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Transcultural nursing in Canada
Canada
Transcultural Nursing in Canada It is estimated that by the year 2000 approximately one in every five Canadians will represent an ethnic minority. This fact presents nursing with several challenges: how to improve migrants' access to health care and how to be culturally sensitive to their needs. It is inappropriate to assume all residents will speak English and adopt the cultural values and health beliefs, practices, and behaviors of native-born residents. Many migrants (including immigrants and refugees) work long hours, have physically demanding jobs, and live in ethnic communities that hamper their acquisition of a new language. Migrants may attempt to use home remedies before seeking health care from strangers, are unfamiliar with the role of nurses in more developed nations, and misinterpret the occurrence or significance of medication side effects. Nurses can create unfavorable situations for migrants seeking health care because of how the clients speak or behave. If communication is a problem, non-Englishspeaking clients may be delayed or ignored. The nurse may have a judgmental attitude toward a client's lack of cooperation with treatment. There is a tendency for dare providers to make generalizations about groups of people. For example, although Asians constitute more than a third of the world's population, there is an assumption that they all share a similar culture, values, socioeconomic status, educational level, or religious affiliation. Nurses can become more aware and sensitive to serving this large population of residents by incorporating multicultural topics in nursing education, seeking nontraditional clinical placements, conducting research on cross-cultural issues, and using professional journals to address issues and research findings. (Guruge S, D o n n e r G. Transcultural nursing in Canada. Can Nurse 1996,36-40.)
United States
Emerging Infectious Diseases: Nursing Responses Despite the successes in conquering infectious diseases with medications, vaccinations, good sanitation, and environmental controls, there have been outbreaks of
Int JTrauma Nurs 1997;3:33-4, Copyright © 1997 by the Emergency NursesAssociation. 1075-4210/97 $5.00 + 0 65/8/78668
JANUARY-MARCH
1997
diseases that were previously u n k n o w n or were believed to be controlled. Emerging infectious diseases are due to newly evolved organisms, mutated organisms, introduction of organisms to humans from other species, dissemination of organisms to susceptible p o p u l a t i o n s , h u m a n s b e c o m i n g more vulnerable, previously u n d e t e c t e d organisms, or the reappearance of a k n o w n disease. Reemergence of diseases can be caused by organisms b e c o m i n g resistant to antimicrobial agents and the breakdown of public health measures. The professional nurse has multiple opportunities to prevent or intervene in the spread of infectious diseases. These include educating clients; encouraging the use of infection control procedures, especially appropriate hand w a s h i n g ; maintaining an awareness of unusual disease clusters, outbreaks, or illnesses; instituting or participating in immunization programs; working with clients to use antimicrobial medications appropriately; and promoting healthy lifestyles that include proper nutrition, food handling, and encouraging breast feeding. Tile mobiliW and lifestyles of many people today allow microorganisms a quicker and greater access to susceptible populations. The world should be considered a global community because infectious diseases present in one location may quickly affect a much larger group than previously recognized. (Cohen FL, Larson E. Emerging infectious diseases: nursing responses. Nurs Outlook 1996,.44:164-8.)
Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus: Implications for the anesthesia provider Methicillin-resistantStaphylococcus aureus (MRSA) was first recognized in Europe in the 1960s, shortly after methicillin antibiotic therapy was started for staphylococc~tl infections. It has now become a worldwide problem and there were various epidemic strains of methicillin-resistant S. aureus in the 1980s. MRSA is a problem for health care facilities in the United States, especially those in the eastern half of the country. In 1990 22% of all nosocomial S. aureus isolates in critical care were resistant to methicillin. MRSA is a term used to refer to strains of S. aureus that possess intrinsic resistance to methicillin, oxacillin, nafcillin, cephalosporins, imipenem-cilastatin, and other ]3-1actams. MRSA can spread throughout an institution when colonized and infected patients are admitted. The organisms are found in the anterior nares, sputum, surgical or burn wounds, decubitus ulcers, perineum or rectum, and tracheostomy or gastrostomy sites. It is spread primarily on the hands of health care personnel. Managing a patient with MRSA includes isolation to prevent cross-infection to patients and health care workers, scrupulous efforts at improving hand w a s h i n g , and
INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF TRAUMA NURSING/Abstracts of the Literature 33
Transcultural Nursing in Canada It is estimated that by the year 2000 approximately one in every five Canadians will represent an ethnic minority. This fact presents nursing with several challenges: how to improve migrants' access to health care and how to be culturally sensitive to their needs. It is inappropriate to assume all residents will speak English and adopt the cultural values and health beliefs, practices, and behaviors of native-born residents. Many migrants (including immigrants and refugees) work long hours, have physically demanding jobs, and live in ethnic communities that hamper their acquisition of a new language. Migrants may attempt to use home remedies before seeking health care from strangers, are unfamiliar with the role of nurses in more developed nations, and misinterpret the occurrence or significance of medication side effects. Nurses can create unfavorable situations for migrants seeking health care because of how the clients speak or behave. If communication is a problem, non-Englishspeaking clients may be delayed or ignored. The nurse may have a judgmental attitude toward a client's lack of cooperation with treatment. There is a tendency for dare providers to make generalizations about groups of people. For example, although Asians constitute more than a third of the world's population, there is an assumption that they all share a similar culture, values, socioeconomic status, educational level, or religious affiliation. Nurses can become more aware and sensitive to serving this large population of residents by incorporating multicultural topics in nursing education, seeking nontraditional clinical placements, conducting research on cross-cultural issues, and using professional journals to address issues and research findings. (Guruge S, D o n n e r G. Transcultural nursing in Canada. Can Nurse 1996,36-40.)
United States
Emerging Infectious Diseases: Nursing Responses Despite the successes in conquering infectious diseases with medications, vaccinations, good sanitation, and environmental controls, there have been outbreaks of
Int JTrauma Nurs 1997;3:33-4, Copyright © 1997 by the Emergency NursesAssociation. 1075-4210/97 $5.00 + 0 65/8/78668
JANUARY-MARCH
1997
diseases that were previously u n k n o w n or were believed to be controlled. Emerging infectious diseases are due to newly evolved organisms, mutated organisms, introduction of organisms to humans from other species, dissemination of organisms to susceptible p o p u l a t i o n s , h u m a n s b e c o m i n g more vulnerable, previously u n d e t e c t e d organisms, or the reappearance of a k n o w n disease. Reemergence of diseases can be caused by organisms b e c o m i n g resistant to antimicrobial agents and the breakdown of public health measures. The professional nurse has multiple opportunities to prevent or intervene in the spread of infectious diseases. These include educating clients; encouraging the use of infection control procedures, especially appropriate hand w a s h i n g ; maintaining an awareness of unusual disease clusters, outbreaks, or illnesses; instituting or participating in immunization programs; working with clients to use antimicrobial medications appropriately; and promoting healthy lifestyles that include proper nutrition, food handling, and encouraging breast feeding. Tile mobiliW and lifestyles of many people today allow microorganisms a quicker and greater access to susceptible populations. The world should be considered a global community because infectious diseases present in one location may quickly affect a much larger group than previously recognized. (Cohen FL, Larson E. Emerging infectious diseases: nursing responses. Nurs Outlook 1996,.44:164-8.)
Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus: Implications for the anesthesia provider Methicillin-resistantStaphylococcus aureus (MRSA) was first recognized in Europe in the 1960s, shortly after methicillin antibiotic therapy was started for staphylococc~tl infections. It has now become a worldwide problem and there were various epidemic strains of methicillin-resistant S. aureus in the 1980s. MRSA is a problem for health care facilities in the United States, especially those in the eastern half of the country. In 1990 22% of all nosocomial S. aureus isolates in critical care were resistant to methicillin. MRSA is a term used to refer to strains of S. aureus that possess intrinsic resistance to methicillin, oxacillin, nafcillin, cephalosporins, imipenem-cilastatin, and other ]3-1actams. MRSA can spread throughout an institution when colonized and infected patients are admitted. The organisms are found in the anterior nares, sputum, surgical or burn wounds, decubitus ulcers, perineum or rectum, and tracheostomy or gastrostomy sites. It is spread primarily on the hands of health care personnel. Managing a patient with MRSA includes isolation to prevent cross-infection to patients and health care workers, scrupulous efforts at improving hand w a s h i n g , and
INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF TRAUMA NURSING/Abstracts of the Literature 33