This Month in AJN – January 2018 monthly highlights

January 2018

Editor-in-Chief Shawn Kennedy and Clinical Editor Betsy Todd present the highlights of the January issue of AJN. The authors of our first CE, “Oral Care for Head and Neck Cancer Symptom Management,” describe an evidence-based practice change at a radiation oncology center designed to reduce the severity of oral mucositis in adults receiving radiation treatment for head and neck cancer. Our second CE, “Managing Postoperative Pain,” reviews the recommendations of the American Pain Society’s postoperative pain management guideline, and discusses its historical context and the current events that may affect its implementation in clinical practice. Our next article, “Original Research: Increasing the Connectivity and Autonomy of RNs with Low-Risk Obstetric Patients,” describes a study that explored the perspectives of patients, RNs, certified nurse midwives, and other providers regarding a new prenatal connected care model aimed at reducing in-office visits and creating virtual patient–RN connections. “Professional Development: Predatory Journals: Alerting Nurses to Potentially Unreliable Content” provides information for nurses on predatory journals and their harmful practices, plus online search strategies for identifying and avoiding the content published in these journals. In addition, there’s News, Reflections, Drug Watch, Art of Nursing, and more.