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Prevention
Posted February 2012

The Mobile Health Remedy

Oral rehydration therapy (ORT) to prevent dehydration during diarrheal episodes is one of the most effective and affordable interventions to reduce child mortality and morbidity. Yet ORT has yet to be widely adopted in underdeveloped nations. In a pilot study, Alison Buttenheim, PhD, MBA, of the University of Pennsylvania School of Nursing, is investigating whether mobile health (mHealth) technologies can encourage more widespread use of ORT. Her work is supported by Penn's Global Health Partnership program.

"The expansion of cell phone ownership around the world has created an unprecendented oppo
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Pain Management
Posted January 2012

The Cost of Pain

Pain is generally under-treated in the U.S., but low-income and minority patients are even less likely to receive guideline-recommended pain treatment in virtually all healthcare settings in the U.S., according to the authors of a new paper from the University of Pennsylvania School of Nursing, even though minority patients often suffer more severe pain and physical impairments than non-minority patients and are more likely to perform potentially harmful physical work.

In “Pain Medicine, the Official Journal of the American Academy of Pain Medicine,” the reviewers recommended:
 
Study Results
Posted January 2012

Better Together - The RN and the EHR

With the prodding of new federal legislation, electronic health records (EHRs) are rapidly becoming part of the daily practice of hospital nurses – the frontline providers of care. In the first large study of its kind, researchers at the University of Pennsylvania School of Nursing determined that nurses working with EHRs consistently reported more improvements to nursing care and better health outcomes for patients than nurses working in hospitals without this technology.

A study of more than 16,000 nurses working at 316 hospitals in four states indicates that “implementation of an EHR may result in improved and more efficient nursing care, better ca
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Staffing Levels
Posted December 2011

To Keep Nurses, Improve Their Work Environments

Nurses working in hospitals around the world are reporting they are burned out and dissatisfied with their jobs, reported researchers at the University of Pennsylvania School of Nursing’s Center for Health Outcomes and Policy Research in a study of 100,000 nurses in nine countries.

 
Between 20 to 60 percent of nurses reported symptoms of burnout according to the study, published in the International Journal for Quality in Health Care, which collected data from nurses in more than 1,400 hospitals to determine the effect of hospital work environments on hospital outcomes.
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Pediatrics
Posted November 2011

Dancing to Prevent Diabetes

With more than 18 million Americans diagnosed with diabetes, Terri Lipman, PhD, CRNP, of the University of Pennsylvania School of Nursing, encourages kids to ward off the disease with “Dance for Health.”

In this unique upbeat program, Penn Nursing partners with Philadelphia’s Sayre High School and the Bernett Johnson Sayre Health Center to assess and improve physical activity among school-age children, with the goal of lowering the risk for obesity, a key factor in Type 2 diabetes.

Busting hip-hop moves across a wooden gym floor, the Sayre High School dance team led children thr
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Awards
Posted October 2011

Studying the Relationship Between Where People Live and Good Health

Matthew D. McHugh, PhD, CRNP, MPH, JD, an assistant professor at the University of Pennsylvania School of Nursing, has won a competitive grant from the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation (RWJF) to study the relationships among where people live, where they receive hospital care, and the outcomes of that care. Dr. McHugh is one of just 12 nurse educators from around the country to receive the three-year $350,000 Nurse Faculty Scholar award this year. It is given to junior faculty who show outstanding promise as future leaders in academic nursing.

“The RWJF Nurse Faculty Scholar program will provide a great opportunity for me to grow as a nurse scientist and become a leading nursing outcomes and policy researcher,” Dr. McHug


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Gerontology
Posted October 2011

Elderly Long Term Care Residents Suffer Cognitively During Disasters

​In a summer with unprecedented weather events, from tornados, floods, fires and hurricanes, researchers at the University of Pennsylvania School of Nursing found that physiological changes associated with aging and the presence of chronic illness make older adults more susceptible to illness or injury, even death, during a disaster.

Investigators followed 17 long-term care residents, with a mean age of 86, who were evacuated for five days due to a severe summer storm and were relocated to different facilities with different care providers and physical surroundings. The displaced participants experienced delirium, cognitive changes, hospitalizations, and death, according to research published in the Journal of Gerontological Nursing.

“Older adults often have visual and heari
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Mental Health
Posted October 2011

Losing Your Home Can Make You Sick

​If losing your house isn’t bad enough, researchers at the University of Pennsylvania found that homeowners in default or foreclosure exhibited poorer mental health and more physical symptoms than renters, homeowners with moderate housing strain, and homeowners with no housing strain. To make matters worse, those in financial straits might not have access to healthcare professionals, which may further impede their ability to change their circumstances.

“Distressed homeowners whose health is impaired may face particular challenges as they attempt to improve their financial situations,” wrote senior author and Nursing professor Terri Lipman, PhD, RN, and colleagues in the influential journal Nursing Outlook this month. “Medical care and appropriate counseling


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