bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Evaluation of the effect of group counselling on post myocardial infarction patients: determined by an analysis of quality of life
Authors: Bagheri H , Memarian R , Alhani F 
Published: January 2007

Aim and objective.  The aim of this study was to investigate the effect of group counselling program on quality of life in survivors of myocardial infarction.Background.  Myocardial infarction is one of the most dramatic illnesses that can afflict patients. Despite decreases in mortality from coronary heart disease in most developed countries, mortality is increasing in most eastern European countries and developing countries.Design.  A randomized‐controlled trial design.Methods.  Sixty‐two patients with myocardial infarction were chosen, case group, (31 patients), distributed in five subgroup (each subgroup conclude six or seven patients) and control group (31 patients). A group‐counselling program was performed two days per week, each session last one hour. However, no counselling was performed for the control group. The quality of life score was estimated in both groups by the use of the MacNew Quality of Life after Myocardial Infarction questionnaire, before the group counselling program, and one month after the group counselling program, and the quality of life between both groups were compared. The data were analyzed using SPSS software.Results.  Results indicated that there was no significant difference between the mean quality of life score of case and control groups before group counselling program. While there was a significant difference (P = 0·001) between the mean of quality of life score after the group counselling in both groups. The mean of quality of life score, before and after group counselling program indicated a significant difference (P < 0·001) in the case group, while there was no significant difference in the control group. The statistical comparison of the mean of quality of life score in general and in each dimensions before and after group counselling program indicated that there was a significant difference between before and after group counselling in the case group whereas in the control group it has slightly decreased. Pearson's correlation coefficient test (P = 0·002) showed a significant correlation between the duration of myocardial infraction and the quality of life score. The effectiveness of the planned counselling program on quality of life was estimated 24·08 by growth test.Conclusion.  As indicated by the results of this study, group counselling program can promote patient's quality of life in all dimensions.Relevance to clinical practice.  There is a need for nurses and physicians to apply group counselling program in a wide variety of settings ranging from community to intensive care, as a simple and safe intervention to promote patient's quality of life.
Closeness and distance: a way of handling difficult situations in daily care
Authors: Blomberg Karin , Sahlberg‐Blom Eva 
Published: January 2007

Aims and objectives.  The aim of this study was to describe how care team members caring for patients with advanced cancer describe how they handle difficult situations in daily care. In this paper ‘difficult situations’ refers to those situations team members themselves describe as difficult.Background.  Serious illness and impending death involve great changes in a person's life. The care of patients with advanced cancer is complex and many different factors influence each care situation. This places demands on the way care team members handle problems and difficulties in daily care.Design.  Qualitative descriptive study.Methods.  The study is based on 16 focus group discussions with care team members who were caring for patients with advanced cancer at three different care units in two Swedish cities. The focus group discussions included 77 participants. The procedure for data analysis was inspired by the phenomenological method.Findings.  The results show that care team members handled difficult situations by balancing between being close and distancing themselves. In most situations their choice of strategy seemed spontaneous rather than being a conscious decision, although it was sometimes described as a more conscious approach. Variations of closeness and distance that were identified were Identity, Meaning, Limit‐setting and touching, Prioritization, the Team and the Organization. These could also be seen as tools that could facilitate or impede the use of closeness and distance.Conclusions.  The results show that care team members have a need to reflect over daily care and to become aware of what governs different care actions.Relevance to clinical practice.  If the experienced difficult situation is not handled in a way that is beneficial to the care team member, patient and relatives, it is assumed that this can result in stress, burnout and, above all, non‐optimal care.
Family carers in stroke care: examining the relationship between problem‐solving, depression and general health
Authors: Yeung Sue , Lui May How‐Lin , Ross Fiona , Murrells Trevor 
Published: January 2007

Aims and objectives.  The purpose of this article is to describe the problem‐solving abilities of Hong Kong family carers looking after a stroke patients at home and report the relationships between their perceived problem‐solving abilities with their depression level, general health status, and the functional recovery of stroke patients.Background.  Previous research on supportive interventions for caregiving in stroke care suggests that enhancing carers’ problem‐solving abilities is useful. Nevertheless, not much is known about the relationship between carers’ problem‐solving abilities and their physical and psychosocial health and there is notably little work that has been done with the Chinese population.Design.  A cross‐sectional and correlational design was used.Methods.  A convenience sample of 70 family carers, who were the main carers of stroke patients at home, during the first three months poststroke was recruited to complete a self‐report questionnaire.Result.  Significant correlations were found between the family carers’ global perceived problem‐solving abilities and higher level of depressive symptoms (r = 0·35, P = 0·01) and poorer perceived health (r = 0·50, P = 0·01) as measured using the Center for Epidemiological Studies – Depression Scale and General Health Questionnaire. Among the three subscales of the Problem‐Solving Inventory, problem‐solving confidence showed the highest correlation with these variables. The functional ability of the stroke patients as measured using the Modified Barthel Index (MBI) was not associated with any variables.Conclusion.  Findings of this study suggest that perception of confidence is a key factor in appraisal of problem‐solving among Chinese family carers, which raises questions for future research about the impact of cultural influences on designing and measuring interventions.Relevance to clinical practice.  The study has implications for nursing and health care practice and for developing interventions targeted at building self‐confidence among Chinese carers.
Essential elements of questionnaire design and development
Authors: Rattray Janice , Jones Martyn C 
Published: January 2007

Aims.  The aims of this paper were (1) to raise awareness of the issues in questionnaire development and subsequent psychometric evaluation, and (2) to provide strategies to enable nurse researchers to design and develop their own measure and evaluate the quality of existing nursing measures.Background.  The number of questionnaires developed by nurses has increased in recent years. While the rigour applied to the questionnaire development process may be improving, we know that nurses are still not generally adept at the psychometric evaluation of new measures. This paper explores the process by which a reliable and valid questionnaire can be developed.Methods.  We critically evaluate the theoretical and methodological issues associated with questionnaire design and development and present a series of heuristic decision‐making strategies at each stage of such development. The range of available scales is presented and we discuss strategies to enable item generation and development. The importance of stating a priori the number of factors expected in a prototypic measure is emphasized. Issues of reliability and validity are explored using item analysis and exploratory factor analysis and illustrated using examples from recent nursing research literature.Conclusion.  Questionnaire design and development must be supported by a logical, systematic and structured approach. To aid this process we present a framework that supports this and suggest strategies to demonstrate the reliability and validity of the new and developing measure.Relevance to clinical practice.  In developing the evidence base of nursing practice using this method of data collection, it is vital that questionnaire design incorporates preplanned methods to establish reliability and validity. Failure to develop a questionnaire sufficiently may lead to difficulty interpreting results, and this may impact upon clinical or educational practice. This paper presents a critical evaluation of the questionnaire design and development process and demonstrates good practice at each stage of this process.
The impact of stroke on the well‐being of the patient's spouse: an exploratory study
Authors: Draper Peter , Brocklehurst Hilary 
Published: January 2007

Aims.  The aim of this study was to investigate the impact of stroke on the patient's spouse, paying particular attention to psychiatric morbidity and the strain of caring, and correlating these with the degree of disability of the patient. The impact of impairment of speech was also investigated.Background.  The impact of a stroke is not limited to the person who suffers it but also to the family, with the patient's spouse being particularly vulnerable. The literature suggests that the consequences for the spouse can be physical, psychological, economic and social.Methods.  A quantitative approach was employed to investigate 44 couples who volunteered to participate in the study. A small battery of validated instruments was used to describe the patient's degree of disability, and psychiatric morbidity and the strain of caregiving in the spouse. Pearson's Correlation and Mann–Whitney U‐test were used in data analysis.Results.  The spouses were found to have a greater degree of psychiatric morbidity than a reference group and a large proportion of them found caregiving to be stressful. Psychiatric morbidity and strain in the spouses were not directly proportional to the extent of the patient's disability. Spouses whose partners’ speech was affected by the stroke were more likely to experience strain than those who were unaffected in this way.Conclusions.  This study contributes to our knowledge of the relationship between patients’ physical disability and the level of strain and psychiatric morbidity in spouses. The relationship is a complex one, in which it is not possible to predict with confidence which spouses will be most vulnerable.Relevance to clinical practice.  Caring for a patient following a stroke is very stressful, particularly in cases where the patient's speech is affected and there is also likely to be a significant effect on the psychological well‐being of the spouse. This information is relevant to all nurses caring for patients with stroke and the patients’ spouses.
Professional support for next of kin of patients receiving chronic haemodialysis treatment: a content analysis study of nursing documentation
Authors: Ziegert Kristina , Fridlund Bengt , Lidell Evy 
Published: January 2007

Aim and objectives.  The aim of this study was to examine the content of nursing documentation with a focus on professional support for next of kin (NoK) of patients receiving chronic haemodialysis treatment.Background.  Professional support in nursing focuses on promotion, maintenance and restoration of health and prevention of illness.Design.  The study had a descriptive design and qualitative content analysis was used to search for themes based on descriptions contained in the collected nursing documentation.Methods.  The total number of nursing records of patients receiving chronic haemodialysis treatment (n = 50) for the 5‐year period 1998–2002 was included. All nursing documentation was systematic in accordance with the VIPS‐documentation model.Results.  The professional support could be described within the framework of three themes: to explore NoK's supportive resources, to enable NoK’ readiness in caring for the patient and to co‐operate with NoK in the care of the patient in the home, captured by the core theme which described the professional support as a continuous process.Conclusions.  Next of kin are a supportive resource in the nursing care of patients receiving chronic haemodialysis treatment and professional support for NoK focuses on planning their participation in the care of patients in the home.Relevance to clinical practice.  Professional support for NoK should be documented in family focused nursing diagnoses, which would make it possible to search for different types of support. Future research might explore nurses’ or NoK's views on carer support.
Choose your doctorate
Authors: Jolley Jeremy 
Published: January 2007

Aims and objectives.  The development of education options for nurses has been inexorable and it is increasingly the case that senior nurses are considering a doctorate as the logical next step in their educational career. Such individuals need to make important decisions as to whether they should embark on a taught doctorate, professional doctorate or a traditional PhD. Each of these options will necessitate a considerable investment in time and money as well as the sacrifice of quality time and spare time over a significant number of years. A doctorate is not for everyone. Those still reading this text may be asking ‘could this possibly be for me'? This paper will try to help the reader decide which if any option to take.Background.  It is suggested that nurses will now turn to the doctoral degree as their next adventure in academic study. It is argued that this development is not being controlled by management forces and indeed cannot be controlled by them. This last is chiefly because the move towards doctoral education is led by individuals who choose to study for a doctorate simply because they can. The paper considers what choices are available to nurses who wish to pursue a doctoral programme of study. In particular, this paper considers what new developments in doctoral courses are becoming available and what advantage there may be in studying for one of the newer professional doctorates rather than a traditional PhD.Method.  The material here is the result of a review of the literature on recent developments in doctoral education for nurses. The existing provision by UK and other universities was also reviewed, the data being collected by an informal review of universities’ advertising material.Conclusions.  It is inevitable that some nurses who are already qualified to degree and masters degree will take advantage of the doctoral degree opportunities which now newly present themselves. For nurses in practice, the advantages of the professional doctorate is that it is more structured, enables more peer and academic support and is more practice orientated. It is suggested that the move towards doctoral programmes for nurses will present one of the most important evolutionary changes in the practice of nursing.Relevance to clinical practice.  It is suggested that doctoral education for nurses will increase in prevalence and that this process of change is already underway. Doctoral education will provide practitioners with the experience and skills required to conduct research and further develop practice. For individual practitioners, doctoral education will enhance self‐confidence in an increasingly technical and complex arena and in a practice discipline that is becoming ever more politically charged. The professional doctorate appears to be particularly suited to senior nurse practitioners. What remains is for us to accept this new challenge and to shape its development for the benefit of the practice of nursing.
Obesity, gestational weight gain and preterm birth: a study within the Danish National Birth Cohort
Authors: Nohr Ellen Aagaard , Bech Bodil Hammer , Vaeth Michael , Rasmussen Kathleen M. , Henriksen Tine Brink , Olsen Jorn 
Published: January 2007

SummaryThe aim of the present study was to assess the impact of obesity and gestational weight gain on the risk of subtypes of preterm birth, because little is known about these associations. The study included 62 167 women within the Danish National Birth Cohort for whom self‐reported information about prepregnancy body mass index (BMI) and gestational weight gain was available. Information about spontaneous preterm birth with or without preterm premature rupture of membranes (PPROM) and about induced preterm deliveries was obtained from national registers. Cox regression analyses were used to examine associations of prepregnancy BMI and gestational weight gain with subtypes of preterm birth.The crude risks of PPROM and of induced preterm deliveries were higher in obese women (BMI ≥ 30) than in normal‐weight women (18.5 ≤ BMI < 25), especially before 34 completed weeks of gestation, when obese women faced twice the risk. In the adjusted analysis, the hazard ratios and 95% confidence intervals for PPROM and for induced preterm delivery in obese women were 1.5 [1.2, 1.9] and 1.2 [1.0, 1.6] respectively. When obesity‐related diseases were accounted for, no excess risk of induced preterm deliveries was seen in obese women, but the increased risk of PPROM was unchanged. Low weight gain was associated with an increased risk of all subtypes of preterm birth compared with normal weight gain, especially in early spontaneous preterm births, where the risk was doubled. We concluded that prepregnancy obesity was associated with a higher risk of PPROM and early induced preterm deliveries.
Research interviewers’ experience in the Early Births study of very preterm birth: qualitative assessment of data collection processes in a case–control study
Authors: Watson Lyndsey F. , Lumley Judith , Rayner Jo‐Anne , Potter Anne 
Published: January 2007

SummaryThis paper describes an evaluation study that aimed to assess data collection processes in a population‐based case–control study of very preterm birth. Semi‐structured interviews were conducted with the 10 research interviewers to determine their perceptions of the hypotheses, the differences between interviewing cases and controls and between modes of interview, their reactions to questions which they had to ask in interviews and their training. Time and cost of the collection of data were also considered. None of the research interviewers identified which of the questions in the interview constituted the primary hypothesis. All interviewers interviewed cases and controls (including mothers of twins and singletons), and collected data face‐to‐face and by telephone. Whilst half of the interviewers had no issue with asking sensitive questions, hearing of intimate partner violence, risk‐taking behaviour and inappropriate medical care were confronting for others. Training was judged as adequate, as was the continuing support of the project co‐ordinator. On average, interviewing took 40% of research interviewers’ time, and 25 interviews were completed per effective full‐time month of interviewer time. Each interview cost approximately $170AU to complete. In relation to this case–control study, interviewer bias may be lessened since research interviewers had been unable to infer the hypothesis of the study. All interviewers had interviewed both cases and controls and any systematic differences can be adjusted for in the analysis.
Outcome of perinatal care for very preterm infants at 5 years of age: a comparison between 1983 and 1993
Authors: De Kleine Martin J. K. , Den Ouden A. Lya , Kollée Louis A. A. , Van Baar Anneloes , Nijhuis‐van der Sanden Maria W. G. , Ilsen Adri , Brand Ronald , Verloove‐Vanhorick S. Pauline 
Published: January 2007

SummaryPerinatal mortality in very preterm infants has decreased by up to 50% during the last decades. Studies of changes of long‐term outcome are inconclusive. We studied the visual, auditory, neuromotor, cognitive and behavioural development of two geographically defined populations of very preterm, singleton infants, born in 1983 and in 1993, and analysed the relationship between perinatal risk factors and outcomes.The incidence of disabling cerebral palsy increased from 6.0% to 11.1% (OR 2.45 [95% CI 1.11, 5.38]). Impaired vision and strabismus decreased significantly, presumably by continuous monitoring of pO2. Hearing problems, the need for special education and the incidence of behavioural problems did not change over time. The proportion of children who showed optimal performance in every developmental domain increased from 29.5% in 1983 to 43.2% in 1993. Cerebral palsy was associated with male gender in 1983, with low Apgar score and intraventricular haemorrhage in 1993, and with seizures both in 1983 and in 1993. The intensiveness of neonatal treatment has increased, leading to the survival of many more healthy infants, but at the cost of more infants with cerebral damage. Modern perinatal care is no longer limited by the devastating effects of pulmonary problems as it was in the past, but fails to safeguard cerebral integrity in very preterm infants.
Is low birthweight associated with dental caries in permanent dentition?
Authors: Saraiva Maria C. P. , Chiga Sandra , Bettiol Heloisa , Silva Antônio A. , Barbieri Marco A. 
Published: January 2007

SummaryThe aim of this study was to test the hypothesis of association between low birthweight and dental caries. This study used data from the Third National Health and Nutritional Examination Survey, 1988–94 (NHANES III) including 7‐ to 11‐year‐old children with complete dental caries information (n = 2439). Two case definitions for dental caries were used: presence of the disease in more than one tooth, and more than 10% of teeth with dental caries. Low birthweight was defined as those children born weighing <2500 g. Other covariates used in the analysis were sex, age, poverty level, race/ethnicity, frequency of dental visit, education of head of household, daily sucrose intake, blood lead level and blood cotinine level. A separate analysis was conducted for each case definition of dental caries. Bivariable and stratified analysis was performed followed by multivariable Poisson regression. The Stata 8.0 statistical package was used to take into consideration the multistage complex sample.For the definition of more than one tooth with dental caries, the prevalence ratios (PRs) for bivariable and multivariable analyses were 1.28 [95% confidence interval (CI): 0.48, 3.42] and 1.01 [95% CI: 0.41, 2.49] respectively. For the definition of >10% of teeth with dental caries, the PRs for bivariable and multivariable analyses were 1.33 [95% CI: 0.60, 2.96] and 1.32 [95% CI: 0.75, 2.30] respectively. This study could not demonstrate an association between low birthweight and dental caries in permanent teeth of 7‐ to 11‐year‐old American children.