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January 4th, 2010UncategorizedNow here's something you don't see every day. Pharmaceutical giant Boehringer Ingeheim is working with a hospital and a humanitarian group to create a free clinic for some of Connecticut's uninsured.
Boehringer Ingeheim, which donated $400,000 to the launch, has partnered with Danbury Hospital and AmeriCares to offer clinic services at no charge to Connecticut residents who don't have health insurance. The clinic, which is part of AmeriCares' ongoing Free Clinics program, has become the busiest in the AmeriCares network.
As part of its participation in the clinic program, Boehringer recently conducted a survey of U.S. residents regarding healthcare attitudes, which concluded that six out of 10 Americans believe the state of the economy is likely to affect their own health or wellness in the future.Not surprisingly, the study also found that 62 percent of Americans would use a free clinic if they lost or couldn't afford health insurance or didn't qualify for a government health program.
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January 3rd, 2010Uncategorized
Generally when you think of a nurse you think of what you have seen on television - those that are in the Emergency Room of a local hospital or those who are caring for patients in their rooms. But in fact there are many types of nurses or specialty areas that a person can venture into. When you think about your career path you might want to consider some of these:
Ambulatory - care for individuals in an ambulance or travel by air or other transportation
Burn - working with these patients requires very specialized treatment
Developmental disabilities - working with handicapped patients
Emergency - can be very fast paced with lots of variety and rapid decision making
Geriatrics - working with the elderly
Home care - working with patients who have been released from hospital or are being cared for at home - often terminal patients
Intensive care - this can be surgical, cardiovascular, medical or neonatal and is often with critically ill patients
Mother/baby care - working with patients giving birth and with newborns
Oncology - working with cancer patients
Operating Room - assisting doctors in the operating room
Pediatrics - working with children
Recovery - working with patients recovering from operations or illnesses
Rehabilitation - therapy for patients after surgeries, illnesses or other traumas
Renal - working with diabetes patients and those undergoing dialysis
Research - working in research hospitalAs you can see there are countless paths that a nurse can take besides the standard one of taking your temperature in a hospital bed. Many specialized areas require nurses who are experienced in handling certain types of patients so specialties are becoming more and more popular as nurses branch out into areas that didn’t use to offer a career path and people are finding that they enjoy the non-traditional roles.
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January 2nd, 2010Uncategorized
CMS disappointed supporters this week when it announced that it was ending Medicare coverage for virtual colonoscopies.
The procedures, known as CT colonographies, use X-ray images and software to create images of the colon.
Advocates argue that virtual colonoscopies should be covered, as such procedures are more efficient, less costly and more comfortable for patients than standard colonoscopies.
CMS officials, for their part, conceded that while VCs may be better than standard procedures at finding larger polyps, they're concerned that the procedures don't work as well for beneficiaries ages 65 and older. They also noted that polyps can be removed during the standard procedure, but not during a VC.
CMS said that additional studies are needed that focus on the benefits of VCs for the Medicare population.
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January 1st, 2010Uncategorized
For a while, it was beginning to look like the retail clinic phenomenon was peaking or perhaps even petering out, with a handful of clinics even being forced out of business. But maybe the truth is that the battleground is shifting--from growth fueled by pharmacy chains and independent operators to a gradual encroachment by hospitals.
While hospitals have been dabbling in the retail clinic market for years, a growing number are dipping their oar in. For example, the Cleveland Clinic has lent its impeccable brand and services to several CVS clinics in Ohio, and the Mayo Clinic is operating two clinics in Rochester, MN supermarkets.
Among the highest-profile retail clinic efforts by hospitals are those connected with Wal-Mart, which opened its 26th hospital-linked clinic last week, and plans to add dozens more. Wal-Mart's partners include Aurora Health System in Wisconsin and CoxHealth in Missouri, as well as the Christus Medical Group.
Hospital-backed clinics may someday turn out to be the predominant model. After all, while it's very hard to make money on high-cost, low-margin clinics, they can make sense as a feeder for hospital business. On the other hand, if too high a percentage of clinic patients are uninsured, it won't be such a great proposition for hospitals. We'll just have to see how it shakes out.
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December 31st, 2009UncategorizedNursing students are sometimes confused about what kind of nursing degree to obtain. The two choices nurses most often consider are between an Associates Degree in Nursing (ADN), which usually takes two years to complete, or the Bachelor of Science in Nursing (BSN) degree, which takes four years. Both of these nursing degrees lead to the Registered Nurse (RN) designation, but there are crucial differences between them. Choosing one over the other depends on financial factors, the length of time to be spent in an educational program, and long-term career goals.
The major differences between the two nursing degrees involve the length of time required to complete each program and the number of academic credits required. A typical ADN degree will take two years, compared to four years for the BSN - plus the time it takes to finish the prerequisites necessary to enroll in a BSN program. (This may not be a factor for individuals who already have Bachelor's degrees (BAs) from accredited institutions, since accelerated BSN programs allow them to complete all requirements in 18 to 21 months.)
While nursing instructors had previously believed that the ADN degree was likely to be phased out, the fact is that some 66 percent of current nursing graduates complete training programs resulting in the ADN or Associate of Science (AS) degrees. These Associate degrees continue to provide health care facilities with capable nurses who can manage patient care. As insufficient numbers of nurses are graduated from four-year BSN programs each year to meet the needs of the health care industry, two-year Associate degrees are expected to remain important for some time to come.
However, BSN programs prepare graduates more effectively to make critical patient care decisions and to question doctors when orders appear inappropriate. The education provided in a BSN program is more focused on critical thinking, exposing students to more people and cultures, and enhancing the skills required for nursing management. They also offer more opportunities to improve skills in patient assessment and provide a greater examination of disease pathophysiology. Nurses who have the BSN degree will also have an easier time winning faculty teaching positions and high-level administrative jobs.
In summary, ADN programs usually cost less and take less time to complete, so graduates can begin working in the field more quickly. BSN graduates have more chances to advance to higher positions in the health care industry, and they are better prepared to take an advanced nursing degree - to become a nurse practitioner, nurse midwife, or nurse anesthetist, for example - if they decide to do so. There are many innovative choices for online nursing degrees in today's digital world. Many traditional and prestigious schools now offer their nursing degrees online.
My-nursing-career offers listings of online nursing degrees with no admissions waiting list. You can graduate in less time at about half the cost of traditional nursing schools. You can also find a complete list of nursing degrees offered throughout the United States. -
December 30th, 2009Uncategorized
The promises made to President Obama by several healthcare industry groups to control healthcare costs were overstated by the president, some of the groups are saying. Many of the savings under discussion would employ information technology as a way to shave expenses.
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December 29th, 2009Uncategorized
According to health plan trade group America's Health Insurance Plans, eight million Americans are now covered by health savings account-eligible insurance plans, up two million people since last year. In defense against claims that HSAs are largely good for the wealthy, AHIP also released a report this week claiming that account holders have a broad range of incomes.
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December 28th, 2009UncategorizedThe changing U.S. economy and the desire of many working people to 'make a difference' after the events of September 11 have contributed to a growing interest in nursing as a career. Additionally, over one million new and replacement RNs will be needed in the United States by 2016, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. In response to these factors, nursing schools are offering new ways to attract and quickly train more nurses while maintaining the quality and integrity of nursing education overall.
A popular approach is the second degree nursing program. Sometimes called accelerated nursing programs, they allow individuals who already have a baccalaureate degree (BA) from an accredited university or college in an area other than nursing to obtain the Bachelor of Science in Nursing (BSN) degree in under four years. These programs are offered at both baccalaureate and master's degree (MA) levels.
Second degree programs accept all course units successfully completed by students in their first degree. This effectively fulfills the prerequisites of a BSN plan. Many second degree BSN programs can be finished in 12 to 18 months, while MSN programs designed for non-nursing graduates usually take three years to complete. The accelerated nature of these programs makes them especially appropriate for people who are looking to make a career change, but the pace of the programs can be challenging. They usually involve intense instruction periods and include the same number of clinical hours as those given to students in traditional programs.
Typical second degree nursing students tend to be older and more motivated, with higher academic expectations than students who enter traditional nursing programs right out of high school. Students in second degree nursing programs generally have high grade-point averages and nearly always pass their licensing exams on the first try.
Admission standards for second degree nursing programs are high and usually require a 3.0 GPA at minimum. Persons interested in such programs must make a formal application to the educational institution of their choice and meet all of its admission requirements. College transcripts are reviewed to ensure that all prerequisites for a second degree nursing program are met.
According to second degree program educators, most applicants meet the arts and social science prerequisites of their programs, while some do not meet the natural sciences requirements. To help these students, most second degree nursing programs offer these prerequisites just before the start of the accelerated program. Personal interviews with representatives of the Department of Nursing at the given educational institution are usually required as well.
Upon completion of an accelerated or second degree program, students are eligible to take the licensing exam for RNs, the NCLEX-RN, which is required by the Boards of Nursing in all 50 states and U.S. territories.
In 1990, there were 31 second degree BSN programs and just a dozen accelerated MSN programs in existence in the U.S. Today there are 205 BSN programs and 56 MSN programs. -
December 27th, 2009UncategorizedThe time is going to come for every graduate nurse to sit for their state boards. To become a Registered Nurse, the graduate nurse must pass the NCLEX. This is a comprehensive examination of the skills necessary to practice nursing safely. It is important for the graduate nurse to use all of the tools available to ensure success at passing. Many schools prepare the student nurses early in their curriculum with test questions that mimic the format of the NCLEX.
This is done to familiarize the students with the type of questions that they will face when they take the NCLEX. Many schools, in addition to in class tests, are also incorporating outside resource testing. These companies offer a wide selection of computerized nursing test bank questions that measure the student's comprehension and application of practice and theory for each nursing course. The student's are required to pass these tests with an acceptable score that is decided by the school that they are attending.
Most of the time, the score that the student tries to achieve is at or above the national average. If the student's score falls below the national average, that student is then required to take the test until their score is acceptable. This can be most bothersome for many nursing students. Although these tests do not add or detract from the student's grade point average, they are mandatory for many schools. Most nursing schools will with hold the student's diploma if the student has not completed all of the necessary required tests. These questions not only help to measure the student's knowledge level in regards to the material covered, but it also acts as a tracking tool. In acting as a tracking tool, student's scores from all participating nursing schools can be compared and contrasted.
These same students are followed up until the end of the program, and then determinations regarding one schools performance over another can be interpolated. Once the student graduates from nursing school, they are further tracked by their mandatory and or voluntary participation in a four day NCLEX review seminar. These seminars are usually offered by the same testing corporation originally used by the school throughout the program and are offered at no extra expense to the student's. The performance of the student's throughout the program can then be interpolated with some degree of confidence on how well they perform on the NCLEX.
Of course all of the tracking and testing statistics can only predict outcomes. Only the student knows how much effort that they need to expend to pass their nursing courses and the state boards. Ask any nursing student, and most will concur that there is a lot of work that goes into getting through nursing school. It is important for the nursing student to look objectively at the numbers and percentages of those who pass the NCLEX. The rumor, that is supposedly based on fact, in, that all "A" and "B" students pass the NCLEX the first time, and all "C" student's fail the first time, is a false assumption, and one which can be detrimental to a "C" student's psyche. The only fact, is that the student must be the final judge of themselves, as far as knowing what they are capable of accomplishing, and not what rumor or statistics reflect.
Students should be aware that the use of outside practice resources is an acceptable and proven method to increase their chances of passing the NCLEX Nursing student's are encouraged to study not just one NCLEX study guide, but many. Using two or three NCLEX study guides as a reference is a solid strategic plan. Knowledge gained from the nursing program is of course valuable. However, a student cannot possibly remember every little detail. They would have thousands of flash cards to study, if that were the case. So, as the saying goes, "study smarter, not harder" applies.
The NCLEX is scientifically designed and percentages are assigned in respect to different content areas. The student is urged to study how the test is put together and use review material that best supports a similar format. This article will not recommend any study material, but it will impress upon student's to use up to date, current and respected sources. Nursing instructors are a good resource for suggesting resources. It is a good beginning strategy. Nursing instructor's have a lot of experience and are consistently revising their test bank material to keep current with the latest NCLEX question format.
Students are encouraged to practice online computer tests as well. Not only does familiarity with computer testing ease the student's anxiety, but it also gives the student the computer skill necessary to maneuver through the test without difficulty. Here is an example, imagine having to drive two thousand miles, and getting into a car. You know the direction to where you are going, but you never drove a car before in your life. How do you think you are going to feel getting behind that wheel, with such a long road ahead, and not being able to anticipate or know what to do when confronting unfamiliar situations?
It is the same thing with navigating the NCLEX. Knowing how to work the controls is very important, and it will save you time and energy that can be better put to use answering questions.
It is important not to go into the test thinking that luck is on your side, without having studied. Luck, may or may not be, but the fact is, most teachers will tell you, that if you didn't study, then you won't do well. The same thing can be said about the NCLEX. Study, is the key. Know what you are facing. There is so much information out there that gives the graduate nurse all the tools that they need to be successful in passing the NCLEX. Remember, it's up to you. So best wishes, on your test, and study, study, study. -
December 26th, 2009Uncategorized
A group of cardiologists has called for closer monitoring of wire leads that connect to defibrillators and pacemakers in the heart in the wake of serious malfunctions and deaths that took place in 2007. Doctors who treat cardiac arrhythmias are recommending that manufacturers do more to share data on product performance.
