Love songs

The demands of medical technology, of tubes and meds, often overshadow the caring and giving that are the very core of nursing. Patients like Alice--and her husband--help reaffirm the values that led me into the profession.

Lung volume reduction surgery: new hope for emphysema patients

Lung volume reduction is a new surgical procedure for patients with severe emphysema. The hyperinflated portion of the lung or lungs is removed so the patient's chest wall and diaphragm can return to normal positions, easing breathing. This article describes the patient criteria, surgical procedure, and nursing problems and interventions related to the care of the lung volume reduction patient.

Palliative care. An integral part of life's end

While the needs of dying individuals and their families have come under increasing scrutiny in the past decade, issues related to the needs of older adults (75 years or more) who are dying have not been systematically addressed. Death and dying are increasingly associated with old age, yet the conceptualization of palliative care in later life is not well developed. All too often, the philosophy and principles of palliative care are not invoked in the care of people who are both old and dying. It is an omission that must cease.

Reflections on being therapeutic and reflection

This article offers a reflective account of an incident that occurred between a nurse tutor and a patient on a cardiology ward. It highlights the importance of interpersonal skills in creating a therapeutic relationship, in particular those of self-awareness, empathy and intuition. The author's difficulties in running reflective practice sessions for pre-registration students are discussed and insights are offered into why these difficulties arose.

Lung volume reduction surgery: a new breath of life for emphysema patients

Patients with emphysema suffer continuously with dyspnea which ultimately can affect their activities of daily living. Lung volume reduction is a surgical procedure that is effective in relieving the dyspnea and improving the patient's quality of life.

Coping with chronic illness

Families suffer in many ways when a member is stricken with chronic illness. Nurses frequently feel a sense of frustration when working with the chronically ill because cure is not possible. The author reviews the goals of care and coping tasks common to the chronically ill. Family coping styles are reviewed with suggestions for effective nurse behaviors with each style.

Effects of guided imagery in patients with chronic bronchitis and emphysema

Together, chronic bronchitis and emphysema (CBE) ranks as one of the top five leading health problems in the United States. Few nursing interventions have been tested that improve symptom management, functional status, and quality of life. This study tested the effects of guided imagery and maximal inspiratory muscle training (MITT) in a group of 10 males and 9 females, 56-75 years old, with moderate CBE. The research tested whether the independent variables, guided imagery and MITT, have significant independent and/or interaction effects on the dependent variables functional status, fatigue, dyspnea, depression, mastery, quality of life, perceived health status, and inspiratory muscle strength. Results showed that the psychologic intervention of guided imagery significantly improved subjects' perceived quality of life. The physiologic intervention of MITT could not be tolerated by subjects, which precluded testing the effects on the dependent variables. Application of study findings to clinical practice and the need for further research are discussed.