27^th World Nursing and Nurse Practitioner Conference

Nursing is a healthcare profession, which focuses caring for individuals and their families in order to help them recover from an illness and maintain optimal quality of life.Nursing and healthcare science are intricately linked as both deal with the achievement of optimal patient health.

Pulmonary nursing is a specialty focused on the care and treatment of patients with lung disease or respiratory conditions such as asthma, pneumonia, bronchitis, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, emphysema, tuberculosis, and lung cancer.

Cardiac nursing is a nursing specialty that works with patients who suffer from various conditions of the cardiovascular system. Cardiac nurses help treat conditions such as unstable angina, cardiomyopathy, coronary artery disease, congestive heart failure, myocardial infarction and cardiac dysrhythmia under the direction of a cardiologist.

Cardiac nurses perform postoperative care on a surgical unit, stress test evaluations, cardiac monitoring, vascular monitoring, and health assessments. Cardiac nurses must have Basic Life Support and Advanced Cardiac Life Support certification. In addition, cardiac nurses must possess specialized skills including electrocardiogram monitoring, defibrillation, and medication administration by continuous intravenous drip.Cardiac nurses work in many different environments, including coronary care units (CCU), cardiac catheterization, intensive care units (ICU), operating theatres, cardiac rehabilitation centers, clinical research, cardiac surgery wards, cardiovascular intensive care units (CVICU), and cardiac medical wards.

Pediatric nursing is a specialization of the nursing profession that focuses on pediatrics and the medical care of children, from infancy to the teenage years. This is an important field because the health of children is distinct from that of adults due to the growth and development that occurs throughout childhood.

It is worth noting that a certification as a pediatric nurse is not required to work as a nurse for children. However, obtaining specialized knowledge and training helps to improve job prospects and is recommended for nurses who have a passion for caring for children.

Obstetrical nurses help provide prenatal care and testing, care of patients experiencing pregnancy complications, care during labor and delivery, and care of patients following delivery. Obstetrical nurses work closely with obstetricians, midwives, and nurse practitioners.

An oncology nurse is a specialized nurse who cares for cancer patients. These nurses require advanced certifications and clinical experiences in oncology further than the typical baccalaureate nursing program provides. Oncology nursing care can defined as meeting the various needs of oncology patients during the time of their disease including appropriate screenings and other preventive practices, symptom management, care to retain as much normal functioning as possible, and supportive measures upon end of life.

Ambulatory care nursing is the nursing care of patients who receive treatment on an outpatient basis, ie they do not require admission to a hospital for an overnight stay.Ambulatory care includes those clinical, organizational and professional activities engaged in by registered nurses with and for individuals, groups, and populations who seek assistance with improving health and/or seek care for health-related problems.The American Academy of Ambulatory Care Nursing (AAACN) describes ambulatory care nursing as a comprehensive practice which is built on a broad knowledge base of nursing and health sciences, and applies clinical expertise rooted in the nursing process.

Ambulatory care nurses use evidence based information across a variety of outpatient health care settings to achieve and ensure patient safety and quality of care while improving patient outcomes. Contact with patients in ambulatory care is often relatively brief, and in the context of a high volume of patients. Nurses in this setting require sound assessment skills and the ability to guide patients in making informed health choices.Quality ambulatory care nursing has been associated with fewer emergency department visits, hospital visits and readmissions.

Psychiatric nursing or mental health nursing is the appointed position of a nurse that specialises in mental health, and cares for people of all ages experiencing mental illnesses or distress. These include: neurodevelopmental disorders, schizophrenia, schizoaffective disorder, mood disorders, addiction, anxiety disorders, personality disorders, eating disorders, suicidal thoughts, psychosis, paranoia, and self-harm.

Nurses in this area receive specific training in psychological therapies, building a therapeutic alliance, dealing with challenging behaviour, and the administration of psychiatric medication.

In most countries, after the 1990s,a psychiatric nurse would have to attain a bachelor's degree in nursing to become a Registered Nurse (RN), and specialise in mental health. Degrees vary in different countries, and are governed by country-specific regulations. In the United States one can become a RN, and a psychiatric nurse, by completing either a diploma program, an associates (ASN) degree, or a bachelors (BSN) degree.Up until the 1990s 5 GCSEs/O levels were sufficient and no degree or other nursing qualifications required.

Public health nursing is the practice of promoting and protecting the health of populations using knowledge from nursing, social, and public health sciences.

Public health nursing is a systematic process by which:

The health and health care needs of a population are assessed in order to identify subpopulations, families and individuals who would benefit from health promotion or who are at risk of illness, injury, disability or premature death.

A plan for intervention is developed with the community to meet identified needs that take into account available resources, the range of activities that contribute to health and the prevention of illness injury, disability, and premature death.

The plan is implemented effectively, efficiently and equitably.

Evaluations are conducted to determine the extent to which the intervention has an impact on the health status of individuals and the population.

The results of the process are used to influence and direct the current delivery of care, deployment of health resources, and the development of local, regional, state, and national health policy and research to promote health and prevent disease.

The role of the WHNP is to assess, diagnose and treat the health care needs of women throughout their lifespan. Many WHNPs work in private practice settings, where they provide preventive care such as well-woman exams, breast cancer screenings, Papanicolaou (Pap) tests or contraceptive care.

Surgical nurse practitioners (or SNPs) are registered nurses who work within an operating theater alongside a larger medical team. Surgical nurses perform a variety of duties before, during, and after a surgery in support of the surgical staff as well as the patient.

The goal of surgical nurse practitioner programs is to educate and train advanced practice registered nurses to become well-prepared, qualified surgical practitioners. Surgical NP programs are designed to equip students with the ability to practice with a high level of autonomy and within acceptable standards of care for surgical patients. Students in these programs participate in didactic coursework and clinical rotations in various surgical settings, including vascular surgery, surgical oncology, transplantation, reconstructive surgery, surgical intensive care. The exposure to diverse surgical opportunities gives program participants the chance to see first-hand the different types of surgical specialties available and prepare them to make decisions about their careers moving forward.

Neonatal nursing focuses on providing care and support for newborn babies delivered prematurely or who are suffering from health problems such as birth defects, infections, or heart deformities. Many neonatal nurses work in a Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) providing specialized medical care to at-risk newborns.