Nightingale's teaching: Still relevant
I enjoyed "Why Florence Nightingale Still Matters" (November 2010),* which makes the case for why her teaching is still relevant. I'd like to mention another fundamental of hers: Good health starts in a healthy community. Nightingale's work in India was seminal public health nursing. Despite all our modern technology and methods, the basics haven't changed. For promoting health, I haven't found anything better than fresh air, exercise, hygiene, and good food choices.
-LAURI ROSE, BSN, RN, HNC
Bridgeville, Calif.
Tuned into students
I'd like to tell fellow nursing students about an "illness" that can affect them: "iatrogenic cephalitis."
Pathophysiology: Cerebral edema secondary to information overload.
Signs and symptoms: Nausea, headache, diarrhea, anorexia, weight loss, xerostomia, epigastric pain
Nursing interventions:
* Study consistently; repetition is the key.
* When you're not absorbing what you're reading, switch tasks.
* Read over your notes daily; don't cram the night before exams.
* Make time for dinner with your family.
* Get enough sleep, eat balanced meals, and exercise daily.
* Challenge yourself; you can handle more than you think.
* Forget about your dust bunnies; you'll get to them evenually.
* Enjoy life and be thankful for each day of good health.
Outcome criteria: Your patient thanks you!!
-LISA SHEFLER FAUX, LPN
Tunkhannock, Pa.
Nursing2011 seems to have been written just for me: a nursing student. Every issue includes content specifically relevant to my classes.
For example, "Managing Hypernatremia" (Clinical Queries, September 2010)* fits hand-in-glove with what we're studying in medical-surgical nursing. As I transition into the nursing profession, I consider your journal to be an outstanding resource.
-JOHN PERRODIN, NURSING STUDENT
Colorado Springs, Colo.
Editor's note: This month, Nursing2011 is launching a new department called Student Voices, focused on the unique concerns of nursing students. Check it out on page 9.
* Individual subscribers can also access this article free online at http://www.nursing2011.com. [Context Link]