bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
The decision to resuscitate: older people’s views
Authors: Phillips Karen , Woodward Valerie 
Published: March 2003

• The aim of this study was to explore how a healthy sample of the older population feel about resuscitation and the decision not to resuscitate certain patients.• Their views were sought on whether a Do Not Resuscitate decision is appropriate in certain circumstances, whom they think should be involved in the decision, whether they think patients should be consulted, and if they would like to be involved in the decision themselves.• Two focus groups were held in a day care setting in order to collect data, and a thematic analysis was conducted.• Participants thought that a Do Not Resuscitate decision should be discussed with patients and also with relatives if appropriate.• However, there was ambivalence about whether individuals would like to be involved personally in such a decision because of the anxiety this would produce.
A comparison of the nursing competence of graduates and diplomates from UK nursing programmes
Authors: Bartlett Helen P. , Simonite Vanessa , Westcott Elizabeth , Taylor Heidi R. 
Published: March 2003

• This paper reviews the literature on nursing competence measurement and reports the results of a comparative quantitative study of the competencies of Project 2000 diplomates and BA (Hons) Adult Nursing graduates from two UK nursing programmes.• The findings reveal that graduates appear to overcome any initial limitations and become more competent than the diplomates in certain areas.• Attention to social awareness and participation is necessary in both pre‐registration programmes, whilst greater attention could be given to graduates’ leadership and management development.• Diplomates need support in their professional development if they are to achieve the same level of competence as graduates during the first post‐qualifying year.• There are implications for the level of support afforded to qualifying nurses in their first staff positions; preceptorship programmes could be an important means of assisting newly qualified staff to gain confidence. More research on nurse competencies with larger samples drawn from programmes across the UK is needed.
Technological competence as a fundamental structure of learning in critical care nursing: a phenomenological study
Authors: Little Christine V. 
Published: March 2003

• Post‐registration education programmes are frequently informed by nationally agreed curriculum frameworks. Although these aim to promote comparability between similarly focused clinical courses, inconsistencies have recently been identified across a range of critical care curricula. This suggests that broad‐based frameworks may be insufficiently sensitive to local learning needs.• This study was concerned with the extent to which the curriculum met the learning needs of 10 post‐registration critical care students and, in particular, aimed to explore the meaning of learning to the students themselves.• The study revealed technological competence to be a necessary foundation to the development of clinical practice and this is discussed from a philosophical perspective which allows the nature of contemporary nursing practice to be reconceptualized.• It is argued that curriculum development for clinically based, post‐registration courses can be constructively informed by local consultation and that phenomenological study can complement more traditional approaches often relied upon in educational research.
Elders’ perceptions of formal and informal care: aspects of getting and receiving help for their activities of daily living
Authors: Roe Brenda , Whattam Maxine , Young Heather , Dimond Margaret 
Published: March 2003

• A purposive and convenience sample of 16 women and four men receiving informal and formal care for their activities of daily living either at home or institutions in Southeast Washington, USA was interviewed.• Qualitative findings related to asking for help, getting and receiving help, interpersonal aspects of receiving help, and met and unmet needs are reported.• Some seniors found it more difficult to ask for and accept help and there were gender differences, with men tending to adopt a more logical and pragmatic approach while women viewed receiving help as a loss of independence and an invasion of privacy. Intimacy and nudity were also threats for women.• Three styles of adjustment and acceptance were identified within the data and related to positive acceptance, resigned acceptance and passive acceptance.• There appeared to be a relationship between independence and control, with elders losing some independence but retaining control through choice, payment and involvement in decision making.• Reciprocity was found to bring added value to relationships between care providers and elders, with a rhythm and symmetry developing in relationships where needs were known, anticipated and met.• Seniors should be encouraged to plan for their future and to find out about local help and services available to them in advance of their requiring any assistance.
Relocation stress in critical care: a review of the literature
Authors: Mc KINNEY AIDÍN A. , MELBY VIDAR 
Published: March 2003

• Transfer to the ward following a period in intensive care may cause stress for patients.• A review of the literature reveals that this phenomenon has been described in a number of different ways, such as transfer stress, transfer anxiety, translocation syndrome and, more recently, relocation stress.• This paper reviews the various concepts before arriving at a more operational definition of the phenomenon.• It attempts to reveal what causes this phenomenon and to what extent it exists.• Patients' responses to transfer are identified and the physical and psychological problems that have been associated with discharge from intensive care are discussed.• Lists of interventions that the literature suggests may reduce or prevent this phenomenon from occurring are reviewed.• Recommendations for practice development and further research are made.
Research as a catalyst for change: the transition from student to Registered Nurse
Authors: ROSS HELEN , CLIFFORD KEVIN 
Published: March 2003

• This paper outlines the qualitative findings of a study exploring the transition from student to Registered Nurse and the catalytic effect of the way in which newly registered nurses are prepared for this role change.• The study explored the experiences of one cohort of students undertaking the pre‐registration Advanced Diploma in Nursing Studies at the University of Sheffield.• Data were collected pre‐qualification and post‐qualification in order to compare the expectations and reality of the transition period. Two key aspects emerged, one relating to the experience of students undertaking the final module of the course and the other to preceptorship once qualified. These two areas of practice have been the focus of development following dissemination of the research findings in the local NHS Hospitals.• The study suggests that the transition period remains very stressful for some nurses, because of both pre‐registration educational issues and the level of support received once qualified. Careful planning of the student experience in the final year and addressing inconsistencies within the preceptorship programmes of newly qualified nurses are needed. The study is stimulating change in the local NHS hospitals, with the aim of enhancing the overall experience of student nurses and newly qualified staff alike.
Being a palliative care nurse in an academic hospital: a qualitative study about nurses' perceptions of palliative care nursing
Authors: Georges Jean‐Jacques , Grypdonck Mieke , De Casterle Bernadette Dierckx 
Published: March 2003

Summary•  The original philosophy of palliative care emphasizes the importance of the integration of compassion and medical science. The meaning palliative care nurses assign to their relationships with patients has been described in several studies.•  This qualitative research was undertaken in order to elicit the way nurses working on a palliative care ward in an academic hospital perceive their role and gain insight into the problems they encounter.•  The findings present two different perceptions held by nurses about the nature of their work. The first, the more prominent, is ‘striving to adopt a well‐organized and purposeful approach as a nurse on an academic ward’; the second is ‘striving to enhance the well‐being of the patient’.•  Nurses should be supported in the development of their palliative care approach and be assisted in reflecting on their practice in terms of a model of ‘reflective practice’ and in the development of ‘moral imagination’.
A qualitative study of coping in the early stage of acute traumatic hand injury
Authors: Gustafsson Margareta , Persson Lars‐Olof , Amilon Anders 
Published: March 2003

Summary• Twenty patients with acute traumatic hand injury were interviewed 8–20 days after the day of the accident.• The aim of the study was to identify coping strategies, defined as thoughts or actions used by the hand‐injured patients to manage stress factors and resulting emotions in the early stage. Stress factors were reported in an earlier study.• The analyses of the interviews followed the first steps in the analytical process described in a modified model of grounded theory.• Eleven different coping strategies were identified in the interviews. By ‘comparing with something worse’, ‘positive thinking’, ‘relying on personal capacity’, ‘distancing’ and ‘distracting attention’ the patients tried to play down the seriousness of the problem or situation. Other coping strategies used by the hand‐injured were ‘accepting the situation’, ‘seeking social support’, ‘maintaining control’, ‘solving practical problems by oneself’, ‘pain‐relieving actions’ and ‘active processing of the trauma experience.’• The findings of the study show how important it is to identify the patient's own way of coping with a stressful illness situation in order to give adequate psychosocial support.
Population genetics, molecular markers and the study of dispersal in plants
Authors: Ouborg N. J. , Piquot Y. , Van Groenendael J. M. 
Published: March 2003

Summary 1 Long‐distance dispersal events are biologically very important for plants because they affect colonization probabilities, the probabilities of population persistence in a fragmented habitat, and metapopulation structure. They are, however, very difficult to investigate because of their low frequency. We reviewed the use of molecular markers in the population genetics approach to studying dispersal. With these methods the consequences of long‐distance dispersal are studied, rather than the frequency of the dispersal events themselves. 2 Molecular markers vary, displaying different amounts of variation and different modes of inheritance: they may be either dominant or codominant, and may or may not be subjected to genetic recombination. Use of markers has inspired the development of maximum likelihood techniques that take the evolutionary history of alleles into account while estimating gene flow. 3 Inferring seed dispersal rates from indirect measurements of gene flow involves three steps: (i) quantifying genetic differentiation among populations and using this to estimate the rate of gene flow; (ii) producing a genetic dispersal curve by regressing geographical distance among populations against the amount of gene flow; and (iii) separating seed‐mediated from pollen‐mediated gene flow, by comparing differentiation in nuclear vs. cytoplasmic molecular markers. In this way, potentially very low levels of gene flow can be detected. 4 The indirect approach is based on a number of assumptions. The validity of each assumption should be assessed by independent methods or the estimates of gene flow and dispersal should be mainly used in a comparative context. In metapopulations, with frequent extinction and colonization, the relationship between genetic differentiation and gene flow is not straightforward, and other methods should be used. 5 Highly variable molecular markers, especially microsatellites, have facilitated a direct genetic approach to measuring gene flow, based on parental analyses. 6 The population genetic approach provides different information about dispersal than ecological methods. Thus population genetic and ecological methods may supplement each other, and together lead to a better insight into the dispersal process than either of the methods on its own.
Slug herbivory as a limiting factor for the geographical range of Arnica montana
Authors: Bruelheide Helge , Scheidel Ulrich 
Published: March 2003

Summary 1
We tested whether slug herbivory is a factor restricting the rare perennial Arnica montana to high elevations in the Harz mountains, Lower Saxony. 2
In one experiment we artificially increased the mollusc population density in plots containing native Arnica montana populations. Leaf loss and damage to Arnica increased significantly, whilst damage to other plant species in the same plots was unaffected by mollusc density. 3
A second experiment examined damage by molluscs of transplanted Arnica montana plants at three different altitudes. Whilst damage to Arnica was negligible at 610 m a.s.l. (where natural populations occur), molluscs removed 8% of Arnica leaf area at 385 m a.s.l. and 75% at 180 m a.s.l. At the two lower sites, protective caging of Arnica plants significantly reduced the amount of leaf tissue consumed by molluscs. The impact of mollusc herbivory on Arnica montana therefore appears to increase with decreasing altitude. 4
Despite the weak relationship between leaf damage to Arnica montana and mollusc abundance, periods of peak mollusc activity may well coincide with those phases in Arnica life history that are most sensitive to tissue removal by herbivores. 5
Our results support the hypothesis that polyphagous herbivores play a major role in limiting the distribution of preferred plant species. We discuss how selective herbivory may influence the distribution of Arnica montana populations in these grassland communities.
Competition and herbivory during salt marsh succession: the importance of forb growth strategy
Authors: Dormann Carsten F. , Van Der Wal Rene , Bakker Jan P. 
Published: March 2003

Summary 1  Despite much debate about their importance, only a few field studies have evaluated the intensity of competition and herbivory. 2

Artemisia maritima, Atriplex portulacoides and Plantago maritima, three plant species which are common in European temperate salt marshes, were transplanted into different successional stages (15, 30 and 45 years old) of a temperate salt marsh. Biomass of each transplant was measured as the response variable to treatments that manipulated competition and the level of herbivory. 3
All species were shown to be negatively influenced by both competition and herbivory, with competition being in general of greater importance than herbivory. No change could be detected during succession in the intensity of either competition or herbivory. Their combined impact, however, increased over succession for Atriplex, although no trend was observed for the other two species. 4
Both biomass and allocation patterns reflected further adaptations of these salt‐tolerant species to environmental stress and biotic interactions present in the salt marsh. Plantago, which is the best adapted to salinity, was shown to be markedly affected by competition and herbivory. Atriplex showed less response to herbivory and little response to competition, to which it is well adapted. The grazing‐deterrent Artemisia was influenced by herbivory only as a seedling.
Effects of migratory geese on plant communities of an Alaskan salt marsh
Authors: Zacheis Amy , Hupp Jerry W. , Ruess Roger W. 
Published: March 2003

SummaryWe studied the effects of lesser snow geese (Anser caerulescens caerulescens) and Canada geese (Branta canadensis) on two salt marsh plant communities in Cook Inlet, Alaska, a stopover area used during spring migration. From 1995 to 1997 we compared plant species composition and biomass on plots where geese were excluded from feeding with paired plots where foraging could occur.Foraging intensity was low (650–1930 goose‐days km−2) compared to other goose‐grazing systems.Canada geese fed mainly on above‐ground shoots ofTriglochin maritimum, Puccinelliaspp. andCarex ramenskii, whereas the majority of the snow goose diet consisted of below‐ground tissues ofPlantago maritimaandTriglochin maritimum.Plant communities responded differently to goose herbivory. In the sedge meadow community, where feeding was primarily on above‐ground shoots, there was no effect of grazing on the dominant speciesCarex ramenskiiandTriglochin maritimum. In the herb meadow community, where snow geese fed onPlantago maritimaroots and other below‐ground tissues, there was a difference in the relative abundance of plant species between treatments. Biomass ofPlantago maritimaandPotentilla egediiwas lower on grazed plots compared with exclosed, whereas biomass ofCarex ramenskiiwas greater on grazed plots. There was no effect of herbivory on total standing crop biomass in either community. The variable effect of herbivory onCarex ramenskiibetween communities suggests that plant neighbours and competitive interactions are important factors in a species’ response to herbivory. In addition, the type of herbivory (above‐ or below‐ground) was important in determining plant community response to herbivory.Litter accumulation was reduced in grazed areas compared with exclosed in both communities. Trampling of the previous year’s litter into the soil surface by geese incorporated more litter into soils in grazed areas.This study illustrates that even light herbivore pressure can alter plant communities and affect forage availability.
The effect of plant population size on the interactions between the rare plantGentiana cruciataand its specialized herbivoreMaculinea rebeli
Authors: Kéry Marc , Matthies Diethart , Fischer Markus 
Published: March 2003

SummaryMany rare plant species are restricted to small isolated populations in which fitness may be reduced because of inbreeding, environmental and demographic stochasticity, and reduced pollination. However, specialist herbivores are less likely to be present in such populations because of higher probabilities of herbivore extinction and lower rates of colonization, and may therefore affect fitness only in larger plant populations.We studied the relationships between the size of populations of the endangered grassland plantGentiana cruciataand the probability of occurrence and population size of its specialist herbivore, the endangered butterflyMaculinea rebeli, and their effects on plant size, fruit herbivory and seed production.The 29G. cruciatapopulations studied ranged in size from 1 to 337 genets and 18 of them supported aM. rebelipopulation.M. rebelipopulations were both more likely and larger in largerG. cruciatapopulations. Estimated adult herbivore populations were small, ranging from 1 to 42 individuals, with a median of 11. We conclude that the conservation ofM. rebelirequires the conservation of largeG. cruciatapopulations.Although large populations ofG. cruciataproduced more flowers, a greater proportion of their fruits were attacked by herbivores. Fruit herbivory, which considerably decreased the number of seeds per fruit, appears to have been caused largely byMaculinea. The number of seeds both per fruit and per genet significantly decreased with the number ofM. rebelieggs per genet. The overall independence ofG. cruciataseed production from population size may result from the opposing effects on fruit production and herbivory.Our study suggests that complex interactions between different trophic levels may determine the population dynamics of rare species. Furthermore, small population size may have both negative and positive effects on the fitness of endangered species.
Water use trade‐offs and optimal adaptations to pulse‐driven arid ecosystems
Authors: Schwinning Susanne , Ehleringer James R. 
Published: March 2003

Summary

We introduce a hydraulic soil‐plant model with water uptake from two soil layers; one a pulse‐dominated shallow soil layer, the other a deeper soil layer with continuous, but generally less than saturated soil moisture. Water uptake is linked to photosynthetic carbon assimilation through a photosynthesis model for C3 plants.
A genetic algorithm is used to identify character suites that maximize photosynthetic carbon gain for plants that experience a particular soil moisture pattern. The character suites include allocation fraction to stem, leaves and shallow root, stem capacitance and stem water storage capacity, maximal leaf conductance and sensitivity of leaf conductance to plant water potential, and a critical soil water potential at which shallow roots cease to transfer water.
We find that if pulse water is a more important water source than deeper soil water in the environment, optimal phenotypes lean towards adaptations that maximize pulse water use (small root : shoot ratio, predominantly shallow root system, high leaf conductance with high stomatal sensitivity to plant water status). If deeper soil water is more important, phenotypes lean towards adaptations that maximize deeper soil water use (large root : shoot ratio, predominantly deep root system, lower leaf conductance with low stomatal sensitivity). Stem succulence is adaptive only when deeper soil water is unavailable.
From among the continuum of derived phenotypes, four phenotypes are selected that resemble the character suites of winter annuals, drought‐deciduous perennials, evergreen perennials and stem succulents. Under common conditions, these phenotypes reproduce many of the responses to drought and water pulse observed in their respective life‐form counterparts. The comparison also highlights the differences in plant life‐form sensitivity to summer and winter drought conditions.
Based on these results, we discuss the possible role of annual precipitation patterns in shaping plant adaptations and determining the plant composition of arid and semi‐arid environments.
Frugivory at Juniperus communis depends more on population characteristics than on individual attributes
Authors: García Daniel , Zamora Regino , Gómez José M. , Hódar José A. 
Published: March 2003

Summary

We investigated the spatio‐temporal variation in the interactions between the juniper Juniperus communis and its vertebrate frugivores (avian dispersers of Turdus spp. and predatory rodents Apodemus sylvaticus) in the Mediterranean mountains of south‐east Spain.
Frugivore activity was evaluated at six sites and for 3 years, in relation to both plant reproductive traits (plant size, cone crop and cone size) and characteristics of the immediate environment (distance to the nearest female, abundance of perches, fruiting environment and habitat).
Plant characteristics and levels of frugivory varied strongly among the six populations. Cone production, cone size and frugivory also differed significantly among years for the same population. Avian frugivory was only occasionally affected by density of cones per plant, abundance of perches or abundance of other fruiting species, or by habitat. Rodent predation was positively related only to the density of cones per plant and then only in two sites.
Levels of both avian frugivory and rodent predation significantly increased in populations with higher cone production.
Both groups of vertebrate frugivores responded to the spatio‐temporal variation in cone abundance at a regional scale, discriminating more between juniper populations than between individual plants within a population. The outcome of interactions with frugivores at the individual plant level thus proved more dependent on the whole‐population characteristics than on individual attributes.