LETTERS , etc.

THE HUMAN MICROBIOME time-outs and I hope it will be in Nurses are part of the commu-
Congratulations to the authors the very near future. nities in which they work, so it is
of “Health and the Human Mi- Charles Lott imperative that resilience training
crobiome: A Primer for Nurses” Ithaca, MI starts with them, such as in nursing
(July). The article is one of the programs or during facility orienta-
clearest explanations of this com- There is no substitute for critical tions. I would have liked to see the
plex topic that I’ve seen. In the thinking. The problem arises article incorporate more strategies
past year, I’ve heard a couple of when we add so many docu- that nurses, nursing programs, or
speakers talk about current micro- mented steps to procedures that employers can implement to en-
biome gastrointestinal research there isn’t enough time for think- sure that frontline nurses respond-
and have been following the topic. ing. Time-outs are important, and ing to disasters have the resilience
The vaginal site information is should be done thoughtfully and they need to provide care for oth-
relatively new to me. I think the for the right reasons. ers and to contribute to commu-
article may stimulate more inter- Sharon S., via ajnoffthecharts.com nity resilience.
est from others. Sharilyn M. Gasparrelli, RN, CNOR
I taught advanced pathology to HELPING PREGNANT SMOKERS QUIT Durham, NC
advanced practice nursing students Smoking and smoking cessation
for many years and tried to help are global issues, especially when it KEEPING ASSESSMENT SKILLS SHARP
them see the links between science comes to pregnancy (“The Experi- In reading “Identifying Hospital-
and the clinical setting. Some top- ences of Pregnant Smokers and ized Patients at Risk for Harm: A
ics, such as in-depth genetics, were Their Providers,” June). Health Comparison of Nurse Perceptions
more difficult than others. This care providers need to have more vs. Electronic Risk Assessment
article does a wonderful job of open discussions with their patients Tool Scores” (April), it is evident
translating science to clinical prac- and come from a place of under- that nurse perception of patient
tice, especially with the labor and standing, empowering patients to risk is exceedingly greater than the
delivery examples. Keep up the make better choices. When pa- perception of electronic assessment
good work, AJN! tients feel that their health care tools currently in use. The authors
Angela P. Clark, PhD, RN, ACNS-BC, team genuinely cares about their mention that patient assessment is
FAAN, FAHA well-being, they are more receptive. the first step of the nursing process
Faculty Emeritus, University of Providers’ tone should shift from taught in nursing school, but what
Texas at Austin; Past President, “You should stop smoking for A, if those skills fall by the wayside?
American Heart Association, B, C reasons” to educating pa- Even long-tenured nurses could
Capital Area Division, and National tients and letting them know that benefit from workshops centered
Association of Clinical Nurse Specialists; the staff is there to help them get on patient assessment techniques,
Edge Runner, American Academy the best quality care, including ad- as there is always room for growth
of Nursing vice on smoking cessation. and development in the fast-paced
Daniel G., via ajnoffthecharts.com medical profession.
CRITICAL THINKING DURING Joshua Valenzuela
TIME-OUT PROTOCOLS NATURAL DISASTERS AND Fresno, CA ▼
In “Forever Hold Your Peace: RESILIENCE TRAINING
When Preprocedure Safety Con- Everyone is affected by natural AJN welcomes letters to the editor regarding re-
cerns Are Missed,” I was taken by disasters in some shape or form cently published articles, although critiques of original
the author’s unheeded concerns (“Climate Change and Mental research may be submitted at any time. Submissions
about her overly low heart rate be- Health,” April). No matter one’s must be typed, contain fewer than 300 words, and
fore colonoscopy, and the nearly stance on climate change, there must include the correspondent’s name, city and state,
fatal results (Viewpoint, July). I’m is no denying that natural disas- phone number, and e-mail address. Please include no
concerned that medical teams too ters happen and that nurses are more than three references for any statistics or studies
often fail to note patients’ specific uniquely positioned to respond cited. Letters will be edited for length, clarity, and accu-
concerns despite the serious dan- holistically to such occurrences. racy. Submission of a letter will constitute the author’s
gers that could result. I have seen While the authors mention build- permission to publish it, although it doesn’t guaran-
in a number of nursing textbooks ing resilience as an acceptable way tee publication. Letters become the property of AJN
the axiom that the patient knows to support the community, they and may be published in all media. Send letters to
more about her or his body than don’t address providing resilience [email protected], or AJN Letters, Wolters
anyone else. Close attention to pa- training to nurses or how resil- Kluwer Health, Inc., 333 Seventh Avenue, 19th Floor,
tient concerns before a procedure ience is developed at an individ- New York, NY 10001, or (212) 886-1206 (fax).
should unequivocally be added to ual level.

[email protected] AJN ▼ September 2017 ▼ Vol. 117, No. 9 13