New article published by St. Joseph Hospital Nurses: Jeannine Loucks, Dana Rutledge, Beverly Hatch and Victoria Morrison

Congrats to  Jeanine Loucks, Dana Rutledge, Beverly Hatch and Victoria Morrison  for their newly published article. The article is so new it hasn't yet ( as of 5/26/10) been picked up PubMed or CINAHL.

Rapid Response Team for Behavioral Emergencies

Jeannine Loucks St. Joseph Hospital, Orange, CA, USA, jeannine.loucks@stjoe.org
Dana N. Rutledge
St. Joseph Hospital, Orange, CA, USA, California State University Fullerton, Fullerton, CA, USA
Beverly Hatch
St. Joseph Hospital, Orange, CA, USA
Victoria Morrison
St. Joseph Hospital, Orange, CA, USA
Behaviors of patients with psychiatric illness who are hospitalized on nonbehavioral health units can be difficult to address by staff members. Instituting a rapid response team to proactively de-escalate potential volatile situations on nonpsychiatric units in a hospital allows earlier treatment of behavioral issues with these patients. The behavioral emergency response team (BERT) consists of staff members (registered nurses, social workers) from behavioral health services who have experience in caring for patients with acute psychiatric disorders as well as competence in management of assaultive behavior. BERT services were trialed on a medical pulmonary unit; gradual housewide implementation occurred over 2 years. Tools developed for BERT include an activation algorithm, educational cue cards for staff, and a staff survey. Results of a performance improvement survey reveal that staff nurses have had positive experiences with BERT but that many nurses are still not comfortable caring for psychiatric patients on their units.

Key Words: rapid response team • psychiatric emergencies • behavioral health • psychiatric nursing • de-escalation • Iowa Model of Evidence-Based Practice 

Blessing of the Hands

What a Blessing of the Hands on May 6 as St. Joseph Hospital kicked off its 2010 Nurses Week. I loved the blessing offered:

Creator God, Giver and Sustainer of Life, bless the noble work to which these many hands have been dedicated. Enable us all to be truly wise in our clinical judgments, courageous in our dedication to doing good and avoiding harm; compassionate in responding to the human need for healing. Guide our minds and hands. Inspire us with words of comfort that we may be a supportive presence to others. Endow us with the gifts that will enable us to provide the sick and suffering with the care and attention each human life deserves.

Strengthen us in times of trial and discouragement. Keep our hearts from becoming indifferent when faced with our own limitations in curing human ills. Grace our perceptions that we may behold the wonders of your healing power working through our hands. May we not lose sight of the divine truth: That is is Your consoling love that brings forth peace where there is anxiety; healing where there is injury; and new life when our journey on earth is complete. In your love, bless all our hands this day, and everyday. Amen