As both a human-caring profession and a scientific discipline, nursing conducts research, disseminates research findings, and applies evidence in practice. The Journal of Nursing Research(JNR) in English since June 2001 as a vehicle to expand the Association's international perspective and promote academic exchange with nursing professionals overseas. It is important that JNR continue its mission of publishing high-quality research in order to improve nursing care and to promote the well-being of patients. We also need to continuously appraise changes in clinical practice and healthcare delivery in order to make sure that we are addressing the issues that are most critical to nursing knowledge and professional practice.
The number of elderly is growing rapidly worldwide. The economic status of this population may affect the access that elderly individuals have to healthcare management and quality of care. Traditionally, women live longer than men and thus comprise a majority of older adults. While increased longevity is a bonus for some adults, it may be accompanied by chronic health conditions, frailty, vulnerability, social isolation, and resource scarcity. Older women face a greater risk of outliving their savings. Moreover, older adults, particularly those who are widowed, experience worse health than those whose spouses are still alive. Widowed older adults experience the effects of bereavement, which negatively impact their health and survival. However, widowed and single-dwelling older women often earn less attention from society at large. In this issue, the article "Correlations among self-rated health, chronic disease, and healthcare utilization in windowed older adults in Taiwan" reminds us to think more deeply on the relationships among aging, women, and poverty. Another article, "Social support and health-related quality of life among elderly individuals living alone[horizontal ellipsis]", reports that elderly individuals who live alone experience higher levels of depression. Social support is a recognized factor that influences HRQoL in elderly individuals who live alone. Therefore, those widowed elderly who live alone should be targeted with additional, proactive welfare strategies to promote healthy aging. Two articles in this issue promote greater awareness of and a strategic framework for addressing the changing dynamics and economic realities that women face as they age.
In caring for poor, older women and in providing roadmaps for policymakers, elderly advocates, gender equity advocates, and academic and community leaders, nurses need to find evidence-based ways to identify the commonalities in our health and healthcare experiences and to transmit research findings and knowledge to practitioners in order to ensure that elderly patients receive the best possible care. JNR indeed provides researchers an avenue for disseminating research findings, enhancing the practice of nursing, and stimulating further scientific work in nursing and in related fields.
Bih-Ching Shu
The editor declares no conflicts of interest.
https://doi.org/10.1097/jnr.0000000000000288