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Within Reach: Practical Applications of Nursing Inquiry

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Volume 9│Issue 1│February 2018 Carilion Medical Center, 1906 Belleview Ave, Roanoke, VA 24014 http://chsweb.carilion.com/nursserv/NursW eb.html nursingresearch@carilionclinic.org (540)266 -6216

Transitions: What’s old is new. Are you ready for a change? Tameka D. McDaniel, DNP, RN, CCRN - AGCNS student (University of Detroit Mercy) Note: Tameka is a student in the Adult-Gerontology Clinical Nurse Specialist Post-Master’s Certificate Program at the University of Detroit Mercy. Her practicum preceptor is Cindy Ward, DNP, RN-BC, CMSRN, ACNS-BC.

Who am I? What is my purpose? What is my mission? Am I ready for change? These are all questions that one asks when there is a transition in career, purpose or position. Such is the case with Carilion Clinic‟s „Within Reach‟ publication. Such is the case with myself. Within Reach and I have much in common. Follow along as I spin the unlikely tale of Carilion Roanoke Memorial Hospital‟s professional publication and the path I never thought I‟d take. Who am I? Me: I am a registered nurse of 12 years and a Detroit, MI to Richmond, VA transplant. I began my career with an ADN and obtained my education through a stepwise fashion. Critical care has been my specialty for a decade, and I never thought that would change. I have always loved being at the bedside. Nothing and no one could change that……or so I thought. Within Reach: Within Reach is Carilion Clinic‟s quarterly peer-reviewed publication written by nurses. The publication is focused on the nursing perspective and covers various topics related to patients and families, human touch, research, education, clinical practice, and advocacy. What is my purpose? Me: Throughout my career, my purpose was to be a critical care sleuth. I thrived in an environment where I had drips, tubes, waxing/waning blood pressures, labile oxygenation and infections. My job was to figure out how to manage the varying condition of the patient(s) for 12 hours and coerce the patient to near homeostasis or some resemblance of stability until 0700 report. That all changed when I noticed the high rate of readmissions among the patients for whom I cared. All of a sudden, my purpose changed. I became an AGCNS (Adult Gerontology Clinical Nurse Specialist) student at the University of Detroit Mercy. I found myself driving two and a half hours from Richmond to Roanoke every week to gain practicum hours under the tutelage of Drs. Cindy Ward, Phyllis Whitehead, Donna Bond and many others to gather an understanding of my new role and purpose. The uncertainty ahead has been both fearful and exciting. Within Reach: Since its inception, Within Reach has been the voice of Carilion nurses. The publication contains EBP & research reports, educational material, event ads, opportunities and accolades. It was developed as, and continues to be, a platform for nurses to meet CAP (Clinical Advancement Program) requirements, write about subjects pertinent to nursing practice, and display the accomplishments of Carilion nurses. Since 2010, Within Reach has been the physical manifestation of the literary research of Carilion nurses, a platform for professional opinions and a medium for perfecting editorial skills. Often, this publication affords the system‟s nurses their first opportunity to publish, guidance through the process and the accomplishment of having conducted evidence based scholarly research. Carilion excellence is on full display for all to see within the pages of Within Reach. The transitions ahead for this publication are, like mine, both fearful and exciting. *Continued on page 3

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