December 2016 • Volume 9, No. 12
From the Editor
In this season of gifts and, for many of us, abundance, we bring you our annual Giving Issue.
Here we focus on those in our community who go out of their comfort zones to give people the gift of medical care in remote regions of the world. They come back richer, having themselves received indelible gifts of insight and meaning.
Leading the charge is our own NIFA faculty member and Professor of Surgery at George Washington University, Dr. Glenn Geelhoed. Dr. Glenn has organized medical missions to many countries in Latin America, Africa and Asia. He has built an organization, Mission to Heal, devoted to helping “the Bottom Billion” of the world’s population. Our gift to you is a copy of one of Dr. Glenn’s books; see below.
In this issue we profile Leenta Nel, a graduate of NIFA’s RNFA program, who accompanied Dr. Glenn on a medical mission to Central African Republic.
We also pass along some resources for your consideration, as well as our monthly collection of job links.
Best wishes for a beautiful and bright 2017 from all of us at NIFA.
Julie Lancaster, Editor
Report from Dr. Glenn
Mission to Heal teams travel to where medical need is great and where medical help is under-resourced or non-existent.
Often against a backdrop of civil war, refugee camps, poverty, and indifference. M2H teams operate with limited supplies in order to bring hope to the poorest of the poor.
In May, we announced NIFA’s major, ongoing gift to Mission to Heal.
Mission to Heal now has a blog where you can read stories from people who have traveled and worked with Dr. Geelhoed. The latest batch are from their recent mission to Mongolia. Here’s the link:
http://www2.nifa.com/e/121712/blog-/4d3c8w/754576958
Our Gift to You
Our gift to YOU is a free copy of Dr. Geelhoed’s book, Surgery and Healing in the Developing World.
Available as a 485-page PDF, this book is a collection of “How To” articles from 50 authors, with titles like “Anesthesia in the Third World,” “Basic Obstetrics and Obstetric Surgery in a Mission Setting,” and much, much more.
NIFA has exclusive rights to distribute this book. To download your copy, please go to this page.
Medical Mission Opportunities
We hope you’ll consider a medical mission at some point in your nursing career, either with Dr. Geelhoed’s Mission to Heal or with one of many other organizations. The work can be arduous and conditions poor, but the rewards are immeasurable. (Photo from Leenta Nel, taken in Central African Republic.)
MedicalMissions.com lists more than 500 organizations and allows you to search using filters such as your health care specialty, global health issues, and area of the world. The organization also offers training curriculum and a Global Missions Health Conference.
Global Guidelines on the Prevention of Surgical Site Infection
In November, the World Health Organization issued its first-ever global guidelines for the prevention of surgical site Infection, including a list of 29 concrete recommendations distilled by some of the world’s leading experts from reviews of
recent evidence. The recommendations are designed to address the increasing burden of health care-associated infections on both patients and health care systems globally.
This is a world first and will be welcomed by doctors and RNs alike.
Read more…
In the Spotlight: Leenta Nel
Name: Leenta Nel
Credentials: RN, CNOR, RNFA
City and State: Victoria, BC
Current position: Staff nurse in the OR, Victoria General Hospital
Student status: Graduated from NIFA’s RNFA program June 2009
Originally from South Africa and now based in Victoria, BC, Leenta Nel accompanied Dr. Glenn Geelhoed on a NIFA-sponsored medical mission to Central African Republic in 2012. The team worked in one village for a week and then, after traveling 8 hours in hazardous conditions to a second village, performed surgeries there for a week.
Click to read about her experiences on this medical mission, including the day they converted a wire coat hanger into a catheter introducer.
Read more…
Job Front
Click here for a bumper crop of RNFA job postings we’ve collected for you this month!
NIFA – Office Hours
Monday-Friday 8:00am – 4:00pm
CLOSED NEW YEAR’S EVE/DAY.
Practice Resources
Here are several of the most-in-demand sites for our students, prospective students and grads:
ACS Surgery News: Specialty News and Commentaries, Videos and More
AORN: What’s Happening in My State
RNFA Scope of Practice by State (PDF)
ACS List of Cases that Require an Assistant at Surgery, 2016 (PDF)
AORN Perioperative Bookstore
Perioperative Nurse Links (state nursing boards & professional associations)
APRN Nurse Links
World Health Organization News
Visit us on Facebook!
Disclaimer: The views expressed in this newsletter are strictly those of their respective authors and do not necessarily represent the views of NIFA. NIFA does not give any express or implied warranty as to the accuracy of statements made by our contributors and does not accept any liability for error or omission. It is the responsibility of all perioperative personnel to work within and adhere to their facility bylaws and individual scope of practice.
