2020 FNA Book Of Reports
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<strong>2020</strong> Florida Nurses Association<br />
Consequences to Patient Care<br />
Worldwide, nurses spend more time at the bedside and in the community with patients than any other health<br />
care professional” (Mally et al., 2015, p. 410). “Nurses have an exemplary history of meeting challenges and<br />
overcoming barriers” (Mally et al., 2014, p. 416). Federal and state regulation requirements are demanding<br />
increased documentation and quality measures for every patient receiving care. The forecasted demand for<br />
nurses will skyrocket with the aging of the baby boomer generation and multi-system health problems that<br />
contribute to the complexity of patient care. It is critical to increase and sustain a pool of qualified nurses that<br />
will be necessary to provide quality hospice care. Knowledge about Hospice can impact all aspects of quality<br />
patient care. “As nurses across the world become better educated in hospice … and continue to use and add<br />
to the body of research, the care of the terminally ill will improve” (Mally et al., 2014, p. 416).<br />
Statement of Position<br />
The Florida Nurses Association supports the integration of education regarding hospice care nursing within<br />
the clinical component of nursing education as well as the expansion of educational opportunities for RN’s in<br />
the belief that this education would enhance nursing practice and ultimately improve the care of patients. The<br />
Florida Nurses Association further recognizes the special role RN’s have in leading the interdisciplinary team in<br />
providing important medical, psychological, and spiritual care at the end-of-life. The goal of this care is to help<br />
people who are dying have a more peaceful, comfortable and dignified death.<br />
Recommendations for Action<br />
• The Florida Nurses Association supports the integration of hospice care nursing within the didactic and<br />
clinical components of nursing education.<br />
• The Florida Nurses Association will encourage and promote all nurses to become more informed about endof-life,<br />
hospice, and palliative care issues through offering continuing education courses to its members<br />
and expanding articles published in The Florida Nurse publication.<br />
• The Florida Nurses Association will promote legislation through lobbying efforts to require recipients of<br />
Medicare and Medicaid funding be required to educate patients about Hospice.<br />
The Florida Nurses Association supports the National Hospice and Palliative Care Organization’s<br />
recommendations for early education and referral to hospice care services for all patients who are eligible<br />
Routine HIV Testing<br />
Author: Ann Pasquale DNP(c), MSN, APRN, PPCNP-BC<br />
Statement of Concern<br />
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) more than 1.12 million people were<br />
living with a Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) infection at the end of 2015. <strong>Of</strong> those infected, 162,500<br />
(15%) had not received a diagnosis (CDC, 2019). Young people were the most likely to be unaware of their<br />
infection. Among people aged 13-24 with HIV, an estimated 51% didn’t know (CDC, 2019). Missed HIV testing<br />
opportunities, treatment or prevention strategies among adolescents and young adults in healthcare settings<br />
can lead to serious missteps with tragic outcomes. Missed identification of an HIV infection can lead to<br />
delayed treatment and an increased risk of complications and further transmission of the virus while missed<br />
opportunities in prevention interventions can lead to acquiring the virus when pharmacological prevention<br />
management is widely available for high risk individuals.<br />
Rationale<br />
Background Information<br />
Although there has been a formidable shift over the past 30 years in the diagnosis, care, treatment, and<br />
life expectancy of those with HIV/AIDS, the virus continues to pose a particular threat to young adults and<br />
adolescents. While there have been considerable gains in treatment and prevention, many practitioners<br />
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