NursingPub Date : 2026-09-01Epub Date: 2026-08-24DOI: 10.1097/NSG.0000000000000455
Melora D Heffron, Angela Pascale
{"title":"Nursing work environment as a determinant of health care outcomes: A scoping review.","authors":"Melora D Heffron, Angela Pascale","doi":"10.1097/NSG.0000000000000455","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1097/NSG.0000000000000455","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Background: </strong>Healthy nursing work environments are recognized as key drivers of patient safety, workforce stability, and organizational performance, but existing evidence is fragmented and difficult to operationalize.</p><p><strong>Purpose: </strong>This scoping review synthesizes recent literature (2021-2025) examining associations between nursing work environments and patient, workforce, and organizational outcomes across health care settings.</p><p><strong>Methods: </strong>Following Joanna Briggs Institute and PRISMA-ScR guidance, a structured search of CINAHL Ultimate and Google Scholar identified 75 records. After screening, 25 studies and reports were included. Data were extracted and organized into patient, workforce, and organizational outcome categories, with narrative synthesis used to identify patterns and gaps.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>Across diverse settings and methods, findings consistently show that favorable work environments are associated with improved patient safety and experience, lower nurse burnout and turnover intention, higher job satisfaction, and stronger organizational performance indicators such as safety climate and quality of care. Evidence from ambulatory and emergency settings, though limited, demonstrates similar directional relationships. Measurement approaches varied, but positive associations were consistent across instruments and levels of analysis.</p><p><strong>Conclusion: </strong>The nursing work environment is a modifiable, system-level lever with consistent links to improved outcomes. Strengthening work environments represents a practical, evidence-based strategy for enhancing patient care, supporting workforce well-being, and improving organizational performance.</p>","PeriodicalId":35641,"journal":{"name":"Nursing","volume":"56 9","pages":"16-28"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2026-09-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"148809117","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
NursingPub Date : 2026-08-01Epub Date: 2026-07-20DOI: 10.1097/NSG.0000000000000435
Marvy Halem, Kavitha S Dalal, Mary Barna Bridgeman
{"title":"Medications for benign prostatic hyperplasia.","authors":"Marvy Halem, Kavitha S Dalal, Mary Barna Bridgeman","doi":"10.1097/NSG.0000000000000435","DOIUrl":"10.1097/NSG.0000000000000435","url":null,"abstract":"","PeriodicalId":35641,"journal":{"name":"Nursing","volume":"56 8","pages":"47"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2026-08-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"148537285","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
NursingPub Date : 2026-08-01Epub Date: 2026-07-20DOI: 10.1097/NSG.0000000000000440
Bridget Klein, Roxanne Wilson, Jodi Berndt
{"title":"Evaluation of the effect of Healing Touch on coronary artery bypass grafting recovery: A randomized controlled trial.","authors":"Bridget Klein, Roxanne Wilson, Jodi Berndt","doi":"10.1097/NSG.0000000000000440","DOIUrl":"10.1097/NSG.0000000000000440","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Background: </strong>Healing Touch (HT) is used to provide holistic care, improve outcomes, and provide comfort. However, there is minimal published literature on its effects among inpatients undergoing coronary artery bypass grafting (CABG), who often experience anxiety, postoperative atrial fibrillation, and postoperative delirium.</p><p><strong>Purpose: </strong>To explore the effects of HT on preoperative and postoperative anxiety and postoperative rates of atrial fibrillation and delirium among patients who are having CABG surgery.</p><p><strong>Methods: </strong>This randomized controlled trial collected data over 9 months at a 489-bed, level II trauma center and 5-time Magnet-designated hospital in the midwestern United States. A total of 111 HT sessions (37 preoperative and 74 postoperative) were provided to the 37 patients in the intervention group. The 42 control group participants received standard nursing care, including pharmacologic, nonpharmacologic, and educational interventions. Data collection included administering the Subjective Units of Distress Scale (SUDS) and conducting a retrospective chart review for postoperative atrial fibrillation rates and Confusion Assessment Method scores. Descriptive statistics, paired and unpaired sample t-tests, and chi-square tests were used for analysis.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>Among the intervention group participants, patient-reported SUDS scores decreased after receiving an HT session (P < .01), indicating lower levels of anxiety and distress for both preoperative and postoperative phases. No statistically significant difference in the incidence of atrial fibrillation or delirium was found between the intervention and control groups.</p><p><strong>Conclusion: </strong>The study findings suggest that HT may be an effective intervention to reduce preoperative and postoperative anxiety among patients undergoing CABG surgery.</p>","PeriodicalId":35641,"journal":{"name":"Nursing","volume":"56 8","pages":"49-55"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2026-08-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"148537230","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
NursingPub Date : 2026-08-01Epub Date: 2026-07-20DOI: 10.1097/NSG.0000000000000432
Heidi Olson
{"title":"Childhood exposure to pornography and the normalization of online exploitation.","authors":"Heidi Olson","doi":"10.1097/NSG.0000000000000432","DOIUrl":"10.1097/NSG.0000000000000432","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Abstract: </strong>As technology is rapidly changing, so are the ways that children are being groomed, abused, and exploited online. Children are being exposed to online pornography in unprecedented numbers, leading to multiple mental health, physical, and social consequences. Early exposure to pornography normalizes sexual violence and objectification and desensitizes children to sexually explicit content. While children are being desensitized to pornography, many children are also being asked to exploit themselves by sending sexually explicit photos and videos of themselves via social media, apps, and video games. The crime of exploitation escalates further when offenders offer items of monetary or nonmonetary value in exchange for sexually explicit photos and/or videos. This exchange meets the criteria of commercial sexual exploitation of children. Due to the normalization of sexually explicit content, children may not realize that they are being exploited in these situations. Clinicians need to understand the signs of exploitation because many pediatric victims encounter health care professionals during or after their abuse. It is also imperative for health care workers to understand how to ask trauma-informed screening questions and how to help patients and their families navigate next steps and resources when a child is being harmed and exploited online. This article discusses childhood exposure to pornography and how it normalizes self-exploitation, as well as the pivotal role that nurses play in providing education on these issues, screening for online harm, and providing trauma-informed resources.</p>","PeriodicalId":35641,"journal":{"name":"Nursing","volume":"56 8","pages":"20-25"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2026-08-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"148537159","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
NursingPub Date : 2026-08-01Epub Date: 2026-07-20DOI: 10.1097/NSG.0000000000000438
Erin Hildebrand
{"title":"Cultivating cut flowers and student nurses: Lessons learned by a nurse educator.","authors":"Erin Hildebrand","doi":"10.1097/NSG.0000000000000438","DOIUrl":"10.1097/NSG.0000000000000438","url":null,"abstract":"","PeriodicalId":35641,"journal":{"name":"Nursing","volume":"56 8","pages":"36-37"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2026-08-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"148537118","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
NursingPub Date : 2026-08-01Epub Date: 2026-07-20DOI: 10.1097/NSG.0000000000000444
{"title":"Nurses and cannabis use: Ethical and legal concerns.","authors":"","doi":"10.1097/NSG.0000000000000444","DOIUrl":"10.1097/NSG.0000000000000444","url":null,"abstract":"","PeriodicalId":35641,"journal":{"name":"Nursing","volume":"56 8","pages":"18-19"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2026-08-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"148537294","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
NursingPub Date : 2026-08-01Epub Date: 2026-07-20DOI: 10.1097/NSG.0000000000000384
Richard L Pullen, Lori Hammond
{"title":"Benign paroxysmal positional vertigo.","authors":"Richard L Pullen, Lori Hammond","doi":"10.1097/NSG.0000000000000384","DOIUrl":"10.1097/NSG.0000000000000384","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Abstract: </strong>Vertigo describes a symptom, typically caused by inner ear disorders, in which patients experience a feeling of spinning or dizziness. Benign paroxysmal positional vertigo (BPPV) is the most common cause of vertigo from inner ear pathology that affects persons of any age. It is most common between the ages of 40 and 70 and occurs more frequently in females than males. Approximately 5.6 million emergency department visits in the United States each year are due to vertigo and related balance disorders. This article presents the pathology, signs and symptoms, diagnostic procedures, treatment, and nursing care for patients with BPPV. Treatment strategies focus on head repositioning maneuvers to displace otoliths out of the semicircular canals to the utricle to terminate the vertigo. The primary repositioning strategy is the Epley Maneuver. Vestibular suppressants are primarily used to manage nausea and vomiting. Surgical options may be explored for intractable vertigo.</p>","PeriodicalId":35641,"journal":{"name":"Nursing","volume":"56 8","pages":"28-35"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2026-08-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"148537189","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
NursingPub Date : 2026-08-01Epub Date: 2026-07-20DOI: 10.1097/NSG.0000000000000423
Carey S Cadieux
{"title":"Nurses and cannabis use: Ethical and legal concerns.","authors":"Carey S Cadieux","doi":"10.1097/NSG.0000000000000423","DOIUrl":"10.1097/NSG.0000000000000423","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Abstract: </strong>Cannabis use by nurses puts their professional license at risk, even if cannabis is consumed during off-work hours in US states where cannabis is legal for adult use. As states move out of the cannabis prohibition era and into an era of cannabis regulation, it becomes important to consider the ethical implications of nurses' cannabis use. This article explores the ethical concerns with nurses' use of cannabis during off-work hours and the implications for their licensure. Autonomy, beneficence, and social justice issues are considered. Despite state cannabis laws, nurses must advocate for the protection of their licenses, given that cannabis remains a federally illegal substance.</p>","PeriodicalId":35641,"journal":{"name":"Nursing","volume":"56 8","pages":"14-18"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2026-08-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"148537265","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
NursingPub Date : 2026-08-01Epub Date: 2026-07-20DOI: 10.1097/NSG.0000000000000436
Donna Rizzolo, Jessica Crowley, Lisa Pomerantz
{"title":"Task-layered orientation: A different approach.","authors":"Donna Rizzolo, Jessica Crowley, Lisa Pomerantz","doi":"10.1097/NSG.0000000000000436","DOIUrl":"10.1097/NSG.0000000000000436","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Abstract: </strong>Orientation of novice nurses aims to ease the transition to clinical practice and often follows a tiered, progressive approach. After experiencing numerous issues with the orientation of novice nurses, the professional development department at a community hospital piloted a different approach, layering practice skills rather than increasing the number of patients. The professional development team reviewed the literature on nurse orientation, developed a plan, tracked the progression of novice nurses, and introduced this orientation model to various stakeholders. Through a pilot program, the professional development team began small and expanded the use of this model across all medical/surgical units in this hospital. Although this task-layered model has not reduced the orientation period, it has demonstrated positive results regarding comfort, confidence, and retention among nurse residents, and has improved their experience from student to practicing nurse.</p>","PeriodicalId":35641,"journal":{"name":"Nursing","volume":"56 8","pages":"40-46"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2026-08-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"148537272","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}