- Email: [email protected]
Have You Read the Last Page Lately?
EDITORIAL
Have You Read the Last Page Lately? NANCY J. GIRARD, PHD, RN, FAAN, EDITOR-IN-CHIEF
A
s is the case for the editors of many scholarly journals and consumer publications, we at the AORN Journal have a special fondness for our last page and want it to be a place readers turn to for entertainment or enlightenment. Perhaps the last page is a reward for reading through an entire issue, perhaps an enticing entrée for those who like to read from back to front, or maybe just a favorite column that readers make it a point to turn to before exploring the rest of the month’s articles. We have recently made a change to the last page of our Journal, and we hope you will find its contents educational and interesting.
A BRIEF HISTORY
OF THE
LAST PAGE
The last page of AORN Journal and its predecessor OR Nursing (1960-1962), was not used for anything special in the early years of publication. From 1960 to 1975, all that appeared in this space was the advertiser’s index and an occasional overflow of classified ads. Beginning in November of 1972, one-page news stories of interest took over this spot. In July of 1975, the space became dedicated to one column for the first time. Many of you will remember “The Last Word,” which ran from that July issue until the mid 1990s, nearly 20 years. The inaugural column stated that this would be a place to “find items of incidental intelligence—nothing very earth-shaking.”1(p132) Over the years, items in “The Last Word” ran the gamut from historical to educational to trivial to irreverent. For example, an item from one column in 1975 tells us that 9% of nursing students who plan to specialize will choose perioperative nursing.2 An adjacent item tells us that “pudgy”
© AORN, Inc, 2008
women have a competitive edge over men in long-distance athletic events.2 The venerable “Last Word” occupied the last page through January of 1994. Among the last entries is the following: One creative inventor [has] developed six-day underwear—a garment with three leg holes that the wearer must rotate each day for three days, then turn inside-out and repeat for the remaining three days.3(p344) Beginning in February of 1994, the last page was We strive to make dedicated to “Health Care Reform News,” the last page of which was certainly a sign of the times. The the Journal a column ran for only five months. special place that The “Perioperative Time Capsule,” with readers will turn to which most of you are familiar, debuted in July for entertainment of 1994 in conjunction with a redesign of the or enlightenment. Journal. The “Time Capsule” provided a sampling of the topics that were covered in the Journal 10, 20, and 30 years previously (eg, in July of 1964, 1974, and 1984 for the July 1994 column). Beginning in 2000, we were able to go back a full 40 years. The “Time Capsule” allowed us to reflect on the many aspects of nursing that have changed over the years as well as many that have not. For example, in the 1960s and 1970s, many tissue and organ transplant procedures were in their infancy and the widespread use of computers and robotics seemed the stuff of futuristic fantasy. A review of APRIL 2008, VOL 87, NO 4 • AORN JOURNAL • 717
Editorial
APRIL 2008, VOL 87, NO 4
THE NEW LAST PAGE To submit a case for the new “Grand Rounds” column, send and e-mail to [email protected].
the column’s items through the decades, however, also shows frequent references to “the current nursing shortage” or legislation to mandate that an RN perform the circulator role in the OR—reminders that, often, the more things change, the more they stay the same. The “Time Capsule” also provided us with a backward glimpse into the prevalent social issues of the times, with news stories that warned of the dangers of second-hand cigarette smoke in the 1970s and that gave confusing and often conflicting information about the new AIDS virus in the 1980s.
TIME
FOR A
CHANGE
After 13-and-a-half years and based on discussions with readers and member focus groups at the AORN Congress, the editorial staff decided it was time for a change. The challenge of what to put on the last page was then brought to the Journal Editorial Board members at our annual meeting last summer. An enthusiastic discussion resulted in many good ideas, and the “Perioperative Grand Rounds” concept was unanimously approved as the new last page offering. Grand rounds is an educational tool that has been used successfully for decades. Nursing grand rounds have most frequently been conducted on medical-surgical floors with staff members and nursing students. Nurses also have benefited from participating in rounds with a multidisciplinary health care team. These types of rounds normally include the participation of the patient, who can give an interpretation of his or her physical status and satisfaction with care. Grand rounds can be useful for maintaining up-to-date information, motivating staff members, identifying mistakes or problems and offering solutions, and translating research into practice.
718 • AORN JOURNAL
After we decided on the new concept, we needed to determine how to format and present our “Grand Rounds.” I performed a literature search, and after reviewing a number of different formats, I decided it would be most useful to include the case, a discussion, perioperative points, and references. Our next challenge came when we determined that to adequately cover these areas, we would need more than one page. Many journals use the technique of continuing the last page content on a page that appears earlier in the publication. We decided to adopt this practice so that sufficient content could be included in these columns. The last decision we had to make was how to obtain relevant and interesting case studies. I wrote the first “Grand Rounds” column based on my own experience. Subsequently, AORN’s director of publishing contacted colleagues at the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ) and received permission for AORN to use case studies from the AHRQ’s “Morbidity and Mortality Rounds on the Web”4 as the basis for our columns. The AHRQ cases and commentaries provide a starting point; I edit and adapt the content and add to the discussion and takeaway points to make the cases even more relevant for perioperative nurses. The “Grand Rounds” columns based on the AHRQ case studies focus on concerns, risks, mistakes, or potential mistakes in providing care. You can find the fourth installment of “Perioperative Grand Rounds” on page 888 of this Journal. Readers who are interested in submitting a case for this column or who wish to share their thoughts about the new column or any other component of the Journal can contact the AORN Journal editorial office at [email protected].
REFERENCES 1. The Last Word. AORN J. 1975;22(1):132. 2. The Last Word. AORN J. 1975;22(5):850. 3. The Last Word. AORN J. 1994;59(1):344. 4. Morbidity & Mortality Rounds on the Web. http:// www.webmm.ahrq.gov. Accessed February 20, 2008. NANCY J. GIRARD PHD, RN, FAAN EDITOR-IN-CHIEF
Have You Read the Last Page Lately? NANCY J. GIRARD, PHD, RN, FAAN, EDITOR-IN-CHIEF
A
s is the case for the editors of many scholarly journals and consumer publications, we at the AORN Journal have a special fondness for our last page and want it to be a place readers turn to for entertainment or enlightenment. Perhaps the last page is a reward for reading through an entire issue, perhaps an enticing entrée for those who like to read from back to front, or maybe just a favorite column that readers make it a point to turn to before exploring the rest of the month’s articles. We have recently made a change to the last page of our Journal, and we hope you will find its contents educational and interesting.
A BRIEF HISTORY
OF THE
LAST PAGE
The last page of AORN Journal and its predecessor OR Nursing (1960-1962), was not used for anything special in the early years of publication. From 1960 to 1975, all that appeared in this space was the advertiser’s index and an occasional overflow of classified ads. Beginning in November of 1972, one-page news stories of interest took over this spot. In July of 1975, the space became dedicated to one column for the first time. Many of you will remember “The Last Word,” which ran from that July issue until the mid 1990s, nearly 20 years. The inaugural column stated that this would be a place to “find items of incidental intelligence—nothing very earth-shaking.”1(p132) Over the years, items in “The Last Word” ran the gamut from historical to educational to trivial to irreverent. For example, an item from one column in 1975 tells us that 9% of nursing students who plan to specialize will choose perioperative nursing.2 An adjacent item tells us that “pudgy”
© AORN, Inc, 2008
women have a competitive edge over men in long-distance athletic events.2 The venerable “Last Word” occupied the last page through January of 1994. Among the last entries is the following: One creative inventor [has] developed six-day underwear—a garment with three leg holes that the wearer must rotate each day for three days, then turn inside-out and repeat for the remaining three days.3(p344) Beginning in February of 1994, the last page was We strive to make dedicated to “Health Care Reform News,” the last page of which was certainly a sign of the times. The the Journal a column ran for only five months. special place that The “Perioperative Time Capsule,” with readers will turn to which most of you are familiar, debuted in July for entertainment of 1994 in conjunction with a redesign of the or enlightenment. Journal. The “Time Capsule” provided a sampling of the topics that were covered in the Journal 10, 20, and 30 years previously (eg, in July of 1964, 1974, and 1984 for the July 1994 column). Beginning in 2000, we were able to go back a full 40 years. The “Time Capsule” allowed us to reflect on the many aspects of nursing that have changed over the years as well as many that have not. For example, in the 1960s and 1970s, many tissue and organ transplant procedures were in their infancy and the widespread use of computers and robotics seemed the stuff of futuristic fantasy. A review of APRIL 2008, VOL 87, NO 4 • AORN JOURNAL • 717
Editorial
APRIL 2008, VOL 87, NO 4
THE NEW LAST PAGE To submit a case for the new “Grand Rounds” column, send and e-mail to [email protected].
the column’s items through the decades, however, also shows frequent references to “the current nursing shortage” or legislation to mandate that an RN perform the circulator role in the OR—reminders that, often, the more things change, the more they stay the same. The “Time Capsule” also provided us with a backward glimpse into the prevalent social issues of the times, with news stories that warned of the dangers of second-hand cigarette smoke in the 1970s and that gave confusing and often conflicting information about the new AIDS virus in the 1980s.
TIME
FOR A
CHANGE
After 13-and-a-half years and based on discussions with readers and member focus groups at the AORN Congress, the editorial staff decided it was time for a change. The challenge of what to put on the last page was then brought to the Journal Editorial Board members at our annual meeting last summer. An enthusiastic discussion resulted in many good ideas, and the “Perioperative Grand Rounds” concept was unanimously approved as the new last page offering. Grand rounds is an educational tool that has been used successfully for decades. Nursing grand rounds have most frequently been conducted on medical-surgical floors with staff members and nursing students. Nurses also have benefited from participating in rounds with a multidisciplinary health care team. These types of rounds normally include the participation of the patient, who can give an interpretation of his or her physical status and satisfaction with care. Grand rounds can be useful for maintaining up-to-date information, motivating staff members, identifying mistakes or problems and offering solutions, and translating research into practice.
718 • AORN JOURNAL
After we decided on the new concept, we needed to determine how to format and present our “Grand Rounds.” I performed a literature search, and after reviewing a number of different formats, I decided it would be most useful to include the case, a discussion, perioperative points, and references. Our next challenge came when we determined that to adequately cover these areas, we would need more than one page. Many journals use the technique of continuing the last page content on a page that appears earlier in the publication. We decided to adopt this practice so that sufficient content could be included in these columns. The last decision we had to make was how to obtain relevant and interesting case studies. I wrote the first “Grand Rounds” column based on my own experience. Subsequently, AORN’s director of publishing contacted colleagues at the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ) and received permission for AORN to use case studies from the AHRQ’s “Morbidity and Mortality Rounds on the Web”4 as the basis for our columns. The AHRQ cases and commentaries provide a starting point; I edit and adapt the content and add to the discussion and takeaway points to make the cases even more relevant for perioperative nurses. The “Grand Rounds” columns based on the AHRQ case studies focus on concerns, risks, mistakes, or potential mistakes in providing care. You can find the fourth installment of “Perioperative Grand Rounds” on page 888 of this Journal. Readers who are interested in submitting a case for this column or who wish to share their thoughts about the new column or any other component of the Journal can contact the AORN Journal editorial office at [email protected].
REFERENCES 1. The Last Word. AORN J. 1975;22(1):132. 2. The Last Word. AORN J. 1975;22(5):850. 3. The Last Word. AORN J. 1994;59(1):344. 4. Morbidity & Mortality Rounds on the Web. http:// www.webmm.ahrq.gov. Accessed February 20, 2008. NANCY J. GIRARD PHD, RN, FAAN EDITOR-IN-CHIEF