A leaked HHS budget proposal suggests reducing the number of NIH institutes and centers from 27 to eight, cutting the NIH budget from $48 billion to $27 billion and completely eliminating four institutes or centers, including the National Institute of Nursing Research.

A survey from Wolters Kluwer found that 71% of nurse leaders plan to introduce home health nursing models, which can improve transfers from care settings to home, accelerate patient recovery, improve satisfaction and prevent hospital readmissions. Trinity Health's program may serve as a model, according to the report.

Hearing loss may account for up to 32% of dementia cases, according to a study in JAMA Otolaryngology - Head & Neck Surgery. The study used data from nearly 3,000 older adults in the Atherosclerosis Risk in Communities neurocognitive study and measured audiometric hearing loss instead of self-reported hearing loss, which may underestimate population attributable fractions, researcher Jason Smith said.

Timing meals to align with natural circadian rhythms could help mitigate cardiovascular risks for night shift workers, according to a study in Nature Communications. Researchers found that eating during the day rather than at night improved heart rate variability and blood pressure. "We were amazed that meal timing could mitigate adverse effects even though sleep was still mistimed," said researcher Frank Scheer.

Glenmark Pharmaceuticals is recalling 39 different generic drugs produced at a facility in India that failed to meet manufacturing standards. Recalled drugs include diltiazem hydrochloride, ranolazine, clindamycin hydrochloride, voriconazole, cetirizine hydrochloride, lacosamide and gabapentin.

The Medical University of South Carolina is expanding its virtual nursing program from medical and surgical units to the emergency department, intensive care unit and specialty care units. The initiative has improved metrics such as nurse satisfaction, patient satisfaction, time spent on electronic medical record tasks and discharge times, but hiring has been paused to address workflow efficiencies and productivity.

A study in The Lancet Planetary Health highlights how climate change affects the global blood supply, citing increased instances of extreme weather and infectious disease spread as significant challenges. These factors limit blood donations and heighten the demand for blood products, and the study calls for urgent measures to create a more resilient and adaptable blood supply system to mitigate these climate-related risks.

Frequent address changes in electronic health records are linked to housing insecurity and certain health issues, according to a study in PLOS One. Patients with a history of homelessness averaged 1.8 address changes, compared with 0.6 for those with secure housing. Patients with four or more address changes had a higher prevalence of psychiatric diagnoses at 65.2%, compared with 27.7% for those with no address changes.

The CMS has proposed removing four measures from the Hospital Inpatient Quality Reporting Program related to health equity, social drivers of health and COVID-19 vaccination coverage among health care workers. SDOH data elements would also be eliminated from inpatient rehabilitation facility and long-term care hospital reporting requirements. The CMS is accepting comments on the proposals.

Ready to write the next chapter of your nursing success story? Join us for the Writing to the Standards Workshop, May 7-8 and learn to craft applications that stand out. Get familiar with the required key elements, participate in hands-on workshops, and hear firsthand from experts!