MedWorm.com provides a medical RSS filtering service. Over 6000 RSS medical sources are combined and output via different filters. This feed contains the latest items from the 'Digital Doorway' source. Mon, 17 Nov 2008 22:43:49 +0100 http://digitaldoorway.blogspot.com/2008/11/charter-for-compassion.html A new organization and movement have been founded with the goal "to build a peaceful and harmonious global community".Utilizing the minds of some of the greatest religious thinkers of our time---including Archbishop Desmond Tutu---The Charter for Compassion "seeks to remind the world that while all faiths are not the same, they all share the core principle of compassion and the Golden Rule. The Charter will change the tenor of the conversation around religion. It will be a clarion call to the world."The following video clearly illustrates the goals of this burgeoning global movement, and simply and coherently verbalizes the widely accepted need for a universal propagation of compassionate tolerance.The Charter for Compassion will be collaboratively created using input from people from ever... Digital Doorway blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=1960634 Fri, 14 Nov 2008 23:31:00 +0100 1960634 http://digitaldoorway.blogspot.com/2008/11/change-of-shift-is-up-at-crzegrl.html A new edition of Change of Shift, everyone's favorite nursing blog carnival, is up over at Crzegrl, Flight Nurse, complete with one video offering, a new twist on the blogging paradigm. Enjoy! (Source: Digital Doorway) Digital Doorway blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=1960635 Fri, 14 Nov 2008 16:11:00 +0100 1960635 http://digitaldoorway.blogspot.com/2008/11/evoking-power-of-compassion.html in us is not always easy. I find myself that the simplest ways are the best and the most direct. Every day, life gives us innumerable chances to open our hearts, if we can only take them. An old woman passes you with a sad and lonely face and two heavy plastic bags full of shopping she can hardly carry. Switch on a television, and there on the news is a mother in Beirut kneeling above the body of her murdered son, or an old grandmother in Moscow pointing to the thin soup that is her only food. . . . Any one of these sights could open the eyes of your heart to the fact of vast suffering in the world. Let it. Don’t waste the love and grief it arouses. In the moment you feel compassion welling up in you, don’t brush it aside, don’t shrug it off and try quickly to return to “normal,�... Digital Doorway blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=1960636 Thu, 13 Nov 2008 09:38:00 +0100 1960636 http://digitaldoorway.blogspot.com/2008/11/radio-interview-columbus-ohio.html For anyone interested, my interview with Fred Andrle on WOSU, Ohio Public Radio, is available online at http://www.wosu.org/radio/radio-open-line/. Just scroll down the page to the Monday, November 10th section, et voila! You can listen from the website or download it is an MP3 file. (Source: Digital Doorway) Digital Doorway blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=1951826 Tue, 11 Nov 2008 11:34:00 +0100 1951826 http://digitaldoorway.blogspot.com/2008/11/bloggers-unite-refugees.html Today, November 10th, 2008, bloggers around the world are posting about issues surrounding the plight of refugees. As we writers sit at our computers, composing thoughts to provoke the thinking and compassion of others, millions of men, women, and children on several continents fight for their lives and their rights to a safe home, free from fear and persecution.For as long as human beings have engaged in battle and warfare, displaced persons have wandered the earth in search of a home. Recently, tens of thousands of refugees within the Democratic Republic of Congo have fled refugee camps due to increased fighting and direct attacks on refugee camps, possibly due to ethnic or religious differences. The Congolese people have suffered for decades, and there is no end in sight to their contin... Digital Doorway blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=1947125 Mon, 10 Nov 2008 05:01:00 +0100 1947125 http://digitaldoorway.blogspot.com/2008/11/disability-discrimination-in-australia.html This past week, a German physician living and working in Australia was denied permanent residency due to the fact that his 13-year-old son with Down's Syndrome does not meet alleged health requirements for citizenship. Citing the potential cost of the child's future medical care, the Australian immigration authority denied that this is a case of discrimination based on disability.The case has sparked a veritably international outcry, and the boy's parents---Bernhard and Isabella Moeller---vow to appeal the case to the highest court in the country.Apparently, Dr. Moeller was aggressively recruited to live and work in Victoria, a rural section of Australia which is currently experiencing a severe shortage of primary care physicians. Taking into consideration the relatively disastrous impact ... Digital Doorway blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=1947126 Sun, 09 Nov 2008 16:50:00 +0100 1947126 http://digitaldoorway.blogspot.com/2008/11/live-radio-call-in-show-about-nursing.html Dear Readers,Just an FYI that I will be interviewed live on the radio on Monday, November 10th at 11am EST on WOSU-AM, Columbus, Ohio. The interview will center around the recent publication of "Reflections on Doctors", and will feature myself, another contributing author, and the host of the program, Fred Andrle.The show will be streamed live at http://www.wosu.org/radio/radio-open-line/ and call-in questions will be accepted from listeners after the first 20 minutes of discussion. Please listen if you can! (Source: Digital Doorway) Digital Doorway blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=1947127 Sat, 08 Nov 2008 19:04:00 +0100 1947127 http://digitaldoorway.blogspot.com/2008/11/belgian-missive.html Europe certainly does charm one easily with its cafes, chocolates, and that otherworldliness that is somehow familiar yet distinct from everything American. Bicycling with a giggling Dutch seven-year-old girl clutching my jacket from her perch on the seat behind me, my hands and ears are bitter from the cold while my mind gleefully takes in my surroundings. The Belgians don't have that famous tolerance and awareness for bicycles so common to the Dutch, so we're careful as we make our way through the densely populated and crazily busy streets. I play with my hosts' young children, our only common language being the universal language of play. Their parents, my dear friends, translate as necessary, but we laugh and engage in all sorts of imaginative play without the need for intelligible con... Digital Doorway blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=1943339 Fri, 07 Nov 2008 22:30:00 +0100 1943339 http://digitaldoorway.blogspot.com/2008/11/new-day.html Well, here I am in Europe, and Belgian television is awash with news of Barack Obama's massive win over John McCain, and the increasingly Democratic Congress. The news and talk-shows here are absolutely buoyant, and Europe seems to be rejoicing at this turn of events vis-a-vis American politics and world diplomacy.As for me, I am struck by the historical significance of an African-American President of the United States. I am equally struck by the message that his election sends to young people of color everywhere.Based on what I'm gleaning from my European perch, I can also see that the world is expecting change, openness, inclusivity, and a major about-face by the U.S. on climate change, global security, the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, the global economy, and more. Meanwhile, many of u... Digital Doorway blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=1939019 Wed, 05 Nov 2008 22:27:00 +0100 1939019 http://digitaldoorway.blogspot.com/2008/11/off-to-brussels-on-election-day.html Well readers, I'm flying off to Brussels, Belgium to visit old friends amidst the maelstrom of Election Day here in the States. I do indeed plan to blog from my European perch a few times during my stay, but it will most likely take a few days for me to find my feet and recover sufficiently from jet lag.So, until then, be well, and please check back in a few days for an update. By then, I'll hopefully be able to gleefully report on the high quality of chocolate, beer, mussels, and french fries at my disposal.All the best,Keith (Source: Digital Doorway) Digital Doorway blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=1930210 Tue, 04 Nov 2008 02:32:00 +0100 1930210 http://digitaldoorway.blogspot.com/2008/11/value-care-value-nurses-blogger.html I have now completed my series of posts under the auspices of the Nurse Blogger Scholarship which I was awarded in July of this year from Value Care, Value Nurses. I would like to take this opportunity to thank VCVN and the Service Employees International Union (SEIU) for their generosity and support. VCVN and SEIU exerted no influence on the subject matter, tone, or content of my posts, and I was given absolutely free reign throughout the length of the scholarship period.As a way to make all of my entries available in one place, I am creating links to each post---in chronological order of their publication---here.Value Care, Value Nurses ScholarshipThe Nursing Shortage: A Global Crisis, Close to HomeObama, Healthcare and a Trio of Mythic FiguresThe Aging WorldHispanics and the U.S. Health... Digital Doorway blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=1926405 Sat, 01 Nov 2008 19:07:00 +0100 1926405 http://digitaldoorway.blogspot.com/2008/10/halloween-change-of-shift.html A scary Hallowe'en edition of Change of Shift is ready to spook you over at Crazy Miracle. Visit if you dare......and Happy Hallowe'en. (Source: Digital Doorway) Digital Doorway blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=1924463 Fri, 31 Oct 2008 04:52:00 +0100 1924463 http://digitaldoorway.blogspot.com/2008/10/reflections-on-doctors-reviewed-in-ny.html Reflections on Doctors, the recently-published book of non-fiction by nurses for which I was one of many contributors, has been reviewed for the New York Times by Dr. Abigail Zuger, M.D.While Dr. Zuger is admittedly underwhelmed by the lack of "literary style" demonstrated by the book's contributors, she states that "each story represents a step in understanding the inherent differences that separate the professions".Even as the reviewer points out that the relationships described would not elicit "a minute of good television" (an assertion which I reject out of hand), and that the authors "write in shades of gray, describing interactions and relationships that are colorless, courteous, [and] businesslike", the Dr. Zuger seems to conclude that good, thoughtful medical care is, on balance, ... Digital Doorway blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=1920934 Thu, 30 Oct 2008 16:41:00 +0100 1920934 http://digitaldoorway.blogspot.com/2008/10/new-nurses-primary-care-and-calculus-of.html (Note: This is my twelfth---and final---post under the auspices of the nurse blogger scholarship which I recently received from Value Care, Value Nurses.)It seems that everywhere I turn, someone is telling me that, a) they just applied to nursing school, b) someone they know just applied, or c) they or someone they know was just accepted/rejected from nursing school.New nurses---and those who wish to be nurses---are entering a profession in transition, a profession that is losing its older members more quickly than its educational institutions can churn out novices ready to enter the fray.Today I was interviewed on a radio program in Gainseville, Florida about a recently published book of non-fiction writing by nurses in which I was a featured contributor. The show's hosts seemed sincerely... Digital Doorway blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=1914594 Tue, 28 Oct 2008 14:02:00 +0100 1914594 http://digitaldoorway.blogspot.com/2008/10/nurse-heal-thyself.html The stresses and challenges of practicing as a nurse often seem to preclude something which appears to be ubiquitously foreign to most nurses: self-care. Nurses are notorious for being bad patients, are they not? They work long shifts, spend countless hours perfecting the care of others, give great attention to the details of their patients' care, yet often miss a very important patient---quite well-known to them, in fact---who's just screaming for attention. What's a busy nurse to do?We all enter nursing for various reasons, but one would hope that the majority are there due to a love of people, a willingness to provide quality care, and a sincere desire to be a participant in the healing of others. Nursing has been espoused to be a "calling" (some of us do indeed hear voices!), an "art",... Digital Doorway blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=1908752 Sun, 26 Oct 2008 22:19:00 +0100 1908752 http://digitaldoorway.blogspot.com/2008/10/nursing-shortage-pbs-style.html (Note: This is my eleventh post under the auspices of the nurse blogger scholarship which I recently received from Value Care, Value Nurses.)Well, it finally happened. The nursing shortage received some well-deserved coverage that, in many ways, actually did the subject justice. Now with David Brancaccio, a weekly half-hour television show of investigative journalism on PBS (previously hosted and made famous by Bill Moyers), focused its attention on the nursing shortage in America, and I can only hope that the message delivered is heard by the people who most need to hear it.With a shortage of as many as one million nurses projected by the year 2020, calls to address this crisis within the troubled American healthcare system are becoming louder and louder.As described in the course of the ... Digital Doorway blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=1907583 Sat, 25 Oct 2008 04:04:00 +0100 1907583 http://digitaldoorway.blogspot.com/2008/10/nursing-shortage-on-pbs-tonight.html Tonight on Now with David Brancaccio on PBS stations around the country, the nursing shortage will be the focus of Now's award-winning investigative journalism. I highly recommend tuning into this important 30-minute broadcast, or watch the online streaming version of the show which will be posted on the Now website after the show has aired. (Source: Digital Doorway) Digital Doorway blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=1905847 Fri, 24 Oct 2008 12:07:00 +0100 1905847 http://digitaldoorway.blogspot.com/2008/10/fiction-prose-and-ephemera.html Dear Readers,I am writing to inform you that, as my creative writing practice grows, I've decided to create a separate blog where I will post poetry, prose, fiction, and other ephemera several times each week. Since Digital Doorway seems to focus mostly on health, healthcare, human rights, and nursing (with some spirituality and politics, for good measure!), I felt it was time for the birth of a new venue that falls outside of my own perceived scope for Digital Doorway.This new blog is called Fiction, Prose and Ephemera, and will be bookmarked on the right side of Digital Doorway's homepage, where you can also find links to Latter Day Sparks (the story of my dog Sparkey and his final days of life) and A Nurse and His Treo (a photography experiment), two of my other adventures in blogging.T... Digital Doorway blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=1901439 Thu, 23 Oct 2008 04:08:00 +0100 1901439 http://digitaldoorway.blogspot.com/2008/10/blog-action-day-wrap-up.html On October 15th, I took part in Blog Action Day, an annual event wherein bloggers from around the world come together to write posts about the same subject, generally something of import to humanity as a whole. This year, the subject was poverty, and a wrap-up of the event can be found by clicking here.Apparently, 12,800 bloggers took part this year in writing over 14,000 posts for a total audience of of over 13,000,000 readers.To read my post, please click here. And if you're moved to take a moment to do something in the fight against poverty, then the movement has been effective. Here are just a few ideas for actions you can take:make a donation to a local soup kitchen, food bank, or food pantryvolunteer to tutor a childbecome a Big Brother or Big Sisterstart your own non-profit organiza... Digital Doorway blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=1901440 Thu, 23 Oct 2008 00:54:00 +0100 1901440 http://digitaldoorway.blogspot.com/2008/10/change-of-shift-goes-to-nursing-school.html The latest edition of Change of Shift (that nursing blog carnival that we love) is up and ready for your perusal over at Nurse Ratched's Place. Please pay the good nurse a visit if you can.The home page of Change of Shift can be found here. (Source: Digital Doorway) Digital Doorway blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=1891950 Mon, 20 Oct 2008 04:01:00 +0100 1891950 http://digitaldoorway.blogspot.com/2008/10/healthcare-politics-cynicism-and-hope.html If you are aware of the following current statistics vis-a-vis healthcare in the United States, then you are aware that the system is broken and apparently breaking more every day.Nursing shortage: 587,000 new needed by 2016Physician shortage: expected, indeterminate Uninsured Americans: 47 million National healthcare costs: $2.1 trillion/yrEmployment-based healthcare: 9% drop since 1996Healthcare premiums, annual growth: outpacing wage increases x 3Long-term care: growing need U.S. life expectancy: 77-80 years of age U.S. population: 305.4 MillionMedian Income: $46,000And if you're of voting age, then you probably have considered both major candidates' healthcare plans (or perhaps healthcare has simply been overshadowed by the current economic cri... Digital Doorway blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=1888986 Sun, 19 Oct 2008 04:01:00 +0100 1888986 http://digitaldoorway.blogspot.com/2008/10/dementia-and-devotion.html In the home they have owned for more than 40 years, they live their lives as they always have. The same trees are visible through the kitchen window. The grass is still green. The grandfather clock given to them by her parents for their tenth wedding anniversary still chimes in the foyer. The curtains and the sofas haven't changed in years, and the silver flatware in the breakfront drawer still evokes memories of Thanksgiving dinners, birthdays, and family gatherings galore. From the kitchen linoleum to the wood paneling in the family room, little has changed in this cozy suburban home.While the outward appearances are relatively static, it is her dementia that has permanently changed the calculus of their relationship. It began with mild, transitory forgetfulness, only to slowly escalate ... Digital Doorway blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=1888107 Sat, 18 Oct 2008 12:09:00 +0100 1888107 http://digitaldoorway.blogspot.com/2008/10/multiple-chemical-sensitivity-hidden.html This article will introduce MCS, its symptoms and proposed etiology, and provide resources for nurses who wish to become more conversant with the vicissitudes of this very modern illness. As a nurse living with MCS, I see it as my mission to bring this condition to the awareness of nurses and other medical professionals, thus increasing knowledge, understanding, compassion, and available treatment options for the many sufferers of this much misunderstood and unacknowledged condition.Multiple Chemical Sensitivity is a chronic health condition afflicting many people throughout the world. Individuals with MCS report a variety of symptoms when exposed to varying levels of chemical or fragrance exposure, including but not limited to headache/migraine, shortness of breath, confusion, irritabilit... Digital Doorway blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=1879822 Thu, 16 Oct 2008 04:01:00 +0100 1879822 http://digitaldoorway.blogspot.com/2008/10/blog-action-day-poverty-around-world.html Today is Blog Action Day 2008, and this year's goal is to raise awareness about global poverty by having thousands upon thousands of bloggers use their blogs as virtual soap boxes. With the global economy in turmoil and governments planning massive bailouts of banks the world over, we must not lose sight of those for whom the news of a stock market plunge or a failed bank means nothing. Yes, we must do something to keep the economy afloat, but a bailout of the world's poor is more than paramount, and it doesn't even seem to be part of the conversation.Almost half the world's population---more than 3 billion people---live on less than $2.50 per day. The Gross Domestic Product (GDP) of 41 of the most indebted countries in the world is less than the combined wealth of the seven richest countr... Digital Doorway blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=1876010 Wed, 15 Oct 2008 04:01:00 +0100 1876010 http://digitaldoorway.blogspot.com/2008/10/impermanence-fear-and-awakening.html The fear that impermanence awakens in us, that nothing is real and nothing lasts, is, we come to discover, our greatest friend because it drives us to ask: If everything dies and changes, then what is really true? Is there something behind the appearances? Is there something in fact we can depend on, that does survive what we call death?Allowing these questions to occupy us urgently, and reflecting on them, we slowly find ourselves making a profound shift in the way we view everything. We come to uncover in ourselves “something” that we begin to realize lies behind all the changes and deaths of the world.As this happens, we catch repeated and glowing glimpses of the vast implications behind the truth of impermanence. We come to uncover a depth of peace, joy, and confidence in ourselves... Digital Doorway blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=1873037 Tue, 14 Oct 2008 05:14:00 +0100 1873037 http://digitaldoorway.blogspot.com/2008/10/blog-action-day-october-15th-poverty.html October 15th is Blog Action Day, an annual event wherein bloggers from around the world join together and post about a single subject having to do with improving lives, calling attention to important issues of the day, and sparking a global conversation.In 2007, Blog Action Day focused on the environment, and in 2008, poverty is the focus of thousands of bloggers who will all post about some aspect of poverty on the same day.If you're a blogger, please consider joining and adding your voice to the conversation. If you're not a blogger, please consider starting a blog today and making your first post about this crucial global issue. If you are neither a blogger nor a person who cares to become one, please tune in to the Blog Action Day website on October 15th, follow links to some of the ma... Digital Doorway blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=1873038 Mon, 13 Oct 2008 13:41:00 +0100 1873038 http://digitaldoorway.blogspot.com/2008/10/irony-of-mental-health-parity.html (Note: This is my ninth post under the auspices of the nurse blogger scholarship which I recently received from Value Care, Value Nurses.)In June of this year, I reported on Nurse LinkUp that Congress was poised to once again begin a concerted push to pass legislation bringing parity for insurance coverage for mental health, including addiction, eating disorders, and any illness classified in the DSM-IV. That effort basically failed, and it is only now, just prior to the end of this Congress, that mental health parity legislation has actually become law.We are all by now (nauseatingly) familiar with the $700 billion financial bailout recently passed by Congress and signed into law by President Bush in the waning days of his presidency (more on that in future). As a part of that package, mo... Digital Doorway blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=1870665 Sun, 12 Oct 2008 14:38:00 +0100 1870665 http://digitaldoorway.blogspot.com/2008/10/china-off-hook.html Based on yesterday's post, most readers must have surmised that I have strong feelings about the Chinese government. Those same readers can also correctly surmise that I am disappointed this morning that none of the Chinese dissidents on the short list for the Nobel Prize were nominated. I'm sure that the Chinese government is breathing a sigh of relief, a reprieve that they simply do not warrant.As I wrote yesterday, the awarding of the Peace Prize to a Chinese dissident struggling for basic human rights would have offered a counter-weight to China's moment in the sun as the undeserving host of the 2008 Summer Olympics. But that was not meant to be.This morning, the Nobel Committee announced from Oslo that it was awarding the Nobel Peace Prize to former Finnish President Martti Ahtisaari ... Digital Doorway blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=1865453 Fri, 10 Oct 2008 12:54:00 +0100 1865453 http://digitaldoorway.blogspot.com/2008/10/nobel-peace-prize-dissidents-on-short.html Tomorrow, Friday the 10th of October, the winner of the Nobel Peace Prize will be announced. Following on the heels of the prizes in medicine, physics, economics and literature, the awarding of the Peace Prize is the crowning moment of the Nobel process.Rumor has it that Gao Zhisheng, a Chinese dissident, will be awarded the prize. Zhisheng, who has been arrested, detained, and almost assassinated due to his role as the winning lawyer in a case against the Chinese government for the religious freedom of practitioners of Falun Gong, was kidnapped in 2007 and has never been seen again. It is believed that Gao is in the custody of Chinese authorities, that he has suffered torture at the hands of Chinese authorities, and that he was removed from Beijing during the Olympic games following a sui... Digital Doorway blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=1865454 Fri, 10 Oct 2008 01:31:00 +0100 1865454 http://digitaldoorway.blogspot.com/2008/10/domestic-violence-awareness-month.html Since 1987, October has been recognized as Domestic Violence Awareness Month, which was founded by the National Coalition Against Domestic Violence (NCADV). Prior to and since that year, many people around the country have been working tirelessly to end the widespread domestic violence that effects women, men, and children of all ages and backgrounds.The national domestic violence hotline (1-800-799-SAFE) was also established in 1987, with many states creating their own individual hotlines for added protection and advocacy for those in need.For more than seven years, the NCADV has worked closely with The Wireless Foundation to distribute donated and discarded cellphones to victims of domestic violence for emergency use. If you would like to donate a used cellphone to the program, please cl... Digital Doorway blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=1862714 Thu, 09 Oct 2008 00:07:00 +0100 1862714 http://digitaldoorway.blogspot.com/2008/10/reflections-on-doctors-has-been.html I am very happy to announce that a chapter which I submitted to Kaplan Publishing for inclusion in a new book of non-fiction by nurses has been included in the recently published volume, Reflections on Doctors: Nurses' Stories About Physicians and Surgeons.The book is the first in Kaplan's newest series, and I am honored and thrilled to have been included. I cannot reproduce my chapter here on Digital Doorway, so the only way for interested readers to actually read my submission is to buy the book or to some day check it out of a library.A review of the book has been published on Blissful Entropy, a wonderful nursing blog.Here is Kaplan's press release about the book: FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE REFLECTIONS ON DOCTORS Nurses’ Stories about Physicians and Surgeons ... Digital Doorway blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=1859481 Tue, 07 Oct 2008 14:11:00 +0100 1859481 http://digitaldoorway.blogspot.com/2008/10/arousing-compassion.html One technique for arousing compassion for a person who is suffering is to imagine one of your dearest friends, or someone you really love, in that person’s place. Imagine your brother or daughter or parent or best friend in the same kind of painful situation. Quite naturally your heart will open, and compassion will awaken in you: What more would you want than to free your loved one from his or her torment? Now take this compassion released in your heart and transfer it to the person who needs your help: You will find that your help is inspired more naturally and that you can direct it more easily.----Sogyal Rinpoche (Source: Digital Doorway) Digital Doorway blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=1856010 Mon, 06 Oct 2008 12:29:00 +0100 1856010 http://digitaldoorway.blogspot.com/2008/10/public-health-and-me.html Tomorrow, I begin my position as interim Public Health Nurse right here in my own New England hometown. Having never worked in my town (after almost fifteen years of residence in the area), it will be an interesting experience to actually be a "public figure" for the first time.While my position is indeed interim, I'm coming on board just at the beginning of flu season, and since I'm the individual who literally holds the key to the town's flu vaccine supply, I have an idea I am about to become very popular.Understandably, everyone is anxious to get their flu shot. The elderly residents of the town see the annual flu clinic and make-up flu clinic as an inalienable right, and the government's push for the majority of Americans to be vaccinated this year has driven this point home quite wide... Digital Doorway blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=1853566 Sun, 05 Oct 2008 23:44:00 +0100 1853566 http://digitaldoorway.blogspot.com/2008/10/xdr-tb-and-ted-conference.html In 2007, James Nachtwey's work as a photographer was chosen by the TED (Technology, Entertainment, Design) Conference in recognition of his desire to use photography to spread recognition of the importance of the battle against Extensively Drug-Resistant Tuberculosis (XDR-TB). He was awarded $100,000 towards his goal, and the results of his work have now been made public, and a moving website and slide show are now available for all to see---and to subsequently take action.The TED Conference is an annual conference that awards prizes to three individuals and organizations advancing the spread of ideas and knowledge of importance to humanity, and James Nachtwey's photographs of the victims of XDR-TB in India, Africa, and other far-flung nations will now receive even greater attention due to... Digital Doorway blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=1850974 Sat, 04 Oct 2008 11:08:00 +0100 1850974 http://digitaldoorway.blogspot.com/2008/10/autumn-harvest-change-of-shift.html The newest edition of Change of Shift, hosted by yours truly over on Nurse LinkUp, is now up and running for your reading pleasure. Please pay us a visit! (Source: Digital Doorway) Digital Doorway blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=1844647 Thu, 02 Oct 2008 10:46:00 +0100 1844647 http://digitaldoorway.blogspot.com/2008/10/economics-and-confusion.html Thinking further about the economic issues that I touched on in my last post, it's so hard to get one's brain around what's happening here in the U.S. this week. With such dire news and warnings of financial Armageddon, how does one tease out the truth from all of the hyperbole?Articles abound about what will happen if the bailout doesn't pass. Blame is passed from hand to hand. But where do we ordinary citizens fit in? What do we stand to lose or gain in the process?Economics is one area where this nurse is most weak when it comes to understanding the bigger picture. Understanding my own personal economy is difficult enough. But I just can't stop thinking that many of the people in need of a bailout themselves are going to be left in the dust no matter what happens.Whether we look at the ... Digital Doorway blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=1844648 Wed, 01 Oct 2008 20:29:00 +0100 1844648 http://digitaldoorway.blogspot.com/2008/09/economics-and-elderly.html (Note: This is my eighth post under the auspices of the nurse blogger scholarship which I recently received from Value Care, Value Nurses.)So, as the bad news splashes across the headlines and the denizens of Wall Street throw up their hands to ward off the falling sky (that they themselves created), the elderly here in the United States are facing some tough economic times of their own as we turn the corner to 2009.Reports now tell us that premiums for drug coverage under Medicare Part D will rise an average of 31% in the coming year. For some seniors, most of whom are on fixed incomes, a monthly increase of $50 to $100 could spell economic disaster, especially when one considers the simultaneous (and often astronomical) rise in the cost of food, gas, general healthcare costs, home heatin... Digital Doorway blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=1837146 Sun, 28 Sep 2008 21:41:00 +0100 1837146 http://digitaldoorway.blogspot.com/2008/09/adn-track-history-and-diversity.html Please click here to read my recent article (published on Nurse LinkUp) regarding the history of Associate Degree nursing programs, an affordable educational trend which diversified the field of nursing and afforded many people like myself a convenient and fulfilling educational experience. (Source: Digital Doorway) Digital Doorway blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=1833165 Fri, 26 Sep 2008 15:19:00 +0100 1833165 http://digitaldoorway.blogspot.com/2008/09/to-serve-all-beings.html To recognize the nature of your mind is to engender in the ground of your being an understanding that will change your entire worldview and help you discover and develop, naturally and spontaneously, a compassionate desire to serve all beings, as well as a direct knowledge of how best you can do so, with whatever skill or ability you have, in whatever circumstances you find yourself.-----Sogyal Rinpoche (Source: Digital Doorway) Digital Doorway blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=1829118 Thu, 25 Sep 2008 12:05:00 +0100 1829118 http://digitaldoorway.blogspot.com/2008/09/interim-public-health-nurse.html Today I accepted a temporary position as the Interim Public Health Nurse for my town of residence, ten hours per week! The nurse who has been in the position is leaving after thirteen years (to become a school nurse, of all things). I am stepping in for at least three months and will be responsible for disease surveillance, Tuberculosis Case Management, immunization tracking and clinics, and other public health issues. I am excited and nervous, and could be in the running for the full 26-hour position at the beginning of 2009. (Source: Digital Doorway) Digital Doorway blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=1825576 Thu, 25 Sep 2008 01:37:00 +0100 1825576 http://digitaldoorway.blogspot.com/2008/09/survey-of-medical-bloggers-now.html In late 2007, I was contacted by a research group at The University of Rijeka School of Medicine in Croatia. This group was conducting a study of medical bloggers, their blogging habits, and their motivations for blogging. The study, entitled Examining the Medical Blogosphere: An Online Survey of Medical Bloggers, has been published in the Journal of Medical Internet Research (JIMR), the "leading peer-reviewed transdisciplinary journal on health and healthcare in the Internet age".To read this very interesting paper, please click here, and a slide show of the findings can be found posted on the blog of one of the article's lead authors.I was honored to be involved as a anonymous subject of the survey, and feel that increased attention to the importance of blogging on the fields of medicine... Digital Doorway blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=1825577 Tue, 23 Sep 2008 23:54:00 +0100 1825577 http://digitaldoorway.blogspot.com/2008/09/nurse-linkup-to-host-change-of-shift.html Hear ye! Hear ye! Nurse LinkUp will be the host of the next edition of Change of Shift, (the premier blog carnival for nurse bloggers) which will be posted in its glorious entirety on October 2nd, 2008. Deadline for submissions is high noon on Tuesday, 9/30/08. Please email all entries to nursekeith@gmail.com. (Source: Digital Doorway) Digital Doorway blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=1812696 Sun, 21 Sep 2008 20:49:00 +0100 1812696 http://digitaldoorway.blogspot.com/2008/09/office-of-national-nurse.html (Note: This is my seventh post under the auspices of the nurse blogger scholarship which I recently received from Value Care, Value Nurses.)Unbeknownst to many Americans, a grassroots campaign to create an Office of the National Nurse has been underway for several years. While many in the nursing community recognize that the Surgeon General plays an important role in managing and overseeing the health and health education of the nation, it is also recognized that nurses are woefully underrepresented when it comes to our national priorities vis-a-vis healthcare and prevention.With a global nursing shortage in full swing at this pivotal historical time, we still see that neither presidential candidate in the current race fully acknowledges (or plans to adequately address) the shortage and it... Digital Doorway blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=1811287 Sun, 21 Sep 2008 00:38:00 +0100 1811287 http://digitaldoorway.blogspot.com/2008/09/prospects-for-more-meaningful-work.html Sometimes things just happen. Yesterday I received an email from the person who serves as the Public Health Nurse for the little college town where I live (population: 20,000 residents + 25,000 students, more or less). She's stepping down from her post and the town is looking for an interim part-time nurse (10 hours per week +/-) to organize, plan, and implement the town's flu clinics for the season, as well as track the handful of TB cases and other reportable diseases in the area. A few emails and a phone call later, and a meeting has been set up for me to discuss the position with the Powers that Be. No muss, no fuss. Perhaps not even a formal interview. (One confounding factor: I have tickets to fly to Brussels to visit old friends and will be gone November 4th-12th. Deal breaker? We'l... Digital Doorway blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=1811288 Fri, 19 Sep 2008 13:04:00 +0100 1811288 http://digitaldoorway.blogspot.com/2008/09/nursing-away-from-hospital.html I am an occasional guest blogger on NurseConnect. Please click here to read my latest column which was submitted in response to a question regarding my choice of specialty: ambulatory care, home care, and hospice. (Source: Digital Doorway) Digital Doorway blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=1806240 Thu, 18 Sep 2008 23:26:00 +0100 1806240 http://digitaldoorway.blogspot.com/2008/09/bodhisattvas.html What the world needs more than anything is bodhisattvas, active servants of peace, “clothed,” as Longchenpa said, “in the armor of perseverance,” dedicated to their bodhisattva vision and to the spreading of wisdom into all reaches of our experience. We need bodhisattva lawyers, bodhisattva artists and politicians, bodhisattva doctors and economists, bodhisattva teachers and scientists, bodhisattva technicians and engineers, bodhisattvas everywhere, working consciously as channels of compassion and wisdom at every level and in every situation of society; working to transform their minds and actions and those of others, working tirelessly in the certain knowledge of the support of the buddhas and enlightened beings for the preservation of our world and for a more merciful future.---... Digital Doorway blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=1798097 Tue, 16 Sep 2008 23:11:00 +0100 1798097 http://digitaldoorway.blogspot.com/2008/09/digital-doorway-at-alensacom.html A "mirror version" of Digital Doorway is now up and running over at Alensa.com. Alensa is a Swiss healthcare company which is now hosting a variety of health-related blogs and Web-2.0 functions from its home website. I admittedly know little about Alensa, and will be discovering more about them over time.Meanwhile, if you would like to visit the Alensa version of Digital Doorway, please click here and see what it looks like. But never fear, faithful readers, the Blogger version of DD will remain the central place from where my writing and commiques originate.Thanks for being here. (Source: Digital Doorway) Digital Doorway blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=1794378 Mon, 15 Sep 2008 12:00:00 +0100 1794378 http://digitaldoorway.blogspot.com/2008/09/i-did-it.html Well, I did it. After twelve years of eschewing taking a job in a hospital, I have applied for a part-time position in a local inpatient psychiatric unit. Things have been very slow at all of my per diem jobs, and while I'm very hesitant at this juncture to commit to a solid position, finances are telling me that it may be time to at least have 16 or 20 hours of assured work each week. So, this 24-hour per week position consisting of two 12-hour shifts may fit the bill.Although I swore off the dreaded "two years of Medical-Surgical nursing after graduation" (something I was told at the time was professional suicide), I just recently decided to apply for this position as a stop-gap measure at a time when I am need of more regular work. Granted, I have been quite determined in my anti-hospit... Digital Doorway blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=1791598 Sun, 14 Sep 2008 23:08:00 +0100 1791598 http://digitaldoorway.blogspot.com/2008/09/nurses-voices-nurses-image-nurses-power.html (Note: This is my sixth post under the auspices of the nurse blogger scholarship which I recently received from Value Care, Value Nurses.)I have recently been re-reading From Silence to Voice: What Nurses Know and Must Communicate to the Public, by Bernice Buresh and Suzanne Gordon. What I am most struck by is that nurses still have not necessarily found their collective voice, and despite the media attention given to the global nursing shortage, I still believe that Buresh and Gordon's thesis still holds true: the public still does not fully understand what nurses do, and until that day comes, nurses' real value as clinicians will not be common knowledge.Buresh and Gordon touch on many themes and areas of interest vis-a-vis nurses and their relation to the public, to doctors, and to one a... Digital Doorway blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=1790266 Fri, 12 Sep 2008 16:05:00 +0100 1790266 http://digitaldoorway.blogspot.com/2008/09/creative-responses-to-nursing-shortage.html I am an occasional guest blogger on NurseConnect, and I invite you to read my latest post, Creative Responses to the Nursing Shortage, posted on NurseConnect today. I think the post offers an interesting perspective, detailing ways that individuals, educational institutions, and healthcare facilities are responding to the crisis at hand. (Source: Digital Doorway) Digital Doorway blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=1782622 Wed, 10 Sep 2008 22:30:00 +0100 1782622