Volume 5, Issue 2 Winter 2018

A P U B L I C A T I O N O F T H E D U Q U E S N E U N I V E R S I T Y
S T U D E N T N U R S E S ’ A S S O C I A T I O N

In With The New!

Read About The First Human Head Learn All About America’s Geriatric
Transplant Population
PAGE 6 PAGE 8 1

Photo credits: Emily Churchill

 Who We Are

We are members of the Duquesne University Student Nurses Associa-

tion. All views expressed are our own and do not represent the views
of Duquesne University or Duquesne University School of Nursing.

We are members of the BSN Programs at Duquesne University. We

love health! We love patients! We love to write!

The Scope is the proud recipient of the 2013, 2014 and 2016 Student
Nurses Association of Pennsylvania Excellent Newsletter Award.

We would love to hear your thoughts on our newsletter! Please email

all letters to the editors to Emily Churchill and Morgan Gruender, at
[email protected]. All letters to the editor must include name and
contact information.

2
 Table of Contents
Cancer and Sugar: How They Are Related Page 4
OxyContin Prescriptions Page 5
Adelaide tells us about the changes

The First Human Head Transplant Page 6

Emma gives us the scoop

Growing old in the USA Page 8

Liz gives us the stats

NSNA Mid-Year Convention Page 10

Shannon shares her experience

E-Cigs and Teenagers Page 11

Adelaide tells us about the new trend

W.O.C. Nurses Page 12

Healthy Recipe/News/ NCLEX Nook Page 13
NAP Tutor Schedule Page 14

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 The True Relationship Between Cancer and Sugar
Dana Bernard, Senior
Throughout many years, we have seen stories arise about sugar and how it may cause cancer. Some
are false, but some are, in fact, very true. So, let’s bust the myths and let’s study the truths. First, the ba-
sics of sugar are that in the simplest form they are the “ose” words that we look for on the back of nutri-
tion labels. Examples are glucose or fructose. Glucose is needed by our bodies to start the process that
turns nutrients into energy. Every cell in our body needs energy, and the more sugar—or glucose—we
consume, the more fuel our cells have to survive.

As all cells need glucose and nutrients to survive, so do cancer cells. The problem lies within the
misconception that cutting glucose completely out of your diet can get eradicate cancer cells by depriv-
ing the cells of energy. This is not true because the cancer cells can use other means of energy such as
amino acids, for example. So cutting out glucose will not get rid of cancer, it will only deprive ALL of your
cells of some much-needed energy.

What is true about cancer and sugar is its relationship with your weight. One big risk factor for
cancer is being overweight or obese. What is one way that we can become overweight? By eating too
much sugar. This is where research has proven the positive relationship between cancer and sugar. The
reason that obesity can present as a risk for cancer is because having excess body fat promotes inflam-
mation, which leads to DNA damage, which leads to cancer.

The daily intake of sugar that women are supposed to consume is 100 calories (6 teaspoons),
and for men 150 calories (9 teaspoons). Now if you are like any average American, you consume more
than this maximum amount in a day. Sweet cravings seem hard to manage sometimes, but here are
some tips on how to reign in your sugar rush. The easiest way to cut down on consuming unhealthy sug-
ars is to remove “fizzy”, sugary drinks from your diet. These drinks usually pass the amount of recom-
mended daily intake in only one serving! Try naturally flavored water like lemon water, or sparkling water
instead of soda. Also, obvious sugary foods such as cake, cookies, or candy can easily be avoided by
filling your sugar craving with natural sugary foods like fruits.

We can confirm that sugar and cancer do have an indirect relationship through obesity. As Ameri-
cans, we need to watch our sugar intake and make sure that we are exercising and maintaining a
healthy weight.

Picture Credits: http://yaletownnaturopathic.com/glycemic-levels-and-cancer-recurrence/, Article: . http://www.foxnews.com/health/2016/01/06/study-links-sugar-to-cancer-how-to-reduce-your-risk.html, 2. http://www.cnn.com/2017/10/27/health/sugar-cancer-

relationship-study/index.html, 3. http://scienceblog.cancerresearchuk.org/2017/05/15/sugar-and-cancer-what-you-need-to-know/, 4. https://www.mskcc.org/blog/no-sugar-no-cancer-look-evidence
 Cigna Stops Covering Most OxyContin Prescriptions
Adelaide Lipschutz, Sophomore
Within this past month Cigna, a health insurance company, declared that they would
cease covering prescriptions for OxyContin. OxyContin is a narcotic that is used to treat a
patient’s severe pain. Cigna stopped covering most OxyContin to prevent the potential
abuse of this drug as a result of the brain adapting to the levels of production of dopamine
caused by the drug. As the patient continues to take OxyContin, they require more of the
drug, because they built up a tolerance, so that they can produce the same effect that was
produced the first time they received the drug. Cigna’s Chief Pharmacy Officer, Jon Maes-
ner, released a statement that said, “Our focus is on helping customers get the most value
from their medications—this means obtaining effective pain relief while also guarding
against opioid misuse.” Cigna has created a goal to reduce its customers’ opioid use by
25% within the next three years; so far, they have started their goal by ceasing covering
OxyContin prescriptions and they also created a contract with Collegium Pharmaceutical
so that they help to reduce opioid use. Their contract promotes the use of Xtampza ER be-
cause it has many abuse-deterrent properties that allow it to maintain its extended release
properties without being manipulated. This allows these pills to maintain their extended re-
lease properties even when they are cut, crushed, chewed, or otherwise manipulated.
Even though it is harder to manipulate this drug, it is still possible for patients to become
addicted to these pills and can still have overdoses. Also, Cigna is limiting the tools doc-
tors can use to treat patients that are in severe pain.

Photo credits: https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/2015/08/14/fda-approves-oxycontin-kids/31711929/. Article: http://www.cnn.com/2017/10/05/health/cigna-oxycontin-xtampza/index.html

 The First Human Head Transplant
Emma LaRocque, Freshman
Back in 2015, Italian surgeon Dr. Sergio Canavero shocked the world when he an-
nounced that he will be performing the first human head transplant in 2017. Many people
were and still are very skeptical in this procedure and are saying how it is very unethical.
Canavero insists that this procedure will surely work because of his extensive research
and experiments.

It has taken years for Canavero to try and convince people that he will be able to
complete this procedure successfully. He has tested many animals like dogs, rats, mice
and monkeys. In the 1970’s, the first head transplant was successful on a monkey that
lived for 4 days. Since then, a team led by Chinese surgeon Xiaoping Ren was successful
as well in the head transplant of a monkey. The team connected the blood supply so the
animal could survive without brain injury. The team did not however attempt to connect the
spinal cord. The experiment worked but the monkey could only move its head and not the
rest of its body due to the severed spinal cord. The monkey only lived for 20 hours be-
cause of ethical reasons.

Another successful experiment was focused on mice and rats in May of 2017. Anoth-
er team led by Xiaoping Ren, attached a head of a mouse on the body of a rat. This exper-
iment was repeated many times and the 2-headed animal lived an average of 36 hours.
These procedures were not aimed to keep the animals alive but to prove that this com-
plete procedure could work on humans in the fu-
ture.

Sources: https://www.nsvrc.org/sites/default/files/publications_nsvrc_factsheet_media-packet_statistics-about-sexual-violence_0.pdf Photo credits: Duquesne University

 Set for Early 2018
Emma LaRocque, Freshman
The real question is how does a human transplant work? Canavero has proposed a
plan that he is very confident will work on a human. First, both the head and donor body
are cooled down to around 12-15 degrees Celsius. This is to make sure that the cells last
longer than a few minutes without oxygen. Next, the tissue around the neck is cut and
major blood vessels from the head and donor body are linked together with tiny tubes.
Then the spinal cord is severed on each body simultaneously and the head is removed.
The hardest part of the whole operation is the attachment of the 2 spinal cords. Canavero
plans on using polyethylene glycol, or PEG, to fuse the spinal cords together. The chemi-
cal PEG is shown to promote growth of the spinal cord nerves in animals. Researchers
are still exploring if PEG can be used to fuse nerve cells together in patients with spinal
cord injury. Canavero will use electrical stimulation to speed up the process of fusing the
nerve cells together. Once the connection of the head and body is complete, the patient is
kept in a coma for around a month to limit the movement of the neck and to promote
proper healing. Canavero also claims that the patient will immediately be able to move,
feel their face and speak with their same voice.

Other scientists and doctors have many stipulations about this surgery. Many say it
is impossible and will never work. They also argue that it is very unethical in practice. But
Canavero is very confident in his research and experiments and doesn’t listen to the criti-
cism.

The procedure was set for December of

2017 on a Russian volunteer named Valery Spiri-
donov. Unfortunately, Spiridonov dropped out last
minute so the procedure is hoped to be performed
in early 2018. Canavero is now teaming up with
Xiaoping Ren to help perform the surgery. They
are still looking for volunteers and will be perform-
ing the surgery in China.
7

Photo credits: DUSON

 Aging in America
Liz Tarbet, Freshman
In America, due to the consistent outstanding breakthroughs in medicine and an overall better qual-
ity of life, it is no surprise that people are living longer. What is surprising however, is the ratio of elderly
people that make up this country’s population. The baby boomer generation (1946-1964), is the biggest
generation in America today. This generation began turning sixty five in 2011 meaning that very soon
many people in this country will be on the more senior end of the spectrum. To put this in perspective, by
2030, one in five Americans will be over the age of sixty five. This nearly doubles the twelve percent of the
population senior citizens upheld in the year 2000 (2). This large shift in the country’s demographics is
mostly due to the largest generation growing old, timed perfectly with modern vaccines and slight lifestyle
changes in society.

There is an evident societal shift from a Leave It to Beaver family dynamic to various nontra-
ditional families. More women are going to college and completing their education, leaving the traditional
homemaker role far behind. Women are opting to get married later in life, and choosing to have fewer chil-
dren in order to fulfill many other obligations. Further adding to this trend is that the cost of living and edu-
cation are on a positive linear slope. Families in the United States are more hesitant to have four or more
children, and tend to stick to a safer and more affordable one or two. All of this contributes to the dramatic
age shift in the country’s demographic.

How will this change the American healthcare system? An aging population will place a tremen-
dous burden on our current system and its funding (3). Many people underestimate how much money will
be needed after retirement. Just decades ago, a person could retire at the age of sixty five and have
enough money to live for another ten years. Today some people retire at the young age of sixty five and
live for another thirty years, requiring long-term care, and eventually run out of money. Policies on funding
for geriatric healthcare will have to be implement-
ed within the next couple of years before the
country finds itself in a further major crisis.

Article Sources: https://thecaregiverspace.org/cost-aging-america/, https://www.everydayhealth.com/senior-health/aging-and-health/pressures-on-healthcare-from-booming-senior-population.aspx, http://

www.healthpolicyinstitute.pitt.edu/sites/default/files/SternCtrAddressingNeeds.pdf Photo credits: freestockphotos.biz
 Aging in America (Cont.)
Liz Tarbet, Freshman
Another roadblock the healthcare system will have to work through is not just at what age seniors
are dying, but how they are dying. In 1900, infectious diseases like influenza, pneumonia and tuberculo-
sis, to name a few, were the leading causes of death. With the incredible vaccines we have today, those
diseases are now nowhere close to being a leading cause of death, forcing our bodies to find other
ways to expire. Today, chronic conditions like heart disease, cancer, and Alzheimer’s are in the top
spots (2). Although progress has been made to treat these diseases, they are still dramatically worse
than the acute conditions our ancestors faced decades ago. The reason for this is that right now there
are only medicines to treat symptoms. Unlike a fast and furious disease like Influenza, a person could
suffer for years with these diseases before they reach the end of life. This is primarily why seventy per-
cent of those over the age of sixty five will need some sort of long term care in their lives. In 2010, only
twelve million Americans needed long-term care. Flash-forward to 2050 and about twenty seven million
Americans will require some sort of long-term care (1). The healthcare system will have to develop
more long-term care programs, while simultaneously looking to find cures for the newly developed
chronic diseases.

While we don’t yet know what diseases will top the leaderboard for causes of death in
2050, what we do know is that there will be a tremendous shortage of Geriatricians and geriatric nurses
and nurse practitioners. Although geriatrics is not one of the higher paying specialties, it is by far one of
the most rewarding, as it ranks very highly in career satisfaction (2). Therefore, if you are a student
searching for a job in the next few
months or maybe even years, remem-
ber to look in the gray areas for what
could be a very gratifying and secure
career.

Photo credits: http://www.geritech.org/2015/03/infographic-cost-of-aging-in-america.html/

 NSNA Mid-Year Convention
Shannon Lawler, Junior

This year the NSNA Midyear Convention was in San Diego, California. The four day
convention took place at the Town and Country which was located right next to the con-
vention center with multiple ballrooms to have concurrent panels of different interests for
the students to sit in on. Some of the panels that were at the convention including Navy
Nursing, Holistic Nursing, Genetics Nurses, Informatics Nurse, Clinical Nurse Specialist,
Ambulatory Care Nursing, Nephrology Nursing, Infusion/Intravenous Nurse, Newborn
Nursing, Radiology and Imaging Nursing, Critical Care Nursing, Operating Room and
Perioperative Nursing, Psychiatric-Mental Health Nursing, Pediatric Nurse Practitioner,
and Wound Care Nurse (NSNA Midyear). The panels were extremely interesting to listen
to. Some of my favorite panels were with the Holistic Nurse, Genetics Nurse and the Clini-
cal Nurse Specialist. These three nurses were amazing at explaining exactly what these
positions hold in the nursing world.

The Clinical Nurse Specialist spoke about the discipline she works in with taking
care of a specific population in her area, and what the area of chief complaints of the cli-
ents were. Clinical Nurse Specialists have advanced training and education to take care
of their clients. The next panel that was super interesting was the Genetics Nurse. This
gentleman was an active man in the service, specifically the Army. I had an incredible time
listening to him explain what he does in his practice of how genetics effect every human
being and that genetics can be analyzed to determine the health risk to a specific popula-
tion or the entire world. A Genetics Nurse can also do research on people with a specific
genetic makeup and provide education to that person. The final panel that caught my in-
terest was the Holistic Nurse one. The Holistic Nurse gave a completely different perspec-
tive on the role that the nurse can play in a client’s life. She spoke about alternate ap-
proaches of medicine that can help a patient heal including the use of mind, body, and
spirit.

Overall, the weekend spent in San Diego was incredible. The weather was beautiful
and I could not have been happier with the grounds the convention took place on. The
convention opened my eyes up to so many different specialties of nursing that I had never
thought about including Genetic Nursing, Informatics nursing, and the Clinical Nurse Spe-
cialist role. Finally, it was so marvelous to meet fellow nursing students from all across the
country and learn about the different curriculum that students learn, but in the end we all
arrive at the same destination, being nurses.

10

Picture Credits: https://a.dilcdn.com/bl/wp-content/uploads/sites/8/2011/11/ThinkstockPhotos-stk25212nwl-1-624x364-1.png

 Teens Turning to E-Cigs Now Instead of Cigarettes
Adelaide Lipschutz, Sophomore
Recently the new smoking sensation has been vaping. You
can see someone vaping everywhere you go; even on campus,
there is at least one person vaping outside of the classroom in be-
tween classes. However, this new craze is not just popular with col-
lege students, there have been new cases of teenagers in eighth
grade smoking e-cigs in place of real cigarettes. Recently 9.5% of
eight graders, 14% of tenth graders, and 16.2% of twelfth graders
were found to be using e-cigs. This is mainly because of the many
advertisements that e-cigs are healthier than original cigarettes.
There are also the numerous advertisements that these teenagers
are exposed to daily. 52.8% of middle school students and 56.3% of
high school students are exposed to these retail ads. There is also
the high instance of these teenagers being exposed to e-cigs in tel-
evision shows, movies, and magazines. They believe that instead of
inhaling many of the known carcinogenic compounds they are inhal-
ing “vapor”. The fact is, teenagers that are vaping do not even know what they are smok-
ing. 66% believe that it is just flavoring, 13.7% are unaware of what it is, and 5.8% be-
lieve marijuana is within the liquid that they are smoking. Almost 80% of these teenagers
are unaware of what they are putting inside their body. The truth is, people who smoke e-
cigs are still inhaling an unhealthy dose of nicotine and other chemicals that can be found
in normal cigarettes. Additionally, the main reason that people begin to use e-cigs is so
that they do not use cigarettes, but it was discovered that 30.7% of e-cig users started
smoking within six months.

11

Article Sources: https://www.drugabuse.gov/related-topics/trends-statistics/infographics/teens-e-cigarettes

 Nursing Specialties: Wound, Ostomy, and Continence
Shannon Lawler, Junior

Wound care nurses care for a very specific population of people. This special group
of nurses help to care for patients with complex wounds, incontinence issues, and poorly
healing wounds. There are not any specific requirements like a certification to be a wound
care nurse. The only requirements to be a wound care nurse is to have a Registered
Nurse License and have a Bachelor of Science in Nursing, and complete an average of
50 continuing education contact hours (Ameritech College of Healthcare). One specific
population that wound care nurses have as clients include those with diabetes. These
nurses are not only care givers, but they are also educators for the patient to understand
what is occurring with their body along with what interventions need to be made to allow
for the best possible life with the greatest outcomes. Wound care nurses also teach the
care givers how to help with wound dressing changes along with signs of possible issues
with the wound.

Ostomy nurses care for patients with various disorders of the digestive and urinary
systems. An ostomy is an opening of internal organs to the outside surface of body. This
specialty of nurses have to be extremely conscious of signs of healing and the possibility
of infection of the body. For patients with ostomies it is usually a life changing event in
their life, so ostomy nurses have to be there to comfort and support the patients and help
educate the patient on what the next step is. Ostomy nurses also help with any needed
counseling that the patient and family may require in the near and distant future. Some
other responsibilities that wound, ostomy and incontinence nurses do on a daily basis in-
clude checking the patient’s skin for signs of tears, stress, ulcerations or infection, com-
municating wound care plans, and helping to provide prevention of skin ulceration and
bed sores for immobile patients (One Stop Source for Nursing School Information).
Wound care nurses are vital in our growing population because they are not just nurses,
they are patient advocates. They help to support each and every patient because no two
people are alike.

12

Sources: “What Is Ostomy Nursing?” Your One Stop Source for Nursing School Information, www.nursingschoolhub.com/what-is-ostomy-nursing/, “Wound Care Nursing: Here's What You Need to Know.” Ameritech
College of Healthcare, 25 Feb. 2016, www.ameritech.edu/blog/what-to-know-about-wound-care-nursing/.
 News & Announcements
DUSNA School of Nursing
• You can still register for DUSNA. Turn in your • Take advantage of the NAP tutors this
applications to Jessica Chan by January 29th. semester.
• Look out for upcoming social and service events. • Make an appointment with your advisor if
you need help.

NCLEX Nook
Question is www. nurse.plus

Answer on Page 15

During an assessment
of a patient experienc-
ing acute hemorrhage ,
the healthcare provider
would most likely
expect to find?
A: Nause
B: Jaundice
C: Hypotension
D: Tachycardia

Peanut Butter Energy Bites

Directions
blessthismessplease.com 1. Add everything to a medium bowl
and mix to combine well. Stick the
Ingredients • ½ cup bowl in the fridge and let it chill for
ground flax- about half an hour. This resting time helps to ensure that the balls
• 1 cup (dry) seed
will stick together when rolled.
oatmeal (I
like old • ⅓ cup hon-
fashioned) ey 2. After the chilling time, take a tablespoon of the mixture in your
hand and roll into a ball. Repeat with remaining oat mixture. If
• ⅔ cup • 1/2 cup mini your balls aren’t sticking together after the resting period, you can
toasted un- chocolate
add a little more honey or peanut butter, stir well, and try rolling
sweetened chips
again. Sometimes it just needs a little more of the wet ingredients
coconut
flakes • 1 teaspoon to hold together well. And the moisture in the peanut butter will
vanilla ex- depend on the brand/type that you use.
• ½ cup pea- tract
nut butter 3. Store in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 2 weeks or in
the freezer much longer. 13

Picture Credits: Emily Churchill, Jessica Chan

 DAY TIME COURSE LOCATION COACH

3-5 Nutrition 541 FH Kayla

3-5 Pharm I (Sophomores) 539 FH Kelly

3-4 Fundamentals & Health Assessment Lounge Frank

MONDAY
5-7 Human Development 541 FH Isabelle

5-7 Adult Health (2nd Degree) 539 FH Morgan

4-5 Peds/OB (2nd Degree) 541 FH Caroline

TUESDAY
6-8 Human Development Lounge Holly

3-4 Fundamentals & Health Assessment Lounge Frank

WEDNESDAY 3-5 Adult Health (Sophomores) 541 FH Leanna

4-5 Peds/OB (2nd Degree) 541 FH Caroline

THURSDAY 4-6 Gerontology (Juniors) Lounge Erin

5-7 Adult Health (Sophomores) 541 FH Emily

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 DUSNA BOARD OF
NCLEX
ANSWER : A DIRECTORS
• President– Lauren Murtha
Interested in writing for The The answer is:
D • Secretary– Cecelia Carson
SCOPE? We are
The heart rate will increase in •
always looking for new writers. an attempt to deliver more
Treasurer– Briana Gavin

Contact Emily Churchill or oxygen to the brain and body. • Social– Shannon Lawler
Tachycardia is a pulse rate >
Morgan Gruender at 100bpm. • Service– Abigail Whitewood
[email protected] for • Fundraising– Elena Billy
Details! • Legislative Coordinators–
Holly Storm, Deanna Webb
• Recruitment– Jessica Chan
• Publicity– Emily Churchill, Morgan Gruender

15

Photo credits: DUSON, Jessica Chan

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