"Nurses play a vital role in improving the safety and quality of patient car -- not only in the hospital or ambulatory treatment facility, but also of community-based care and the care performed by family members. Nurses need know what proven techniques and interventions they can use to enhance patient outcomes. To address this need, the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ), with additional funding from the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, has prepared this comprehensive, 1,400-page, handbook for nurses on patient safety and quality -- Patient Safety and Quality: An Evidence-Based Handbook for Nurses. (AHRQ Publication No. 08-0043)." - online AHRQ blurb, http://www.ahrq.gov/qual/nurseshdbk/

Research-based advice for people who care for someone with dementia Nearly half of U.S. citizens over the age of 85 are suffering from some kind of dementia and require care. Loving Someone Who Has Dementia is a new kind of caregiving book. It's not about the usual techniques, but about how to manage on-going stress and grief. The book is for caregivers, family members, friends, neighbors as well as educators and professionals—anyone touched by the epidemic of dementia. Dr. Boss helps caregivers find hope in "ambiguous loss"—having a loved one both here and not here, physically present but psychologically absent. Outlines seven guidelines to stay resilient while caring for someone who has dementia Discusses the meaning of relationships with individuals who are cognitively impaired and no longer as they used to be Offers approaches to understand and cope with the emotional strain of care-giving Boss's book builds on research and clinical experience, yet the material is presented as a conversation. She shows you a way to embrace rather than resist the ambiguity in your relationship with someone who has dementia.

Nurses typically go in to the profession of nursing because they want to "care" for patients, not knowing that the inherent stresses of the work environment put them at risk for developing psychological disorders such as burnout syndrome, posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), anxiety and depression. Symptoms of these disorders are often debilitating and affect the nurse’s functioning on both a personal and professional level. While environmental and/or organizational strategies are important to help combat stress, oftentimes the triggers experienced by nurses are non-modifiable including patient deaths, prolonging life in futile conditions, delivering post-mortem care and the feeling of contributing to a patient’s pain and suffering. It is paramount that nurses enhance their ability to adapt to their work environment. Resilience is a multidimensional psychological characteristic that enables one to thrive in the face of adversity and bounce back from hardships and trauma. Importantly, resilience can be learned. Factors that promote resilience include attention to physical well-being and development of adaptive coping skills. This book provides the nurse, and the administrators who manage them, with an overview of the psychological disorders that are prevalent in their profession, first-person narratives from nurses who share traumatic and/or stressful situations that have impacted their career and provide detailed descriptions of promising coping strategies that can be used to mitigate symptoms of distress.

You, the caregiver, finds yourself in a situation that threatens to overwhelm you with a welter of conflicting emotions and to undermine your ability to come. You feel that way sometimes.

Family caregiving affects millions of Americans every day, in all walks of life. At least 17.7 million individuals in the United States are caregivers of an older adult with a health or functional limitation. The nation's family caregivers provide the lion's share of long-term care for our older adult population. They are also central to older adults' access to and receipt of health care and community-based social services. Yet the need to recognize and support caregivers is among the least appreciated challenges facing the aging U.S. population. Families Caring for an Aging America examines the prevalence and nature of family caregiving of older adults and the available evidence on the effectiveness of programs, supports, and other interventions designed to support family caregivers. This report also assesses and recommends policies to address the needs of family caregivers and to minimize the barriers that they encounter in trying to meet the needs of older adults.

COPING WITH CARING is written for the caregiver who cares for a loved one with Alzheimer's or a related disorder. Each page provides an inspiring daily reflection, followed by a related caregiving tip. Designed for daily use, this unique volume will serve to give you emotional support and insights to help strengthen you during the caregiving journey.

Integrates several perspectives to provide a more holistic understanding of the needs of caregivers in informal family care, shedding light on the burdens and satisfactions of caring and the coping strategies of caregivers. Presents a new longitudinal model of caring and its various stages, and discusses implications for policy and practice. For practitioners and managers in health and social services, as well as students of social science, nursing, gerontology, and social work. Distributed by Taylor and Francis. Annotation copyright by Book News, Inc., Portland, OR