Editorial: Through Changes and Transitions: The Skills and Attitude Necessary for Nurses to Embark on the Journey by Meredith King-Jensen, MSN, MA, RN; Dana Deravin Carr, DrPH, MS, MPH, RN-BC, CCM; Caroline Mosca, PhD, MSN, RN; Coreen Simmons, PhD-c, DNP, MSN, MPH, RN; Audrey Graham-O’Gilvie, DNP, ACNS-BS; Anne Bové, MSN, RN-BC, CCRN, ANP; and Seth Dressekie, MSN, RN, NP

n EDITOR IAL Through Changes and Transitions: The Skills and Attitude Necessary for Nurses to Embark on the Journey

The only constant in life is change. Ready or not, we all go through numerous transitions in our lives—leaving high school to go to nursing school, changing jobs, getting married, having children, and aging. Ready or not, we all go through numerous transitions in our lives—leaving high school to go to nursing school, changing jobs, significant life changes, and aging. This issue of The Journal will offer readers articles for thought on transitions we might all face throughout our life cycles and careers.

In the article “High-Quality Care Transitions Promote Continuity of Care and Safer Discharges,” improvements in transitioning patients with chronic illnesses between healthcare practitioners, settings, and home as a patient’s condition and care needs change are discussed. Similarly, in the article “Night Shift Work and Weight Gain Among Female Filipino Nurses,” the challenges of nurses transitioning between day and night shift work and the associated weight gain experienced by night shift workers are addressed. Lastly, in the article “Nurse Entrepreneurs: The Real Independent Practice of Nursing,” the opportunities and challenges for nurses transitioning into a new career and role as a nurse entrepreneur are presented.

During times of transition, when your world seems to be in flux, when old patterns and ways of doing things have collapsed, you may feel uncertain, unsteady, and unequipped, but remember that at these transitional stages you are also most malleable to change. Transitioning is a time of opportunity, a time to explore, brainstorm, and consider the skills and knowledge you need to acquire before your life begins to naturally solidify into new patterns.

Transitions are those unique times when we toss off the old, but have not yet stepped into the new. While the circumstances are always different, the skills and attitudes necessary to successfully move ahead are always the same, namely being positive, patient, and proactive. A new journey awaits!

Meredith King-Jensen, MSN, MA, RN Dana Deravin Carr, DrPH, MS, MPH, RN-BC, CCM Caroline Mosca, PhD, MSN, RN Coreen Simmons, PhD-c, DNP, MSN, MPH, RN Audrey Graham-O’Gilvie, DNP, ACNS-BS Anne Bové, MSN, RN-BC, CCRN, ANP Seth Dressekie, MSN, RN, NP