Clinical excellence for nurse practitioners : the international journal of NPACE
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Clin Excell Nurse Pract · Sep 2000
Comparative StudyDecisions behind career choice for nurse practitioners: independent versus collaborative practice and motivational-needs behavior.
Nurse practitioners (NPs) can take an active role in defining and establishing their careers. Prepared as advanced practice nurses with specific assessment skills, primary care NPs have the opportunity to become independent or collaborative practitioners. This report examines the published work in the area of practice choice and motivational-needs behavior. ⋯ The motivational needs examined included the need for achievement, power, and affiliation. The interview findings were then synthesized using needs-based behavior theory. This new platform for role decision ultimately can prepare NPs to make informed career choices.
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Stroke is indicated by an abrupt manifestation of neurologic deficits secondary to an ischemic or hemorrhagic insult to a region of the brain. Stroke is ranked as the third leading cause of death in the United States, affects more than 730,000 individuals per year, and accounts for 160,000 deaths annually. Approximately $40 billion is spent annually for health care treating stroke victims. This case report shows that despite the use of antithrombotic and/or antiplatelet aggregating drugs, the key to stroke management is primary prevention.
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Clin Excell Nurse Pract · Jan 2000
Literacy for health information of adult patients and caregivers in a rural emergency department.
The nurse practitioner is responsible for providing the patient and family with understandable written information before discharge from the emergency department (ED) following an acute event. Patients are more likely to adhere to their treatment regimen and follow-up if they have a clear understanding of their instructions. Patients cannot correctly interpret information they cannot read. ⋯ The REALM scores placed the reading level of the sample at between seventh and eighth grade. The preprinted discharge instruction forms used by the three rural hospitals had a Flesch-Kincaid grade level of 9.0, a reading level higher than 62% of the sample. By ensuring discharge instructions are developed at a reading level of sixth grade or below, nurse practitioners can provide teaching materials that encompass the reading levels of the majority of the rural ED population.
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Clin Excell Nurse Pract · Nov 1999
ReviewAmyotrophic lateral sclerosis: a team approach to primary care.
Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) is a progressive neuromuscular disease that causes degeneration of motor neurons and results in death. The most frequent presenting symptom of patients with ALS is muscle weakness. The role of the nurse practitioner (NP) in the diagnosis and management of ALS is multifaceted. ⋯ The role of the NP is important in providing symptomatic relief for the patient, and essential in providing education and psychosocial support for the patient and family caregivers. This article reviews the pathophysiology, assessment, management, and recent advances in research related to ALS. The challenging role of the NP in improving the quality of life of patients with ALS and their families is discussed.