topic. The use of Peplau's interpersonal nursing theory with people suffering from serious mental disorder. purpose. To describe Peplau's theory and its application using a case study. source. Author's own clinical work. conclusion. Peplau's theory can be used to help patients resolve symptoms by guiding them through the steps of observation, description, analysis, formulation, validation, testing, integration, utilization.

The following interview took place just before Gerald's departure for a mission to Afghanistan. As a registered nurse in psychiatric-mental health, he contributes an important perspective on how to effectively assess and develop interventions for people in need. Q. Describe your work before joining the International Rescue Committee and tell us where you received your education. A. After graduating from University of Massachusetts Lowell with a degree in medical technology, I joined the Unites States Peace Corps for about 3 years. After that experience, I decided to get a master's degree in nursing at Pace University. Within that master's program, you are able to take the registered nurse licensing examination. I later specialized in psychiatric nursing while working at McLean Hospital, then in the Boston City Hospital psychiatric emergency department, and later at Cambridge Hospital. Q. How did you become interested in international disaster work? A. When I joined the Peace Corps, I was assigned to a health program in Liberia. Typically, Peace Corps volunteers are assigned to stable countries without political violence and oppression. This was true of Liberia, one of the most stable democracies in all of Africa. However, on April 20, 1980, there was a very violent and bloody coup d'etat in Liberia's capital city, Monrovia. That was my first experience with political chaos and violent anarchy. It was the most frightening time of my entire life. You know that expression, "white knuckle fear?" I remember looking down at my hands and thinking, "Hey, my knuckles are actually white." Freud described a phenomenon, repetition compulsion, in which a person is drawn toward what he or she fears, not away from it. The individual can even develop a ghoulish fascination with powerful emotions, even bad emotions. The person might be compelled to repeat the experience, over and over again, in an attempt to master the fear or become desensitized, or to rehearse the event, or to hope for a different outcome. Do you know how many pilots are actually afraid of heights? I suppose that horrifying event in Monrovia that day imprinted on me a fascination with that explosive moment of political chaos, frenzied violence, and grinding tension. I was also appalled by the incalculable impact that this violent episode had on innocent civilians. I wanted to learn more. I wanted to do more. I was struck by the abject poverty people experienced with the absence of neurosis and anxiety.

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T he National Council of State Boards of Nursing (NCSBN) recently distributed a draft vision paper: The Future Regulation of Advanced Practice Nursing. The stated purpose is to provide direction for state boards of nursing and advanced practice registered nurse (APRN) stakeholders. The NCSBN draft describes a desire to attain uniformity, clarity, and simplicity in certification, regulation, and licensure of APRNs. The paper concludes with eight recommendations to attain the NCSBN vision of advanced practice regulation. The paper content, premises, and recommendations include:• Statement that increased clarity of roles will enhance third party payers' recognition and reimbursement of APRNs. • Nurse practitioners, nurse midwives, and nurse anesthetists are the only recognized APRNs. • "Traditional" clinical nurse specialists (CNSs) are not considered APRNs unless the CNSs medically diagnose and prescribe. • Core curriculum for APRN educational programs must include pharmacology, pathophysiology, and advanced physical assessment (content which some current CNS programs have added). • A second core licensure examination is required for advanced practice nursing (even though CNS, are currently nationally certified). • Proposal that a period of physician supervision may be appropriate for entry level APRNs.Review and analysis of the vision paper and consultation with APRN peers results in my belief that the proposals are particularly onerous for the autonomy and scope of specialty practice for nurse psychotherapists and CNSs. This paper presents potentially dramatic challenges for both schools of nursing and the shape of graduate education for advanced practice nurses. Why is the nursing profession the only healthcare profession where the acquisition of more knowledge, skills, and abilities results in a need for second licensure? There is no evidence to support either the need for second licensure for nurse practitioners or the proposed residency program. NCSBN citations in the paper document the safety, efficacy, and efficiency of the advanced practice nurse. However, these statements and studies do not support the need for second licensure to protect the public. I do not agree with the exclusion of the clinical nurse specialist, perhaps the most independent functional role of an advanced practice nurse. This demotion of the CNS role does not acknowledge the best practice and research-based contributions to nursing practice, patient care, and patient safety of this APRN. Does the NCSBN believe that the advanced practice nurse can only function if one prescribes medications and treatments, makes medical diagnoses, and is supervised by a physician? This sounds more like a physician's assistant than an APRN.I believe authorization to practice as an APRN should be based upon completion of an approved educational program, supervised clinical experience by APRNs within the specialized scope of practice, specialty certification, and continued demonstration of competence by client outcome evaluation and continuing educatio...