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New Class of Drugs Might Treat Many Conditions
(SOURCES: Gary S. Francis, M.D., director, coronary intensive care unit, Cleveland Clinic; May 10, 2008, The Lancet)
FRIDAY, May 9 (HealthDay News) -- A new class of drugs called vaptans may be able to treat a wide variety of conditions including painful periods, brain hemorrhage, psychotic disorders and glaucoma, Belgian researchers report.
Vaptans, short for vasopressin-receptor antagonists, work by targeting the vasopressin hormone system, which plays an important role in controlling blood and water volume in the body. These drugs, which can be taken orally or intravenously, block the action of vasopressin, according to the report in the May 10 issue of The Lancet.
In the report, Dr. ...
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“Overcome shortage of nurses”
NEW DELHI: Appreciating the role of nurses in the healthcare system, President Pratibha Devisingh Patil has called for bridging the gap between the existing and required number of nurses in the country.
Speaking after presenting the National Florence Nightingale Awards here on Monday to mark the International Nurses Day, Ms. Patil said it was a matter of pride that the quality and commitment of Indian nurses was getting recognition. They are in high demand in India and the world but there exists an acute shortage. There are about 3.7 lakh nurses in India while the requirement is about 10.5 lakh nurses by 2012. “Serious consideration needs to be given as to how to close this gap. More nursing colleges should be established,” she said.
Describing gentleness, compassion and sensitivity as the innate qualities of a woman as a result of which she dominated the nursing profession, Ms. Patil said that apart from general nursing there should be an attempt to specialise in at least one branch. Training institutions should also conduct skill upgrading courses for working nurses. ...
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Nurses to see pay raise
The Associated Press
DES MOINES -- Thousands of Iowa nurses are in for pay raises.
The Legislature agreed to give medium and large hospitals a 1 percent increase in Medicaid money. In return, the hospitals promised to use the money to increase nurses' salaries.
About 10,000 nurses should see an increase.
Iowa would add $1.7 million extra in Medicaid money for hospitals. The federal government is expected to match that with $3.4 million.
Small hospitals aren't included because their Medicaid payments are figured under a different system.
According to a federal survey, Iowa ranks 52nd in nurses' pay among the 54 states and territories in 2006. Iowa nurses averaged about $47,000 per year, about $8,000 below nurses in the mid-range states. ...
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NIH Launches Undiagnosed Diseases Program
News Advisory
What: Teleconference to discuss new trans-NIH clinical research program and its anticipated service to the medical community and patients from across the United States.
When: Monday, May 19, 11 a.m. - 12 p.m. Eastern
Where: Teleconference. Reporters to dial-in at: 800-862-9098; international reporters call: 785-424-1051. Conference ID/Password: 7NIHUDPNEWS
Who: Elias A. Zerhouni, M.D., Director, NIH
John I. Gallin, M.D., Director, Clinical Center and Associate Director for Clinical Research, NIH
William A. Gahl, M.D., Ph.D., Clinical Director, National Human Genome Research Institute, NIH
Stephen Groft, Pharm.D., Director, NIH Office of Rare Diseases
Amanda Young, NIH Clinical Center patient, whose rare genetic disorder took 10 years to diagnose.
The NIH Clinical Center (CC) is the clinical research hospital for the National Institutes of Health. Through clinical research, physician-investigators translate laboratory discoveries into better treatments, therapies and interventions to improve the nation's health. ...
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Arizona Nursing Board Committee Recommends Allowing Nurses To Perform First-Trimester Abortions
The Arizona Board of Nursing's Advance Practice Committee has voted unanimously to recommend that nurse practitioners be allowed to perform first-trimester abortions in the state, the Arizona Daily Star reports. The full nursing board is scheduled to vote on the recommendation on Wednesday. According to the Star, the recommendation "will only add fuel" to legislative efforts aimed at overriding the nursing board and permitting only doctors to perform abortions in the state. The House recently voted 32-28 to pass a bill (HB 2269) that would prohibit all nurses from performing surgical abortions (Fischer, Arizona Daily Star, 5/9).
Although state law regulates nursing, there are no rules specifically addressing which types of practitioners can perform abortions. Rules state that nurse practitioners are entitled to perform therapeutic procedures that they are qualified to conduct.
The bill was spurred by a complaint filed in June 2007 with the Board of Nursing against Mary Andrews, a nurse practitioner with Planned Parenthood Arizona. The board considered the issue in November 2007 but did not reach a decision. ...
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RWJF and AACN Launch New Careers in Nursing Scholarship Program
Groundbreaking Program Addresses the Nursing Shortage By Supporting 1500 New Students in Accelerated Nursing Programs
WASHINGTON, D.C., April 22, 2008 – The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation
(RWJF) and the American Association of Colleges of Nursing (AACN) announced today the creation of the RWJF New Careers in Nursing Scholarship Program, designed to alleviate the nation’s nursing shortage by dramatically expanding the pipeline of students in accelerated nursing programs.
Scholarships in the amount of $10,000 each will be awarded to 1500 entry-level nursing students over the next three years. Preference will be given to students from groups underrepresented in nursing or from a disadvantaged background.
“The size and scope of this scholarship program is truly unprecedented in nursing,” said AACN President Fay Raines. ...
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Penn Nursing’s $10 Million Grant from NIH to Improve Sedation Management of Critically-Ill Children
The National Institutes of Health has awarded the University of Pennsylvania School of Nursing a $10 million grant to investigate better ways of managing sedation for children on life-saving ventilators. The grant, the largest in the school’s history, will be devoted to conducting one of the most comprehensive studies ever undertaken in pediatric critical care.
The children, who range in age from infant to 18 years, are typically the victims of trauma, pneumonia, bronchiolitis, asthma and other conditions, and are often critically ill, requiring the insertion of ventilation tubes into the throat to assist breathing. The study will involve more than 2,750 patients in 18 of some of the most prestigious pediatric hospitals in the United States and Canada.
“This research asks an important question that will directly inform doctors how to care for critically ill pediatric patients,” said Dr. Andrea Harabin, program director for Acute Lung Injury and Critical Care Medicine, of the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute (NHLBI), which co-funded the grant.
“The truly collaborative, interdisciplinary approach used in this study is very exciting,” added Dr. ...
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Call for submissions: Foundation of New York State Nurses Research Awards
The Foundation of New York State Nurses has established two new research awards entitled the “Novice Nurse Researcher Award” and the “Evidence-Based Practice Award.” These are in addition to the Foundation’s “Distinguished Nurse Researcher” award, established in 1980. The Novice Researcher Award recognizes a novice researcher who demonstrates excellence in an emerging program of research. The Distinguished Nurse Researcher Award recognizes excellence in a coherent program of research. The Evidence-Based Practice award recognizes excellence in implementation of nursing research into practice. The Awards Program showcases nursing excellence both within the profession and to the public. The deadline for submission of nominations is May 12, 2008. Awards criteria and nomination forms are available at http://www.foundationnysnurses.org/ (click on updates), via e-mail to cwelch@FoundationNYSNurses.org, or 518-456-7858, Ext.22.
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Drew University to build research, nursing facility
At Charles R. Drew University of Medicine and Science, the announcement Friday that construction would soon begin on a $43-million research and nursing school building did more than lift spirits around the campus.
It gave the medical school an opportunity to boast about a number of firsts.
The building represents the largest investment in South Los Angeles in decades. The new school will be the first comprehensive training facility for nurses to be built in California in several years and the first ever in that community. ...
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UCSF scores $439 million in 2007 NIH funding, ranks among top universities
The University of California, San Francisco, received $439 million in research support from the National Institutes of Health last year, UCSF said late Friday.
That made it the nation's third-largest recipient of such NIH aid in 2007, trailing only Johns Hopkins University's $582 million and the University of Pennsylvania's $451.5 million.
The UCSF total included $373.1 million in NIH support for the UCSF School of Medicine, which ranked third nationally behind Johns Hopkins' and Penn's medical schools.
The $439 million total included research and training grants, fellowships and other awards, but did not include research contracts, which the NIH will announce later this year.
In addition, UCSF reported, its School of Dentistry, School of Nursing, and School of Pharmacy all ranked first nationally in total NIH dollars in 2007, as they have consistently in recent years. The UCSF dentistry school received $18.3 million in NIH research support last year; the nursing school $13.8 million, and the pharmacy school $19.6 million.
This marks the 28th year that the UCSF School of Pharmacy has ranked first in the nation, UCSF noted. ...
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