The ABNF journal : official journal of the Association of Black Nursing Faculty in Higher Education, Inc最新文献

A few years ago, I was privileged to visit the Republic of Cuba as a summer vacation. Officially, this Spanish island is the largest island in the Caribbean, with more than 12 million people. It is only second as being most populous after Hispaniola with its people, culture and customs. Havana is the capital and Cuba's largest city. The United States lies to the immediate north only about 95 miles away, and the Bahamas and Mexico to the west, the Cayman Islands and Jamaica are on the southern end, and Haiti and the Dominion Republic are in the southeastern area. The history of this island is truly amazing. I was able to vist a hospital, and ride public transportation (bus). The trip was made at the time when Cuba was not open to travelers coming direct from the United States. I traveled to Montreal, Canada to board Cabana Arlines to Havana, Cuba.

Spirituality is an integral part of the Afro-Caribbean experience. This study explored spirituality's influence on health in a church-going Afro-Caribbean population in order to further develop the concept of Spiritually-Guided Health risk Interception (SGHRI). Using a naturalistic approach, ten (10) members of local Pentecostal churches including ministry leaders, were interviewed. Items from the Spiritual Health Locus of Control scale (SHLC) guided the sessions. Content analysis was used to examine the data, and three themes emerged: compassion for service, divine authority, and shared responsibility. The findings of this study suggested that Afro Caribbean church-goers are fervent in their spirituality and dedication to social services provided by the church. While they rely on church leaders for guidance in health matters, recognition of personal role in health promotion was acknowledged. This valuable resource may be used to combine the fundamental principles associated with their spiritual practices and with health risk interceptions.

Ethics and moral issues do impact the manner in which professional nurses perform their major duties. Moral distress often conflict with an ethical appropriate course of action that is known, but cannot be implemented. This distress has been associated with job dissatisfaction, burnout, early retirement, withdrawal from the moral dimensions of direct patient care, and others just leaving the profession altogether. In the workplace, institutions must make an assertive effort in providing resources and addressing situations that cause personal anxiety and depression that adversely affects total patient care. The American Association of Critical Care Nurses (AACN) has addressed ethical issues and moral distress in practices that support nurses with moral courage, when encountering ethical conflicts. Ask, Affirm, Assess and Act are the 4 A's that AACN believes should be a part of an organization's strategic plan to create a healthy workplace environment.

A naturalistic qualitative research study was conducted focusing on young African American women with breast cancer and their biological mothers. Semistructured interviews were conducted with 14 participants to identify their knowledge, beliefs and feelings of breast cancer. Several women reported issues of medical distrust; limited treatment options; breast cancer is a death warrant. Social support was essential for survival. Implications of the research for nursing education and the medical profession are discussed.

Integrating service in a post-licensure registered nurse to bachelor of science in nursing (RN to BSN) program provides licensed registered nurse (RN) students the opportunity to learn, develop, and experience different cultures while serving the community and populations in need (McKinnon & Fitzpatrick, 2012). Service to the community, integrated with academic learning can be applied in a wide variety of settings, including schools, universities, and community faith-based organizations. Academic service-learning (ASL) can involve a group of students, a classroom, or an entire school. In the RN to BSN program, the authors use a student-directed service learning approach that integrates service-learning throughout the curriculum. RN students are introduced to service-learning at program orientation prior to the start of classes and receive reinforcement and active engagement throughout the curriculum. The students and volunteer agencies receive and give benefits from the services provided and the life lessons gained through mentorship, education, and hands-on experiences.