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Living in a kaleidoscope demands patience, hard work
AORN JOURNAL
JUNE 1992, VOL 55, NO 6
Editorial Living in a kaleidoscope demands patience, hard work
T
within which to deliver perioperative nursing he kaleidoscope on the cover of this postcare, and AORN’s participation in the national Congress issue of the Journal depicts the effort to quantify the effectiveness of health care many faces and scenes of AORN’s 39th delivered in this country. Congress. If one could turn the graphic kaleidoThe organizational structure change is the scope like the real instrument, positions would approval of the formation of specialty assemchange and variegated patterns of Congress blies within AORN membership. For perioperwould emerge. With every twist of the hand, ative nurses who see themselves as having very another reflection would burst into view. special educational and networking needs, this At this year’s Congress, thought and behavnews was greeted with palpable enthusiasm. ior patterns were unpredictable and always Eight specialty groups have taken the initial changing. All perspectives were valid, but not steps that could lead to formal recognition. As all values were shared equally. Decisions, conspecialty assemblies become part of the structroversy, and the level of debate depended on ture of AORN, the pictures seen through which view one was seeing at the moment. The issue most members, but especially the deleAORN’s kaleidoscope will change. Each spegates, tried to bring into focus was the exact cialty assembly will be like a tiny piece of glass interpretation of AORN’s membership criteria. against the mirror, which is AORN. For many AORN members, the picture Like so many of today’s businesses, profeschanged too drastically when the Board sional associations of all types are undergoing a announced its decision to change the period of tremendous change so they can meet Credentials Committee policy regarding memthe strategic challenges of the twenty-first cenbership criteria decisions. The AORN bylaws tury. AORN is no exception. At Congress, carefully list the criteria for active membership AORN members could see, hear, and actually in Article 111, Section 3 . A . 1 . feel the excitement of change around them. The most exciting According to the bylaws, a regischanges came from the work of tered nurse who currently manages, Project 2000, but how you view teaches, or practices perioperative that work depends on your perspecnursing or who is enrolled in formal tive. nursing education or engaged in perioperative research is eligible for During the second Forum, Project active membership. 2000 chairmen reported on their Although the Board took the exact progress with designing potential wording from the bylaws and incorchange in AORN organizational structure, the revised definition of porated it into the revised .policy, . for perioperative nursing, new models some that made the image unacceptPat Niessner Palmer 1347
AORN JOURNAL
able. Suddenly, the membership picture included those nurses engaged in perioperative nursing outside the confines of the operating room. In consideration of members’ concerns about this policy change, the Board announced that it would delay the implementation of this policy until the Project Team to Redefine/ Reconceptualize Perioperative Nursing completes its work and reports to the 1993 House of Delegates. Fine-tuning the interpretation of membership criteria and the revised definition of perioperative nursing in view of the increase in minimally invasive procedures and the myriad of locations where “surgery” takes place will take a great deal of time, energy, and combined wisdom. It will not be an easy task nor one with only one view. Nevertheless, these challenges lie ahead and cannot be ignored. Many members who attended this year’s Congress returned home with a renewed sense of commitment to perioperative nursing and to the Association; others left Dallas with more questions than answers about the future direction of AORN. Most will bring the change in the Credentials Committee policy for interpretation of membership criteria to their chapters for further discussion and debate. The kaleidoscope undoubtedly will be turned over and over again. When AORN delegates meet at the 1993 Congress, they must be prepared to share each others’ views and the views of their chapter members. They will be in a kaleidoscope made not of glass and mirrors but of perspectives, values, and bits of information. In the meantime, AORN members must ponder and debate the inevitable changes within perioperative nursing and AORN, and together, they must decide the future of AORN. PATNIESSNER PALMER, RN, MS DEPUTY EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR EDITOR
1348
JUNE 1992, VOL 5 5 , NO 6
Communication Key to Solving Nursing Shortage Communication could be the key to solving today’s nursing shortage. One study, which was conducted through focus group interviews and questionnaires, shows that nurse burnout can be predicted by looking at how much nurses participate in patient care decisions. The more they participate, the less likely they are to change jobs or leave the nursing profession, according to a Jan 30, 1992, Western Michigan University, Kalamazoo, press release. Although nurses have great responsibility, physicians rarely ask for their input. Nurses provide nearly 90% of the patient care in US hospitals and often have more knowledge about a patient’s medical status and emotional health, important factors in the healing process, than physicians. According to the release, the question of nurse and physician relations is largely a female versus male issue. Hospital administrators and physicians are traditionally men, and nurses usually are women. The release states that the rift between the sexes has added to the difficulty in dealing with the problem. Nurses who are new to the profession are particularly vulnerable to burnout, the release states, because their first two or three years are the most strenuous as they learn to cope with long hours, high stress, loss of patients, and lack of communication and input in patient care. One important reason for improving communication between physicians and nurses is that some reports show a higher survival rate among patients in hospitals with staff members who communicate well, according to the release.
JUNE 1992, VOL 55, NO 6
Editorial Living in a kaleidoscope demands patience, hard work
T
within which to deliver perioperative nursing he kaleidoscope on the cover of this postcare, and AORN’s participation in the national Congress issue of the Journal depicts the effort to quantify the effectiveness of health care many faces and scenes of AORN’s 39th delivered in this country. Congress. If one could turn the graphic kaleidoThe organizational structure change is the scope like the real instrument, positions would approval of the formation of specialty assemchange and variegated patterns of Congress blies within AORN membership. For perioperwould emerge. With every twist of the hand, ative nurses who see themselves as having very another reflection would burst into view. special educational and networking needs, this At this year’s Congress, thought and behavnews was greeted with palpable enthusiasm. ior patterns were unpredictable and always Eight specialty groups have taken the initial changing. All perspectives were valid, but not steps that could lead to formal recognition. As all values were shared equally. Decisions, conspecialty assemblies become part of the structroversy, and the level of debate depended on ture of AORN, the pictures seen through which view one was seeing at the moment. The issue most members, but especially the deleAORN’s kaleidoscope will change. Each spegates, tried to bring into focus was the exact cialty assembly will be like a tiny piece of glass interpretation of AORN’s membership criteria. against the mirror, which is AORN. For many AORN members, the picture Like so many of today’s businesses, profeschanged too drastically when the Board sional associations of all types are undergoing a announced its decision to change the period of tremendous change so they can meet Credentials Committee policy regarding memthe strategic challenges of the twenty-first cenbership criteria decisions. The AORN bylaws tury. AORN is no exception. At Congress, carefully list the criteria for active membership AORN members could see, hear, and actually in Article 111, Section 3 . A . 1 . feel the excitement of change around them. The most exciting According to the bylaws, a regischanges came from the work of tered nurse who currently manages, Project 2000, but how you view teaches, or practices perioperative that work depends on your perspecnursing or who is enrolled in formal tive. nursing education or engaged in perioperative research is eligible for During the second Forum, Project active membership. 2000 chairmen reported on their Although the Board took the exact progress with designing potential wording from the bylaws and incorchange in AORN organizational structure, the revised definition of porated it into the revised .policy, . for perioperative nursing, new models some that made the image unacceptPat Niessner Palmer 1347
AORN JOURNAL
able. Suddenly, the membership picture included those nurses engaged in perioperative nursing outside the confines of the operating room. In consideration of members’ concerns about this policy change, the Board announced that it would delay the implementation of this policy until the Project Team to Redefine/ Reconceptualize Perioperative Nursing completes its work and reports to the 1993 House of Delegates. Fine-tuning the interpretation of membership criteria and the revised definition of perioperative nursing in view of the increase in minimally invasive procedures and the myriad of locations where “surgery” takes place will take a great deal of time, energy, and combined wisdom. It will not be an easy task nor one with only one view. Nevertheless, these challenges lie ahead and cannot be ignored. Many members who attended this year’s Congress returned home with a renewed sense of commitment to perioperative nursing and to the Association; others left Dallas with more questions than answers about the future direction of AORN. Most will bring the change in the Credentials Committee policy for interpretation of membership criteria to their chapters for further discussion and debate. The kaleidoscope undoubtedly will be turned over and over again. When AORN delegates meet at the 1993 Congress, they must be prepared to share each others’ views and the views of their chapter members. They will be in a kaleidoscope made not of glass and mirrors but of perspectives, values, and bits of information. In the meantime, AORN members must ponder and debate the inevitable changes within perioperative nursing and AORN, and together, they must decide the future of AORN. PATNIESSNER PALMER, RN, MS DEPUTY EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR EDITOR
1348
JUNE 1992, VOL 5 5 , NO 6
Communication Key to Solving Nursing Shortage Communication could be the key to solving today’s nursing shortage. One study, which was conducted through focus group interviews and questionnaires, shows that nurse burnout can be predicted by looking at how much nurses participate in patient care decisions. The more they participate, the less likely they are to change jobs or leave the nursing profession, according to a Jan 30, 1992, Western Michigan University, Kalamazoo, press release. Although nurses have great responsibility, physicians rarely ask for their input. Nurses provide nearly 90% of the patient care in US hospitals and often have more knowledge about a patient’s medical status and emotional health, important factors in the healing process, than physicians. According to the release, the question of nurse and physician relations is largely a female versus male issue. Hospital administrators and physicians are traditionally men, and nurses usually are women. The release states that the rift between the sexes has added to the difficulty in dealing with the problem. Nurses who are new to the profession are particularly vulnerable to burnout, the release states, because their first two or three years are the most strenuous as they learn to cope with long hours, high stress, loss of patients, and lack of communication and input in patient care. One important reason for improving communication between physicians and nurses is that some reports show a higher survival rate among patients in hospitals with staff members who communicate well, according to the release.