Home | ELNEC | COVID-19

ELNEC Support for Nurses During Covid-19

ELNEC | End-of-life nursing education consortium | Advancing Palliative Care | Since 2000

End-of-Life Nursing Education Consortium (ELNEC) project is a national and international education initiative to improve palliative care. Learn more. The ELNEC COVID-19 section is supported by grant funding from the Cambia Health Foundation and Pfizer.

Visit the ELNEC Materials tab for free modules including slides, recorded presentations, infographics, video vignettes, and more. Visit the Resources tabs for materials, websites, and webinars from our palliative care colleagues.

A Voice for Nursing

Dorothy Wholihan, DNP, AGPCNP-BC, ACHPN, FPCN, FAAN is a national ELNEC faculty member who lives and works in New York City. She is a professor of nursing in the palliative care nurse practitioner program at the NYU Meyers College of Nursing with a clinical practice on the palliative care team at the JJ Peters VA Medical Center. During the pandemic, she is also volunteering as a palliative care telehealth consultant with patients and families within the HHC city hospital system. Dorothy connects and mentors students, alumni and colleagues throughout the city, bearing witness to and learning from nurses struggling valiantly to provide the best nursing care possible during impossible times.

Check back weekly as Dorothy provides a "Voice for Nursing” from the COVID Surge on a regular basis, to help prepare, inspire and support colleagues throughout the country with challenges faced and creative approaches developed by nurses on the frontline. We encourage anyone to respond with dialogue and best practices which she can incorporate into her commentary. Dorothy can be reached by email at dw57@nyu.edu.

Stay strong! Be proud! Be heard as the Voice of Nursing for patient-centered care!

Read the latest Voice for Nursing piece.

Hello to all of our ELNEC "Family" of Trainers!

The ELNEC (End of Life Nursing Education Consortium) project has developed this section on our website with free resources, materials and links that we would like to share with our colleagues at this time. The materials include some ELNEC modules for use in training and supporting staff as well as other items we hope are helpful in these challenging times. Please bookmark this page (www.aacnnursing.org/ELNEC/COVID-19) and check back as we continue to update. The ELNEC team extends our support for all clinicians providing palliative care. There has never been a time when our communities need all that palliative care provides.

The ELNEC Team
Betty Ferrell, Polly Mazanec, Rose Virani, Haley Buller, Andrea Garcia-Ortiz, Kelly Greer, Yesel Arvizu, & Lily Correa

ELNEC Trainers and Palliative Care Nurses During COVID-19
A video celebrating the ELNEC trainers and palliative care nurse colleagues working through the COVID-19 pandemic. Developed by Vanessa Battista, RN, MS, CPNP, CCRC and Yesel Arvizu, MBA.

Nurses Change Lives by Johnson & Johnson
Throughout history, nurses have brought innovation to patient care that has profoundly changed human health. Because nurses change lives. And that changes everything.

What the World Needs Now by Burt Bacharach
Please enjoy this virtual “concert” by the fabulous students at Berklee College of Music in Boston. They can't be together to graduate together, so they did this instead.

A Celebration of Nurses by Carolyn Jones
Film-maker Carolyn Jones reminds America that under that mask and all that PPE is the face of care and compassion

The materials in this COVID-19 section are free to use, disseminate, and translate. Please include the ELNEC attribution statement on all electronic or printed ELNEC materials. You do not need our express permission to share these materials outside of your organization or online.

Attribution: When using ELNEC curriculum materials in any form, COH & AACN require clear attribution to the program by third parties through use the following statement, which is to be displayed prominently in instructional materials: The End-of-Life Nursing Education Consortium (ELNEC) Project is a national and international end-of-life/palliative care educational program administered by City of Hope (COH) designed to enhance palliative care in nursing. Materials are copyrighted by City of Hope and the American Association of Colleges of Nursing (AACN) and are used with permission.

NOTE: As you all know, things are rapidly evolving, and we recognize that some resources could seem out of date after just a week or two. Please note that we are updating and adding more resources weekly and we encourage you to check back. Specific updates will be announced through our email lists and social media.

Developed by Cheryl Ann Thaxton, DNP, RN, CPNP, FNP-BC, CHPPN, ACHPN, FPCN

  • Primary Palliative Care Amidst a Disaster
    • Developed by Polly Mazanec PhD, ACNP-C, AOCN, ACHPN, FPCN, FAAN

    • Slides (PDF)

  • Primary Palliative Oncology Nursing
    Developed by Billy Rosa, PhD, MBE, ACHPN, FAANP, FAAN, and Constance Dahlin, MSN, ANP-BC, ACHPN®, FPCN, FAAN
    • Primary Palliative Oncology Nursing Overview - Infographic
    • Domain 1: Structure and Processes of Care - Infographic
    • Domain 2: Physical Aspects of Care - Infographic
    • Domain 3: Psychological and Psychiatric Aspects of Care - Infographic
    • Domain 4: Social Aspects of Care - Infographic
    • Domain 5: Spiritual, Religious, and Existential Aspects of Care - Infographic
    • Domain 6: Cultural Aspects of Care - Infographic
    • Domain 7: Care of the Patient Nearing the End of Life - Infographic
    • Domain 8: Ethical and Legal Aspects of Care - Infographic
    • Primary Palliative Oncology Nursing: Considering Suffering - Infographic

See Resources section for more from our palliative care colleagues on Self-Care, Moral Distress, and Resilience

  • Palliative Nursing: The Core of COVID-19 Care – Infographic
  • Nursing Management of Pain in People with COVID-19 – Infographic
  • Nursing Management of Dyspnea in People with COVID-19 – Infographic
  • Nursing Management of Cough in People with COVID-19 – Infographic
  • Nursing Management of Anxiety in People with COVID-19 – Infographic
  • Nursing Management of Delirium in People with COVID-19 – Infographic
  • Nursing Management of Long Haul COVID-19 – Infographic
  • Nonpharmacologic Management: Meditation / Mindfulness Apps - Infographic

COVID-19 Resources from our Palliative Care and Nursing colleagues:

Self-Care

Moral Distress and Moral Resilience

Upcoming

No upcoming webinars at this time.

Recordings

Ethical Dilemmas Facing Nurses During the Coronavirus Crisis: Addressing Moral Distress
Hosted by Sigma, Presented by Polly Mazanec, PHD, AOCN, ACHPN, FPCN, FAAN

Communication Tips for Nurses Supporting Seriously Ill Patients, Families & Communities During the Coronavirus
Hosted by Sigma, Presented by Polly Mazanec, PHD, AOCN, ACHPN, FPCN, FAAN

Understanding Coronavirus and How to Keep You and Yours Safe
Hosted by Relias, Presented by Ron Orth, RN, CMAC, CHC and Heather Tuttle, BSN, RN, CEN, TCRN

COVID-19 Pandemic Preparedness for Your Front-Line Staff
Hosted by Relias, Presented by Board Certified Emergency Physician, Phil DiGiacomo, M.D., and Heather Tuttle, BSN, RN, CEN, TCRN

Be Confident Protecting Yourself and Providing the Best Care to Your Patients during this COVID-19 Pandemic
Watch On Demand. 
Hosted by ANA and APIC. Presented by Kendra McMillan, MPH, RN and Terri Rebmann, PhD, RN, CIC, FAPIC

Building Bridges of Hope over Roaring Waters: Educating During a Crisis 
Audience: Faculty | Hosted by Sigma, Presented by Megan Lippe PhD, MSN, RN and Sara Kaylor EdD, RN, CNE

Graduating During a Pandemic: Navigating the Unknown
Audience: Students about to Graduate/New Nurses | Hosted by Sigma, Presented by Megan Lippe PhD, MSN, RN and Sara Kaylor

Nursing School During a Pandemic: Navigating the Unknown
Audience: Nursing Students Continuing their Programs | Hosted by Sigma, Presented by Megan Lippe PhD, MSN, RN and Sara Kaylor

Actions Home Health Clinicians Can Take To Prevent The Spread of COVID-19
Hosted by Relias, Presented by Mary McGoldrick MS, RN, CRNI®

COVID-19 and Long-Term Care Providers: Where Are We Now?
Hosted by Relias and PointClickCare, Presented by Pam Campbell, Market Insights Specialist, PointClickCare

Complicated Grief & Loss: Uncharted Territory with COVID-19
Hosted by Relias, Presented by Polly Mazanec, PHD, AOCN, ACHPN, FPCN, FAAN 

Dear Colleagues,

We are aware of the challenges we are all facing with the rapid spread of the Coronavirus and the need for containment in colleges and universities. It is a difficult time for everyone, but we recognize the importance of the health and safety of our communities.

For those of you who are now required to work from home and teach remotely, if you are struggling with getting course work out to your students, we hope you will consider this an opportune time for the students to complete the online End-of-Life Nursing Education Consortium (ELNEC) Undergraduate or Graduate Curriculum. Both programs are six one-hour modules which you can integrate into your courses as an assignment. Then after completion of the modules, debriefing can be done using chat rooms or other similar online experiences in which you will find that the students engage quite effectively, and their learning is enhanced. 

If you have not seen the ELNEC Undergraduate or ELNEC Graduate Student Curriculum, we are happy to send you a link as soon as possible, so you can consider using it to meet some of your remote teaching requirements. Email elnec@coh.org to receive the link. Once you would like to pursue this route, confirm with us and we will also send the faculty materials that supplement the curricula along with tips to help your learners. Please visit https://elnec.academy.reliaslearning.com/ for more information. Module objectives, outlines and content are on the site to help you identify where this learning might fit as you plan to teach remotely.

Best wishes for a safe and healthy spring as we navigate this unknown territory across our nation. 

Sincerely,
The ELNEC Team

                     The national ELNEC project team is working to provide palliative care resources to support nurses on the frontlines, ELNEC trainers, and nursing faculty.

The ELNEC team is led by Betty Ferrell, PhD, RN, shown here, advocating for nurses in the PBS NewsHour segment, Brief But Spectacular (air date 05/12/20).

“Were there none who were discontented with what they have, the world would never reach anything better.”

Florence Nightingale

Connect directly with other ELNEC trainers and friends through our new Facebook group. Please feel free to share valuable resources and add your own comments or questions.  Please review the group rules. Individuals posts in the group are not endorsed by ELNEC. 

ELNEC Listens is a series of one-hour discussion sessions intended to provide support for ELNEC Trainers as they care for patients and families with COVID-19 and support other staff in this care.

Part One: APRNs

  • Wednesday, February 24th at 9:00am PT / 12:00pm ET
    Facilitated by National ELNEC Faculty: Dorothy Wholihan and Connie Dahlin

Part Two: Geriatric and Long-Term Care

 

  • Wednesday, March 24th at 1:00pm PT / 4:00pm ET
    Facilitated by National ELNEC Faculty: Carol O. Long, PhD, RN, FPCN, FAAN

Part Three: Critical Care

  • Tuesday, April 20 at 9:00am PT / 12:00pm ET
    Facilitated by Billy Rosa, PhD, MBE, NP-BC, FAANP, FAAN
    Register by Friday, April 16 to participate

Part Four: Pediatric

  • Monday, April 26 at 8:00am PT / 11:00am ET
    Facilitated by Vanessa Battista, RN, MS, CPNP, CCRC and Cheryl Thaxton, DNP, APRN, CPNP, FNP-BC, CHPPN, ACHPN, FPCN 
    Register by Friday, April 23 to participate

Support for COVID-19 – Publications

  1. Ferrell, B.R., Handzo, G., Picchi, T., Puchalski, C.P., & Rosa, W.E. (2020). The urgency of spiritual care: COVID-19 and the critical need for whole-person palliation. Journal of Pain and Symptom Management, 60(3), e7-e11. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jpainsymman.2020.06.034
     
  2. Paice, J., Dahlin, C., Wholihan, D., Mazanec, P., Long, C., Thaxton, C., & Greer, K. (2020).  Palliative care for people with COVID-19 related symptoms. Journal of Hospice & Palliative Nursing, 22(6), 421-427.  doi: 10.1097/NJH.0000000000000692.
     
  3. Paice, J.A., Wholihan, D., Dahlin, C., Rosa, W.E., Mazanec, P., Long, C.O., Thaxton, C., & Greer, K. (2020). Palliative nursing: the core of COVID-19 care.  Journal of Hospice & Palliative Nursing,23(1), 6-8.  doi:  10.1097/NJH.0000000000000709.
     
  4. Rosa, W.E., Anderson, E., Applebaum, A.J., Ferrell, B.R., Kestenbaum, A., & Nelson, J.E. (2020). Coronavirus Disease 2019 as an opportunity to move toward transdisciplinary palliative care. Journal of Palliative Medicine, 23(10), 1290-1291.  doi: 10.1089/jpm.2020.0306.
     
  5. Rosa, W.E., & Davidson, P.M. (2020).  Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19): strengthening our resolve to achieve universal palliative care.  International Nursing Review, 67(2), 160- 163.  doi: 10.1111/inr.12592
     
  6. Rosa, W.E., Ferrell, B.R., & Applebaum, A.J. (2020). The alleviation of suffering during the COVID-19 pandemic. Palliative & Supportive Care, 18(4), 376-378. doi: 10.1017/S1478951520000462.
     
  7. Rosa, W.E., Ferrell, B.R., & Wiencek, C. (2020). Increasing critical care nurse engagement of palliative care during COVID-19 pandemic. Critical Care Nurse, 40(6), e28-e36. https://doi.org/10.4037/ccn2020946
     
  8. Rosa, W.E., Finlayson, C.S., & Ferrell, B.R. (2020).  The cancer nurse as primary palliative care agent during COVID-19 [Guest editorial].  Cancer Nursing, 43(6), 431-432.  doi: 10.1097/NCC.0000000000000886.
     
  9. Rosa, W.E., Gray, T.F., Chow, K., Davidson, P.M., Dionne-Odom, J.N., Karanja, V., Khanyola, J., Kpoeh, J., Lusaka, J., Matula, S., Mazanec, P., Moreland, P.J., Pandey S., Parekh de Campos, A., & Meghani, S.H. (2020). Recommendations to leverage the palliative nursing role during COVID-19 and future health crises. Journal of Hospice & Palliative Nursing, 22(4), 260-269. doi: 10.1097/NJH.0000000000000665.
     
  10. Rosa, W.E., Meghani, S.H., Stone, P.W., & Ferrell, B.R. (2020). Opportunities for nursing science to improve patient care in the time of COVID-19: A palliative care perspective. Journal of Nursing Scholarship, 52(4), 341- 343.  https://doi.org/10.1111/jnu.12570
     
  11. Rosa, W.E., Schlak, A.E., & Rushton, C.H. (2020).  A blueprint for leadership during COVID-19. Nursing Management, 51(8), 28-34.  doi: 10.1097/01.NUMA.0000688940.29231.6f.
  12. Ferrell, B.R., & Rosa, W.E. (2021).  The “other”: confronting injustice in 2021 and beyond [editorial].  Journal of Hospice & Palliative Nursing, 23(1), 1-2.  doi: 10.1097/NJH.0000000000000720
  13. Rosa, W.E., Ferrell, B.R., & Mazanec, P. (2021).  Global nursing education integration of palliative care to improve health crisis preparedness.  Journal of Continuing Education in Nursing, 52(3), 130-135.  doi:10.3928/00220124-20210216-07.
     
  14. Rosa, W.E., Dahlin, C., Battista, V., Finlayson, C.S., Wisniewski, R.E., Greer, K., & Ferrell, B.R. (2021). Primary palliative care clinical implications: oncology nursing during the COVID-19 pandemic. Clinical Journal of Oncology Nursing, 25(2), 119–125. doi: 10.1188/21.CJON.119-125.
     
  15. Rosa, W.E., Ferrell, B.R., & Mason, D.J. (2021). Integration of palliative care into all serious illness care as a human right.  JAMA Health Forum, 2(4), e211099. doi:10.1001/jamahealthforum.2021.1099.
     
  16. Rosa, W.E., Levoy, K., Battista, V., Dahlin, C., Thaxton, C., & Greer, K.  (2021).  Using the nurse coaching process to support bereaved staff during the COVID-19 crisis.  Journal of Hospice and Palliative Nursing printed online ahead of print.   doi: 10.1097/NJH.0000000000000773.

  • Vanessa Battista, RN, MS, CPNP, CCRC
  • Constance Dahlin, MSN, ANP-BC, ACHPN®, FPCN, FAAN
  • Betty Ferrell, RN, PhD, MA, FAAN, FPCN, CHPN
  • Kelly Greer, BS
  • Carol Long, PhD, RN, FPCN, FAAN
  • Polly Mazanec PhD, ACNP-C, AOCN, ACHPN, FPCN, FAAN
  • Judith Paice, RN, PhD, FAAN
  • Billy Rosa, PhD, MBE, ACHPN, FAANP, FAAN
  • Cheryl Ann Thaxton, DNP, RN, CPNP, FNP-BC, CHPPN, ACHPN, FPCN
  • Rose Virani, RNC, MHA, FPCN
  • Dorothy Wholihan, DNP, AGPCNP-BC, ACHPN