Knowledge about the care of people with Alzheimer’s disease of the nursing staff of nursing homes in Spain

Abstract: People with Alzheimer’s disease often live in nursing homes. Updated knowledge among the nursing staff has led to better quality of care. The aim of this study was to measure the knowledge about the care of people with Alzheimer’s disease of the nursing staff of nursing homes in Spain. A cross-sectional study was conducted in 24 nursing homes in the province of Jaén (Spain) with a sample of 361 members of staff, i.e., registered nurses (RNs), assistant nurses (ANs), and eldercare workers (EWs). The University of Jaén UJA-Alzheimer’s Care Scale was used to measure the knowledge. The knowledge was higher among the RNs (83.3% of the maximum) than among the ANs and EWs (71.6%). Work experience and updated training were associated with the knowledge score in RNs, but only the updated training in ANs and EWs. Nursing homes with less experienced nursing staff and with a small proportion of staff receiving training on dementia have a low knowledge score. The nursing staff of nursing homes in Jaén have medium to high knowledge about Alzheimer’s care. There is a wide range of variation in the knowledge score among the nursing homes. Up-to-date staff training in dementia care is the factor with the strongest association with knowledge

The Effectiveness of Advanced Practice Nurses with Respect to Complex Chronic Wounds in the Management of Venous Ulcers

This study aims to evaluate the effectiveness of advanced practice nurses with respect to complex chronic wounds (APN-CCWs) in the care of patients with venous ulcers. A multicentric, quasi-experimental pre-post study was conducted without a control group in the sanitary management areas where the APN-CCW program is being piloted. The intervention consisted of a mass training of clinical nurses from the participating districts on the proper management of injuries and the use of compression therapy. The data were collected through a specifically constructed questionnaire with questions regarding descriptive variables of injuries and their treatment. A total of 643 professionals responded (response rate of 89.1%), attending to a total population of 707,814 inhabitants. An increase in multilayer bandage use by 15.67%, an increase in elastic bandage use by 13.24%, and a significant decrease in the referral of patients to consultation with hospital specialists was achieved, from 21.08% to 12.34%. The number of patients referred to the APNs was 13.25%, which implied a resolution rate of 94.08% of their injuries. In conclusion, the coordination by the APN-CCWs in patients with venous ulcers was effective in improving the continuity of care, in the optimization of resources, and in their care role

Conservante para flor ornamental cortada

Referencia OEPM: P200000402.-- Fecha de solicitud: 21/02/2000.-- Titulares: Universidad Politécnica de Valencia (UPV), Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas (CSIC).La invención consiste en un conservante para flor ornamental cortada, diseñado como una mezcla de compuestos a base de azúcar comercial, ácido cítrico, citrato de sodio, germicida, inhibidor de la síntesis de etileno y humectante, que se prepara para disolver en un litro de agua y mantener en él los claveles cortados. De esta forma la vida comercial útil de la flor cortada se verá considerablemente incrementada. La principal ventaja que presenta esta composición sobre las ya existentes en el mercado es su mayor efectividad, retardando la senescencia o envejecimiento de la flor cortada y el no contener compuestos que puedan ser contaminantes para el medio ambiente o nocivos para la salud humana o de animales.Peer reviewe

Perceived needs of the family caregivers of people with dementia in a mediterranean setting: A qualitative study

The purpose of this study was to identify, classify and analyze the perceived needs of caregivers of elderly people with dementia during the care process. A descriptive phenomenological qualitative study using seven focus groups was conducted in different primary health care centers in the province of Jaén (Spain) between July 2012 and February 2013. Eighty-two family caregivers who were caring for people with dementia in different stages of the disease were selected by purposeful maximum variation sampling. Data were analyzed and organized thematically, considering the semantic and pragmatic content and field notes. Two main categories of the perceived needs of caregivers were identified. The first was related to the management of caring for a relative with dementia, and the second was related to the management of the caregivers’ own care. Our findings support the provision of comprehensive interventions for the improvement of caregivers’ emotional health that encompass more than one care need. This is where psycho-educational interventions aimed at managing the various aspects of dementia and self-care in caregivers can be accommodated. In addition, proactive interventions to develop important skills to care for a relative with dementia, which are not perceived as needs by the caregivers, are needed. These include skills in family negotiation, planning and searching for resources outside the family

Los retos de la administración electoral en contextos de violencia política. Un escenario para México

El siguiente estudio tiene como objetivo contextualizar los retos de la administración electoral en contextos de la violencia política un escenario para México. El propósito de esta investigación es abordar los desafíos y las oportunidades que enfrentan las administraciones electorales en la lucha contra la violencia política. Se rastrearon detalles relevantes de la violencia política en noticias nacionales y locales de artículos publicados en la web. Las fuentes de información fueron primordialmente sitios web y artículos de periódicos. Se encontró que la mayor parte de la violencia política que azota a México durante los procesos electorales representa un desafío de gran magnitud para las autoridades electorales, quienes tienen la responsabilidad de garantizar elecciones libres, justas y transparentes

Numerical study of the behavior of an air pre-cooler

Introducing an air pre-cooler step before an air cooler system have been proved to improve the global efficiency of a cooling setup. Several authors have studied the mass and the heat exchanges of an air stream and the water sprayed inside an adiabatic cooling pad. However, these previous studies present their results and correlations as functions of experimental dependent parameters. Therefore, the aim of this study is to develop a numerical modeling capable of characterizing the behavior of an air pre-cooling stage without the need of previous experimental tests, allowing an accurate initial study when designing an air cooler installation. Several numerical models and simulation tests have been developed by our researching group in order to get a proper approximation of the problem, and the employment of previous experimental data allowed the model validation in terms of pressure drop and air cooling efficiency. As a result, a numerical model is defined, validated, and compared with existing empirical correlations models as a first step to determine the best possible cooling pad configuration in every air cooling setup as a function of the pad geometry, air and water flow rates, with an only numerical simulation.The authors acknowledge the financial support received from the Spanish Government, through Projects ENE2013-48696-C2-1-R and C2-2-R as well as by the FEDER (FondoEuropeo de Desarrollo Regional

Observational study of lipid profile and LDL particle size in patients with metabolic syndrome

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>The atherogenic lipoprotein phenotype is characterized by an increase in plasma triglycerides, a decrease in high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDLc), and the prevalence of small, dense-low density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDLc) particles. The aim of this study was to establish the importance of LDL particle size measurement by gender in a group of patients with Metabolic Syndrome (MS) attending at a Cardiovascular Risk Unit in Primary Care and their classification into phenotypes.</p> <p>Subjects and methods</p> <p>One hundred eighty-five patients (93 men and 92 women) from several areas in the South of Spain, for a period of one year in a health centre were studied. Laboratory parameters included plasma lipids, lipoproteins, low-density lipoprotein size and several atherogenic rates were determinated.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>We found differences by gender between anthropometric parameters, blood pressure and glucose measures by MS status. Lipid profile was different in our two study groups, and gender differences in these parameters within each group were also remarkable, in HDLc and Apo A-I values. According to LDL particle size, we found males had smaller size than females, and patients with MS had also smaller than those without MS. We observed inverse relationship between LDL particle size and triglycerides in patients with and without MS, and the same relationship between all atherogenic rates in non-MS patients. When we considered our population in two classes of phenotypes, lipid profile was worse in phenotype B.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>In conclusion, we consider worthy the measurement of LDL particle size due to its relationship with lipid profile and cardiovascular risk.</p

Study of the performance of an adiabatic cooling pad in an air cooling system

Adiabatic cooling pads are mostly used as a previous step for cooling systems, they cause the raise of the cooling system global efficiency. In this study, several types of pads have been analysed regarding on its compactness and thickness. The problem is addressed from an experimental, analytical and numerical point of view.vThe validation of the temperature drop and cooling efficiency of the cooling pad numerical model is the main objective of this paper, and, in order to get this goal, Discrete Phase Model (DPM) of ANSYS Fluent software is used to calculate how water droplets, injected over the pad to cool the air, evaporate and how the continuous phase affect them. The results of this paper, focused to be a part of a complete cooling system analysis carried out by the research group, show the performance of an adiabatic cooling pad varying its width and compactness.The authors acknowledge the financial support received from the Spanish Government, through Projects ENE2013-48696-C2-1-R and C2-2-R as well as by the FEDER (Fondo Europeo de Desarrollo Regional)

What fuels suboptimal care of peripheral intravenous catheter-related infections in hospitals? A qualitative study of decision-making among Spanish nurses

Availability of data and materials: The data that support the findings of this study are available on request from the corresponding author. The data are not publicly available due to privacy or ethical restrictions.Copyright . Background: Peripheral intravenous catheters (PIVC) are commonly used in hospital worldwide. However, PIVC are not exempt from complications. Catheter-related bloodstream infections (CRBSI) increase morbidity and mortality rates, and costs for the healthcare organization. PIVC care is shaped by the complex mix of professional and organizational culture, such as knowledge gaps, low perception of impact of PIVCs on patient safety, or lack of hospital guidelines. Aim: To explore determinants of decision-making about the prevention of PIVC-BSI among nurses in Spanish hospitals. Methods: We conducted a descriptive qualitative study with semi-structured interviews in three public hospitals, the Balearic Islands Health Care Service in Spain. We considered hospital ward nurses working routinely with inpatients at any of the three hospitals for enrolment in the study. We approached relevant informants to identify suitable participants who recruited other participants through a ‘snowball’ technique. Fourteen inpatient nurses from the hospital took part in this study between September and November 2018. We employed several triangulation strategies to underpin the methodological rigour of our analysis and conducted the member checking, showing the information and codes applied in the recording of the interviews to identify the coherence and any discrepancies of the discourse by participants. We used the COREQ checklist for this study. Findings: We identified four major themes in the analysis related to determinants of care: The fog of decision-making in PIVC; The taskification of PIVC care; PIVC care is accepted to be suboptimal, yet irrelevant; and chasms between perceived determinants of poor PIVC care and its solutions. Conclusion: The clinical management of PIVCs appear ambiguous, unclear, and fragmented, with no clear professional responsibility and no nurse leadership, causing a gap in preventing infections. Furthermore, the perception of low risk on PIVC care impact can cause a relevant lack of adherence to the best evidence and patient safety. Implementing facilitation strategies could improve the fidelity of the best available evidence regarding PIVC care and raise awareness among nurses of impact that excellence of care.The College of Nurses of the Balearic Islands under Grant Number PI2018/0286

Risk of Developing Epilepsy after Autoimmune Encephalitis

Background: Acute symptomatic seizures (ASS) are a common manifestation of autoimmune encephalitis (AE), but the risk of developing epilepsy as a sequela of AE remains unknown, and factors predisposing the development of epilepsy have not been fully identified. Objective: To assess the risk of developing epilepsy in AE and study related risk factors. Materials and methods: This was a retrospective single centre study including patients diagnosed with AE according to criteria described by Graus et al., with a minimum follow-up of 12 months after AE resolution. The sample was divided according to whether patients developed epilepsy or not. Results: A total of 19 patients were included; 3 (15.8%) had AE with intracellular antibodies, 9 (47.4%) with extracellular antibodies, and 7 (36.8%) were seronegative. During follow-up, 3 patients (15.8%) died, 4 (21.1%) presented relapses of AE, and 11 (57.89%) developed epilepsy. There was a significant association between the development of epilepsy and the presence of hippocampal atrophy in control brain magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) (p = 0.037), interictal epileptiform discharges (IED) on control electroencephalogram (EEG) (p = 0.045), and immunotherapy delay (p = 0.016). Conclusions: Hippocampal atrophy in neuroimaging, IED on EEG during follow-up, and immunotherapy delay could be predictors of the development of epilepsy in patients with AE