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The aim of the study was to identify and synthesize the contents and the psychometric properties of the existing instruments measuring home-based care (HBC) nurses' competencies.
A hybrid systematic narrative review was performed.
The eligible studies were reviewed to identify the competencies measured by the instruments for HBC nurses. The psychometric properties of instruments in development and psychometric testing design studies were also examined. The methodological quality of the studies was evaluated using the Medical Education Research Study Quality Instrument and COSMIN checklist accordingly.
Relevant studies were searched on CINAHL, MEDLINE (via PubMed), EMBASE, PsychINFO and Scopus from 2000 to 2022. The search was limited to full-text items in the English language.
A total of 23 studies reporting 24 instruments were included. 12 instruments were adopted or modified by the studies while the other 12 were developed and psychometrically tested by the studies. None of the instruments encompassed all of the 10 home-based nursing care competencies identified in an earlier study. The two most frequently measured competencies were the management of health conditions, and critical thinking and problem-solving skills, while the two least measured competencies were quality and safety, and technological literacy. The content and structural validity of most instruments were inadequate since the adopted instruments were not initially designed or tested among HBC nurses.
This review provides a consolidation of existing instruments that were used to assess HBC nurses' competencies. The instruments were generally not comprehensive, and the content and structural validity were limited. Nonetheless, the domains, items and approaches to instrument development could be adopted to develop and test a comprehensive competency instrument for home-based nursing care practice in the future.
This review consolidated instruments used to measure home-based care nurses' competency. The instruments were often designed for ward-based care nurses hence a comprehensive and validated home-based nursing care competency instrument is needed. Nurses, researchers and nursing leaders could consider the competency instruments identified in this review to measure nurses' competencies, while a home-based nursing care competency scale is being developed.
No patient or public contribution was required in this review.
To explain the process taken by Chinese family care partners of older adults in the Greater Toronto Area, Canada, to access health and social services in their communities. The research question was: What mechanisms and structures impact the agency of Chinese family care partners of older adults, in the process of assisting them to access health and social services?
This qualitative study was informed by critical realism.
Chinese family care partners of older adults in the Greater Toronto Area, Canada, were interviewed from August 2020 to June 2021. Transcripts underwent thematic analysis.
Twenty-eight Chinese family care partners expressed a firm commitment to maintain caregiving conditions and to judiciously access health and social services. Their commitment was made up of three parts: (a) legislative and cultural norms of family, work, and society; (b) their perseverance to fill gaps with limited social and financial resources; (c) the quality of their relationship to, and illness trajectory of the older adults. The social structures created tension in how Chinese family care partners made decisions, negotiated resources, and ultimately monitored and coordinated timely access with older adults.
Participants' commitment and perseverance were conceptualized as “grit,” central to their agency to conform to legislative and cultural norms. Moreover, findings support grit's power to motivate and sustain family caregiving, in order for older adults to age in place as long as possible with finite resources.
This study highlights the importance of cultural awareness education for nurses, enabling continuity of care at a systems level and for a more resilient healthcare system.
Family care partners' grit may be crucial for nurses to harness when together, they face limited access to culturally appropriate health and social services in a system grounded in values of equity and inclusion, as in Canada.
When writing this manuscript, we adhered to relevant EQUATOR guidelines of the Consolidated Criteria for Reporting Qualitative Research (COREQ).
No patient or public involvement.
To explore how patients with Inflammatory bowel disease experienced encounters with healthcare professionals in two gastrointestinal outpatient clinics to demonstrate what matters in the communication between patients and healthcare professionals.
This fieldwork study is part of a larger study developing an application for patients with inflammatory bowel disease in a framework inspired by Participatory Design. Participatory design consists of three phases and this study focused on the first phase, needs assessment. A phenomenological hermeneutic approach and qualitative methods were applied to obtain an understanding of patients' needs.
Three weeks of participant observations and three focus groups with 14 subjects were conducted at two university hospitals in Denmark. Field notes and interview transcripts were analysed using condensation of meaning and interpreted based on interactional nursing practice theory. The reporting method adhered to the EQUATOR guideline: COREQ.
Four themes emerged: Easy and dependable access to healthcare professionals. Predictability of follow-up appointments. Importance of privacy during patient exams and Quality of time spent with healthcare professionals.
Easy, dependable access, privacy, presence and predictability of follow-up appointments were important to patients with Inflammatory Bowel Disease.
In communication with patients with inflammatory bowel disease, healthcare professionals must be aware of privacy and the importance of predictable follow-up agreements. They must be aware that presence and easy, reliable access positively affect patients' self-care skills.
This study is part of a larger project based on Participatory design involving patients and healthcare professionals in the development of technology to support communication.
To systematically review and synthesize findings across qualitative primary studies about fathers' experiences of living with a child with a progressive life-limiting condition without curative treatment options (C3 conditions).
Systematic review and metasynthesis.
Sandelowski and Barosso's qualitative research methodology guided this review and metasynthesis. A modification of Ricoeur's interpretation theory, described by Lindseth and Norberg, guided the synthesis of qualitative data. The quality of the studies was evaluated using the Joanna Briggs Institute Checklist for Qualitative Research.
A systematic literature search was conducted on 6 May 2022 and updated on 19 July 2023 on MEDLINE, CINAHL Plus with Full Text, APA PsycInfo and Scopus. Inclusion criteria were English-written qualitative studies from the year 2000, from which we could extract data on fathers' experiences of living with a child from 0 to 18 years with a progressive life-limiting condition without curative treatment options.
Seven reports from Western countries contributed to the review. Through structural analysis, we developed the following themes: ‘Being shattered in the perception of fatherhood’, ‘Establishing a new normal’ and ‘Striving to be acknowledged as a part of the caring team’.
Fathers had to establish a new normal, and they experienced anticipatory mourning, role conflicts and feeling sidelined in healthcare settings when living with a child with a C3 condition. An important issue for further research on paediatric palliative care (PPC) should be to include fathers in the research sample and report separately on fathers' or mothers' experiences instead of parents' experiences.
The findings will be of interest to healthcare personnel and multidisciplinary teams working within PPC, as they give insight into fathers' experiences and suggest interventions to increase healthcare personnel's involvement with fathers, such as telemedicine.
Following EQUATOR guidelines, the study was reported according to the enhancing transparency in reporting the synthesis of qualitative research (ENTREQ) framework.
No patient or Public Contribution.
by Lilah M. Besser, Stephanie Chrisphonte, Michael J. Kleiman, Deirdre O’Shea, Amie Rosenfeld, Magdalena Tolea, James E. Galvin
BackgroundThe Health Brain Initiative (HBI), established by University of Miami’s Comprehensive Center for Brain Health (CCBH), follows racially/ethnically diverse older adults without dementia living in South Florida. With dementia prevention and brain health promotion as an overarching goal, HBI will advance scientific knowledge by developing novel assessments and non-invasive biomarkers of Alzheimer’s disease and related dementias (ADRD), examining additive effects of sociodemographic, lifestyle, neurological and biobehavioral measures, and employing innovative, methodologically advanced modeling methods to characterize ADRD risk and resilience factors and transition of brain aging.
MethodsHBI is a longitudinal, observational cohort study that will follow 500 deeply-phenotyped participants annually to collect, analyze, and store clinical, cognitive, behavioral, functional, genetic, and neuroimaging data and biospecimens. Participants are ≥50 years old; have no, subjective, or mild cognitive impairment; have a study partner; and are eligible to undergo magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). Recruitment is community-based including advertisements, word-of-mouth, community events, and physician referrals. At baseline, following informed consent, participants complete detailed web-based surveys (e.g., demographics, health history, risk and resilience factors), followed by two half-day visits which include neurological exams, cognitive and functional assessments, an overnight sleep study, and biospecimen collection. Structural and functional MRI is completed by all participants and a subset also consent to amyloid PET imaging. Annual follow-up visits repeat the same data and biospecimen collection as baseline, except that MRIs are conducted every other year after baseline.
Ethics and expected impactHBI has been approved by the University of Miami Miller School of Medicine Institutional Review Board. Participants provide informed consent at baseline and are re-consented as needed with protocol changes. Data collected by HBI will lead to breakthroughs in developing new diagnostics and therapeutics, creating comprehensive diagnostic evaluations, and providing the evidence base for precision medicine approaches to dementia prevention with individualized treatment plans.
by Lisa Geyskens, Anja Declercq, Koen Milisen, Johan Flamaing, Mieke Deschodt, the FLANH research consortium
BackgroundWhile the demand for high quality of care in nursing homes is rising, it is becoming increasingly difficult to recruit and retain qualified care workers. To date, evidence regarding key organizational factors such as staffing, work environment, and rationing of care, and their relationship with resident and care worker outcomes in nursing homes is still scarce. Therefore, the Flanders Nursing Home (FLANH) project aims to comprehensively examine these relationships in order to contribute to the scientific knowledge base needed for optimal quality of care and workforce planning in nursing homes.
MethodsFLANH is a multicenter longitudinal observational study in Flemish nursing homes based on survey and registry data that will be collected in 2023 and 2025. Nursing home characteristics and staffing variables will be collected through a management survey, while work environment variables, rationing of care, and care worker characteristics and outcomes will be collected through a care worker survey. Resident characteristics and outcomes will be retrieved from the Belgian Resident Assessment Instrument for long-Term Care Facilities (BelRAI LTCF) database. Multilevel regression analyses will be applied to examine the relationships between staffing variables, work environment variables, and rationing of care and resident and care worker outcomes.
ConclusionThis study will contribute to a comprehensive understanding of the nursing home context and the interrelated factors influencing residents and care workers. The findings will inform the decision-making of nursing home managers and policymakers, and evidence-based strategies to optimize quality of care and workforce planning in nursing homes.
Commentary on: Wagner B, Hofmann L, Maaß U. A therapist-supported internet-based intervention for bereaved siblings: a randomized controlled trial. Palliat Med. 2022 Dec;36(10):1532–1543. doi: 10.1177/02692163221122344. Epub 2022 Oct 20.
An online 6-weeks 12-session CBT-based writing intervention can improve grief and depression in bereaved siblings up to 1 year postintervention. Further research may examine the potentially effective components and the effectiveness of the intervention in populations such as males and people bereaved by suicide.
Bereaved siblings have an increased risk of developing long-term health-related problems after loss. A population-wide study revealed higher risks of depression, substance use and a twofold risk of attempted suicide compared to non-bereaved siblings.
Commentary on: Iyasere CA, Wing J, Martel JN, et al. Effect of increased interprofessional familiarity on team performance, communication, and psychological safety on inpatient medical teams: a randomized clinical trial. JAMA Intern Med. 2022 Nov 1;182(11):1190–1198. doi: 10.1001/jamainternmed.2022.4373.
Team member familiarity has a positive impact on teamwork and interprofessional communication. Organisational design should consider team member familiarity.
Interprofessional teamwork matters for patient and workforce outcomes. Familiarity of team members is associated with improved teamwork and communication, safety and quality of care, utilisation and patient outcomes. However, much of the existing research is observational in nature. This study evaluated the impact of a team member familiarity intervention on the quality of nurse and resident interactions, perceptions of organisational climate and care outcomes.
This single site randomised clinical trial evaluated the effect of a resident scheduling intervention designed to...
This randomized-controlled trial aimed to investigate the effect of bed exercises on postoperative anxiety, pain, early ambulation and mobilization. This study was conducted with a randomized-controlled trial design and in the general surgical clinic of a research and training hospital. A total of 120 patients (60 in the experimental group and 60 in the control group) scheduled for major abdominal surgery took part in the study. The data were collected using a patient information form, the Anxiety Specific to Surgery Questionnaire and the Visual Analog Scale through face-to-face interviews. The patients in the experimental group performed 15-min bed exercises on the day of their operation, as well as on the postoperative first and second days, and the control group underwent only the routinely performed procedures in the clinic. The data were analysed using descriptive statistics, analysis of variance and t-tests. The sample of our study included major abdominal surgery patients. Ambulation was achieved at a mean time of 4 h earlier in the experimental group. On the postoperative first and second days, the patients in the experimental group had mean mobilization durations that were approximately 2 h longer compared with the patients in the control group. Moreover, the postoperative pain and anxiety levels of the patients in the experimental group were significantly lower than those of the patients in the control group (p < 0.05). We recommend that bed exercises be performed to lower anxiety and pain severity, achieve early ambulation and increase the duration of mobilization among patients following major abdominal surgery.
There is an increasing use of non-medicated wound dressing with claims of irreversible bacterial binding. Most of the data are from in vitro models which lack clinical relevance. This study employed a range of in vitro experiments to address this gap and we complemented our experimental designs with in vivo observations using dressings obtained from patients with diabetes-related foot ulcers. A hydrophobic wound dressing was compared with a control silicone dressing in vitro. Test dressings were placed on top of a Pseudomonas aeruginosa challenge suspension with increasing concentrations of suspension inoculum in addition to supplementation with phosphate buffered saline (PBS) or increased protein content (IPC). Next, we used the challenge suspensions obtained at the end of the first experiment, where bacterial loads from the suspensions were enumerated following test dressing exposure. Further, the time-dependent bacterial attachment was investigated over 1 and 24 h. Lastly, test dressings were exposed to a challenge suspension with IPC, with or without the addition of the bacteriostatic agent Deferiprone to assess the impacts of limiting bacterial growth in the experimental design. Lastly, two different wound dressings with claims of bacterial binding were obtained from patients with chronic diabetes-related foot ulcers after 72 h of application and observed using scanning electron microscope (SEM). Bacteria were enumerated from each dressing after a 1-h exposure time. There was no statistical difference in bacterial attachment between both test dressings when using different suspension inoculum concentrations or test mediums. Bacterial attachment to the two test dressings was significantly lower (p < 0.0001) when IPC was used instead of PBS. In the challenge suspension with PBS, only the hydrophobic dressing achieved a statistically significant reduction in bacterial loads (0.5 ± 0.05 log colony forming units; p = 0.001). In the presence of IPC, there was no significant reduction in bacterial loads for either test dressing. When bacterial growth was arrested, attachment to the test dressings did not increase over time, suggesting that the number of bacteria on the test dressings increases over time due to bacterial growth. SEM identified widespread adsorption of host fouling across the test dressings which occurred prior to microbial binding. Therein, microbial attachment occurred predominantly to host fouling and not directly to the dressings. Bacterial binding is not unique to dialkylcarbamoyl chloride (DACC) dressings and under clinically relevant in vitro conditions and in vivo observations, we demonstrate (in addition to previously published work) that the bacterial binding capabilities are not effective at reducing the number of bacteria in laboratory models or human wounds.
To develop an advance care planning intervention based on the needs of patients with chronic kidney disease, families and healthcare professionals.
Patients with chronic kidney disease and their families request early advance care planning that continues throughout their illness trajectory. Healthcare professionals experience barriers to initiating advance care planning. Involvement of stakeholders in development of health interventions is important, to identify priorities, understand the problem and find solutions.
The development was inspired by the Medical Research Council's framework, and codesign was applied. One future workshop and one design workshop were conducted with the consumers. The process was iterative, and data were analysed using the action research spiral. The Guidance for reporting intervention development studies in healthcare (GUIDED) was used.
Five areas were considered significant to an advance care planning intervention; a biopsychosocial approach, early palliative care, a family-focused approach, early and continuous advance care planning and a consumer-centred approach. Based on these, a conversation process with healthcare professionals was designed to give patients and families the opportunity to share values, preferences and wishes for treatment and their family and everyday life.
Codesign facilitated a collaborative process that allowed the consumers to have a significant impact on the design of an advance care planning intervention. A conversation process concerning everyday life, illness and treatment was designed for patients and families. The intervention included an advance care planning tool to guide the healthcare professionals.
The intervention has the intention to improve the communication between healthcare professionals, patients and families. The study provides important knowledge about the significance of giving the patients and their families support in sharing their values, preferences and wishes for treatment and everyday life, thus, to improve care and treatment in their illness trajectory.
What problem did the study address Patients with chronic kidney disease and their families strongly request early initiation of advance care planning that continues throughout the illness trajectory. Healthcare professionals experience barriers to the initiation of the advance care planning and request a more systematic approach. What were the main findings Development of a conversation process about everyday life, illness and treatment for patients diagnosed with chronic kidney disease and families, including an advance care planning tool to guide the healthcare professionals. Where and on whom will the research have an impact The study contributes an advance care planning intervention to patients in the early stages of chronic kidney disease and their families. We believe that the intervention could be included during consultations with healthcare professionals in other stages of chronic kidney disease as well as other chronic disease.
To strengthen the reporting of the development of the advance care planning intervention, we used the Guidance for reporting intervention development studies in healthcare (GUIDED).
The development of the intervention in this study was a collaborative process between patients, families, healthcare professionals and representatives from the Danish Kidney Association, the department's user council and the research team.
To explore patients' and healthcare professionals' (HCPs) experiences of oral care during hospitalisation to identify needs and challenges.
Daily oral care is important to patients' health and well-being, to prevent diseases in the oral cavity, systemic infections and increased morbidity, which subsequently can lead to prolonged hospitalisation and, at worst, increased mortality. Despite this knowledge, oral care is a neglected part of nursing practice. Studies do not clearly identify barriers regarding oral care, as the existing knowledge is inadequate.
A qualitative study exploring participants' experiences to gain new in-depth knowledge of oral care among hospitalised patients.
A phenomenological-hermeneutic approach was applied. Participant observations were conducted on five hospital wards, combined with individual semi-structured interviews with 16 patients and 15 HCP. Data analysis was based on Ricoeur's theory of narrative and interpretation.
Four themes describing the challenges regarding oral care emerged: Oral care as a gut feeling; oral care fades into the background; even self-reliant patients need help with oral care; and the mouth reflects the life lived.
The identified challenges show there is a need for improvement in the health professional approach to oral care in nursing practice. Focus on increasing HCPs' knowledge, skills and competences can increase their nursing agency and support patients' self-care capacity.
Investigation of oral care during hospitalisation revealed four main challenges concerning both patients' and HCPs' lack of knowledge and awareness of oral care. Thus, patients and HCPs should be included in developing solutions to improve oral care in nursing practice.
The COREQ criteria for reporting qualitative research were adhered to.
A patient representative was involved in the discussion of the proposal, conduct and results of the study.
To synthesise evidence related to risk factors of falls among younger mental health inpatients age ≤65 years old.
Hospitalised patients with mental illness are at increased risk of falling. Specific risk factors for falls for younger inpatients are poorly understood.
Systematic review.
Medline, CINAHL, APA PsycINFO, Scopus and Web of Science were searched for studies published in English till December 2022. The review followed the 2020 PRISMA checklist. Odds ratios and P values of significant risk fall factors and the frequency of factors related to circumstances of falls were extracted.
Nine studies were included and 95 risk factors, across seven categories were extracted. These categories included socio-demographic, fall-related factors, functional status, health and mental status, psychiatric diagnosis and assessment, medication, and staff related factors. Factors related to medication, health and mental status are most reported. Majority of the patients sustained minor or no injury from the fall and circumstances of fall vary across studies.
Factors strongly associated with risk of falls were dizziness, use of psychotropics and antihypertensive drugs. A meta-analysis of risk factors was not possible due to different dependent variables studied, controlled confounding variables and control groups used.
Fall prevention is relevant to all patients in mental health settings. Approaches to fall risk assessment and management need to be better tailored to younger mental health patients in the psychiatric setting.
Patient or public contribution was not possible because of the study design.
Introducción. La pandemia del SARS-CoV-2 ha supuesto un fuerte impacto en la población, incluida la pediátrica, a pesar de que esta se ve menos afectada por la COVID-19. Para poder cubrir el aumento de la demanda sanitaria, fue necesaria la reorganización de todo el sistema sanitario, especialmente en los servicios de críticos y urgencias. Material y métodos. Estudio observacional descriptivo longitudinal trata de evaluar el impacto de la pandemia en el servicio de urgencias pediátricas de un hospital público de tercer nivel de Castilla y León, analizando las características de los pacientes menores de 14 años que fueron atendidos entre el 2019 y 2020 en dicho servicio. Se registraron datos demográficos y asistenciales de cada una de esas visitas en una base de datos. Resultados.
Los datos mostraron un fuerte descenso en el número de atenciones a pesar de lo cual se produjo un aumento en la proporción de ingresos. La afluencia según los diferentes motivos de consulta, niveles de triaje y grupos de edad mostró una tendencia similar entre los dos años, a pesar de la disminución en números absolutos. Se observó un repunte en la proporción de atenciones clasificadas con niveles de gravedad más urgente. Discusión. La bibliografía consultada constata la disminución en el número de urgencias y el aumento de gravedad de los niveles de triaje, que se refleja en un aumento del porcentaje de ingresos. Parece evidenciarse una disminución de las enfermedades infecciosas y traumatológicas y un repunte de problemas de salud mental y convulsiones.
ABSTRACT
Introduction. The SARS-CoV-2 pandemic has had a strong impact on the population, including the pediatric population, despite the fact that it is less affected by COVID-19. In order to cover the increase in health demand, it was necessary to reorganize the entire health system, especially in critical and emergency services. Material and methods. This longitudinal descriptive observational study tries to evaluate the impact of the pandemic on the pediatric emergency service of the HCUV by analyzing the characteristics of patients under 14 years of age who were treated between 2019 and 2020 in said service. Demographic and care data from each of these visits were recorded in a database. Results.
The data show a strong decrease in the number of visits, despite which there was an increase in the proportion of income. The influx according to the different reasons for consultation, triage levels and age groups shows a similar trend between the two years, despite the decrease in absolute numbers. A rebound is observed in the proportion of care classified as more urgent levels of severity. Discussion. The bibliography consulted confirms the decrease in the number of emergencies and the increase in severity of triage levels, which is reflected in an increase in the percentage of admissions. There seems to be a decrease in infectious and traumatic diseases and a rebound in mental health problems and seizures.
FreshRSS 