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AACN
and the People's Medical Society Collaborate on New Book:
Ask a Nurse: From Home Remedies
to Hospital Care
WASHINGTON, D.C., October 8, 2001 -- The American Association
of Colleges of Nursing (AACN) and the People's Medical Society
have collaborated on a new book that compiles the best advice
nurses can give on how to make wise decisions regarding your
health. The book, Ask a Nurse: From Home Remedies to Hospital
Care, represents a three-year effort that distills practical
self-care guidance from more than 550 nursing schools and
hundreds of professional nurses nationwide.
In the
hospital or at the doctor's office, it is the nurse whom patients
trust to answer their questions simply, directly, and understandably.
Ask a Nurse is a comprehensive reference that pulls
together expert advice from nurses on home treatments, over-the-counter
medications, recommendations on when to seek a doctor's care,
and tips on maneuvering through the health care system. The
book also covers how to treat 50 common ailments and includes
special sections on addictions, emergency first aid, consumer
rights, home medical kits, and alternative and herbal therapies.
"If
you want the inside information on how to treat common health
problems, when to seek medical attention, and how to survive
a hospital stay, the best advice anyone can give is 'ask a
nurse'," explains Dr. Carolyn A. Williams, AACN President
and Dean of the University of Kentucky's School of Nursing.
"This wonderful new reference shares the unique expertise
of nurses with everyone interested in maintaining good health
and navigating the health care system."
Ask
a Nurse focuses on everyday complaints -- acne, allergies,
cuts and scrapes, diarrhea, flu, insomnia, and stress among
many others. Each entry explains common conditions, lists
detailed symptoms, and offers top-to-bottom treatment "menus,"
featuring everything from effective over-the-counter medications
to tried-and-true home remedies. The nurses address men's,
women's, and children's unique health issues separately, with
special attention paid to identifying and treating addictions
and eating disorders; showing what type of contraception to
use and how to avoid sexually transmitted diseases; and highlighting
when infertility and sexual dysfunction can be addressed at
home. The nurses also present a complete guide to consumer
rights, dispensing tips on making a hospital stay more comfortable,
choosing a reliable pharmacist, assembling a home medical
kit, and deciding when a living will or do-not-resuscitate
order is appropriate.
Why are
nurses considered experts in health care education? Consider
the facts:
- Nurses
are the only licensed health care professionals trained
in health education;
- Nurses
deliver up to 98% of all hospital care, making them the
most reliable source of inside information about treatment
issues and problems;
- Public
opinion polls show that nurses are the most trusted and
respected health care professionals; and
- Nurses
provide more hands-on care to consumers than any other health
profession.
Ask
a Nurse: From Home Remedies to Hospital Care is available
now at most national bookstore chains and over the Internet
at Amazon.com.
The
American Association of Colleges of Nursing is the national
voice for four-year college and university programs in nursing.
Representing 560 schools of nursing at public and private
institutions nationwide, AACN's educational, research, governmental
advocacy, data collection, publications, and other programs
work to establish quality standards for baccalaureate- and
graduate-degree nursing education, assist deans and directors
to implement those standards, influence the nursing profession
to improve health care, and promote public support of baccalaureate
and graduate nursing education, research, and practice.
Since
its founding in 1983, the People's Medical Society has championed
the rights of medical consumers. The largest medical consumer
advocacy organization in the United States, the society has
published an impressive assortment of health classics, including
Medicine on Trial and Take This Book to the Hospital With
You. As a leading advocacy group, the People's Medical Society
has been an important advisor to the Health Care Financing
Administration on Medicare issues and an important health
resource for many major news organizations including the Wall
Street Journal and U.S. News & World Report.
CONTACT:
Robert Rosseter
(202) 463-6930, x231
rrosseter@aacn.nche.edu
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