Improved Availability and Quality of Care with Epilepsy Nurse Practitioners
Chloe E. Hill, Bethany Thomas, Kimberly Sansalone, Kathryn A. Davis, Judy A. Shea, Brian Litt, and Nabila Dahodwala
In Neurology, Chloe Hill and colleagues, including Judy Shea and Nabila Dahodwala, investigate the quality of care delivered by nurse practitioner (NP)–physician teams developed to serve patients with epilepsy, and improve their appointment availability. The authors observed a cohort of patients with epilepsy who were cared for by either an NP-physician team or a physician only. These care models were compared with regard to adherence to the 2014 American Academy of Neurology epilepsy quality measures. The authors also looked at seizure frequency, presentations to the Emergency...
Missed Nursing Care in Pediatrics
Eileen T. Lake, Pamela B. de Cordova, Sharon Barton, Shweta Singh, Paula D. Agosto, Beth Ely, Kathryn E. Roberts, Linda H. Aiken
In Hospital Pediatrics, Eileen Lake and colleagues, including Shweta Singh and Linda Aiken, examine patterns of missed nursing care in inpatient pediatric settings to determine whether it is associated with unfavorable work environments and high nurse workloads. The authors used registered nurse data from over 200 pediatric hospitals. The data shows that nurses reported missed care on their last shift for twelve nursing activities due to time constraints. More than half of pediatric nurses missed care on their previous shift, and missed care was more prevalent in poor work...
How Patients Experience the Trauma Bay
After a shooting, a stabbing, a car crash, or a fall, emergency services rush an injured patient to the emergency room. They bypass the waiting room and come directly to a specialized area called the trauma bay, where a team of clinicians performs a fast, intense, full-body exam and initiates treatment for injury. Trauma providers have organized this protocol, known as trauma resuscitation, to identify and treat life-threatening injuries as quickly as possible. Or at least that’s how we see it.
Discriminative Accuracy of Physician and Nurse Predictions for Survival and Functional Outcomes 6 Months After an ICU Admission
Michael E. Detsky, Michael O. Harhay, Dominique F. Bayard, Aaron M. Delman, Anna E. Buehler, Saida A. Kent, Isabella V. Ciuffetelli, Elizabeth Cooney, Nicole B. Gabler, Sarah J. Ratcliffe, Mark E. Mikkelsen, Scott D. Halpern
In JAMA, Michael Detsky and colleagues, including Michael Harhay and Scott Halpern, examine the accuracy of intensive care unit (ICU) physician and nurses’ predictions about patients’ survival and functional outcomes. Clinician predictions about a patient's chance of survival have been shown to influence decision-making for critically ill patients, yet little is known regarding their accuracy. The study was conducted in five ICUs in three hospitals in Philadelphia, and enrolled patients who spent at least three days in the ICU and required mechanical ventilation, vasopressors, or...
Kathryn Bowles Inducted Into International Nurse Researcher Hall of Fame
Magnet Hospitals Do Better on Medicare Value Measures
Despite major components of the Affordable Care Act on the chopping block, value-based care reforms largely have bipartisan support and are likely here to stay. And while the majority of providers and politicians support efforts to incentivize value over volume, fewer providers have realized success achieving higher value care.
Linda Aiken Awarded International Council of Nurses Highest Honor
Therese Richmond Named to HHS Advisory Position
Physician Surplus or Shortage? Let’s Play Hard Ball
The New York Times published an editorial in 2014 proclaiming that a worsening national shortage of physicians was contributing to long waiting times for veterans and many other Americans.
PA House on Verge of Historic Vote for Nurse Practitioners
Sometimes you have to look back to see the path forward. As the Pennsylvania House of Representatives considers legislation to modernize Pennsylvania’s antiquated regulations for nurse practitioners, we might learn something by reviewing the history of the Rendell Administration’s similar battle to expand scope of practice nearly 10 years ago. And if history is a predictor, there is reason to be optimistic.
A Global Perspective on Advance Practice Nurses in Primary Care
In a new paper in the European Journal of Public Health, Harkness Fellow Claudia Maier, and LDI Senior Fellow and Director of Penn Nursing’s Center for Health Outcomes and Policy Research Linda Aiken document the shifting of tasks that reflect expansion of nurses’ scope-of-practice in 39 countries.
Penn's New National Clinician Scholars Program Welcomes First Cohort
Mary Naylor Wins AcademyHealth Distinguished Investigator Award
Why It’s Easier to be Prescribed an Opioid Painkiller than the Treatment for Opioid Addiction
Cross-posted from 
Evidence Supports Giving Nurse Practitioners Full Practice Authority
[Editor's Update: On May 18, 2016, the Pennsylvania State Senate’s Professional Licensure Committee voted (12-1) to advance SB 717 out of committee and on to the Senate.]