Nursing Articles, Opinions, Questions

Thousands of articles written by trusted professionals that represent more than 60 nursing specialties. Articles

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Psychiatric

How to Dress for Psychiatric Nursing

Many psychiatric facilities and settings allow nurses and support staff to wear street clothing instead of scrubs. Those new to psych nursing are often not sure...

Success

From Living to Dying and Back

by A&Ox6, MSN, RN

Read how a prenursing student goes from living, to dying to thriving. See how this experience has changed my view of life, death and interactions with clients....

General Students

Going for Nursing, BMCC, City Tech, Mom of five

by yar5

This article is about my life starting college. A mother of five and getting into the BMCC Nursing Program. Advice on BMCC Nursing Program and how to study....

Humor

For the Bowel Obsessed

by jadelpn, LPN, EMT-B

Remember, fellow nurses, talking about bowel movement (BM) should not be a "touchy" subject anymore!! The general public has been readied!! They know ALL about...

General Nursing

Top 10 Reasons We Get Fired!- Medication Errors

by madwife2002, BSN, RN

Medication Errors in nursing are common place, it is estimated that only 25% of medication errors are ever reported. Medication errors can kill patients. What...

General Nursing

About That Avatar...

by Ruby Vee, BSN

It seems to come in waves: new members joining AN and using their own names as user names and their photos as avatars. Although no one truly believes that the...

Ambulatory

Welcome to the Wonderful World of Ophthalmology

by nursefrances, BSN, RN

I looked into the microscope eye piece and saw the most beautiful colors, a rainbow of blues and greens with hints of yellow and amber. It was like a beautiful...

Geriatric

LTC Charting: A Beginner's Guide

by TheCommuter, BSN, RN

Questions regularly arise regarding the topic of appropriate charting in LTC. Many nurses who are new to the realm of the nursing home setting are sometimes...

What do I need soft skills for a nursing job?

Professionalism

Hard and Soft Skills

by TheCommuter, BSN, RN

Two types of skill sets exist in nursing and in other professions: hard skills and soft skills. The hard skills are the hands-on procedural skills that a...

General Students

Define Nurse

by kfishbeck

The word "nurse" has a different definition to each person. In this article, I researched where the word "nurse" came from and went in-depth to what the word...

What are the things you love about nursing?

Rock

The Top 10 Things I Loved About Nursing

by VivaLasViejas, ASN, RN

As a late-middle-aged RN who is newly retired from clinical nursing, I'd like to share a retrospective on a long and fruitful career that brought me a fair...

CNA/MA

2014 Wage Survey For CNAs, Medical Assistants, HHAs, PCTs: Post He…

by TheCommuter, BSN, RN

Sadly, far too many allied healthcare workers are not always paid what they are worth. Knowledge is power, so wage surveys have the capability to empower...

General Nursing

Nursing Salary Survey 2014

by TheCommuter, BSN, RN

Compensation is an extremely important aspect for the overwhelming majority of people who must work for a living, including the nurses who claim to do their...

Rock

Nurses Rock in 2014 and Beyond

by TheCommuter, BSN, RN

The new year 2014 is swiftly approaching us. This piece is a reminder that our chosen profession is vital to society's health and safety from the cradle to the...

Pediatric

Food Insecurity and Child Malnutrition in the United States

by TheCommuter, BSN, RN

Children and the elderly are at increased risk for malnutrition, an affliction that takes place when a patient's body is deprived of the vitamins, minerals and...

Rock

Learning from the Past - Resolutions for a Better Year of Nursing …

by tnbutterfly - Mary, BSN

A new year is upon us. That means many folks will take time to reflect on the good and the bad over the past 365 days. It also means many people will be...

Entrepreneurs

How Do I Start A New Topic?

by Joe V

You are ready to submit your first topic. But, you don't know how to start. This article will help you get started. Please feel free to post any questions that...

Relations

Homeless Patients: Considerations

by TheCommuter, BSN, RN

Many of our homeless patients are 'frequent flyers' who continually return to the hospital for the same health problems. Providing nursing care for homeless...

Geriatric

Cranky Old Man - What Do You See Nurses?

by Brian, ASN, RN

A wonderful reminder to look past the obvious. Remember this poem when you next meet an older person who you might brush aside without looking at the young soul...

When and How did you decide to leave nursing?

Retired

Hanging It Up

by VivaLasViejas, ASN, RN

Here are some thoughts on what goes into the decision to leave nursing and go in a completely different direction late in life: the hopes, the dreams, the...

Relations

Exit Strategies For Nurses Who Deal With Overly Talkative Patients

by TheCommuter, BSN, RN

How do busy nurses remove themselves from seemingly never-ending conversations with overly chatty patients and visitors without coming across as rude or abrupt?...

Activism

Affordable Care Act Users Guide for Nurses

by Jb4564

Understanding the basic workings of the Affordable Care Act is the responsibility of the bedside nurse. This guide will help you to address patient's questions...

LPN, LVN

Licensed Practical / Vocational Nurses (LPNs / LVNs)

by TheCommuter, BSN, RN

Licensed practical nurse (LPN) is a professional title used in the the vast majority of the United States and most provinces in Canada to refer to a specific...

Rock

The Reason I Became a Nurse

by hrivera

As a child, we often dream about what we want to be when we grow up. So many times the ideas change from one thing to another before we settle on what that is....

General Nursing

My Mother Was Right

by jlindsey, BSN, RN

My mother saw something in me that it took years for me to realize. As a child we aspire to be what we want to become and not always what our parent say they...