Commissioned scholarly papers and undertook anthropologic observation to examine legal and ethical issues for patients, family, and caregivers during discharge planning. Proposed policy suggestions in which conflicting interests were recognized but in which patients' rights to autonomous decision making in discharge planning were strongly…

Presents innovative method of using research findings to improve quality of life in long-term care institution. Describes impact of action research in developing service. Examines program implementation in terms of how groups of residents, staff, and families worked to enhance their social environment by strengthening supportive relationships,…

Compared effects of different visiting programs (people, people and pets, pets, no visit) on behaviors of nursing home residents. Found all three visiting programs increased behaviors of smiling and alertness in comparison to control conditions. Close proximity to person-alone visitor was associated with greatest number of positive resident…

Describes a partnership between the Nursing Center at Clemson University's College of Nursing and the Clemson Child Development Center. (JOW)

Describes specific comprehensive program implemented in intermediate care facility/skilled nursing facility that reduced problematic wandering by patients, increased patient freedom and safety, and increased staff skill and comfort in handling wandering behaviors. Describes program components, problem identification, prevention programs,…

Serving refreshments was shown to increase attendance and frequency of interaction in the activity area of a nursing home. Quantitative and qualitative changes in vocal behavior were evaluated. Rates of interaction more than doubled during treatment phases, but ineffective vocal behavior accounted for most of the increase. (Author/JW)

The author discusses two significant directions taken by nursing that appear to have governed the profession's transition from self-confidence to obsessive self-scrutiny. These are the decision to seek legitimacy for the profession within the university and the unquestioning acceptance of Flexner's description of professions. (CT)

A study was conducted to clarify distinctions between research-oriented (PhD) and professional-oriented (DNSc) doctoral programs in nursing. Four programs of each type were asked to participate in research designed to evaluate selected environmental input variables, curricular design variables, and outcome variables. The major difference was in…

The authors discuss the meaning of the term "generic" as it applies to nursing education and suggest that it be dropped from the language associated with the field. They also explore the terms "first professional degree" and "second professional degree." (CH)

Develops a perspective for studying conversational behavior in geriatric institutions. Considers why conversation is a theoretically significant focus for communications researchers concerned with the aged and presents data from ethnographic studies of two nursing facilities. Data highlight the importance of conversational behavior for…

Twenty-one endowed chairs of nursing are listed, including information about the schools where they are placed, year of initial endowment, funding level, specific content area or focus, and the name of the chair. (MSE)

To make the distinction between nursing and medicine clear and to communicate the right message to clients, the authors say nursing must sharpen its focus on health, rather than concentrate on disease and problem solving. (CT)

Examined the use of public spaces in a nursing home by elderly residents by means of systematic observations. A cluster analysis disclosed several common behavior patterns related to residents' health status. The results support the thesis that, as an individual's health declines, behavior will become less diverse. (JAC)

Describes Stake's model for evaluation of the continuing nursing education program. Stake's model incorporates various components into one mode, including (1) information about learners, (2) the antecedents, and (3) the expected evaluation outcomes. (JOW)

Discusses an evaluation and descriptive research study that reinforced the importance of using adult learning principles and provider philosophy as a framework and foundation upon which to build a continuing education program. (JOW)