Sunday, April 14, 2013: 10:30 AM
Karen Gabel Speroni, BSN, MHSA, PhD, RN
Nursing Administration, Inova Loudoun Hospital, Virginia, VA
Learning Objective 1: The learner will be able to describe a healthy lifestyle plan that they can implement incorporating activity and nutrition.
Learning Objective 2: The learner will be able to describe challenges and solutions for nurses to serve as healthy lifestyle role models.
Nurses have a distinct advantage to be a most effective role model of healthy living for all those lives who they touch daily (patients, families and their communities). Nurse leaders are encouraged to empower nurses in their organizations with the knowledge and tools to live a healthier lifestyle and to role model healthy lifestyle for others. Nurses must first be armed with knowledge and support to give them the courage to live a healthy lifestyle, to be a role model for others, and to transition healthy lifestyle into their work environment. The presenter will build upon the core requirement of healthy lifestyle (balancing activity and exercise)
1,2 to achieve and maintain normal weight,
with a discussion of factors associated with healthier living. These include identification of barriers to a healthy lifestyle, techniques to living a healthy lifestyle, techniques for healthier work environments, and nurse-led community programs to educate others on healthy living, including other nurses, our patients, family and community. Ideally, nurses empowered with knowledge about healthy lifestyle should have more courage and vision to most strategically facilitate healthy lifestyle in their workplace, and to be an authentic leader of healthy living, thereby enabling most effective healthy lifestyle role modeling for all.
1) AHRQ Health Care Innovations Exchange. Innovation Profile/Attempt: [Nurse-Led Weekly Educational Program for Children Focuses on Physical Activity and Food Choices, Leading to Healthier Behaviors, Lower Body Mass Index] ([Karen Gabel Speroni, Inova Loudoun Hospital]). In: AHRQ Health Care Innovations Exchange [Web site]. Rockville (MD): [cited 2009 Apr 13 & updated 2011 July 20]. Available: http://www.innovations.ahrq.gov/content.aspx?id=2406.
2) Speroni, K.G., Earley, C., Seibert, D., Kassem, M., Shorter, G., Ware, C., Kosak, E. & Atherton, M. (2012). Effect of Nurses Living Fit™ Exercise and Nutrition Intervention on Body Mass Index in Nurses. Journal of Nursing Administration; 42(4):231-238
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