Summary Abstracts
Summer 2021 Journal
Editor’s Column
This standard feature provides commentary from the current Journal Editor, Kim Stanchfield, RN, COHN-S. She reminds readers why occupational health professionals in healthcare are so needed, especially during the pandemic, and how a little validation goes a long way.
Staying Current on Government Affairs
In his Journal column, Stephen Burt, MFA, BS, AOHP Government Affairs Committee Chair, provides analysis of recent government affairs activities. For this issue, he examines the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission’s updated guidance on workplace COVID-19 vaccination policies and key takeaways for healthcare employers.
Association Community Liaison Report
This regular Journal article details how AOHP is gaining visibility as an expert regarding occupational health issues. In this edition, author Bobbi Jo Hurst, BSN, RN, MBA, COHN-S, SGE, provides a review of the latest information from CDC, NIOSH, AOHP, and OSHA related to COVID-19. Featured content includes OSHA’s Emergency Temporary Standard for Healthcare, along with AOHP’s comments on the standard.
Perspectives in Healthcare Safety
Cory Worden, PhD ABD, MS, CSHM, CSP, CHSP, ARM, REM, CESCO, shares his insights on safety in healthcare in this standing column. This issue's feature – Celebrating Safety – reviews the importance of setting expectations for safety, validating safe work practices and working conditions, and providing positive reinforcement for the sustainability of safety systems. Comments from Victor Lawe, PS-MESH, Safety Officer for The City of Rocky Mount, NC, are featured.
Supporting Employee Health at Work: How Perceptions Differ Across Wage Category
Kristi Rahrig Jenkins, PhD, Emily Stiehl, PhD, Bruce W. Sherman, MD, and Susan L. Bales, MS, examine the association between sources of stress and perceptions of organizational and supervisor support for health and well-being. Their study is a retrospective, cross-sectional analysis of employees in different wage categories at a large university in the midwestern United States.
Burnout and Stress Plummet: A Remarkable New Pilot Program to Increase Hospital Staff Nurses Satisfaction
Compassion fatigue is generally known as a condition characterized by emotional and physical exhaustion, leading to a diminished ability to empathize with or feel compassion for others. Author Ashleigh Boyd, RN, documents the results of a study demonstrating how compassion fatigue can be reduced in emergency department nurses by introducing Real-Time Transformative Response© (RTR©) as an effective coping mechanism.
COVID-19 Symptoms and Exposure Sources Among Healthcare Professionals in a Southeastern Healthcare System Over Nine Months
Occupational health offices must quickly and accurately identify COVID-19 infection symptoms to recommend testing and place employees out of work. Mary C. Giovannetti, DNP, APRN, BC-FNP, Jennifer Martin, BSN, RN, Miles Lane, BS, and Mark Godenick, MD, MPH completed a retrospective chart review to examine COVID-19 symptoms in relation to demographics in healthcare employees at a southeastern healthcare system. Symptoms of employees who tested negative for COVID-19 were compared to those who were positive. Suspected exposure sources and COVID-19 test results were also explored in this study.
Creating a Culture of Worker Safety: Evidence-Based Safe Mobility in the ICU
Early and progressive mobility in the ICU has been successfully implemented in numerous published studies and quality improvement projects, and it has demonstrated important benefits to patient care. In this article, authors Linda Pryor, Karen K. Giuliano, PhD, RN, MBA, FAAN, and Susan Gallagher, PhD, MA, MSN, RN, CBN, CSPHP describe the components needed to create an impactful, cost-effective, and sustainable mobility program that minimizes risk and maximizes benefits for both patients and staff.
Living with Lyme disease: The nurse’s role in patient care
Lyme disease is a common, tick-borne illness caused by the bacterium Borrelia burgdorferi, which is carried by black-legged ticks. Nurses are in a unique position to care for patients with Lyme disease and those experiencing post-treatment Lyme disease syndrome (PTDLS) by overcoming barriers to care and following best practices for treatment. Article authors include Lucy Adams, Michael M. Evans, PhD, MSEd, RN, ACNS, CMSRN, CNE, Kiernan Riley, BSN, RN, Kaléi Kowalchik, BSN, RN, Megan Lucey, and Logan DeSanto.
Missed Opportunities, Part Two: How the Fight Against COVID-19 Became a Stalemate
Article author Cory Worden, PhD ABD, MS, CSHM, CSP, CHSP, ARM, REM, CESCO, highlights the current state of the COVD-19 pandemic and analyzes the factors in play that have led to a current stalemate with the virus in the United States.