Nurses

International "poaching" of nurses bound to get worse

Poaching of Canadian nurses by American hospitals is getting worse due to a growing shortage of nurses south of the border, the Canadian Nurses Association (CNA) warns. A study of the aging RN workforce forecasts that by 2020 the US will have 20% fewer RNs than it needs. In Canada, the CNA predicts a shortfall of between 60,000 and 115,000 RNs by 2010 and the UK already needs 20,000 nurses immediately. CMAJ 2000;163(6):750.

RNs seek broader prescribing powers

In a bid to increase autonomy for specially educated RNs, nursing associations in Ontario and Alberta are seeking extended prescriptive authority and the Canadian Nurses Association is asking Health Canada to allow nurses to prescribe many controlled medications. "Prescriptive authority is a logical part of the [extended practice] role," says Sandra MacDonald-Rencz, the CNA’s director of policy and research. "These nurses are educated to function in autonomous positions." CMAJ 2000;163(5):600.

Surprising impact of visiting nurses

Researchers conducted a randomized controlled trial to determine whether preventive home visits by a primary care nurse would reduce the rates of hospital admission, health care utilization and death in a sample of 73 frail elderly people. Surprisingly, not only was there no statistically significant benefit from the nurses’ visits, there was a trend toward a higher combined rate of deaths and admissions to an institution in the intervention group than in the control group (10.0% v. 5.8%, p = 0.52). CMAJ 2000;162(4):497-500.

An accompanying editorial comments on these results and the need for well-planned intervention studies that have the necessary funding to allow sufficient enrolment and follow-up. CMAJ 2000;162(4):511-2.

Copyright 2000 Canadian Medical Association or its licensors