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Source: Public Performance Measurement and Reporting Network, February 2009

The goal of the Public Performance Measurement and Reporting Network is to promote the use of valid, reliable data as a key element in improving the delivery of public services. In support of the Network, the National Center for Public Performance has implemented a series of initiatives: a comprehensive and continuously updated database of publications and cases; national conferences and workshops; publications of measurement-based books and articles; an Online Public Performance Measurement Certificate; and a monthly e-newsletter.

The communities are as follows: 311, Public Health, Municipal Performance, Nonprofit, Parks, Libraries, Transit, Education.

Source: Steven Reinberg, HealthDay, February 20, 2009

Prevention efforts have led to declines of up to 70 percent, CDC researchers say.

Blood infections caused by methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) have dropped significantly in hospital intensive care units, researchers from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention report.

MRSA, a type of staph bacteria that's resistant to certain antibiotics, can cause severe infections in people in hospitals and other health-care facilities. It can also cause serious skin infections in healthy people who haven't recently been hospitalized.

The tough-to-treat blood infections have caused the most concern, but the new CDC numbers suggest that hospital prevention efforts may be turning the tide against MRSA.
Related:
Methicillin-Resistant Staphylococcus aureus Central Line-Associated Bloodstream Infections in US Intensive Care Units, 1997-2007
Source: Deron C. Burton, Jonathan R. Edwards, Teresa C. Horan, John A. Jernigan, Scott K. Fridkin, Journal of the American Medical Association, Vol. 301, no. 7, February 18, 2009
(subscription required)

Source: Progressive States Network, Stateside Dispatch, February 19, 2009

Recognizing the severity of the economic crisis our nation faces, President Obama this week signed the landmark American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, a plan aimed at "restoring or saving" 3.5 million jobs and investing in the long-term future of the American economy.

Built into the plan is a recognition that while the federal government can assist in funding the work, most of the implementation of the plan will happen in the states. This Dispatch provides facts, guidance and a collection of resources to state leaders and advocates on how to implement the recovery plan in a strategic manner that strengthens our states and honors our progressive values.

Contents include:
Overview - Summaries and Key Resources

Transparency Requirements for States

Education

Health Care:

* Medicaid Support | Health Care for the Unemployed | SCHIP expansion and inclusion of immigrant children and pregnant women | Health Information Technology

Clean Energy and Transportation Investments

* State Energy Conservation Programs | Upgrading the Electrical Grid | Transportation and Infrastructure Investments

Broadband Provisions

Unemployment and Training Programs:

* Extended and Expanded Benefits | Modernizing Unemployment Insurance Systems | Training Funds | Expanded Safety Net Support | TANF Funding | Nutrition Programs | Child Care and Support | Affordable and Emergency Housing

Criminal Justice Funding

Source: C. Fay Raines, M. Elaine Taglaireni, Online Journal of Issues in Nursing, Vol. 13, September 2008

The national spotlight on the Registered Nurse shortage has helped to generate strong interest in nursing careers among those new to the workforce and those seeking a career change. With salaries climbing, opportunities expanding, and the demand for nursing services on the rise, now is an exciting time to join the nursing profession. This article discusses the traditional entry points into Registered Nursing, specifically Baccalaureate Degree Programs, Associate Degree Programs, and Diploma Programs, as well as emerging routes, which include entry-level master's programs, community college-based baccalaureate programs, and degree completion programs for Licensed Practical Nurses and other allied health providers. With multiple opportunities for progression to advanced degrees in nursing, the authors also touch on graduate education options including online programs, baccalaureate to doctoral programs, along with Clinical Nurse Leader and Doctor of Nursing Practice programs.

Source: Charles Krozek, AMN Healthcare, Staffing Matters, February 2009

Twenty years ago, the average age of a new graduate nurse was 24. Today, it's 30. While the age difference in years doesn't seem vast, it often translates into additional work experience and expectations. New nurses have different dreams and demands and require a different workplace environment. Generation X is coming; is nursing ready? With a systemized approach to transitioning new nurses to the workplace, it can be.

Source: Ching Sheng Chang & Hae Ching Chang, Journal of Advanced Nursing, Volume 65 no. 1, January 2009
(subscription required)

From the abstract:
The role of nurses in healthcare treatment is expanding, and becoming more important as time progresses. Therefore, the primary concern of business of health care is to use internal marketing strategies effectively to enhance and develop nurses' organizational commitment and reduce turnover to promote competitive advantages for the organization.

Hospital managers need to recognize the importance of internal marketing for staff retention and the survival of their organizations as competitive pressure increases. As a great deal of time and costs are involved in educating nurses, the best way to retain outstanding nurses and reduce turnover costs and personnel problems is for employers to understand the needs and expectations of their nursing staff.

Source: Islay Gemmell, Stephen Campbell, Mark Hann, Bonnie Sibbald, Journal of Advanced Nursing, Volume 65 Issue 3, March 2009
(subscription required)

From the abstract:
In 2004, a new pay-for-performance contract for general practice was introduced in England. This improved the quality but may also have altered practice workload, including the workload of nursing staff.

The number of practice staff increased with greater increases observed for nursing staff than doctors. There was no change in the average number of hours worked per week by nursing staff or doctors but nurse visit rates increased while doctors' rates decreased. The proportion of presenting problems described as chronic or preventative increased for doctors but was unchanged for nursing staff. Nursing staff dealt with more complex visits in 2005 compared to 2003 but there was no change for doctors.

General practices may have responded to the 2004 contract by increasing staffing levels, with nursing staff absorbing a higher proportion of the clinical workload and doctors focusing more attention on chronic and preventive care. Expanding nursing staff roles may increase the quality of primary care but may lead also to intensification of nurses' work.

Source: Center for Rural Health at the University of North Dakota School of Medicine and Health Sciences, Health Workforce Information Center, February 2009

The Health Workforce Information Center (HWIC) provides free access to the most recent resources on the nation's health workforce in one easy-to-use online location. Resources available through HWIC's Web site will help health providers, educators, researchers and policymakers around the nation develop strategies to meet future workforce demands.

Through HWIC, you can stay up-to-date with the latest health workforce news and events, and connect with experts and organizations across the country.
HWIC offers the latest:

* Health workforce programs and funding sources
* Workforce data, research and policy
* Educational opportunities and models
* News and events

Available services:

* Professionally-maintained and comprehensive online library
* E-mail news and updates
* Customized assistance from information specialists

Source: U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, January 2009

Pandemic influenza could produce a public health emergency that is more daunting than any other type of naturally occurring, accidental, or terrorist-instigated event that our nation has experienced or is likely to experience. First, an influenza pandemic could affect essentially every community in the nation almost simultaneously - i.e., within the space of a few weeks - and, if comparable to or more severe than the influenza pandemic of 1918, could result in 25 percent or more of the population ultimately experiencing life-threatening illness and/or being forced to dispense with normal activities to care for victims. Second, response activities within each affected community not only will need to be sustained for several months, generally with little or no outside help, but also might be degraded due to substantial influenza-induced absenteeism across the participating entities - public and private. Third, coping with degraded functioning in virtually every aspect of society could be so demanding as to preclude the initiation of significant recovery activities for many months.

Source: Juliana L'Heureux, Home Healthcare Nurse, Vol. 27 no. 2, February 2009
(subscription required)

From the abstract:
Home care visiting nurses and those working in a therapeutic group home expressed concerns about their inadvertent exposure to secondhand smoke when caring for patients who live where cigarettes or tobacco products are used. The American Lung Association Fact Sheet on Secondhand Smoke Exposure cites the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) classification of secondhand smoke as a cause of human cancer. Secondhand smoke causes approximately 3,400 lung cancer deaths and 22,700 to 69,600 heart disease deaths among adult nonsmokers in the United States each year (American Lung Association, 2009). For this study, home care nurses and those working in a therapeutic group home for the mentally ill in Augusta, Maine, were interviewed. This report describes their exposure and how secondhand smoke can be eliminated with minimal disruption to patient care. The interviewed nurses discussed the repeated exposures they experienced while caring for multiple smoking patients in residences that included apartment buildings and group homes and while transporting patients with private automobiles in which the use of cigarettes, cigarillos, cigars, pipes, and tobacco products can be common. Concerns about secondhand smoke exposures frequently focused on the unpleasant smoke odor retained on clothes and nursing equipment when people smoke during a patient visit. Protective actions also were reported. Strategies for action are discussed.