Utilization of Art in Nursing Education to Enhance Student Spiritual Growth and Holistic Nursing Practice.

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to investigate student nurses' perceptions of how creative art activities might support spiritual self-exploration, foster understanding of holistic care and promote spiritual growth in relation to Mercy and Jesuit values emphasized in their nursing program. Design: A qualitative design was used with data collected through surveys and students' reflections. Methods: Students enrolled in an introductory nursing course with a service-learning component participated in the study. Students were initially asked to create drawings depicting Mercy/Jesuit charisms, spirituality, and holistic nursing then complete written reflections. At the term's end, students created group art projects connecting service learning, holistic nursing care, and spiritual growth. Students responded to survey questions regarding spirituality, Mercy/Jesuit charisms, nursing practice, and their art experiences. Findings: Surveys were completed by 122 of the 137 students who participated in the art projects. After initial difficulty with artistic expression, most students reported the projects provided an opportunity for introspection related to personal spirituality, nursing, and the impact of service-learning experiences on future nursing practice. Conclusion: Arts-based learning can help students explore and express spirituality related to nursing and support their understanding and integration of values essential to the delivery of holistic nursing care.

Credentialed and Privileged Clinical Nurse Specialists.

PURPOSE/OBJECTIVES: The purpose of this article is to illustrate, using exemplars, the practice of clinical nurse specialists (CNSs) in Michigan who are credentialed and privileged as providers by hospital/healthcare agencies to practice in acute inpatient and ambulatory settings. DESCRIPTION: The CNS provides expert specialty direct patient care to improve patient outcomes. They hold a graduate degree as a CNS, are professionally certified as a CNS in a specialty practice population, and are licensed or otherwise recognized to practice as an advanced practice nurse by the state nursing practice regulatory agency. OUTCOME: The exemplars illustrate CNS practice as an independent provider within a health system. CONCLUSION: Hospital-based credentialing and privileging facilitates CNS practice within the full scope of practice authority that consists of education, certification, and licensure and is a valuable contribution to cost-effective, high-quality clinical care for specialty populations.

Identification of Seniors at Risk Score to Determine Geriatric Evaluations on Trauma Patients With Hip Fractures.

BACKGROUND: Trauma centers are confronted with rising numbers of geriatric trauma patients at high risk for adverse outcomes. Geriatric screening is advocated but not standardized within trauma centers. OBJECTIVE: This study aims to describe the impact of Identification of Seniors at Risk (ISAR) screening on patient outcomes and geriatric evaluations. METHODS: This study used a pre-/postdesign to assess the impact of ISAR screening on patient outcomes and geriatric evaluations in trauma patients 60 years and older, comparing the periods before (2014-2016) and after (2017-2019) screening implementation. RESULTS: Charts for 1,142 patients were reviewed. Comparing pre- to post-ISAR groups, the post-ISAR group with geriatric evaluations were older (M = 82.06, SD = 9.51 vs. M = 83.64, SD = 8.69; p = .026) with higher Injury Severity Scores (M = 9.22, SD = 0.69 vs. M = 9.38, SD = 0.92; p = .001). There was no significant difference in length of stay, intensive care unit length of stay, readmission rate, hospice consults, or inhospital mortality. Inhospital mortality (n = 8/380, 2.11% vs. n = 4/434, 0.92%) and length of stay in hours (M = 136.49, SD = 67.09 vs. M = 132.53, SD = 69.06) down-trended in the postgroup with geriatric evaluation. CONCLUSION: Resources and care coordination efforts can be directed toward specific geriatric screening scores to achieve optimal outcomes. Varying results were found related to outcomes of geriatric evaluations prompting future research.