Sitting in front of the fire tonight, my second-grade daughter and I were watching the news. During a commercial break, I explained to her what an editorial was and that I needed to write one, fast!! I told her that I had no idea what I was going to write about for this issue. In the span of 20 seconds, she had it settled. As no-nonsense as only an eight-year-old can be, she said, "Write about what your policy is or what it's not. Write about what you like, what you don't like." Then she added, "Write about how you save people, what medicines you give, and how you do mouth-to-mouth."
My little girl is right. I can write about what I like and what our policy is. But, I'm asking you to write about how you care for people.
Our policy at the journal is to help writers get their papers into print and to make it as painless as possible for the writer. You don't have to be a great writer to be published in Plastic Surgical Nursing. What we do need is your ideas, experience, and expertise. Every time I go to a convention, I meet innovative nurses. You've met them, too. They are nurses who have expertise with new technology; who have traveled to far-flung places to care for patients; who creatively manage personnel problems, who are expert at hands-on care, and always have a better way of doing things. They are the nurses who look at old problems in fresh ways. Nurses like me say, "Tell me how you did that" and "Would you write an article about that?" Over and over, I hear these potential authors say "I can't write" or "I've never done it" and "I don't have the time." As long as they walk around with wonderful ideas and experience in their heads, that's where the knowledge stays-unless they share it with other nurses.
Our editorial board and the production staff at LWW is committed to helping writers walk through the steps of publication. Sometimes authors are overwhelmed by the thought of writing. Like so many things in our professional lives, it's often helpful to bounce your ideas off someone else. Call or e-mail me or one of the other editorial board members. We are happy to talk over your idea with you. We can help you break the project into pieces, making it more manageable. Not too long ago, I had an author worry that her paper wouldn't be "perfect enough." If you get the ideas down on paper, we'll help with the nitty-gritty like grammar, sentence structure, and subheads. Clear communication is the goal. We want to get the ideas out of your head and on to the page in order to benefit other nurses and their patients.
You will see various types of articles in the journal. The topic indicates the type of article to be written. The main types of articles in the nursing literature could be categorized as research, clinical practice, professional issues, and review articles. You will see other types of writing such as case reports, book reviews, product reviews, question-and-answer pieces, and letters to the editor. Some papers will be a combination of these categories.
Research articles present the findings of quantitative and qualitative research. Quantitative research papers, such as the one in this issue by Susan Mac Pherson, usually follow the IMRAD format: introduction, methods, results, and discussion. There is more variation of style with qualitative, or descriptive, research. It is our desire to publish more research in the journal, since research is the basis of new nursing knowledge.
Not all of our writers are nurses. Dr. David Rahm wrote an article on vitamin supplements in this issue. You don't have to have degrees or any particular credentials to write for us. Kyle Kerkemeyer, a student nurse at Bellarmine University, wrote on acne vulgaris for this issue.
Not all of our papers are directly related to plastic surgery. Many authors don't think to submit their work to Plastic Surgical Nursing because the topic isn't specific to plastic surgery. If plastic surgery nurses only read articles about plastic surgery, they would certainly suffer from tunnel vision. Recent or upcoming articles in this journal have touched on collateral topics such as vitamin therapy, PONV, physical therapy for cancer patients, and guidelines for statin therapy.
Case studies or case reports provide new information on nursing practice through the presentation of an actual case. If you think of some of your unforgettable patients, it is likely there is something we all could learn from their care. In addition to case studies, you will also read review articles in the journal. Last issue, there was a paper on the use of inhaled isopropyl alcohol for the treatment of postoperative nausea and vomiting. This was a review paper that summarized the current literature on inhalation therapy for N&V and discussed the benefits of this intervention for the patients we care for.
Writing for publication cannot be considered the responsibility of only nurses in academic settings. The nurses in clinical settings have a major responsibility to describe the effectiveness of the nursing interventions and innovations they have developed for patient care. Nurses in all settings have a similar responsibility to share knowledge and ideas for the benefit of others. Why don't you do what my daughter said and write about "how you saved a patient, the medications you gave, or how you did mouth-to-mouth." I would love to hear from you.
Kathleen Walsh Spencer, MSN, MA, RN, CS, CPSN
Editor