bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
CHALCONES FROM Butea frondosa L. FLOWER EXTRACT AS YELLOW FOOD COLORANTS
Authors: OKE M. S. , THOMAS PAUL , SHRIKHANDE A. J.
Published: December 2006

The possibility of using the water‐soluble flavonoid pigments from Butea frondosa L. flowers as a natural food colorant in the yellow‐orange range, in place of the synthetic food colors currently being used, was evaluated. Paper chromatography revealed isobutrin as the major component with an intense yellow color. Except for the relatively poor stability in the presence of SO2 and ascorbic acid, the pigment was stable under varying conditions of pH, heat, and light. At identical concentrations, comparable color intensity was produced by the flower extract and the synthetic coal tar dye. Results suggest that the flower extract could be used as a colorant in place of synthetic coal tar colors.
The social construction of illness experience: families with a chronically‐ill child
Authors: Anderson Joan M.
Published: December 2006

This paper examines how parents constructed the illness of a child with chronic sickness. The focus is on eliciting the parents’ explanatory model of illness, that is, how they understood and described their child's illness, and how they managed their interactions with the child.

The data were collected by using an ethnographic approach. In addition to obtaining parents' accounts, naturally occurring interactions between parents and children were observed and tape recorded. The paper discusses the parents’ semantic definition of the ‘child as normal’. In actual practice, however, the child's life was regulated by the parents’ understanding of the biomedical model, and included time schedules dictated by the sickness and seclusion from other children. Adjustment in family lifestyle was seen as necessary to accommodate the child's health problem. It is argued that the parents’ interactions with the child contain the essential feature of paradoxical communication. An ethnographically‐based theoretical model of the social construction of sickness careers is introduced.

The paper gives verbatim accounts of naturally occurring interactions so that the reader has access to the data upon which the author's interpretations are based. The implications for nursing practice are discussed.
Assessment of recovery: with special reference to a study with post‐operative cardiac patients
Authors: Wilson‐Barnett Jenifer
Published: December 2006

The recovery process is dependent on many psychological and physical factors. In this paper recovery refers to major, short‐term illness often treated by surgery, which is not expected to result in permanent disability or handicap. Research reviewed which attempts to identify influences on recovery also shows how many patients are left with a degree of disability, usually for psychological reasons. It is suggested that the stress and impact of severe illness and surgery may have a long lasting, previously unrecognized effect.

Nursing which studies the interaction of physical and psychological aspects of illness and care is seen as the most suitable discipline from which to assess recovery and identify risk factors. A study reported here with patients after coronary artery grafting, provides information on recovery and illustrates how many aspects of a patients’ experience may help or hinder this process. Data is obtained from patients’ interviews to give a wider, more humanistic evaluation of outcome than is usually employed for this type of surgery.
Eye opening of the newborn at and up to 20 minutes after birth
Authors: Lamberg B. R.
Published: December 2006

Early eye contact between mother and baby is considered important in the attachment process between mother and baby. How soon after birth is it possible for eye contact to occur? How soon after birth will a baby open his eyes spontaneously? Where is the baby physically at that time? Is hospital labour ward routine conducive to early eye‐to‐eye contact between mother and baby?

Discussing these questions with midwifery colleagues, it became apparent that we were unable to answer with any degree of certainty, the question ‘How soon after birth will a baby open his eyes spontaneously?’ It was felt that ‘most babies open their eyes at or very soon after birth’. How soon was ‘very soon’? and did all babies open their eyes soon after birth? Were there any observable influencing factors? If so, what were they?

In this study of 104 babies, 30 babies opened their eyes at birth, and the remainder, except three, opened their eyes ranging from within 1 minute of birth to within 20 minutes of birth (20 minutes being the time limit set for the study). Some babies were observed to open their eyes momentarily only the very first time, keeping their eyes open longer subsequently.
Genetics: implications for preventative nursing practice
Authors: McCance Kathy L.
Published: December 2006

A method for identifying and evaluating susceptible families for cardiac disease risk is presented from the perspective of the role of genes in heart disease. If useful applications of genetic aggregations could be integrated into nursing practice, preventive selective interventions could be implemented. Nursing practice aimed at risk reduction in susceptible families is more efficient for reducing disease mortality.
The nursing process: from development to implementation*
Authors: de la Cuesta Carmen
Published: December 2006

This paper summarizes the research study carded out in 1979 as part of an MSc. The study has two purposes: to analyse, in sociological terms, the nursing process development and to understand whether it can make a practical contribution to nursing. The concept of the nursing process emerged in the United States during the 1960s. Its content was shaped by the American context. It was transferred subsequently to the United Kingdom in a limited form, modified to accommodate a different context; thus, it is not just a theoretical concept but an ideology in the technical sense as well. As a method of practice, the study shows that the nursing process is not fully implemented either in the US or in the UK. However, it does represent an important step forward in nursing in that it has made real analytical gains. The findings of the study serve to identify some of the problems that must be tackled if the theory is to be turned into practice.
Learning to nurse the elderly: outcome measures
Authors: Ross Margaret M.
Published: December 2006

This study explores the impact of a planned learning experience with the elderly on BScN students’ level of knowledge about aging. Data were gathered by means of Palmore's ‘Facts on Aging Quiz', an instrument which has been validated as a measure of knowledge. Findings revealed that a learning experience requiring that students have contact and planned experience with essentially well older people who were living and functioning relatively independently was effective in increasing their level of knowledge about aging as well as lessening negative stereotypes associated with the aged.
Adaptation in chronic illness: an eclectic model for nurses
Authors: Craig H. M. , Edwards J. E.
Published: December 2006

The growing prevalence of chronic illness is due, in large part, to the control and/or eradication of infectious diseases as well as, in North America, the increasingly aged population and overall lengthening life span. Although the trajectory of chronic illness is in a generally downward direction, the rate of progression may vary as plateaux and remissions occur. As these changes occur, the individual and his family move through a process of continual adjustment. This paper presents a conceptual model of the process of adaptation in chronic illness. The primary concept in the model is appraisal (Lazarus, 1966) and the thought that continuous appraisal/ reappraisal of the individual's progress toward the goal of adaptation is required by the individual, his family, and the nurse. The focus of the model is the chronically ill individual and his family. The goal is movement toward adaptation to the illness and its ramifications. The process is caring, which facilitates movement towards the goal. The model and its interpretation are outlined in the paper. Finally, some strategies for nurses, and others, are suggested as ways in which the concepts may be applied and implemented in practice.
Where angels fear to tread — nursing and the concept of creativity
Authors: Jones Jennifer Andree
Published: December 2006

In the United Kingdom at the present time, there are radical changes taking place in the nursing profession. In order to cope with these new ideas, it has been suggested that nursing needs to attract into its ranks individuals who are not only highly intelligent but also highly creative.

This paper examines the concept of creativity as it has been used in the fields of education and psychology and seeks to examine whether or not nurses with creative attributes are desirable or acceptable in current nursing practice. The ability of the nurse educator to provide for the needs of the highly divergent thinker is also questioned. The paper concludes with a suggested alternative for the use of creativity within the profession, that of the creation of innovative, original and humanistic approaches to the education of the student of nursing.
Leadership, nurses and the 1980s*
Authors: Larsen Jenniece
Published: December 2006

The author examines some of the reasons for the leadership problems in nursing by focusing on the question of ‘why leaders are not leading’. Drawing on James MacGregor Bums’ general theory of political leadership, the article examines issues of motives, resources, followers and the structure of nursing today.
Critique of the health‐belief model
Authors: Davidhizar Ruth
Published: December 2006

Health‐related behaviour is an important issue for providers for health care. Understanding and being able to predict and influence health behaviour are all essential if client co‐operation and participation is to be obtained. Since nurses spend more time with patients than any other health care professional, they are in a position to influence health behaviour. Optimal interaction with patients and potential patients is the result of careful application of theory. The health‐belief model offers an approach to understanding health‐related behaviour. A clear understanding of the cause of behaviour is necessary in order to predict change. A clear understanding of cause is also necessary for determining methods to influence health behaviour. As a new model and one developed for the healthy, the model needs development and testing for applicability in understanding health and other behaviour. Nurses can make a significant contribution in this development by testing aspects of the model. This paper summarizes the model and assesses the model using specific criteria for a theory.
Nursing models in special hospital settings
Authors: Baldwin Steve
Published: December 2006

The use of theories and models in nursing is not merely an armchair activity indulged in by academic nurses in teaching and research institutions, but a means of looking critically at practice to improve the effectiveness of care. Nursing models help to provide descriptions of the contents of teaching and training courses. Models aim to specify: goals of action; descriptive terms for the recipients of services; nurse roles; likely sources of difficulty; the focus for intervention; and the intended consequences of the nursing model in applied practice. Examination reveals three separate dominant models of nursing practice in special hospitals: medico‐legal, moral‐retributional and educational. Nursing models are both useful and necessary for the provision of coherent teaching curricula and as a framework for the actual process of nursing. The need for consideration of model selection and model choice seems paramount in the current climate of special hospital nursing. A major advantage of educational nursing models seems that they allow the development and growth of nurses, with likely benefits for improved consumer services.
Understanding mental illness: the experience of families of psychiatric patients
Authors: Rose Linda E.
Published: December 2006

This qualitative study was designed to elicit the family's perspective of their experience of the first hospitalization of a relative. A major focus of the study was the process by which families developed an understanding of mental illness and its treatment. During unstructured interviews, seven families explained how they interpreted unfamiliar events and surroundings. They identified their needs and concerns related to their interpretation of ‘mental illness', and they described their efforts to understand the patient from this perspective. The study identified processes by which families attached meaning to events: they reviewed past experiences and beliefs to make sense of the present experience; they examined their own behaviour as a contributor to the development of the illness; they observed and evaluated the hospitalization as treatment; and they asked questions about the future. The direction for nursing practice was identified in terms of providing support and information to families, as well as being aware of the emotional responses of families at all stages of the patient's illness.
Compliance with therapeutic regimens: a follow‐up study for patients with affective disorders
Authors: Youssef Fatma A.
Published: December 2006

The purpose of this study was to assess the impact of patient education on patient compliance to psychotropic medication after discharge from the hospital. A sample of 36 patients discharged from an in‐patient care facility and receiving an oral form of psychotropic drug were the subjects of this study. All subjects were patients of affective disorders. Subjects were randomly assigned to two groups: a control group; and a directive patient‐education group. The subjects were followed up after discharge for a 6‐month period. In analyzing the data, results indicated that the difference in percentage of compliance between the two groups was statistically significant. Findings imply that patient education did have an effect on patient compliance to medication. The findings of the study support a technique that can be incorporated in both in‐patient and out‐patient programmes in psychiatric‐mental health nursing. It would increase patient compliance to medication and hence decrease chances of rehospitalization.
Need for instruction and support of the wives of patients with myocardial infarction
Authors: Hentinen Maija
Published: December 2006

The study investigates the need for instruction and support among wives of patients with myocardial infarction, applying the ‘stress’ theory. The data were gathered by questionnaires completed by 59 wives of patients with myocardial infarction. Feelings and symptoms indicative of stress did occur among wives of the patients. They assessed instruction especially concerning home care, as being inadequate. They stated that the support they received had come largely from their own relatives; more than one third of the respondents said they had received support from a nurse; one fifth said they had not received it from anyone. The ‘instruction’ model for wives and other relatives of patients with myocardial infarction, introduced at the end of the article, emphasizes the importance of relevant information and support to the close relatives of patients with myocardial infarction.
A preliminary investigation into surgical dressings used over post‐operative passive abdominal wound drains
Authors: Molyneux R. A.
Published: December 2006

A pilot study was carried out in a city teaching hospital in North West England. This descriptive study focused on patients from general surgical wards who post‐operatively had passive abdominal wound drains in situ. The use of sterile drainable plastic bags over these wound drains was investigated. For the purpose of this study such drainage bags were included in the category of surgical dressings. Observations recorded included the type of operation undergone by the patient, length of time the wound drain was in position, frequency of wound drain dressing change and the reason for change. Relevant comments volunteered by patients and nursing staff were also recorded. Nineteen patients, male and female, from three general surgical wards were followed up post‐operatively. The study, completed in 4 months, was limited to English speaking patients who were alert and willing to participate. In addition, qualified nursing staff, from the wards where the study was carried out were asked to complete and return a questionnaire related to the project. A variety of problems were found to be associated with the use of sterile drainable plastic bags over Yeates tissue drains and corrugated wound drains and areas where further research is needed are highlighted.
The development of professional and political awareness in nursing*
Authors: Dean Derek J.
Published: December 2006

The fiduciary relationship between the client and the professional who has been hired to provide a service rarely exists today between nurses and patients. Nurses are employed by the State and operate in organizations where elements of both the bureaucratic and professional models are integrated. This paper discusses nursing's adaptation to the ever‐changing health system in the United Kingdom and how this has resulted in the involvement of senior nurses in the political process. The mechanisms which result in policy output are discussed with reference to the power of nurses. It is argued that all nurses have a role in the decision‐making process through the use of influence which will result from the development of political awareness.
Stress and coping: constructs for nursing
Authors: Clarke Margaret
Published: December 2006

‘Stress’ is considered to be an important construct for consideration by nurses, as it helps in the understanding of the patients' responses to illness. In this paper there is an exploration of conditions under which stress may occur. ‘Coping’ is also discussed. Coping potentially reduces stress either by dealing with demands and stressors, or with their effects on the individual.
The management of schizophrenic patients: the nurses'view
Authors: BerkowitZ Ruth , Heinl Peter
Published: December 2006

A small study is described in which nurses were asked how they deal with specific management problems in schizophrenia. Their responses suggest that their approach may provide valuable information for both professionals and relatives.
Ethnography: contributions to nursing research
Authors: Robertson Mildred H.B. , Boyle Joyceen S.
Published: December 2006

Health and illness behaviour occur within a cultural context. Ethnographic methodology facilitates an investigation of the context in which people's health beliefs and practices evolve as well as serving to identify the cultural components of health and illness. Ethnography is primarily an inductive mode of research which may utilize several methods of data collection. Participant observation, used in conjunction with interviewing, is the most frequently used data‐gathering technique. Sampling procedures in ethnography must be addressed in relation to persons interviewed and/or observed, events to be seen, topics to be considered and time frames to be established. The ethnographic method creates difficulties in establishing reliability as techniques for gathering data are highly individualistic and involve a complex admixture of observations, structured and unstructured interviews, and other procedures. The lengthy stay in a community, as well as the extensive and in‐depth data‐collection procedures contribute to validity of the findings and their interpretation. Data analysis is time consuming and complex. Ethnography is concerned with the context of discovery, rather than verification, and leads to narrative descriptions and interpretations of cultural phenomena. Ethnography is a means for gaining access to the health beliefs and practices of a culture. In a practice profession such as nursing, improved understanding of the meaning of clients’ behaviour will enhance nursing judgements and improve nursing care.
Patient satisfaction: care of the elderly
Authors: Forgan Morle Kate M.
Published: December 2006

A small pilot study concerned with elderly patients' feelings about their stay in hospital was carried out, the purpose being to discover how satisfied patients were with the facilities and certain aspects of care in a modem geriatric assessment unit within one of the largest, most recently opened hospitals in one of the major cities in the country. Information was collected by means of a questionnaire and interview following the patients’ discharge from hospital. Satisfaction with hospital stay was high amongst both male and female patients. Certain aspects in the provision of ‘modern’ facilities seemed particularly pleasing to the patients interviewed. Interesting differences were demonstrated between male and female patients with regard to mobility patterns before discharge and also satisfaction with communications between male and female patients and those involved with their care. It is anticipated that following this pilot study the areas of difference and of dissatisfaction can be looked at more specifically in a future study of elderly patients.
Nursing research: a position paper
Authors: Greenwood J.
Published: December 2006

It is argued herein that orthodox approaches to nursing research reflect a fundamental misunderstanding concerning the nature of nursing, a misunderstanding that results in the production of findings that are perceived as irrelevant to clinical practice. The reasons for this are analysed and two specific research monographs, Hayward (1975) and Ogier (1982) are criticized where appropriate in order to illuminate the analysis. Nursing is explicated as a social phenomenon and practice discipline and the peculiar suitability of action research to its investigation is demonstrated.
Planning for rural community health nursing needs: the experience of Ecuador
Authors: Ruffing Karen L. , Smith Howard L.
Published: December 2006

One of the most prevalent and enduring health care delivery problems in the Third World and less developed countries is the lack of skilled medical personnel. This is particularly true in Ecuador where there are serious deficiencies at the community health level. This paper describes the health problems which have resulted from this situation. A planning model is then presented which Ecuador is beginning to follow for improving its rural community health nursing capabilities. Other countries or developing regions with similar problems might consider the model and its implementation in resolving their own community health problems.
The rural family nurse practitioner: the quest for role‐identity
Authors: Bennett Mary L.
Published: December 2006

This study was conceived as an inquiry into the marginal nature of the rural family nurse practitioner's role. Data collection began with administration of a questionnaire to all family nurse practitioners in New Mexico for the purpose of selecting a subgroup for in‐depth study. Eight rural family nurse practitioners were identified who were practicing as primary health care providers with a physician on‐site 20% of the time or less. This group was studied over a period of 3 months. The major outcome of the study was the delineation of three highly interactive clusters of variables which appear to influence the development of a role‐identity: personal attributes; organizational factors and inter‐personal relations. Demographic data collected resulted in a profile indicating that the ‘average’ rural family nurse practitioner in New Mexico is a single ‘Anglo’ female between 35 and 44 years of age with a BSc in nursing and a strong religious background. Hypothetically, as agreement on role‐expectations and behaviour is increased between the rural family nurse practitioner and the role‐set, increased institutionalization of the role can be expected to occur.
Some problems associated with the measurement of community psychiatric nurse intervention*
Authors: Brooker Charles G.
Published: December 2006

This paper describes a study that was originally proposed to evaluate community psychiatric nurse intervention in terms of client outcome. Although the literature indicates the strong need for research of this nature, the strategy that it demands poses formidable methodological problems. These diffculties are examined within the framework of Campbell & Stanley's (1963) concept of‘internal validity’. Although the proposed design is assessed to be weak, it is argued that stringent appraisal of method can only strengthen the nursing profession's claim to produce research that is both credible and relevant.
The relevance of nurses' characteristics in learning hehaviour therapy
Authors: Milne Derek
Published: December 2006

Factors that influence learning are of great interest to those concerned with health care. This is because they bear on the question of change in staff and patients. This study is a systematic investigation of the individual characteristics that the nurse brings to the learning situation and their association with change. The purpose of investigating this relationship is to clarify and pinpoint variables that may facilitate selection and predictions regarding learning. This in turn has great relevance for such aspects of nursing practice as patient teaching and in‐service training. The study relates seven nurse variables to six measures of learning during an in‐service course in behaviour therapy techniques for 65 qualified psychiatric nurses in the United Kingdom. The results suggest that some individual characteristics considered to impede learning, such as age, are unrelated. Other characteristics, such as academic qualifications, are expected to improve learning but were also found to be unrelated. The most significant associations were found for the relationship between prior knowledge and experience and measures of skill. The results are regarded as providing support for the argument of improved specification of both individual characteristics and learning. This improvement may lead in turn to modified nurse selection criteria, revised teaching methods, and to better patient care.
Research on teaching research in the baccalaureate nursing curriculum
Authors: Overfield Theresa , Duffy Mary E.
Published: December 2006

This article is based on a review of the research literature on teaching research to undergraduate nursing students. A paucity of this research exists yet a variety of approaches are used to teach research. These approaches are categorized into ‘learn by doing’, ‘learn by proposing to do’, and ‘learn by critiquing’. The strengths and weaknesses of each approach are examined. The research literature that does exist is primarily descriptive and lacks adequate sample size and methods of inquiry. Students’ attitudes and knowledge towards research are described in response to various teaching methods. Larger surveys in the United States of America and abroad provide disappointing statistics concerning the utilization and the pursuit of research knowledge by nurse clinicians. Lastly, suggestions are made for further research in teaching research to baccalaureate students in order to enhance their research knowledge and commitment to research as clinicians. The Thomas‐Price Inventory for evaluating research preparation on the baccalaureate level is described.
Undergraduate nursing curriculum building: an exploration into the ‘sciences’ requirements
Authors: Ferguson Marion C.
Published: December 2006

Academic nursing studies programmes are often channelled into one or other existing academic discipline. This limits the development of nursing knowledge which needs to be broader and more varied than a one‐discipline orientation. Nursing students’ epistemological difficulties arise because of inherent tensions brought about when the paradigms of such disciplines and practice requirements conflict, which so often they do. Interpretive sociological approaches as intellectual orientation for nursing studies offer a way out as their reflective patterns may encourage consciousness development and, through it, point towards changes.
Measuring change in nursing practice
Authors: Hawthorn Pamela J.
Published: December 2006

This report gives an account of the development of a method to measure the effects of changes in nursing practice for a group of patients. Staff and nurses on a 20‐bed female geriatric ward were observed for a 3‐day period before the ‘nursing process’ was gradually introduced. Two years later a second 3‐day period of observation took place. Methodology is discussed in some detail and the results are presented.
Feminist methodology in nursing research
Authors: Webb Christine
Published: December 2006

In this paper the author discusses her experiences as a feminist, nurse and sociologist carrying out a study of hysterectomy. Difficulties in setting up the research, carrying out interviews and publishing reports result from masculine models of sociological research and from the fact that nursing work, including research, is carried out in a context of medical domination. These experiences are analysed in terms of feminist research methodology in sociology, and it is argued that in the case of nursing and women's health a feminist perspective offers opportunities for mutual consciousness‐raising and for working together to challenge male medical control over these aspects of women's lives.
The constructs ‘stress’ and ‘coping’ as a rationale for nursing activities
Authors: Clarke Margaret
Published: December 2006

In this paper the constructs ‘stress’ and ‘coping’ as denned in an earlier paper (Clarke 1984) are used as a perspective for the interpretation of disease processes. The second half of the paper is devoted to an examination of the nurse's role which is seen as concerned with helping patients in the reduction or avoidance of stress and the strengthening of coping. General hospital nursing and district nursing is analysed in greater depth than other types of nursing.
How popular is the nursing sector in Finland? Will the demand accumulate to be a problem in educational policy?
Authors: Maljojoki Pentti
Published: December 2006

The article deals with the popularity of nursing education in Finland. Though the regional differences in applications for nursing education have decreased in recent years, the congested and annually accumulating demand as well as the search for education outside one's home province are most distinctly a problem of educational policy in the underdevelopment areas. Due to the greatly increased demand, the number of non‐placed applicants rose from 29 000 in 1979 to 36 000 in 1982. It is reasoned that the accumulating demand results from women's sexually biased vocational orientation, from structures of vocational education that favour men, and from severe youth unemployment. For the sake of educational equality women should increasingly plan career alternatives that deviate from the traditional vocational roles. Educators, teachers and councellors should promote women's liberation from the old‐fashioned patterns at levels of cognition and attitude.
A longitudinal study of changing attitudes to work among nursing trainees in two British general hospitals
Authors: Heyman R. , Shaw M. P. , Harding J.
Published: December 2006

This paper presents some findings of a longitudinal study of nursing trainees in two British general hospitals concerning changes in attitudes to their work conditions, and compares the results with those of a cross‐sectional study of the attitudes of trainees and qualified staff in the same two hospitals. Supporting the findings of previous research, the longitudinal study suggested that trainees become less attracted to work conditions during the course of training, and the cross‐sectional study suggested that these changes would probably be reversed if and when trainees were taken on as qualified nurses. Since the widest gaps in attitudes between qualified staff and trainees reflected trainees' more unfavourable attitudes towards their influence over work tasks, opportunities to voice criticisms and to voice opinions, the findings are seen as evidence of a status gap between trainees' expected and achieved work autonomy.
Student status in nursing – a discussion on the status of the student and how it affects training
Authors: Beckett Cliff
Published: December 2006

Though the United Kingdom Central Council for Nursing, Midwifery and Health Visiting (UKCC) refers to student status as an ‘emotive term’ (UKCC 1982), the author through this small‐scale study looks at the advantages and disadvantages of its implementation. Alternative models of training and other implications are also considered, the findings indicating that implementation is important for the learners' ongoing education and professional development, but not without further investigation of some of the issues raised.
Learning styles of nursing students and career choices
Authors: Laschinger Heather K. , Boss Marvin W.
Published: December 2006

Kolb's ‘Learning Style Inventory’ was used to examine learning characteristics of incoming nursing students (n= 166) which were then compared to those of more advanced nursing students (n= 102). A majority of students were found to have concrete learning styles. Advanced students had a greater incidence of concrete learning styles than first year students suggesting increasing concreteness with exposure to nursing education. Diploma students were found to have a higher incidence of concrete learning styles than university students. Students with concrete learning styles were more influenced by person‐oriented factors in career choices than those with abstract learning styles. No relationship was found between learning style and preferred nursing specialty. Implications for nursing education are discussed.
Evaluation of an undergraduate nursing course
Authors: O'Brien David
Published: December 2006

During the past two decades there has been a substantial growth in the number of British universities and polytechnics offering undergraduate nursing degree programmes. However, little attempt has been made to evaluate these courses systematically or to assess the potential impact of graduates on the provision of patient care. This study is concerned with the opinions of former undergraduates and ward sisters with experience of supervising the undergraduate nursing students. It also gives an account of the career progression of the students since graduation. The results indicate that the high academic and clinical demands made upon the students are a major problem and that a number of students encounter serious problems of adjustment during clinical placements. The ward sisters consistently rated the students' clinical abilities as high and the vast majority would like undergraduates allocated to their wards if a similar course was run again in the future. The career progression of the graduates demonstrates that the majority opt for clinical nursing posts.
Stroke and its rehabilitation: the perceived role of the nurse in medical and nursing literature
Authors: Myco Freda
Published: December 2006

Henderson (1980) claims that, the unique function of the nurse renders her ‘rehabilitator par excellence’. This paper seeks to examine the perceived role of the nurse in the rehabilitation of stroke patients, to assess the extent to which the literature reflects Henderson's claim as a reality, or as a chimerical ideal.
Nurse/patient dependency‐a review of different approaches with particular reference to studies of the dependency of elderly patients
Authors: Miller Audrey
Published: December 2006

The dependency of elderly patients is the outcome of interaction effects between the patient and his or her environment, and over a protracted stay in hospital, environmental factors can be as influential in determining a patient's dependency as the patient's medical or physical condition. Rigid institutional regimes and inadvertent reinforcement of dependent behaviours by nursing staff appear to play an important part in the development of institutionally induced dependency. Studies of patient dependency which assume that dependency arises largely from the physical or mental condition of the patient lack validity because the major source of variation in nursing activity is seen as an almost mechanistic response to patients' dependency. It is argued that, rather than patient dependency ‘causing’ nursing actions, nursing actions can cause patients to become more or less dependent.
Nursing: past trends, future policies
Authors: White Rosemary
Published: December 2006

This paper looks at five historical trends in the field of macro‐policy making for nursing. From these it postulates that nursing is, now, a pluralist structure with three main interest groups. Each interest group has its own view of reality and therefore its own goals and strategies, some of which are in conflict with those of the other groups. Furthermore, the goals of the nursing groups are also in conflict with those of the government health department. The paper proposes a typology for nursing which takes account of these conflicts, helps to identify the areas of conflict and makes a proposal for the future structure which would help to achieve a more harmonious framework in the NHS.
Deans identify factors which inhibit and facilitate nursing research
Authors: Archer Laurel
Published: December 2006

The author argues that nursing researchers benefit from an institutional climate which is appreciative of research and rewards for it. Factors which discourage and inhibit research productivity are identified and methods to overcome these barriers are identified. The paper is based on an inquiry among 102 deans of schools of nursing in the USA.
Altruism is not enough: barriers in the development of nursing as a profession
Authors: White Rosemary
Published: December 2006

This paper discusses the goals and strategies used by nurses to achieve professional status. It describes the several interest groups in nursing and identifies the plurality of their goals and the sometimes conflicting strategies used by them. The paper illustrates the constraints experienced by the Royal College of Nursing in policy making and proposes a pluralist structure as a basis for future planning.
Mother‐child relationship—FIRST score*
Authors: Salariya Ellena M. , Cater John I.
Published: December 2006

This paper describes the use of the MCR FIRST score. The score has evolved as a method of measuring certain aspects of a mother's caring for her newborn baby. The factors included are feeding, interest, response, speech and touch, and these have been combined into a numerical score. The results for 100 mothers who were assessed on days 1, 3 and 5 postpartum are presented. The MCR FIRST score is distinguished by its simplicity of use in clinical work and may be helpful in recognizing potential impairment of mother‐child relationships during the early postpartum period.
Strengthening family ‘interference’
Authors: Robinson Carole A. , Thorne Sally
Published: December 2006

This paper examines the phenomenon of family ‘interference’ in the health care of a sick member from a new angle. The ‘interfering’ behaviours are located within the context of the family's evolving relationships with health care providers. The authors argue that the behaviours are an understandable product of the family's disillusionment and dissatisfaction with their health care relationships. As such, these interfering behaviours represent the family's most productive means of positively influencing their sick member's experience with illness. In addition, they set the stage for negotiation to take place between the family and health care providers which leads to mutually satisfying care. When interference is appreciated within the context of health care relationships, it becomes obvious that some of our traditional nursing responses are counterproductive. This paper offers suggestions for making interference work, as well as theoretical questions to the nursing practitioner.
The hidden society': the practical use of multi‐dimensional scaling to illuminate the pattern of relationships between long‐stay psychiatric residents
Authors: Harries Clive , Frois Michael , Healey John
Published: December 2006

This paper briefly reports testing the use of multi‐dimensional scaling as a method to illuminate the complex pattern of relationships existing between patients in a long‐stay psychiatric setting. The results did not support the hypothesis that recently formed rehabilitation groups in the hostel would serve to explain the pattern of relationships between patients. The results did, however, promote a more informed discussion regarding the origin and implications of patient relationships in long‐stay psychiatric care, which served to revise staff ideas and options regarding the organization of care. Relationships between long‐stay disabled psychiatric patients are notoriously opaque to observers. The use of multi‐dimensional scaling helped make them more transparent.
Important clinical teacher behaviours as perceived by university nursing faculty, students and graduates
Authors: Knox Janet E. , Mogan Judith
Published: December 2006

This study compared the importance of five categories of clinical teacher behaviours as perceived by university nursing faculty, students and practising baccalaureate graduates. A survey tool, developed for this study, contained 47 items; each item describing a clinical teacher behaviour. Participants were asked to rate the importance of each item on a seven‐point Likert‐type scale. Results showed similar perceptions of the importance of clinical teacher behaviours between the three groups of participants. However, significant differences were found between all groups when the perceptions of students in each of the 4 years of the nursing programme, faculty and graduates were compared. These results indicate a greater variability among students than between students, faculty and practising baccalaureate graduates. The importance of this study lies not only in the perceptions of the three groups and the questions this raises, but also in the conflicting findings between this and other studies.
‘The more things change the more they stay the same’: factors affecting the implementation of the nursing process
Authors: Milne Derek
Published: December 2006

One of the biggest problems currently facing the nursing profession is that of implementing the nursing process. Innovations in health care often elicit obstructions, and objective data which might help us to understand and overcome these implementation problems are lacking. The present study considered these problems by contrasting two groups of psychiatric nurses both of whom had received an in‐service course in behaviour therapy. One group went on to implement this training by conducting behavioural nursing care plans with their patients, whereas the second group did not do so. A retrospective analysis of 25 variables associated with these groups of nurses indicated that neither subject variables, test scores nor learning during the course were good predictors of the nurses' implementations of the nursing process. An alternative basis for predicting and facilitating implementation is discussed. This focuses on institutional variables which may exert more control over the use of the nursing process than the personal characteristics of individual nurses. The implications of this analysis are important for the selection, training and motivation of nurses.
Gynaecological nursing: a compromising situation
Authors: Webb Christine
Published: December 2006

Women's health has been a research concern since the growth of modem feminism, but few studies have examined the attitudes and opinions of nurses towards working with women patients. This exploratory study, using informal interviews with 30 gynaecology nurses, is a first attempt to fill this gap. The interviewees’ attitudes and opinions revealed ambiguities and contradictions which led them both to identify with and distance themselves from their women patients and the doctors. It is suggested that gynaecological nurses occupy shifting positions in the status hierarchies of gender, nursing and medicine, and professional specialization. The way they define their role results from attempts to improve their status vis‐à‐vis others in these hierarchies, and to make compromises in order to evaluate their own status positively. Strategies are suggested for increasing their knowledge and skills based on the hypothesis that this would lead to greater clarity of role and job satisfaction, and a higher quality of patient care.
Differential conduction of cold through barriers
Authors: LaVelle Beth Elchek , Snyder Mariah
Published: December 2006

Despite the widespread use of ice packs in conjunction with ace bandages, padded ace bandages and compression dressings in the management of acute soft tissue trauma and sprains, the role of these barriers in the conduction of cold has not been adequately evaluated. Thermal probes were secured to both ankles of 62 healthy volunteers. The selected barrier was applied bilaterally and 500 g of chipped ice in a plastic bag was placed over the barrier on the right ankle for 30–45 minutes. A significant reduction in temperature of the right ankle was noted in all groups except in the padded ace group. The most rapid decrease in temperature was noted during the first 2 minutes of treatment. During the first minute, the surface temperature decreased an average of 22°C (ace), 3·8°C (dry washcloth), 5·2°C (no barrier) and 5·4°C (damp washcloth). After 10 minutes, the mean rate of cooling was 0·1–0·2°C and was approximately the same in all four groups. The Scheffe procedure indicated three homogeneous subgroups at 30 minutes: no barrier, damp washcloth; ace, dry washcloth; and padded ace. These findings question the clinical usefulness of the application of cold over padded aces and compression dressings and the use of a damp washcloth to ‘protect’ the skin from frostbite.
Nurse/patient dependency — is it iatrogenic?
Authors: Miller Audrey
Published: December 2006

It is often assumed that nursing care is given in response to the patient's degree of incapacity. This study indicates that rather than nursing care arising as a response to patients' dependency, nursing care is producing dependency. A considerable proportion of the measured dependency of 168 elderly patients arose from the type of nursing care they received — it was iatrogenic. Task allocation nursing was found to be positively unhealthy for elderly long‐stay patients, whilst individualized care (nursing process) was associated with lower patient dependency, a shorter hospital stay and a better chance of surviving the hospital stay. The findings demonstrate the inadequacy of nurse staffing formulas which are based on patient dependency. It is suggested that despite the rising numbers of very old people in the population, the elimination of nurse‐induced dependency could reduce the level of dependency in geriatric wards.