The University of Kansas Hospital in Kansas City, KS, had some work to do in 1998—its patient satisfaction was down and turnover high. To turn things around, the hospital looked in part to the nursing department, writes Rebecca Hendren for HealthLeaders Media. What they did was change a culture. To encourage professionalism, the hospital compensated certification and provided bonuses each year for maintaining them. Nurses were also heavily involved in changing...  Read More »

Most nurses and physicians are aware of the problems that still exist between the two groups—but did you know the extent? A new December 2009 report by the American College of Physician Executives found that the tension between nurses and physicians is pervasive and affects patient care for the worse. More than 2,100 nurses and physicians participated in the survey–67% were nurses and 33% were physicians. Almost all respondents said they had witnessed...  Read More »

Here they are–pictures of our Halloween costume contest winners, dressed up as Swine Flew! Pictured here are Karen McCarthy and Janet Burke from Salmon Health and Retirement in Massachusetts! We hope all of you enjoyed this contest, and encourage you to enter our “Best Mentor” contest–the winner receives a free book and we will honor your mentor on the Stressed Out Nurses Web site!   Read More »

I hope you all had some fun on Halloween and dressed up a bit. As you know, StressedOutNurses.com holds monthly contests for a chance to win free Quick E! Pocket Guides. This month’s winner for best Halloween costume was (drum roll). . . Swine Flew! Karen McCarthy and her office mate teamed up to dress as pigs with wings. Officially, Karen was H1 and her officemate was N1. Unfortunately, we don’t have a picture yet, but hopefully soon. It was creative,...  Read More »

In an earlier blog post, I wrote about mandatory vaccine policies and some of the protests that it had initiated. One of the biggest protests threatened by California Nurses Union (CNU/NNOC), has been called off after an agreement was reached to establish a national standard for containing the spread of the H1N1 virus, as well as other pandemics, according to a recent HealthLeaders Media article. The hospitals involved will sign an agreement to comply with...  Read More »