One of the best ways for nursing students, new nurses, and long-time professionals to increase their knowledge is to read nursing magazines and journals. There are many publications written by and for nurses that range from general nursing and healthcare industry magazines to peer-reviewed or refereed journals in highly specialized subfields. Whether you are still in nursing school or are a practicing nurse or nursing educator, these are 12 periodicals that you should consider reading to stay informed about new developments and trends in nursing.

American Journal of Nursing

Lippincott Williams & Wilkins publishes the American Journal of Nursing and other nursing magazines on a monthly basis. The journal features a wide variety of articles written for and read by nurses and other healthcare professionals, as well as other parties interested in patient care. This journal features clinical research, health news, and legal advice, and provides opportunities to obtain continuing education credits.

operation room with surgeons

The American Journal of Nursing is the oldest nursing journal in the world, dating back to 1900. In the twenty-first century, this journal continues to publish clinical information and evidence-based assessments of major topics in the nursing and broader healthcare industries. This journal is the gold standard for nurses in the United States, and you may find that regularly reading it’s issues helps you stay on top of conversations in this professional field.

American Nurse Today

two nurses and patient

American Nurse Today is the successor of The American Nurse, a newspaper published by the American Nurses Association from 1968 until 2016. As of 2017, American Nurse Today is the official journal of the American Nurses Association and reaches more than 175,000 nursing professionals. This newspaper publishes peer-reviewed articles to keep nurses informed about healthcare research and covers current debates, as well as matters that pertain to professional development.

Holistic Nursing Practice

Nursing at its best is often a holistic practice. Care can impact every area of a nurse’s life, as well as the lives of his or her patients. Insights from related disciplines and areas of research can enrich the knowledge and enhance the quality of care that a nurse is capable of providing. Lippincott Williams & Wilkins publishes six bi-monthly print issues of Holistic Nursing Practiceevery year and offers opportunities for nurses to earn continuing education credits in every issue.

International Journal of Nursing Practice

doctor doing surgical procedure

The International Journal of Nursing Practice is a fully refereed bi-monthly journal published by John Wiley & Sons Australia. This journal publishes original scholarly work on nursing practices around the world. This journal approaches nursing both as a practical profession and an academic discipline.

The International Journal of Nursing Practice publishes clinical reports, research, and reviews that pertain to international issues. If you are interested in learning about the nursing profession in different countries and recent developments in major subfields of the nursing practice, you may want to subscribe to this journal, which releases a total of six issues per year.

Journal of Addictions Nursing

surgical treatment

This quarterly journal published by Lippincott Williams & Wilkins is helpful for nurses working in the era of the opioid crisis. The subjects covered in the Journal of Addictions Nursing extend beyond drug addictions to include other addictive tendencies that can have an impact on patient care. No matter which subfield of nursing you work in, you are likely to encounter patients and family members who suffer from addictions.

The Journal of Addictions Nursing focuses on developments in healthcare for addiction and research into addictive disorders. You can also gain insight into addiction prevention, intervention, management, and treatment from the four issues of this periodical that come out each year. Nurses can also earn continuing education credits and sharpen their skill set and vocabulary for accurately describing addiction and related issues.

Journal of Nursing Care Quality

Another publication from Lippincott Williams & Wilkins focuses primarily on the topic of patient care quality. The Journal of Nursing Care Quality is considered one of the best nursing magazines for learning about the many factors that influence and determine the quality of nursing care.

quality care

If you strive to achieve and maintain high care quality standards and establish systems that help to ensure that all patients obtain quality care, you may benefit from to this publication. In addition to scholarly articles and studies, this journal also publishes how-to guides about innovations that may help to improve the quality of patient care in the near future.

Journal of Nursing Education

The Journal of Nursing Education started as a quarterly back in 1962 and became a monthly journal in 2002. This peer-reviewed nursing education periodical published by SLACK Incorporated includes academic studies about nursing education in addition to editorials, research briefs, and methodological reviews. If you want to learn more about the educational or professional training side of the nursing profession, this journal can be a perfect place to start expanding your knowledge and skill base.

checking blood pressure

Every issue of the Journal of Nursing Education features write-ups of learning activities and other methods for teaching nursing that may be more helpful to students or aspiring educators than practicing nurses. All readers can obtain valuable insight from the education-oriented perspective that this publication provides.

Journal of Professional Nursing

The Journal of Professional Nursing is the official journal of the American Association of Colleges of Nursing and is published by Elsevier on a bi-monthly basis. This journal, which was founded in 1985, focuses on academic studies, nursing education, and educational research.

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If you are considering transitioning from working at a healthcare facility to education, you can get a sense of this area of nursing from reading the Journal of Professional Nursing. This publication also features career development articles that can help you find out about the field of nursing training and determine whether you want to pursue a career in this branch of the profession

Journal of Research in Nursing

The Journal of Research in Nursing publishes research on a broad range of nursing topics oriented toward promoting evidence-based practice across nursing subfields. This SAGE periodical published in the United Kingdom has an international focus. If you are interested in learning about developments in nursing policies and practices around the world, the Journal of Research in Nursing can be a great place to start.

stethoscope

This journal releases a total of eight issues a year with editorials, refereed academic articles, and reviews. If you are looking for a publication that consistently strikes a good balance between academic research and practical policy interpretations with a global purview, this journal offers a wide variety of insights into the current state of nursing research.

Nursing Made Incredibly Easy

Nursing Made Incredibly Easy is a series of introductory nursing magazines released on a bi-monthly basis by Lippincott Williams & Wilkins, publishers of the Incredibly Easy book series. This journal breaks down challenging nursing concepts to promote knowledge retention and features illustrations and humor to make learning more fun.

doing diagnosis

Each of the six issues of Nursing Made Incredibly Easy published every year includes cheat sheets and memorization tricks to help you learn the basic skills you need to succeed as a nurse. Nursing Made Incredibly Easy is a good choice for nursing students, new nurses focusing on mastering the basics, and nursing educators. Once you have a strong foundation, this magazine remains a fun and helpful topical review of essential concepts that you can use to refresh your memory or teach others.

Nursing Science Quarterly

Nursing Science Quarterly is another peer-reviewed academic journal from SAGE Publications in the United Kingdom. This journal publishes four issues every year that contain scientific studies relevant to nursing. This journal covers theoretical discussions of issues that may take some time to arise in the broader field of nursing. Subscribe to Nursing Science Quarterly if you want to stay apprised of the latest developments in nursing science.

Nursing Standard

Nursing Standard is a weekly professional magazine published by the Royal College of Nursing in Great Britain. This magazine focuses on clinical content that can be helpful to nursing students, general nurses, and nurses working in a wide variety of specializations.

surgery operation

Nursing Standard is one of the top nursing magazines in the United Kingdom, making it an important comparative source for nurses around the world. This magazine releases a print edition as well as online articles on a wide variety of subjects. In addition to nursing news, editorials, analyses, and interviews, this journal also publishes peer-reviewed research and regularly assembles panels of writers to debate important healthcare issues.

You may want to subscribe to certain nursing magazines or journals, depending on your area of specialization or subfield. It may seem obvious that you should read the periodicals that correspond most closely to your work and professional goals, but you may also be interested in browsing other journals with different areas of focus to see what kinds of articles and studies are being published. The nursing profession is always changing, and an awareness of the cutting edge of research can help you advance in your profession.