"The State of the Science on Nursing Research" (AJN Reports, December 2004) left out one important part of the research puzzle for nurses: patient education.

How effective can a nurse be in sharing information with patients or families when the ward has a nurse-to-patient ratio of 1:7? One solution is for hospitals to create patient-education centers staffed with clinical educators who can provide the hands-on teaching that patients and families need. The staff nurse will then be able to provide ongoing reinforcement of such information.

Ruth Sanders, MSN, RN, CNS

Ocean Springs, MS