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The Nation's Health
JUNE 1991, VOL 53, NO 6
AORN JOURNAL
Book Reviews
COMMUNICATION Communication in the Nursing Context, third ed. By Jean C. Bradley, Mark A. Edinberg 1990,260 pp $24.95 paperback The third edition of Communication in the Nursing Context is a good text for beginning nursing students and an excellent resource for experienced nurses. The print and format make it easy to read and the exercises are easy to follow. The main difference between this edition and the previous edition is that special topics are included in the new version. These include a section on Black, Southeast Asian, and Middle Eastern cultures. Sections on communication. with elderly, terminally ill, abused, chemically dependent, and acquired immune deficiency syndrome patients are included. The text also addresses health behaviors and substance abuse in coworkers. The information that remained from the previous edition has been condensed. This textbook is designed to help nurses strengthen their communication skills. It presents a broad overview of communication concepts and skills as well as their application in the clinical setting. It includes real-life examples with exercises to help the reader identify weaknesses and sharpen skills. This text is excellent for a communications class but is too lengthy to be included in a related course. I recommend this as an addition to hospital and nursing school libraries and experienced nurses’ personal libraries. 1560
The book is available from Appleton & Lange, 25 Van Zant St, East Norwalk, CT 06855. JANETCOZAD, RN, BSN, CNOR ASSISTANT PROFESSOR CALIFORNIA STATEUNIVERSITY LONGBEACH
GENERAL INTEREST The Nation’s Health, third ed. Edited by Philip R. Lee, Carroll L. Estes 1990,448 p p $32.50 paperback This edition of The Nation’s Health is a comprehensive study of today’s health care policy in the United States. Contributing authors present diverse viewpoints on key issues of the 1990s such as the rising cost of health care, competition versus regulation, and health care access inequities, The evolution of the health care system is closely scrutinized, with particular attention to the politics of health care. The reader will find the text’s balanced arguments very useful in formulating and fortifying personal opinions. The intended audience encompasses all members of the health care team. Nurses will be particularly interested in the chapter devoted to nursing shortages and why nursing is viewed as an “invisible” profession despite the fact that nurses outnumber physicians, dentists, and every other group of health professionals in the United States. The articles are well organized with current bibliographies compiled to address the political, economic, and social issues surrounding
JUNE 1991. VOL 53, NO 6
each topic. This book is an excellent introduction to complex systems that must be unraveled to understand the present and anticipate the future. The illustrations are readable and concise, particularly the graphs of financial trends. The information in this book can be disheartening to a health care professional. Topics such as the lack of funding, trying to control the acquired immune deficiency syndrome epidemic, and the deteriorating access to health care for the poor, minorities, and the uninsured make it evident that it is impossible to wish the problems away. The Nation’s Health underscores the responsibility of every health consumer and provider to improve this country’s prognosis. The book is available from Jones and Bartlett Publishers, 20 Park Plaza, Boston, MA 021 16. MARYJANEC. EDWARDS, RN, BSN NURSING UNIT COORDINATOR MAIN~R-CYSTO-IN/OUT SURGERY GEORGE WASHINGTON UNIVERSITY MEDICAL CENTER WASHINGTON, DC
HIV Infection: Prevention and Care 1990, 61 p p no charge This publication from the National Center for Nursing Research (NCNR) is a report by an expert panel of physicians and nurse scientists. It is the fiist of seven reports being developed as part of the National Nursing Research Agenda, the NCNR’s priority-setting initiative. The main purpose of the report is to make specific recommendations for research; the ultimate goal is to contribute to the resolution of the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) health care problem. This report is significant for nurses who work in a variety of health care settings because HIVinfected individuals have complex health and nursing care needs. Prevention is and must remain the major focus because this is an epidemic with no known cure. Each of the four chapters represents a major
AORN JOURNAL
area of concern: prevention of transmission, physiological aspects of nursing care, psychosocial aspects of nursing care, and delivery of nursing care. Ethics is the fifth general area of concern, and suggestions for ethical research are appropriately placed within individual chapters. The introductions to each chapter highlight the research area addressed. Each chapter contains an extremely thorough review of current literature and discussion of current nursing practices. Recommendations for research are presented at the end of each chapter. Information from a variety of patient populations and knowledge from related fields (eg. oncology) offer a framework to develop quality patient care and positive outcomes as this disease progresses from early to advanced stages. Unique needs of various groups at differing stages of the disease are discussed. Research is needed to identify specific health care needs and develop models of care for patients and for their caretakers. This report represents a major undertaking by this panel. Its suggestions for research topics for the next five years are intuitive, multidimensional, and relevant to our daily practice settings. The report is available from the National Center for Nursing Research, National Institutes of Health, Building 31, Room 5B03, Bethesda, MD 20892. ALICIADESTEFANO, RN, MS, CNOR HEADNURSEISURGERY CENTER SIBLEY MEMORIAL HOSPITAL WASHINGTON, DC
The Nursing Shortage and the 1990s: Realities and Remedies By Richard C. McKibbin 1990, 1 0 7 p p $19.95 state nurses association members $24.95 nonmembers paperback This American Nurses Association (ANA) book is a comprehensive study of the shortage 1561
AORN JOURNAL
Book Reviews
COMMUNICATION Communication in the Nursing Context, third ed. By Jean C. Bradley, Mark A. Edinberg 1990,260 pp $24.95 paperback The third edition of Communication in the Nursing Context is a good text for beginning nursing students and an excellent resource for experienced nurses. The print and format make it easy to read and the exercises are easy to follow. The main difference between this edition and the previous edition is that special topics are included in the new version. These include a section on Black, Southeast Asian, and Middle Eastern cultures. Sections on communication. with elderly, terminally ill, abused, chemically dependent, and acquired immune deficiency syndrome patients are included. The text also addresses health behaviors and substance abuse in coworkers. The information that remained from the previous edition has been condensed. This textbook is designed to help nurses strengthen their communication skills. It presents a broad overview of communication concepts and skills as well as their application in the clinical setting. It includes real-life examples with exercises to help the reader identify weaknesses and sharpen skills. This text is excellent for a communications class but is too lengthy to be included in a related course. I recommend this as an addition to hospital and nursing school libraries and experienced nurses’ personal libraries. 1560
The book is available from Appleton & Lange, 25 Van Zant St, East Norwalk, CT 06855. JANETCOZAD, RN, BSN, CNOR ASSISTANT PROFESSOR CALIFORNIA STATEUNIVERSITY LONGBEACH
GENERAL INTEREST The Nation’s Health, third ed. Edited by Philip R. Lee, Carroll L. Estes 1990,448 p p $32.50 paperback This edition of The Nation’s Health is a comprehensive study of today’s health care policy in the United States. Contributing authors present diverse viewpoints on key issues of the 1990s such as the rising cost of health care, competition versus regulation, and health care access inequities, The evolution of the health care system is closely scrutinized, with particular attention to the politics of health care. The reader will find the text’s balanced arguments very useful in formulating and fortifying personal opinions. The intended audience encompasses all members of the health care team. Nurses will be particularly interested in the chapter devoted to nursing shortages and why nursing is viewed as an “invisible” profession despite the fact that nurses outnumber physicians, dentists, and every other group of health professionals in the United States. The articles are well organized with current bibliographies compiled to address the political, economic, and social issues surrounding
JUNE 1991. VOL 53, NO 6
each topic. This book is an excellent introduction to complex systems that must be unraveled to understand the present and anticipate the future. The illustrations are readable and concise, particularly the graphs of financial trends. The information in this book can be disheartening to a health care professional. Topics such as the lack of funding, trying to control the acquired immune deficiency syndrome epidemic, and the deteriorating access to health care for the poor, minorities, and the uninsured make it evident that it is impossible to wish the problems away. The Nation’s Health underscores the responsibility of every health consumer and provider to improve this country’s prognosis. The book is available from Jones and Bartlett Publishers, 20 Park Plaza, Boston, MA 021 16. MARYJANEC. EDWARDS, RN, BSN NURSING UNIT COORDINATOR MAIN~R-CYSTO-IN/OUT SURGERY GEORGE WASHINGTON UNIVERSITY MEDICAL CENTER WASHINGTON, DC
HIV Infection: Prevention and Care 1990, 61 p p no charge This publication from the National Center for Nursing Research (NCNR) is a report by an expert panel of physicians and nurse scientists. It is the fiist of seven reports being developed as part of the National Nursing Research Agenda, the NCNR’s priority-setting initiative. The main purpose of the report is to make specific recommendations for research; the ultimate goal is to contribute to the resolution of the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) health care problem. This report is significant for nurses who work in a variety of health care settings because HIVinfected individuals have complex health and nursing care needs. Prevention is and must remain the major focus because this is an epidemic with no known cure. Each of the four chapters represents a major
AORN JOURNAL
area of concern: prevention of transmission, physiological aspects of nursing care, psychosocial aspects of nursing care, and delivery of nursing care. Ethics is the fifth general area of concern, and suggestions for ethical research are appropriately placed within individual chapters. The introductions to each chapter highlight the research area addressed. Each chapter contains an extremely thorough review of current literature and discussion of current nursing practices. Recommendations for research are presented at the end of each chapter. Information from a variety of patient populations and knowledge from related fields (eg. oncology) offer a framework to develop quality patient care and positive outcomes as this disease progresses from early to advanced stages. Unique needs of various groups at differing stages of the disease are discussed. Research is needed to identify specific health care needs and develop models of care for patients and for their caretakers. This report represents a major undertaking by this panel. Its suggestions for research topics for the next five years are intuitive, multidimensional, and relevant to our daily practice settings. The report is available from the National Center for Nursing Research, National Institutes of Health, Building 31, Room 5B03, Bethesda, MD 20892. ALICIADESTEFANO, RN, MS, CNOR HEADNURSEISURGERY CENTER SIBLEY MEMORIAL HOSPITAL WASHINGTON, DC
The Nursing Shortage and the 1990s: Realities and Remedies By Richard C. McKibbin 1990, 1 0 7 p p $19.95 state nurses association members $24.95 nonmembers paperback This American Nurses Association (ANA) book is a comprehensive study of the shortage 1561