The resources in this section draw on expertise from Nursing@Georgetown faculty to offer support and information for patients with chronic diseases and for their loved ones. Georgetown University School of Nursing & Health Studies is committed to teaching cura personalis — care for the whole person — and the articles on this page address the mental, emotional, and physical implications of chronic disease. Use the links below to find information related to specific conditions. Table of Contents Cancer Dementia Diabetes Heart Disease Cancer How to Talk About Cancer: A Communic ..read more

Dementia often comes with deep emotional complications not only for patients but also for their caregivers and loved ones. Karen McCrea, DNP, FNP-C, has experienced that toll firsthand at both the personal and professional level. As a nurse practitioner, she has worked with patients and families affected by dementia. Within McCrea’s family, her father and grandmother were diagnosed with dementia, and McCrea served as the primary health care proxy for her grandmother until her death. “In most other chronic illnesses, yes, the family also is impacted by the diagnosis and its management. But I th ..read more

Medication adherence, the behavior of taking medication as prescribed, is a major challenge in health care. Older adults are often at higher risk for nonadherence, as they are more likely to be on multiple prescription medications, according to the Kaiser Family Foundation.  Individual choices are often not the main culprit when a patient deviates from their prescription plan, said Kelly A. Thompson-Brazill, director of the Adult-Gerontology Acute Care Program for the Georgetown University School of Nursing & Health Studies. Instead, she said that high costs, low levels of  healt ..read more

Shortage of Primary Care Physicians There is a shortage of primary care physicians in the United States, from urban areas to rural communities with a long-standing history of being underserved. Conversely, the demand for primary care practitioners by health care providers continues to increase.  By 2030, it’s projected that California will experience a shortage of 32,669 primary care physicians, according to a 2020 article in Human Resources for Health. Similarly, Texas will experience a shortage of 20,420 physicians, and Florida will experience a shortage of 21,978 physicians. The d ..read more

Whether working from home, in an office, or at a desk, many individuals spend too much time on their feet or in a chair, depending on the physical demands of their job.  It’s easy for those who work on a computer to spend more time sitting than recommended. Conversely, those in the service industry, teachers, retail workers, law enforcement officials, and nurses experience the opposite problem: being on their feet all day. Despite what fitness trackers may indicate, this is not always a good thing. Workers in all sectors can take steps to offset the negative effects of prolonged sitting ..read more

As the holiday travel season begins, more people are traveling to be reunited with families and loved ones. But many families and individuals are considering how to stay healthy while visiting loved ones and getting away.  Ron Kraus, president of the Emergency Nurses Association, and his family are among the millions of families who are trying to plan holiday gatherings while still protecting the health of young children who are unvaccinated as well as elderly family members. “We all want to get together, we all want to see each other, and some people haven’t seen each for a long time, an ..read more

There is no one right way to share a cancer diagnosis, and loved ones of cancer patients will often have different reactions to the news. Although cancer patients do not have to share information about their condition with everyone in their lives, preparing to have difficult conversations can help ease tension around talks about a cancer diagnosis, treatment, and outlook. Nurses, too, can learn strategies for gentle and effective communication with cancer patients.  Read on to learn more about how nurses, patients, family, and friends can effectively communicate about cancer. The links be ..read more

COVID-19 vaccines have been readily available to many U.S. adults since spring 2021. But despite consistent messaging from public health experts urging Americans to get the vaccine, and signs on vaccination centers offering walk-in appointments, participation rates remained relatively low. As of Oct. 25, 2021, about 57.4% of the U.S. population was fully vaccinated against COVID-19, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s COVID Data Tracker. Hesitancy around vaccines is not limited to COVID-19: About half of U.S. adults were vaccinated against the flu for the 2020–2 ..read more

In a 2017 study of procrastination in nursing students, researchers sought solutions to curb the behavior of decisional procrastination in academics. They discovered that social capital — feelings of hope, resiliency, optimism and self-efficacy — played a role in minimizing procrastination. In other words, the procrastination habits of the study participants were not merely a result of negligence or lack of discipline; the way they felt influenced how and when they approached a task.   The question of why people procrastinate is a perennial issue for students and nursing professional ..read more

The Baby Boomer Generation Who are the baby boomers? Born between 1946 and 1964, the baby boomer generation gets its name from the sharp rise in birth rates, commonly referred to as the “baby boom,” in the years following World War II. With high urbanization rates and low-cost city living, a flourishing economy, and the government encouraging the growth of families, WWII soldiers who had held off on getting married and starting families before deployment decided to do just that. From the Vietnam War to the Civil Rights movement and the launch of Sputnik in space, baby boomers have lived throug ..read more