Myrna Armstrong

Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center | TTUHSC

Background: The use of objective structured clinical examinations (OSCEs) is a well-established method of clinical assessment in the medical profession, and these are currently being integrated into advanced practice nursing curricula. Method: A program assessment was conducted at a current family nurse practitioner track within a southwestern U...

More than 600,000 U.S. Veterans die from illness each year. Clinicians in civilian settings are increasingly providing care to Veterans at end of life. Veteran care should be distinctive and individualized to meet their unique needs. There is limited information to guide civilian clinicians in providing care to Veterans at end of life. This article...

Aims and Objectives To explore the lived experience of homeless veterans during the COVID- 19 pandemic. Background Homelessness is problematic in military veterans especially in a pandemic. Qualitative studies are needed to determine the needs of homeless military veterans during the COVID-19 pandemic. Method A qualitative, phenomenological appro...

For military Veterans (MVs) to obtain effective care, nurses must be alert to olfaction issues, ask the right questions, and be aware of the various sensitivities required to obtain a helpful history. Diagnostic queries and applicable education can promote patient centered holistic care to help MVs manage symptoms and learn new coping strategies fo...

Background Tattoos are an artistic, visible reflection of an individual's personality and life. According to Goffman and subcultural identity theory, the population with tattoos wants to be different from mainstream society. Method A qualitative descriptive phenomenological research process was used. Results Twelve participants described deep per...

Because substantial numbers of unidentified military Veterans currently present to civilian health facilities for care, prompt recognition of Veterans is essential. Effective assessment screening for any remnants of behavioral health issues, such as post-traumatic stress disorder, moral injury, military sexual trauma, and suicide, is critical.

Women veterans may experience a variety of traumatizing events and conditions before, during, and after their military service, such as intimate partner violence, military sexual trauma, moral injury, and posttraumatic stress disorder. These experiences put them at greater risk for significant behavioral and physical health sequelae, which can be a...

Because substantial numbers of unidentified military Veterans currently present to civilian health facilities for care, prompt recognition of Veterans is essential. Effective assessment screening for any remnants of behavioral health issues, such as post-traumatic stress disorder, moral injury, military sexual trauma, and suicide, is critical.

Background Capitalizing on the veteran's extensive service experience, values, and norms, Health Resources Services Administration (HRSA) proposed Nurse Education, Practice, Quality and Retention – Veterans' Bachelor of Science (VBSN) Program grants (2016-2019). Purpose The purpose was to identify predictors of student veterans' (SV) progression a...

Over 10 million military veterans (MV) were non-deployed or had non-combat deployment, creating their non-eligibility for Veteran Administration (VA) benefits. This first of two columns describes their identification and service-related physical concerns.

As the Iraq and Afghanistan War veteran population now exceeds 2.5 million, awareness of significant groups of service members of the total Armed Forces milieu is important. Four diverse groups that are within, and surrounding military environments, are examined in this chapter. The Reserve and National Guard component, military women, and the lesb...

The Iraq and Afghanistan wars are unlike earlier wars, and the women veterans who have served in them are unlike veterans of earlier wars. Now these veterans are presenting with distinctive general, genitourinary, reproductive, and behavioral health issues. When seeking health care after deployment, they may be accessing multiple health care provid...

Background: Almost 44% of our nation's 23 million men and women veterans are 65 years of age or older. Most are proud of their service, yet many believe their services for our country were forgotten, especially those in combat between 1950 and 1975. Purpose: Further information to ultimately assist their holistic well-being will be important for...

Nursing continues to face professional workforce and diversity shortage problems. This article advocates for examining an untapped resource—the consideration of applicants for nursing leadership and educational positions in civilian health care organizations. This untapped resource is highly qualified, already retired (or going to be separated) mil...

This research note examines the relationship between survey respondents' reports of escalating numbers of tattoos and their measured levels of self-esteem, depression, suicide ideation, and reports of one or more suicide attempts. Data were gathered from 2,395 college students attending six American public universities. Results indicate a four-fold...

The preceding article presented a glimpse of deployed women veterans, their military culture, and their experiences in the Global War on Terror (Iraq and Afghanistan) to assist civilian nurses to gain significant rapport and provide important culturally sensitive care. Pertinent literary sources were reviewed to gather applicable data about the pro...

Today, with almost 23 million veterans in the nation, and currently only about 10 million, or less, of them seeking active services associated with the Veterans Administration (VA) health facilities, these men and women veterans will be seeking some, more, or even all of their health care over their life time in civilian-based facilities. Pertinent...

Many deployed women Veterans, as described in a previous article, have experienced similar combat exposure as their male counterparts in wars since 1990. Upon reintegration, many Veterans visit civilian health facilities with behavioral health issues, sometimes voicing and/or attempting suicide. Effective nursing assessment and actions are needed t...

How to Obtain Contact Hours by Reading this Issue Instructions: 1.2 contact hours will be awarded by Villanova University College of Nursing upon successful completion of this activity. A contact hour is a unit of measurement that denotes 60 minutes of an organized learning activity. This is a learner-based activity. Villanova University College of...

Little is known about suicide variables in women Veterans. The authors reviewed numerous applicable health care and military literary sources regarding suicide in this population. The current article describes the surrounding circumstances, military war/conflict culture, and potential effects on women Veterans, including major collection problems w...

Capitalizing on the almost 2.2 million service members returning from Operation Iraqi Freedom and New Dawn (OIF) in Iraq, and Operation Enduring Freedom (OEF) in Afghanistan, baccalaureate educators are encouraged to create realistic, applicable nursing transitional programs for the health and health-related oriented military veterans. Opportunitie...

As women veterans (WVs) are returning from Operation Iraqi Freedom and Operation Enduring Freedom with military sexual trauma (MST), the purpose of this article is twofold. First, important exploratory questions that can assist with a thorough assessment and history are presented as well as the applicable treatment for any new, recurrent, or unreso...

Purpose: To provide information on men who have tattooed one anatomical site, the genital region (pubic and/or glans penis), that is uncommonly noted.

Combined efforts of professional mandates, employer preferences for increased educational levels of staff registered nurses (RNs), Magnet's higher environmental ratings, the Institute of Medicine report, and Aiken's (2003, 2008, & 2011) clinical research outcomes have spawn renewed attention for RN-baccalaureate degree of science in nursing (BSN) e...

Although there have been several wars and conflicts since World War I, the escalating numbers of veterans since that time is now evident. Extraordinary survival results have evolved from effective triage, trauma treatment, and recovery maneuvers during Operation Iraqi Freedom and Operation New Dawn (OIF) in Iraq and Operation Enduring Freedom (OEF)...

Although several major national mandates advocate for a better educated workforce, this push comes at a time when the competition for faculty, financial resources, advanced technology, and students remains strong. If nurse educators are seriously considering creating a new nurse program at their school, some key points are essential during the deve...

Body art is mainstream, with wearers readily admitting to being risk takers. Yet, are high-risk behaviors (e.g., cigarette, alcohol, and illegal drug use, sexual activity) and emotional distress (e.g., depression, suicide, eating disorders, abuse/forced sexual activity) present in all individuals with body art? Of the 595 college students who were...

Using the major format identified for successful prevention and intervention work, five "W" questions: what, why, whom, where, and who, plus one: how, this article first summarizes the current body art literature. Then, educational strategies specifically regarding the topic of tattoos and body piercing are presented for school nurses. These strate...

Among the challenges currently facing nursing is the need for new graduates who are competent to begin providing complex patient care. Innovations in nursing education must lead to outcomes that bridge the gap between nursing education and the beginning competencies that employers need in newly hired graduates. One method for preparing students for...

Tattooing's popularity has led to regulatory concerns because medical complications linked to unsanitary practices can have a lasting health impact. The authors' study sought to determine whether existing state tattooing laws and regulations (rules) effectively protect public health. A 10-item checklist was created for each of three types of rules...

Nursing's future depends on continuing to seek, create, and launch innovative nursing programs. Successful innovation can improve nursing education delivery and make optimal use of available resources while tapping into the imagination and creativity of faculty and students; in addition, it can create an optimistic environment and encourage benefic...

Military licensed vocational nurses (LVNs) provide nursing care for the ill, injured, convalescent, or disabled persons. Those who have deployed both for humanitarian and wartime situations have a tremendous experiential base in stabilization of life-threatening frontline injuries and critical care intense facilities. An educational program was cre...

A successful hospital network and university faculty collaboration offered 21 staff nurses and nurse leaders opportunities to develop clinical manuscripts that would be suitable for publishing their innovative ideas. This process prepared them to synthesize relevant literature and develop their ideas into manuscripts. Ten nurses submitted their fin...

To provide quantitative and qualitative data that will assist evidence-based decision making for men and women with genital piercings (GP) when they present to urologists in ambulatory clinics or office settings. Currently many persons with GP seek nonmedical advice. A comprehensive 35-year (1975-2010) longitudinal electronic literature search (MED...

Purpose: While naturally occurring male host defense mechanisms prevent many urinary tract infections (UTI), this article describes two purposeful forms of urethral play (UP) that could be unique predisposing factors to increased UTI susceptibility. Data sources: Medical literature has documented unconventional penile and urethral activities since...

An increase in the prevalence of body art as a form of self-expression has motivated health care organizations to develop policies addressing nursing personnel's body art. A systematic review of literature on body art was completed and a telephone survey of 15 hospitals was conducted to query existing policy statements addressing nursing personnel'...

To provide further quantitative and qualitative evidence about men who insert foreign liquids and objects into their penis and/or urethra. As part of a larger, cross-sectional study examining men (n = 445) with genital piercings (GP), 2 questions inquired whether the respondents had penile tattoos and/or inserted other materials, such as fluids and...

Purpose: More men with genital piercings (GP) are presenting to health care facilities, yet a paucity of medical literature exists about their body modifications, health issues, and medical needs. Historically, they have turned to a piercer or the internet for medical advice which may put their health at risk by receiving inappropriate guidance or...

A viable approach to addressing the nursing shortage has been the advent of accelerated models of nursing education (205 programs in 2007) to produce new baccalaureate-prepared nurses. This article provides a brief description of an online accelerated second-degree program and the accelerated students, followed by a discussion of the important coll...

Purpose: To add three further dimensions of evidence for the care of women with genital piercings (GPs). Data sources: Following a literature review, a cross-sectional study replicated previous work, using a web-based survey. This triad of evidence provides (a) descriptive quantitative data (N = 240) about women with GPs, (b) qualitative data about...

This research examines the relationship between body art (tattoos and piercings) and deviance. With the increasing mainstream presence of visible tattoos and piercings among entertainers, athletes, and even in corporate boardrooms, we wonder the extent to which long-time enthusiasts and collectors regard the phenomenon as encroachment. We use sub-c...

Problem. Information about older women dwells on age-related illness and disabilities yet, other empowering traits could be promoting positive forces. Aim. While everyone desires some distinctiveness, this study explores higher levels of the motivational construct need for uniqueness (NU) in older women. NU concepts are: 1) perceived feelings of be...

Young adult populations (18-25 years of age) throughout the world have latched onto the mainstream trend of body piercing. Best health care practices for these individuals involves the knowledge of proper procedural techniques, postsite care, common complications, and treatment modalities.

Aging for the older women in the 21st century is more than medical issues. In this study, 62 women (ages 51-81+) obtained a total of 97 permanent makeup procedures. Procurement cues included self-improvement and friend's appearance, consistent with internal, external, and appearance perspectives of body image. Poor eyesight was also of concern (14/...

It’s Saturday night at 3 AM and a 24-year-old heavily pierced and tattooed man presents to triage with multiple lacerations on his arms and legs. In obtaining the initial history, it is found that he was undergoing a body suspension at a local club and “the hooks ripped out.” He indicates that he was advised to “get some stitches” for the wounds. Y...

Can a patient with a tattoo safely have an MRI? Here's the answer to this and other piercing questions, based on the latest evidence.

Infective endocarditis (IE) is a rare but dangerous complication of tattooing and body piercing in adolescents and young adults 15-30 years of age, with and without congenital heart disease (CHD). Because body art, including tattooing and piercing, is increasing and IE cases continue to be reported in the literature, a longitudinal assessment of IE...

To compare the results of a 1996 study of tattoo possession and motivation for tattoo removal with those of a 2006 study, in light of today's current strong mainstream tattoo procurement and societal support within the young adult population. Descriptive, exploratory study. Four dermatology clinics in Arizona, Colorado, Massachusetts, and Texas. Th...

This article explains why women get genital piercings (also called intimate piercings) and what nurses need to know when these women present for gynecologic or obstetric care. Readers may earn two CNE contact hours for this learning activity by completing the post-test and participant feedback form at http://IournalsCNE.awhonn.org.

This research examined the relation between having a body piercing and having engaged in premarital sexual intercourse. Data were gathered from a convenience sample of 450 college students. 72% were women; 85% were ages 18 to 22 years (M=20.9, SD=4.5), 80% were Euro-American. Women with piercings reported substantively and significantly greater fre...

This research examined the relation between having a body piercing and having engaged in premarital sexual intercourse. Data were gathered from a convenience sample of 450 college students. 72% were women; 85% were ages 18 to 22 years (M = 20.9, 5D = 4.5), 80% were Euro-American. Women with piercings reported substantively and significantly greater...

Can it be said that body piercing is ubiquitous, found across all socioeconomic groups? The major concentration is among adolescents and young adults 15 to 30 years old, in some studies, 50% of the population. Commonly identified physical risks are bleeding, tissue trauma, and bacterial infections; psychosocial risks are unhappiness, low self-estee...

Although body piercing procurement continues to increase, 13% to 18% of them are removed. Reasons for piercing removal in college students were examined with three groups: (a) those who kept all their piercings, (b) those who removed some, or (c) those who removed all of their body piercings. Of the sample, 41% were still pierced; 50% in their life...

520 college students from a public university in the southwest were questioned to examine correlations between having a tattoo and the presence of tattoos among their family and friends. Tattoos among both friends and family were positively correlated with respondents' having a tattoo. The magnitude of friends' influence was about double the influe...

General and subjective information about those who chose to obtain genital piercings was presented. Particularly, the assumptions made from the literature are refuted by objective and subjective data collected from intimately pierced individuals themselves. Professional nurses must not base practice decisions on assumptions but on the "best evidenc...

This pilot study tested the effects of an interactive nutrition education Web site on fruit, vegetable, and fat consumption in minority adolescents genetically at risk for Type 2 diabetes. A one-group nonexperimental pretest, posttest focus group design was used. Twenty-one sixth-grade to eighth-grade junior high adolescents who were minorities vol...

This research examined the association of having a tattoo and engaging in premarital sexual intercourse. Data gathered from a convenience sample of 450 college students indicated that tattooed respondents were substantively and significantly more likely to be sexually active than nontattooed college students. Tattooed men became sexually active at...

This research examined the association of having a tattoo and engaging in premarital sexual intercourse. Data gathered from a convenience sample of 450 college students indicated that tattooed respondents were substantively and significantly more likely to be sexually active than nontattooed college students. Tattooed men became sexually active at...

The popularity of tattooing, body piercing, and permanent cosmetics demands up-to-date state legislation. The objective of this article is to present a historical perspective and nationwide review of current state regulations for body art. Methods comprised Internet and telephone inquiries to state agencies. It was found that while 36 states have c...

The purpose of this paper is to report the findings of a study exploring factors associated with female and male intimate body piercing, with particular emphasis on health issues. Nipple and genital piercings (intimate piercings) have become common types of body art. Scant medical and nursing literature is available, leading to little understanding...

Cosmetic tattooing (permanent makeup of eyebrows, eyeliner, or lipliner) procedures are flourishing among women worldwide. Recurrent themes provide knowledge and understanding so dermatology nurses can aid in their procedural decision making.

This research extends social psychological models which have previously been used to explain tattooing behavior. We apply the Health Belief Model to the decision-making process by which young adults express interest in or obtain a tattoo. We examine the five components of the Health Belief Model with regard to the likelihood of being tattooed, bein...

Some research suggests adorning the body with tattoos or piercing jewelry is normative. Survey data were gathered from 450 undergraduates (72% female; 80% Euro-American; 63% freshmen and sophomores). Correlations between an index of respondents' religious belief and practice and their attitudes toward individuals who had more body piercings were we...

Body piercing and tattooing flourish on American campuses. The theoretical framework of symbolic interaction and subculture identity were used to examine two similar studies (methods, sample, and tools) for building a composite of influences associated with body art and further understand the psychosocial dimensions. In data from Armstrong, Owen, R...

Student (N = 450) demographic characteristics (parental composition and relationships, and religious participation) were documented in those with body piercings (32%) and those without body piercings (55%), yet many risky behaviors were present, including tattooing (22%). Major piercing purposes were self-expression and identity, rather than devian...

This research builds on a large body of literature which suggests that religious belief and practice suppress deviant behavior. Survey data from 520 undergraduates (64% freshmen and sophomores; 70% female; 80% Euro-American) at a large public university in the southwest were examined for whether students' strength of religious faith, church attenda...

Reading is one means of achieving professional lifelong learning, and while nursing as a profession has an abundance of literary resources, the amount of time nurses actually spend reading is unknown. Previous studies found nurses who had graduate degrees, were in leadership positions, and held multiple memberships in professional nursing organizat...

Nontattooed (n = 423, 81%) and tattooed (n = 97, 19%) college students report their cues, purpose, reason, risks, barriers, and customer criteria for tattooing; some psychosocial risks were documented. Challenges are posed and suggestions made for developing applicable health education.

Tattoos are popular among many groups of people. College students from a large university in the southwestern United States were queried using the 134-item Armstrong Team Tattoo Attitude Survey. Findings documents a progressive increase in tattooing and reflect significant support for tattoos, even from non-tattooed students. Similar and positive d...

This journal presented the first nursing information on adolescents and tattooing 6 years ago, and 5 years ago, information was provided about body piercing. These were published to help school nurses assist adolescents become informed decision makers. Another purpose was to prevent risks and, if possible, help dissuade adolescents from tattooing a...

To determine pregnant adolescents' interest in tattooing and identify additional risk-taking behaviors practiced by tattooed pregnant adolescents. A descriptive study with a convenience sample of 41 pregnant adolescents was conducted. The majority of participants were 16 to 17 years of age, 7 to 9 months gestation, single, in the 10th to 11th grade...

The popularity of body art, especially of invasive tattooing and body piercing procedures, has prompted safety concerns, The four primary areas of concern are (1) the equipment and associated materials, (2) the artists' education, (3) the physical environments where body art is performed, and (dr) the paucity of regulations and enforcement associat...

Continuing education via distance education is expanding. A review of the media used to deliver classes in the past as well as future possibilities are presented. The personal experience of the authors using these methods to present continuing nursing education is the basis for this article. There is evidence that people learn via distance educatio...

Primary prevention is a priority for medical personnel. Despite societal popularity and a long association of the military with tattooing, little is known about the tattooed Army soldier, which hampers primary health planning. Basic recruits and advanced individual training students (N = 1,835) at one mid-western military installation completed a q...

Tattooing and body piercing are increasing, especially among college students. A study of 766 tattooed and/or body-pierced college students in 18 universities across the United States and one in Australia was conducted to discover the demographic characteristics, motivational factors, and health concerns. The traditional college time of 18 to 22 ye...

Reading activities of registered nurses (RNs) were investigated using an untreated comparison group design study. The study group consisted of RN students (N = 60) enrolled in a baccalaureate in nursing (BSN) program at four distance education sites in northeast and central Texas who were queried about their reading activities. Total reading time o...