Nursing Internships and Practicums

Internships and Practicums

Most nursing programs expect understudies to finish an internship or practicum in a therapeutic setting, which enables nursing understudies to increase handy experience and watch prepared experts at work. This enables understudies to change into the expert world after they finish their nursing degree. The two entry level positions and practicums achieve comparative objectives; however, they do have their disparities.

Nursing practicums require less hours than entry level positions and have a greater amount of a scholarly core interest. Practicums revolve less around coordinate, hands-on involvement with patients, and more on assisting with help assignments. Enlisted medical caretaker’s direct understudies in nursing practicums, and educators supervise them. Practicum understudies may help record therapeutic data on persistent outlines and watch while at the same time nurture collaborate with patients. They likewise get scholastic kudos for an endorsed practicum, however procure next to zero pay.

Internships, on the other hand, offer hands-on, clinical training that offers students a true taste of what nurses do. Internships provide the practical experience nurses need to get an entry-level job after graduation, and they require a time commitment that’s like a part-time job. Registered nurses closely monitor interns, but interns still interact directly with patients, performing the basic patient care tasks that an entry-level nurse would, such as evaluating patient conditions. Nursing internships are often paid and can be a good source for connections and professional recommendations.

What Will I Do for My Nursing Internship or Practicum?

In nursing practicums, students are supervised by a registered nurse who serves as their mentor. Practicum students help with paperwork and other supportive duties, and while their work doesn’t include hands-on patient care, they do have chances to observe working nurses as they care for patients.

Nursing student internships include more responsibility than practicums, since they require direct patient care. Tasks include feeding and dressing patients, administering medication, assisting with tests and procedures, and helping develop and implement patient care plans. Interns work with the nursing staff in a clinical setting and are closely supervised by a registered nurse who monitors and reports their progress to their nursing school.

How Long Will My Internship or Practicum Last?

The number of hours required to complete nursing internships or practicums varies depending on the type of program and degree level the student is pursuing. Internships generally require more hours per week, like a part-time job.

Duke University’s accelerated Bachelor of Science in nursing is a 16-month program that includes 58 credit hours and more than 800 hours of clinical experience. University of Pittsburgh’s comparable accelerated second-degree BSN program lasts three semesters and requires 960 clinical hours. In contrast, Chamberlain University’s online RN-to-BSN program doesn’t require any clinical hours, because the program assumes the student is an RN receiving on-the-job experience.

Each internship and practicum program have its own individual requirements, so students should research closely to choose the one that’s right for them.

Will I Get Academic Credit for My Internship or Practicum?

Students who are required to complete a practicum or an internship as part of their degree program should receive academic credit for their work. In many cases, a practicum includes specific assignments or projects, such as a capstone project, which participating students must complete. Interns also receive academic credit, since internships usually fulfil a degree requirement.

Are you suffering from Migraine and Headaches??

Migraine                     
                                 

Migraine is more than “just a headache”. It is a complex neurological condition, which can affect the whole body and can result in many symptoms, sometimes without a headache at all. It can be easily overlooked or mistaken for other conditions and can affect people in different ways. Research is continuing, but at present we do not know what causes migraine; there is no clear diagnostic test and, as yet, there is no cure. However, there are many ways to help manage the condition and lessen its impact - ultimately reducing the disruption caused to everyday life.

Migraine - the signs

For most people the main feature of a migraine is a painful headache. However, there are other associated symptoms that can prevent an individual from continuing with daily life, and these can occur with or without the headache. If you have two or more of the following symptoms during an attack, it is probable you are suffering from migraine: 

• Intense throbbing headache, often on one side of the head only
• Nausea and / or vomiting. You may also experience diarrhoea
• Increased sensitivity to light, sound, and / or smells
• Neurological symptoms that include visual disturbances such as blind spots, distorted vision, flashing lights or zigzag patterns

Other common aura symptoms you may experience include: tingling or pins and needles in the limbs, an inability to concentrate, confusion, difficulty in speaking, paralysis or loss of consciousness in very rare cases. These symptoms, often called ‘aura’, can occur before an attack happens lasting from a few minutes up to an hour. However, this is usually only experienced by about 20 - 30% of people. Migraine with aura was previously known as classical migraine. The symptoms of a migraine can vary from person to person and during different attacks. Migraine attacks may differ in their frequency, duration and severity, although, normally they last between 4 and 72 hours, and most people are symptom-free between attacks.

The most common migraine triggers are:

• Stress or the relief of stress
• Lack of food or infrequent meals E.g. missing meals
• Certain foods including products containing caffeine, tyramine, alcohol, monosodium glutamate
• Changing sleep patterns E.g. weekend lie-ins or shift work
• Hormonal factors E.g.monthly periods, the contraceptive pill, HRT or the menopause
• Overtiredness/over-exertion both physical or mental
• Extreme emotions E.g.anger, or grief
• Environmental factors E.g. loud noise, bright / flickering lights, strong smells, hot stuffy atmospheres, VDUs etc.
• Climatic conditions E.g.strong winds, extreme heat or cold

Migraine medication

Although there is, as yet, no miracle cure for migraine, it is possible to bring the condition under control using a wide range of treatments that are available. However, with migraine being a complex condition the effectiveness of these treatments can vary between individuals. Some people are sceptical about consulting their doctor about their migraine and believe that nothing can be done to help them. If a prescribed treatment from their doctor has been unsuccessful in the past, some people feel unable to go back. However, the understanding of migraine within the medical field is improving and new treatments are introduced frequently. Your doctor and your pharmacist are important allies in your battle against migraine and their advice and support can be invaluable.

Self-help tips

• Eat regularly to keep blood sugar levels stable - avoiding sugary snacks and leaving no longer than three hours between food during the day or 12 hours overnight.
• Maintain a regular sleep pattern - aim to get 8 hours of sleep each night. Avoid late nights and lie-ins
• Drink plenty of water, 1 - 2 litres per day
• Reduce stress and anxiety - leave time for plenty of rest and relaxation. Practise deep breathing or try yoga
• Limit your intake of drinks containing caffeine and alcohol
• Take sensible breaks from work, especially if you use a VDU or if your work is repetitive and / or stressful; make sure the computer screens are properly adjusted and fitted with anti-glare filters
• Get plenty of fresh air and get some regular exercise
• Avoid bright flashing or flickering lights and reflective surfaces. Wear sunglasses and / or a hat in bright sunlight
• Ensure that ventilation indoors is good and try to keep rooms at a constant temperature

The Tenjin Festival

The Tenjin Festival of Osaka is positioned as one of Japan's main three celebrations, alongside the Gion Matsuri of Kyoto and the Kanda Matsuri of Tokyo. The celebration began in the tenth century and today happens on July 24 and 25 consistently. The principle festivities are hung on the celebration's second day, July 25, including a land parade and a waterway parade with firecrackers.

Land Procession on the second day

Tenjin Matsuri is the celebration of the Tenmangu Shrine and respects its rule divinity Sugawara Michizane, the god of grant. The celebration starts by ritualistically welcoming the divinity out of the hallowed place and marching him through the city, completing different overflowing merriments to engage him, before taking him back to the holy place. For the general population, the vivacious merriments show in a magnificent event to appreciate the sweltering summer day, loaded with customary ensembles, fabulous parades and a celebratory environment.

Michizane's carriage

On the morning of the primary day (July 24), the celebration commences with a custom at Tenmangu Shrine, trailed by petitions at the waterway for peace and the wellbeing and thriving of Osaka. Toward the evening, drums are sounded by men in tall red caps to illuminate everybody that arrangements for the celebration are finished.

The features of the celebration begin at 15:30 of the second day (July 25), when the red-hatted drummers lead the land parade from Tenmangu Shrine through the boulevards of Osaka. The long parade highlights costumed characters, including Sarutahiko, a since a long time ago nosed troll riding a pony, a stately buoy joined by celebration music, lion artists, umbrella artists and different attractions.

Around a hour into the parade, the guard conveying the mikoshi, the resplendent, overlaid convenient sanctum that briefly holds the soul of Tenmangu Shrine's divinity, Sugawara Michizane, leaves the holy place, went before by a kid and a young lady driving a consecrated bull, Michizane's emissary. Two more versatile altars participate in the motorcade later, yet pay special mind to the one with a plated phoenix at its best: this is the one that conveys the exalted soul of Michizane.

After the parade lands at Okawa River around 18:00, its individuals and convenient places of worship are stacked onto water crafts to be marched all over the stream. Other than the parade pontoons, there are some "stage water crafts" on which customary noh and bunraku exhibitions are put on for landside spectators. Shooting between these water crafts, you can likewise detect some Dondoko pontoons that are deftly impelled all over the stream by youthful rowers. Apparently unlimited lines of celebration nourishment slows down along the stream add to the euphoric state of mind.

The waterway parade proceeds as festivities go ahead into the night and comes full circle at around 19:00 when firecrackers begin to go off,continuing until around 21:00. In spite of the fact that not a standout amongst the most remarkable firecracker shows in Japan, the firecrackers of the Tenjin Matsuri, joined with the enlightened pontoons and their appearance off the stream, make for a genuinely one of a kind scene. The mikoshi escort lands at around 21:00 and advances back to the place of worship at 22:00, denoting the finish of the year's celebration.

                                   

                                                                          Dondoko Boat

Expect throngs of people attending the Tenjin Matsuri, especially in the evenings when the river procession and fireworks are held. The competition for good viewing spots along the river is fierce as the demand for picnic space greatly outweighs supply. An alternative would be to purchase a paid seat located near Temmanbashi Station (from 6000 yen, advance booking required) which offers good views of the procession, but only moderately good views of the fireworks.

Tenjin Festival at night

Bridges along Okawa River are closed to road traffic during the river procession and provide good vantage points, but visitors are supposed to keep moving to ensure the smooth flow of human traffic. Kawasaki Bridge gets closed even to pedestrians, partly because common people are not supposed to look down onto the shrine's deity.

Nursing Practice : 5 Exciting Technologies

·Wireless Communication Systems

Wireless badges or headsets coordinate what were before different specialized strategies —, for example, telephones and pagers — into one consistent innovation, lessening reaction times. Remote correspondence frameworks can likewise be "brilliant": they can consequently course calls about specific circumstances or patients to particular attendants or speak with sensors and therapeutic hardware to report patients' wellbeing information. These systems can also alert various health care professionals in case of emergencies as well as foster collaboration and communication in time-sensitive situations.

· Real-Time Location Services

Medical caretakers regularly should find fundamental gear, costing them time that could be spent on more squeezing nursing obligations or notwithstanding backing off reaction times amid crises. A chip or code inserted in therapeutic hardware utilizing indoor situating frameworks can promptly find the thing. Such frameworks can likewise eliminate burglary or abuse, sparing nursing divisions cash on substitution or repair.
Continuous area administrations can likewise be utilized with patients who may experience the ill effects of psychological instability or dementia by furnishing them with a wristband or identification implanted with the innovation. Electronic fringes can be made to set off an alert when patients cross them — keeping them from straying and conceivably harming themselves or others. These administrations can likewise be incorporated into medical attendants' remote correspondence frameworks to actuate a crisis call catch if their physical security is undermined.

· Wireless Patient Monitoring

Chips and sensors can be incorporated into beds, covers, and bedding cushions to screen and provide details regarding weight, pulse, development, and more amid rest, filling in as an additional layer of perception. This innovation can enable patients to maintain a strategic distance from bedsores and falls and cautions medical caretakers to any adjustments in patients' status, regardless of whether emotional or moderate building.

 · Smart TVs

Once only a device for understanding amusement, TVs with savvy innovation would now be able to give data on up and coming medicines and convey directions for prescription or post-release mind. This enables patients to wind up more taught and drew in with their wellbeing status and administration. They can likewise utilize the brilliant TV to report torment levels and different pointers, while the framework can send non-clinical solicitations, (for example, orders for dinners or crisp sheet material) to the suitable office or individual, amplifying the productivity of medical caretakers' opportunity and endeavours.

· Point of Care Technology

Attendants and other human services experts may wear or convey innovation that sweeps a standardized identification, which instantly sends essential patient data and restorative history —, for example, a rundown of current prescriptions, test results, and hypersensitivities — to a journal or cell phone, or even a wearable gadget, for example, Google Glass. Rather than pulling data from a few documents, graphs, and messages, attendants can instantly observe lab comes about, reports from other social insurance experts, for example, specialists or physical advisors, and past responses to methods or medications, enabling them to rapidly make or change a clinical care design as required.

Anahid Kulwicki, Ph.D., RN, FAAN Honorable Keynote Speaker

Dr. Anahid Kulwicki, Ph.D., RN, FAAN 

1. Dr. Anahid Kulwicki joined the Lebanese American University in September 2016 as the dean of the Alice Ramez Chagoury School of Nursing.
2. Prior to joining LAU, Dr. Kulwicki was Dean of the College of Nursing and Health Sciences at the University of Massachusetts Boston.
3. Associate Dean for Research and Director of the Ph.D program in nursing (2010-2012)
4. Director of the Graduate Nursing Program at the Florida International University College of Nursing and Health Sciences (2008-2010)
5. Served as the deputy director of the Department of Health and Human Services of Wayne County, Michigan
6. Director and health officer for the Department of Public Health, Michigan

Education

B.S.N, American University of Beirut, Lebanon

B.S.N, College Health Practitioner, Indiana University, Indianapolis, USA

M.S.N, Nursing Care of Children, Indiana University, Indianapolis, USA

Ph.D., Nursing Synthesis, Indiana University, Indianapolis, USA

Scholarly Interests

Anahid Kulwicki earned her B.S.N at the American University of Beirut and M.S.N and doctoral degrees from Indiana University School of Nursing, Indianapolis. Her program of research focuses on the health of immigrant, refugee and minority populations. A hallmark of her work has been creative collaboration between public and private institutions across multiple disciplines. She established the first health research department for the Middle Eastern community in the US to promote health research and to serve as a conduit for other researchers. In addition, she established and arranged for funding for the first Arab community-based programs for HIV/AIDS, domestic violence, infant mortality, and cardiovascular diseases. Her programs have been evidence-based and effective in improving the health care of the underserved immigrant and refugee populations.

 Her recognized expertise led to her appointment to the Michigan Governor’s Task Force on Minority Health. Institutions such as NIH, W. Kellogg, Blue Cross Blue Shield, and numerous local and state government agencies have supported her research.

Selected Publications

• Kulwicki, A., and Darwish, S. (2016).  Health policy, politics, and reform. In G. Harkness &, R. DeMarco (2nd Eds.), Community and public health nursing: Evidence for practice (pp. 46-61). Philadelphia, PA: Lippincott, Williams, & Wilkins.
• Kulwicki, A., (2015).  On-Line Course Modules for RN to BSN. In Wolters Kluwer Health, Inc., Transcultural Nursing.
• Kulwicki, A., (2015). Domestic violence in Arab American community: a silent crisis. In M. Amer & G. Awad, Handbook of Arab American Psychology. Accepted for publication.
• Kulwicki, A., Ballout, S. (Spring 2015).  Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) In Arabl American Refugee And Recent Immigrant Women. Journal of Cultural Diversity, 22 (1), (9-10).
• Kulwicki, A., Ballout, S., Kilgore, C., Hammad, A., & Dervartanian, H. (2015). Intimate partner violence, depression, and barriers to service utilization in Arab American women. Journal of Transcultural Nursing, 26 (1) (1552-7832), 24-30. DOI: 10.1177/1043659614524000.
• Randolph, M., Elbaum, L., Wen, P., Brunt, D., Larsen, J., Kulwicki, A., & De La Rosa, M. (2014). Functional and psychosocial status of Haitians who became users of lower extremity prostheses as a result of the 2010 earthquake. Journal of Prosthetics And Orthotics, 26 (4) (1040-8800), 177-182.
• Kulwicki, A., Randolph, M., Elbum, L., & Graczkowski, R. (2014). Post traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) in post-earthquake Haitian adults with traumatic amputations. Journal of Nursing Care, 3 (7). Retrieved from http://dx.doi.org/10.4172/2167-1168.S1.006
• Kulwicki, A., Aswad, B., Ballout, S. (2010). Barriers in the utilization of domestic violence services among Arab immigrant women: perceptions of professionals, service providers & community leaders. Journal of Family Violence, 25 (8), 727-735. DOI:10.1007/s10896-010-9330-8.

Health Education

WHAT IS HEALTH EDUCATION?

• Health education is a social science that draws from the biological, environmental, psychological, physical and medical sciences to promote health and prevent disease, disability and premature death through education-driven voluntary behavior change activities.
• Health education is the development of individual, group, institutional, community and systemic strategies to improve health knowledge, attitudes, skills and behavior.
• The purpose of health education is to positively influence the health behavior of individuals and communities as well as the living and working conditions that influence their health.

WHY IS HEALTH EDUCATION IMPORTANT?

• Health education improves the health status of individuals, families, communities, states, and the nation.
• Health education enhances the quality of life for all people.
• Health education reduces premature deaths.
• By focusing on prevention, health education reduces the costs (both financial and human) that individuals, employers, families, insurance companies, medical facilities, communities, the state and the nation would spend on medical treatment.

WHAT DOES A TRAINED HEALTH EDUCATOR DO?

1. Assess individual and community needs
2. Plan health education programs
3. Develop health education programs
4. Coordinate health education programs
5. Implement health education programs
6. Manage health education programs & personnel
7. Evaluate health education programs
8. Write grants
9. Build coalitions
10. Identify resources
11. Make referrals
12. Develop social marketing and mass media campaigns
13. Organize/ mobilize communities for action
14. Handle controversial health issues/content
15. Advocate for health-related issues
16. Encourage healthy behaviour
17. Use a variety of education/training methods
18. Develop audio, visual, print and electronic materials
19. Conduct research
20. Write scholarly articles

Proton Therapy

What is Proton Therapy

Proton therapy is an advanced form of external radiation therapy that uses high-energy proton beams rather than traditional X-ray beams to irradiate a tumor. The protons are precisely aimed at cancerous cells, attack their DNA and induce their destruction. While X-rays are highly penetrating electromagnetic waves that deliver most of their dose before they reach the tumor and tend to affect surrounding healthy tissue, protons deposit most of their energy at a precise and measurable depth that can be perfectly tailored to the tumor location. The absorbed dose of protons increases gradually as it enters the body, suddenly rising to a peak when the protons are slowed down and stopped. This phenomenon is called the Bragg peak and allows to significantly reduce the negative effects on healthy tissue. With this inherent characteristic of protons, it is thus possible to control the radiation dose, to delimit the irradiated region, to identify and to treat the tumor with unmatched precision, efficiency and safety.

How does it work?

The best way to understand how proton therapy works is to look at the physics and engineering inside the proton accelerator, or the synchrotron, and the beam delivery system.

• The proton begins its journey at the ion source. Within fractions of a second, hydrogen atoms are separated into negatively charged electrons and positively charged protons.
• The protons are injected via a vacuum tube into a linear accelerator and in only a few microseconds, the protons’ energy reaches 7 million electron volts.
• Proton beams stay in the vacuum tube as they enter the synchrotron, where acceleration increases their energy to a total of 70 million to 250 million electron volts, enough to place them at any depth within the patient’s body.
• After leaving the synchrotron, the protons move through a beam-transport system comprised of a series of magnets that shape, focus and direct the proton beam to the appropriate treatment room.
• To ensure that each patient receives the prescribed treatment safely and efficiently, the facility is controlled by a network of computers and safety systems. The gantry can revolve 360 degrees, allowing the beam to be delivered at any angle.
• As protons come through the nozzle, a custom-made device (the aperture) shapes the beam of protons, and another custom-made device (the compensator) shapes the protons into three dimensions, delivering them to the depth of the tumor.
• At maximum energy, proton beam travels 125,000 miles per second, which is equivalent to the two-thirds the speed of light.
• From the hydrogen canister to the patient, a proton typically travels 313,000 miles.