Professional Nursing Organizations Research Articles

Nurses' Use of mHealth Apps for Chronic Conditions: Cross-Sectional Survey.

Mobile health (mHealth) is increasingly used to support public health practice, as it has positive benefits such as enhancing self-efficacy and facilitating chronic disease management. Yet, relatively few studies have explored the use of mHealth apps among nurses, despite their important role in caring for patients with and at risk of chronic conditions. The aim of the study is to explore nurses' use of mHealth apps to support adults with or at risk of chronic conditions and understand the factors that influence technology adoption. A web-based cross-sectional survey was conducted between September 2022 and January 2023. The survey was shared via social media and professional nursing organizations to Australian nurses caring for adults with or at risk of chronic conditions. A total of 158 responses were included in the analysis. More than two-thirds (n=108, 68.4%) of respondents reported that they personally used at least 1 mHealth app. Over half (n=83, 52.5% to n=108, 68.4%) reported they use mHealth apps at least a few times a month for clinical purposes. Logistic regression demonstrated that performance expectancy (P=.04), facilitating condition (P=.05), and personal use of mHealth apps (P=.05) were significantly associated with mHealth app recommendation. In contrast, effort expectancy (P=.09) and social influence (P=.46) did not have a significant influence on whether respondents recommended mHealth apps to patients. The inability to identify the quality of mHealth apps and the lack of access to mobile devices or internet were the most common barriers to mHealth app recommendation. While nurses use mHealth apps personally, there is potential to increase their clinical application. Given the challenges reported in appraising and assessing mHealth apps, app regulation and upskilling nurses will help to integrate mHealth apps into usual patient care.

Safe Administration of Medication in School: Policy Statement.

Many youth with acute and chronic health conditions require medication to be administered during the school day. This policy statement offers guidance to school physicians, community prescribers, school nurses, other school health professionals, and groups providing oversight to school health activities and ensures patient safety and equity lenses are applied to administration of medications during school and for school-related activities. The American Academy of Pediatrics supports a robust collaborative model that allows all those involved in student health, including the student and family, to communicate, participate in effective medication management, inform delegated medication responsibilities, and promote safe medication storage and administration. School medication administration protocols are developed to help prevent medication administration errors specific to potential risks in the school setting and are responsive to the maturing students' evolving understanding of their health needs, growing autonomy, and responsibility. All protocols involving school nurses, unlicensed assistive personnel, and prescribers must be consistent with state and federal regulations on scope of practice, student privacy laws, and professional nursing organization guidelines. Consistent policies and messaging on safety of the patient and the entire school community enable school health teams to ensure equitable treatment of students prescribed therapeutic agents newly regulated by the US Food and Drug Administration, over-the-counter medications, or products that are currently not regulated by the US Food and Drug Administration.

Educational training and nursing professional self-perception in Mongolia: A prospective observational pre-post design study.

To determine whether professional self-perception of nurses in Mongolia improves following an educational intervention and to identify differences in scores among participant subgroups. A prospective observational pre-post design. Using a convenience sample of 67 nurses in Mongolia in 2019, the Nursing Professional Values Scale-3 instrument was used pre- and post-intervention. Independent and paired sample t-tests were conducted. Data were analysed using IBM SPSS 28.0.1.1 and Stata/SE 16.1. This study complied with the STROBE checklist. Of the 67 nurses, 92.0% were female, mean age was 32.15 years (SD 8.96), 70.0% held a bachelor's degree, 58.0% had 5 or more years' nursing experience and 51.0% were members of a professional nursing organization. After participating in the educational training, nurses reported higher overall professional self-perception as well as across subscales: activism, professionalism and caring. Considering the nursing shortage in lower-middle-income countries, it is important to recognise the influence of nurses' professional self-perception on nursing retention. This study highlights the significant role continuing educational opportunities play in increasing nurses' professional self-perception. It is imperative to explore ways of improving this perception and focusing on subgroups of nurses to help guide the use of limited resources. Further research is necessary to include nurses in other areas of Mongolia. Accurately assessing nursing professional self-perception and providing educational opportunities could improve nursing professional self-perception, nursing satisfaction, patient safety and nursing retention in lower-middle-income countries. What problem did the study address? This study meets the need for current study on the nursing professional self-perception of nursing from the perspective of nurses in Mongolia. It addresses the dangerous nursing shortage in Mongolia by determining if an educational intervention could improve nursing professional self-perception and thus improve nursing job satisfaction and retention. What were the main findings? Mongolian nurses in this study scored in the top quartile of the NPVS-3, indicating a baseline high NPSP. Educational intervention (including translated oral education and written clinical pathways) significantly improved the nurses' professional self-perception. Nurses were eager for training in other clinical and leadership topics. Where and on whom will the research have an impact? This research can be impactful for nurses, nurse leaders and policy makers in low- and lower-middle-income countries. Specifically for nurses in Mongolia, with increasing technologies and services such as cardiac catheterization laboratories becoming available, more education in these nursing specialty areas is imperative. Professional Nursing Organizations are poised to foster more educational offerings to their members and to increase membership. Nursing education provided by international volunteer nurses with Non-Governmental Organizations can improve NPSP in nurses in LMICs. This study complied with the STROBE checklist. No patient or public contribution.

Centering diversity, equity, and inclusion in a regional professional nursing organization

BackgroundProfessional nursing organizations can respond to threats to social justice by strengthening structures to support diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI). PurposeDescribe implementation strategies and outcomes to advance DEI from the Western Institute of Nursing (WIN). MethodsIn 2019, WIN committed to prioritizing DEI by updating its vision and mission. A taskforce was assembled to conduct member surveys, focus groups, and open forums to generate recommendations on developing and implementing organizational change. DiscussionThese initiatives culminated in centralized efforts that include the formation of a standing committee, ongoing member surveys, selection of diverse conference topics and speakers, adoption of inclusive practices, and ongoing assessments to make recommendations to the Board to advance DEI. ConclusionThe work of the Committee ensures the organization remains committed to DEI. These strategies inform other nursing organizations as they advance DEI to impact research, education, policy, and practice.

Addressing diversity, equity, and inclusion: A response of professional nursing organizations to the future of nursing: 2020-2030 recommendations.

One way in which professional nursing organizations have chosen to address the social determinants of health (SDoH) is through policy work focused on diversity, health equity and anti-racism activities. The recent report, Future of Nursing 2020-2030: Charting a Path to Achieve Health Equity (FON 2020-2030), calls on professional nursing organizations and/or nursing coalitions to focus on addressing the SDoH to mitigate health inequities, including a focus on addressing racism and promoting practices to ensure the diversity of the nursing workforce. While these recommendations highlight issues of high importance to nursing and the broader society, they assume that professional nursing organizations or coalitions have not been sufficiently engaged in this work to date. Our goal was to better understand the current and/or ongoing activities of professional nursing organizations around their anti-racism work of diversity, health equity, and inclusion (DEI) activities recommended in the FON 2020-2030 report. To address this goal, we conducted a needs assessment of professional nursing organizations to document their DEI activities and the timing of these activities relevant to the recommendations in the report. The 26 responding organizations indicated they had been engaged in work addressing DEI issues for periods ranging from 4months to 51years. Minimal funding was the major barrier to advancing this work. Creating a vigorous shared DEI agenda across the profession, as suggested in the FON 2020-2030 report, will require input from nurses across the profession, as well as identification of resources to support this critical endeavor.

National Association of Clinical Nurse Specialists Affiliate Support for Professional Growth of Clinical Nurse Specialist Students.

The purpose of this article was to describe how a National Association of Clinical Nurse Specialists affiliate partnered with a local university to engage clinical nurse specialist (CNS) students, enhance its mission and activities, and create succession planning opportunities, while providing mentorship and professional growth opportunities. Academic preparation of CNS students endeavors to instill professionalism. A 3-pronged partnership incorporating the inclusion of a student liaison on the board, presentation of student clinical work at the affiliate's annual conference, and development of a student scholarship was implemented. Membership in professional nursing organizations for a CNS student provides exposure and access to professional development resources, socialization to the role, rewarding networking opportunities with peers and colleagues, and leadership development. Anecdotal feedback demonstrated a better understanding of the CNS role, increased confidence, and enhanced knowledge on topics such as legislative advocacy as well as experiences of sharing clinical challenges with CNS colleagues. Partnership with the local university allowed the affiliate to maintain the influx of new CNSs, which sustains membership, nurtures the growth of new CNSs, and ensures the influx of new ideas. Furthermore, membership in professional nursing organizations is imperative to address the opportunities that exist in healthcare.

Racism and Nursing Leadership in Massachusetts: A Mixed-Methods Study.

Nursing in the United States has evolved within the same historical context that has reproduced and spread racism worldwide. Nurse administrators are integral to the quality of nurses' practice and play a key role in eliminating racial injustice in places of work. Using a feminist and critical race feminist framework, this study examined Massachusetts nurses' experiences of racism in their places of work, focusing on nurse administrators' influence on the nonadministrator (staff nurse) experience of racism experiences before and after George Floyd's death. An investigator-developed, electronic survey was sent to Massachusetts professional nursing organizations for distribution to their members in 2021. Two hundred nineteen nurse respondents completed Likert-scale and open-ended branching logic survey questions to yield the quantitative and qualitative data analyzed for this mixed-methods study. Nurse administrators were: 1) more likely than staff nurses to state that policies and meetings to address racism and diversity, equity, and inclusion had taken place before and after George Floyd's murder; and 2) less likely than staff nurses to directly experience racism at the hands of a colleague or a superior. Nurse administrators influence staff nurses' experiences of racism.

Expanding Leadership and Professional Development Opportunities for Oncology Nurse Practitioners.

Nurse practitioner (NP) involvement in professional organizations improves clinical practice, patient outcomes, and health care policy. Results of a survey for a local professional nursing organization showed a need for more NP-level education and NP mentorship and leadership training. Findings were applied to develop a leadership initiative through an NP-led continuing education program. At the conclusion of the program, NP presenters completed a survey. The NP presenters agreed that participating in this program and the mentoring that was provided helped them prepare for their sessions, improve their leadership skills, and prepare for additional speaking engagements. Additionally, each session's attendees completed evaluation surveys. Results from program attendees indicated a high level of agreement about meeting learning objectives in sessions and the effectiveness of the NP presenters. This innovative program may be modeled across a variety of nursing specialties, settings, and organizations to enhance NP professional development and support nursing-led continuing education. [J Contin Educ Nurs. 2024;55(2):94-100.].

Professional self-esteem and experiences of nurses on organizational involvement: A mixed methods study

ABSTRACT Professional nursing organizations (PNOs) contribute to improving the quality of nursing services while raising occupational awareness. This study aimed to describe the professional self-esteem levels of nurses and their experiences with PNOs membership. This study used a mixed methods design. A survey was administered to 453 participants, and focus group interviews were held with the participation of 30 nurses during the quantitative and qualitative phases. Data were collected using the ‘Professional Self-Esteem Scale’ and a ‘Semi-Structured Interview Form.’ Stepwise regression analysis and content analysis were utilized for data analysis. Interview data were analysed in two categories (perception of PNOs and membership in PNOs). The regression analysis revealed that opinions about the effectiveness of the activities of PNOs, the type of institution, the job position, and the type of the unit as the workplace acted on the professional self-esteem of nurses. Most nurses were not members of PNOs, and their professional self-esteem levels were moderate. Political awareness needs to be promoted; students need to be brought together with leaders of PNOs and nurse leaders; the increased focus should be enabled on concepts of leadership, policymaking, and the awareness of legal rights should be raised.

Making space and taking space: Promoting inclusion and belonging, a crucial imperative for nurse practitioner organizations.

In the ever-evolving landscape of health care, professional nursing organizations (PNOs) play a vital role in establishing a supportive and inclusive environment for nurses to thrive. These organizations are built on creating a community based on shared mission, vision, and goals. Professional nursing organizations are critical for fostering innovation, advancement of the ethics and values of the profession that advocates for the needs of nurses, social justice, and the trust of society. However, historically and present day, PNOs still have an underrepresentation of communities that have been historically racialized and marginalized, largely because PNOs reflect the landscape of nursing being a predominately White female profession. Because of this fact, it is a crucial imperative for PNOs to be deliberate and intentional in creating structural changes that establish a culture and commitment to inclusion and belonging. In doing so, this makes space for the nurses who represent historically racialized and marginalized communities in order for them to take up their space in these professional arenas. The significance of inclusion and belonging in PNOs can enhance member experience for everyone and can improve overall organizational success, which will ultimately affect nursing practice. Advanced practice nursing uniquely positions nurse practitioners to be the catalyst that sparks progressive and transformative changes toward advancing inclusion and belonging.

Nurse Practitioners’ Knowledge, Attitudes, and Practices Regarding Alcohol Use Screening and Counseling

The purpose of this study is to examine nurse practitioners’ knowledge, attitudes, and practices (KAP) when screening and counseling patients who consume alcohol. This descriptive correlational study was completed through an anonymous, voluntary electronic KAP and demographic survey that was distributed through professional nursing organizations and snowball sampling. Analysis of 298 surveys identified the following KAP deficiencies and significant correlations: better attitude scores correlated with better resource and practice scores (P = .00), more resources correlated with better practices (P = .00), and older age correlated with decreased alcohol screening and counseling. Efforts to address deficiencies in primary care nurse practitioners are crucial to preventive medicine and overall health.

Professional nursing organizations

Professional nursing organizations

Burnout and secondary traumatic stress in medical-surgical nursing

Day to day care of patients throughout the continuum of life puts nurses at risk for burnout and secondary traumatic stress (STS). This mixed-methods study explores Medical-Surgical (MS) nursing burnout, STS, and support from professional nursing organization leadership and membership perspectives. Seventy-two nurses were recruited from a nursing organization website and surveyed to provide demographic and Professional Quality of Life Scale Version 5 (ProQOLv5) data. After quantitative data collection, nurse respondents were asked if they would like to participate in a Zoom interview. Qualitative data was derived from in-depth interviews of six medical-surgical nurses and free-text responses from three other participants. The nurses interviewed provided detailed personal definitions of burnout, which led to the identification of themes of “awareness” and “triggers: fueling the fire of burnout,” and also exposed the fluctuating nature of burnout. Participants defined STS as “invasiveness into one’s life” and reflected on the impact that it can have both personally and professionally. Despite the fluctuating nature of burnout and the invasiveness of STS, the nurses interviewed revealed a passion for nursing that served as a driving force for the day-to-day struggle, affirming, “I am a med-surg nurse.” Overcoming burnout and STS lead nurses to “lessons learned: I did not know what I did not know,” which focused on personal and professional growth and development. An overarching theme of “dream vs. reality” captures these stabilizing and destabilizing forces at play in bedside MS nursing.

Affirmative Palliative Care for Transgender and Gender Nonconforming Individuals.

Nurses have a professional and ethical responsibility to provide inclusive, affirmative palliative care to transgender and gender nonconforming (TGNC) individuals experiencing life-limiting illness or injury. In accordance with standards for professional nursing and health organizations, nurses must continue to take tangible steps to achieve a level of care that is affirming, holistic, nonprejudicial, and collaborative. Providing quality care for TGNC individuals requires informed, competent integration of palliative nursing care, gender-affirmative care, and trans-person-centered health care within nursing practice. An interdisciplinary national team of experts collaborated to identify ways nurses could better uphold their professional responsibilities to TGNC individuals with serious illness. The purposes of this article are to: 1) describe elements of TGNC-inclusive palliative nursing care; and 2) present eight concrete recommendations to achieve affirmative clinical practice for TGNC patients living with life-limiting illness and their family of origin and/or family of choice. These recommendations address professional development, communication, medication reconciliation, mental health, dignity and meaning, social support and caregivers, spiritual beliefs and religion, and bereavement care.

The Academic Nurse Educator Shortage: A Qualitative Study and a Call for Collaboration with Professional Nursing Organizations

Background: The academic nurse educator shortage has limited schools of nursing in accepting a steady pool of students interested in becoming nurses. Purpose: The purpose of this research is to identify strategies that professional nursing organizations can implement in order to address the nurse educator shortage. Professional organizations include specialty groups, nurse educators, accrediting bodies, and regulatory agencies, etc. Methods: A qualitative, modified nominal group technique was utilized. Nurse educators acting as participatory action researchers took part in the study. Stakeholders were identified and subgroups were formed to develop stakeholder specific courses of action. Findings: The professional nursing organizations subgroup identified four overarching themes. Through intentional collaboration, professional organizations can support increased compensation, recognition of nursing education as a specialty, and the need for specialized training. Conclusion: The synergistic effect of different professional organizations collaborating to promote the direction of nursing, including academic nurse education, is imperative. Professional nursing organizations are well-positioned as subject matter experts to address barriers that impede the educational preparation, recruitment, and retention of nurse faculty. The recommendations of this research serve as a foundation for future nurse educators to collectively advocate for the enhancement of the academic nurse educator role.

Using Project-Based Learning to Teach Advanced Practice Nurses About Quality Improvement

Using Project-Based Learning to Teach Advanced Practice Nurses About Quality Improvement

Pediatric Specialty Nursing Associations and their Role in Leadership Development.

Professional organizations have a long and rich history of promoting leadership development since the late 1800s. Professional nursing organizations and associations advocate for the profession of nursing and nurses, develop health care policies and standards that ensure the highest level of patient care quality, assure the highest level of education, provide professional development and continuing education, and offer research, networking, and career advancement opportunities for their members. Currently there are 10 nationally based pediatric nursing specialty organizations and associations, most of which also have regional or local chapters. To use a scoping review to identify and summarize contributions of pediatric nursing organizations and associations in the United States to leadership development in pediatric nursing practice. Although there are leadership programs sponsored by professional nursing organizations and mentions of leadership in their mission and "about us" statements, there is very little empirical evidence of the contributions that pediatric nursing specialty bodies make to the development of leaders. Membership in a professional nursing organization provides nurses with professional development; continuing education including journal subscription and conference attendance; networking; opportunities for specialty certification, career advancement, and leadership development; and research-based clinical standards and guidelines that promote best practice. The relationship between membership in pediatric professional organizations and leadership is clear in mission statements and strategic plans. Nurse leaders play a key role in advancing the organization's mission and goals. Nursing faculty, practice executives, and professional organizations and associations have an obligation to demonstrate value of membership in advancing the profession and developing future leaders. Future research is needed to describe the contributions of pediatric nursing professional organizations to leadership development of nurses.

Stigma towards patients with mental illness: An online survey of United States nurses.

People with mental illness experience significant health disparities, including morbidity and premature mortality. Evidence suggests that stigma is a contributing factor to these observed inequities. The tripartite conceptualization of stigma proposes that three problems underlie stigma: problems of knowledge (ignorance), attitudes (prejudice) and behaviour (discrimination). There is limited prior research concerning stigma towards mental illness among nurses in the United States (US). The aims of this study were to assess stigma among US nurses towards patients with mental illness, compare the stigma expressed by nurses working in medical/surgical settings with mental health settings, and identify factors associated with stigma. Participants were recruited online from national professional nursing organizations in the US. We collected demographic data and administered measures of mental health stigma and stigma-related mental health knowledge. Mental health nurses demonstrated comparatively lower levels of stigma and higher levels of knowledge than the medical/surgical nurses. Nursing speciality and personal contact with mental illness were the most significant predictors of stigma and knowledge. Knowledge was found to partially mediate the relationship between nursing speciality and stigma. We found support for the 'contact hypothesis', that is, having a personal experience of mental illness or a friend or family member who has a mental illness is associated with lower stigma towards mental illness. These findings support the development of contact-based and educational anti-stigma interventions for nurses in order to reduce stigma towards mental illness.

Philanthropic Foundations' Discourse and Nursing's Future: Part II: A Critical Discourse Analysis of RWJF Future of Nursing Initiatives.

Critical social scholarship highlights the power philanthropic foundations wield on the collective agency of groups, yet analyses specific to nursing are absent in the literature. In this second of a 2-part series, we employed critical discourse analysis to examine how control of enunciative privilege in Robert Wood Johnson Foundation's (RWJF) 2010 and 2020-2030 Future of Nursing (FON) initiatives challenge nursing's ability to enact its collective agency, particularly through professional nursing organizations. Findings are discussed within the context of nursing's self-regulatory privileges, history, and agentic obligations that are bestowed on the discipline by the greater public for the public good.

Equipping Nurses to Lead Evidence-Based Practice: An Opportunity for Professional Nursing Associations.

The aim of this study was to describe the evidence-based practice (EBP) attributes among California nurse leaders who are members of a professional nursing organization. Nurse leaders are pivotal for successful EBP implementation. The Association of California Nurse Leaders' (ACNL) mission to equip nurses to lead self, others, and systems propelled them to conduct a study of members' EBP beliefs, knowledge, competencies, and implementation. Evidence-based practice attributes of California nurse leaders were measured using valid and reliable scales via an anonymous, electronic survey. Although ahead in the subjective EBP scales, California nurse leaders' perceptions of organizational EBP culture were comparable with those of a similar national sample. Scores still indicated opportunities for improvement. Nurse leaders must be prepared to lead EBP in their organizations. Professional organizations such as ACNL have an opportunity to help leaders by conducting research and assessing and meeting their members' learning needs.