisciplinary approach to the primary treatment plan-surgery, chemotherapy, and radiation therapy--is the standard of care. However, formalized rehabilitation programs for this patient population are unique. Many facilities rely on a centralized rehabilitation department within a medical center to meet the needs of oncology patients. Although this is the traditional approach, the growing complexity of cancer treatment provides an opportunity to enhance the rehabilitation process. The Gibbs Regional Cancer Center (GRCC), which is a part of Spartanburg Regional Healthcare System, teamed up with the hospital rehabilitation department to create a venue specifically designed for oncology patients. Described within this article is the developmental process of the GRCC Rehabilitation Program.

Deconstructing nursing from practice to theory.

People often talk about 'basic' nursing care as if it is the simplest thing in the world: it looks so easy that anyone could do it. But there is more to it than meets the eye. We asked three prominent nurses to spend time watching individual nurses going about their business in an attempt to get to the bottom of this thing called nursing care. And when you look beyond the surface it is obvious delivering nursing care is neither simple nor basic.

Community outreach: providing a comprehensive approach to smoking cessation.

The LEEP Program at the SRHS has completed its first year. Executing the strategic action plans could not have been accomplished without the collaboration of multiple agencies-the ACS, ALA, DHEC, SADAC, and the SRHS. Activities surrounding education, awareness, and the development of support programs during this year have moved us closer to achieving our goal-to develop and implement a systematic educational program including a collaborative community-wide smoking cessation initiative. We had many successes during the first year of the LEEP program. However, future opportunities remain. Offering Freshstart facilitator class twice a year will provide trained facilitators for the every-other-month Freshstart classes at the Gibbs Regional Cancer Center and community smoking cessation classes as needed. Moreover, smokers in the community can attend a smoking cessation support group that began in January 2002. The support group reinforces the safety net of services developed within the first year. Collaboration with other community organizations ensure that continued efforts are made to improve the health and quality-of-life for upstate South Carolina residents. "According to results from the 1994 National Health Interview Supplement (NHIS-2000), 70% of smokers indicated a strong desire to quit" (Westmaas, 2000). It is the role and responsibility of health care institutions to provide the safety net of services to enable patients and the community at large to be successful in their efforts to kick the cigarette habit.

On these rocks... commitment to nurse education in the 1990s.

This article is a modified version of the public lecture given by June Clark to launch the UK's newest School of Health Care Studies at Middlesex Polytechnic on November 20 1990.