looking for help to get me started....

Daytonite, BSN, RN · Jan 16, 2007

hi, melsanshe! i just completed a trends in healthcare class this past semester. for my 5 page referenced paper, i wrote on no lift legislation. there are currently two states which have passed laws mandating patient safe handling and protection: texas and washington. there is also a bill before the u.s. house of representatives that would make this a nationwide mandate with federal grants provided so facilities would be able to purchase the required lifting equipment. these laws come out of statistics that back injuries are the biggest reason nurses lose days of work due to injury on the job. i can send you a copy of my bibliography if you like. it includes 12 items and they can all be found online.

if you want to kill two birds with one stone, there are new standing lifts that are coming out on the market for nurses to use. they help bring a patient to a standing position, strap them in place and wheel them around while they are in a standing position. these can also be accessed online.

many of the nursing magazines include a monthly page where they spotlight new equipment that is coming out on the market that is of interest to healthcare workers. these news pages are how i got the idea to do my paper on no lift legislation for nurses. they had a few lines in there about governor schwarzenegger vetoing the no lift bill here in california back in september.

rags · Jan 17, 2007

Current trends... hummm... I know there is altering opinions on several topics where I work and everything seems to come down to if the Dr. or facility uses evidence based practice. I think you might find a simple topic can become very complex here ...

I think if it were me, I would look into how quickly a pt should get up and walk following an abd. surgery. Seems to be a big issue where I work.

Equipment or clinical procedure... another one that has a lot of debate between medical professions is circumcision methods used. You might look into that one as well. You just might be surprised at how many different methods there are and the reasoning being a peticular Dr. choice of one over another...

Just some ideas for you. Good luck on your paper and remember to use all these dreaded research papers as learning tools for your future! Pick topics that pertain to your interest and you will find you learn more from them.