Personal resources and health behaviours of nursing students

The aim of the study was to determine the health behaviours and personal resources of nursing students. The study was conducted among 130 nursing students. Health Behavior Inventory, Generalised Self-efficacy Scale and List of Personal Values were used as tools. Verification of differences between variables was performed using Mann-Whitney's Kruskal-Wallis test and Spearman rho correlation coefficient. The use of nonparametric methods was dictated by the lack of normality of variable distributions (verified by Kołmogorow-Smirnow and Shapiro-Wilk tests) or lack of group equality (verified by the compliance test X^{2}). The highest intensity of health behaviours, which the examined subjects presented in terms of a positive mental attitude. Significantly lower levels of health behaviours were observed in healthy eating habits. The health status of students increased together with the increase in self-efficacy. People, for whom a symbol of happiness was a favourite, professional job, had a higher overall level of health behaviour, especially in the field of prevention. Sex, place of residence, self-efficacy and hierarchy of values determine the health behaviour of students

Ways to cope with the difficulties of nurses working in pediatric wards

Wstęp. Praca pielęgniarek pediatrycznych wiąże się z ogromną odpowiedzialnością za zdrowie i życie najmłodszych pacjentów, a jednocześnie praca ta sama w sobie jest źródłem różnorakich obciążeń, których skutkiem są stres i związane z nim problemy dotykające wszystkich sfer życia. Cel pracy. Celem pracy było poznanie sytuacji trudnych w pracy pielęgniarek pediatrycznych, oraz tego, w jaki sposób pielęgniarki radzą sobie z trudnościami. Materiał i metody. Badaniem objęto 101 pielęgniarek pracujących w oddziałach dziecięcych szpitali w Tarnowie, Dąbrowie Tarnowskiej, Brzesku i Dębicy. Badania przeprowadzono metodą sondażu diagnostycznego, techniką ankiety. Narzędzia stanowiły: autorski kwestionariusz ankiety, skala PSS-10 oraz kwestionariusz Mini Cope. Weryfikacji różnic między zmiennymi dokonano przy użyciu testów. Przyjęto poziom istotności p < 0,05. Obliczenia przeprowadzono za pomocą programu IBM SPSS Statistics 20. Wyniki. Pielęgniarki dosyć często spotykały się z trudnościami w pracy - 64,4%; trudności te stanowiły: niskie wynagrodzenie (64,4%), nadmiar obowiązków w stosunku do małej liczby personelu pielęgniarskiego (58,4%), agresja, roszczenia ze strony dziecka, rodzica/opiekuna oraz wykonywanie kilku czynności równolegle (57,4%). Wysoki poziom odczuwanego stresu odczuwało 31,7% badanych. Strategie oparte na aktywnym radzeniu sobie, planowaniu, poszukiwaniu wsparcia emocjonalnego i instrumentalnego były najczęściej stosowane przez pielęgniarki. Wnioski. Pielęgniarki często stykają się w swojej pracy z sytuacjami trudnymi i podejmują aktywne sposoby radzenia sobie z nimi.Introduction. The work of paediatric nurses involves great responsibility for health and life of the youngest patients while, at the same time, it is a source of various burdens which result in stress and related problems affecting all areas of life. Aim. The objective of the work was to recognise difficult situations and learning ways of coping with them in the work of paediatric nurses. Material and methods. The study included 101 nurses working at the children’s wards in hospitals in Tarnów, Dąbrowa Tarnowska, Brzesko and Dębica. The study was carried out by means of a diagnostic poll method and a survey technique. The tools were: the author’s own survey questionnaire, the PSS10 scale and the Mini COPE inventory. Verification of differences between variables was made with the use of tests. The signif cance level of p < 0.5 was assumed. The calculations were made with the use of IBM SPSS Statistics 20 software. Results. Quite often the nurses would run up against difficulties at work - 64.4%, including low pay (64.4%), overload with duties in relation to a small number of nursing personnel (58.4%) and aggression, child’s, parent’s/custodian’s demands as well as performing several activities at the same time (57.4%). A high stress level was felt by 31.7% of the surveyed. Strategies based on active coping, planning, seeking emotional and instrumental support were most frequently applied by nurses. Conclusions. Nurses often face difficult situations at work and handle them actively

Assessment of patients' level of satisfaction with nursing care during hospitalisation in the General Surgery Ward

Quality of nursing care shows the extent to which nursing care contributes to reach the desired effects of nursing. To measure the quality of medical services one should examine patient satisfaction of the given services. The aim of this study was to evaluate the level of patient satisfaction of nursing care during hospitalisation at the Department of General Surgery in the Saint Lucas Provincial Hospital in Tarnow. The study was conducted among a group of 100 patients hospitalised at the Department of General Surgery in the Saint Lucas Provincial Hospital in Tarnow, who were subject to a planned surgery. This group consisted of 47 women and 53 men. This research was based on a diagnostic opinion poll. The Newcastle Satisfaction with Nursing Scale (NSNS) – an instrument for assessment of quality of nursing care – was used as the research tool. The research tool consisted of three parts containing 48 closed questions, one open-ended question, and the respondents' characteristics. The nursing care was most commonly (53%) evaluated by patients as very good, by 30% of them as good, and by 15% as fair enough. Only a few individuals considered it bad or very bad. The average level of satisfaction reached 78.67 points (SD = 18.19) on a scale from 0 to 100 points. The results varied from 7.89 up to 100 points. Half the people did not exceed 82.89 points. According to 28% of patients there are means to improve nursing care, but 24% of respondents claim that there is no possibility for improvement. 48% of patients did not have any opinion about that. The research results’ analysis shows that the nursing care at the Department of General Surgery was rated as very good or good by the majority of patients. Additionally, along with the increase of the rate of satisfaction with nursing care, satisfaction with other aspects of care grew as well. Patients who had been hospitalised at the Department of General Surgery for a longer time were more satisfied with nursing care. Few respondents gave examples of improvement of the quality of nursing care

pVir and Bloody Diarrhea in Campylobacter jejuni Enteritis

The plasmid pVir may play a role in the virulence of Campylobacter jejuni, a leading cause of bacterial gastroenteritis. The pVir plasmid was identified in 17% of 104 C. jejuni clinical isolates studied and was significantly associated with the occurrence of blood in patient stool, a marker of invasive infection. The pVir plasmid was not associated with greater occurrence of diarrhea, fever, pain, vomiting, or need for patient hospitalization. Isolates containing pVir were also associated with the presence of a tetracycline-resistance plasmid, but pVir did not transfer with tetracycline-resistance plasmids to recipient strains of C. jejuni. The association of pVir and bloody stool suggests that pVir may be clinically relevant in C. jejuni infections

Relapsed childhood acute myeloid leukemia: prognostic factors and outcomes: experience from a single oncology center

Introduction: Over recent decades, significant progress in the treatment of childhood acute myeloid leukemia (AML) has been made. However, the relapsed disease remains a challenge. The aim of this study was to analyze therapy results in pediatric patients treated for relapsed AML in a single oncology center, with a particular focus on prognostic factors. Materials and methods: Data from patients younger than 19 years with AML diagnosed between January 1994 and December 2020 treated in the Department of Pediatric Hematology and Oncology in Bydgoszcz, Poland was analyzed, with detailed analysis of patients with relapsed disease. Results: A total of 77 children were diagnosed with AML in the analyzed period and 21 had a relapsed disease (27.3%). Bone marrow relapse was the most common. The risk factors of relapse included white blood cells &gt;100 G/L at initial diagnosis and classification to the high risk group. Late relapse was related to poorer outcomes. The 5-year probability of overall survival for the entire group was 28.6%, and this was significantly higher in patients who achieved second remission compared to those who did not (44.9% vs. 0.0%, p &lt;0.001). The main reason for death was progression of disease, which occurred in 10 patients. Conclusions: Outcomes in relapsed AML in children are still dismal. Lack of second remission suggests the need for experimental therapy

Changing risk factors in childhood acute lymphoblastic leukemia: experience from Kujawsko-Pomorski region 1976–2018

Introduction: Acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) is the most common malignancy in children. Risk factors in childhood ALL have changed during recent decades, mostly due to treatment personalization. The aim of this study was to analyze therapy results and prognostic factors in childhood ALL in the Kujawsko-Pomorski region of Poland between 1976 and 2018. Material and methods: Data from 495 patients (0–18 years old) diagnosed with ALL from the Kujawsko-Pomorski region between 1976 and 2018 was analyzed. Prognostic factors were analyzed separately in specific therapeutic groups, which were defined by several therapy protocols. Results: Prognostic factors have changed over the course of consecutive therapeutic periods. Between 1976 and 1988 (the first and second therapeutic protocols), central nervous system involvement was the most important risk factor. During the third therapeutic period, an unsatisfactory treatment response on days 8 and 14 was related to a poor outcome. In 1995–2002, the risk factors were hepatomegaly, splenomegaly, lymph nodes involvement, and unsatisfactory therapy response on days 15 and 33. Between 2002 and 2011, immunophenotype other than ‘common’ and hemoglobin level at diagnosis were the risk factors, and a lack of BCR-ABL aberration was related to better therapy results. During the final analyzed period (2011–2018), failure to achieve remission on day 33 was a risk factor, and patients classified as non-high risk group and those aged &lt;6 years had better outcomes. Conclusions: The changing profile of risk factors in ALL has reflected progress in ALL therapy, with the gradual elimination of factors related to poor outcomes, mostly due to modifications in treatment and the development of diagnostic methods as well as therapy monitoring

Wiedza pielęgniarek czynnych zawodowo z województwa podkarpackiego i małopolskiego na temat wybranych alergii i nietolerancji pokarmowych

Background. This work aimed to assess nurses’ knowledge about gluten allergies and lactose intolerance, as well as the principles of dietotherapy in these diseases. Material and methods. This study used a diagnostic survey method. The research tool was the authors’ survey questionnaire. The study was conducted in January and February of 2019 on a group of 306 nurses from the voivodeships of Podkarpackie and Małopolskie. Verification of differences between variables was made using the chi-square (χ2) independence test assuming a statistical significance p-value of <0.05. Results. Research showed that the level of knowledge in these areas increases significantly with nurses’ age and job seniority. Among nurses working for more than 15 years, a satisfactory level of knowledge was achieved by 79.5% of respondents. An acceptable level of knowledge about the selected food allergies and intolerances was more frequently achieved among nurses from Podkarpackie (76.5%) than nurses from Małopolskie (51.0%). Respondents that actively engage themselves in solving other people’s problems (80%) showed more profound knowledge of the discussed topic. Conclusions. The study group showed sufficient knowledge of gluten allergies, lactose intolerances, and dietotherapy for these diseases. Age and job seniority have a significant influence on the level of knowledge of nurses.Wprowadzenie. Celem pracy była ocena wiedzy pielęgniarek na temat alergii na gluten oraz nietolerancji laktozy, jak również zasad dietoterapii w tych jednostkach chorobowych. Materiał i metody. W badaniach zastosowano metodę sondażu diagnostycznego. Narzędziem badawczym był autorski kwestionariusz ankiety. Badania przeprowadzono w styczniu i lutym 2019 r. w grupie 306 pielęgniarek i pielęgniarzy z województw: podkarpackiego i małopolskiego. Weryfikacji różnic między zmiennymi dokonano przy użyciu testu niezależności χ2, przyjmując poziom istotności p<0,05. Wyniki. Badania wykazały, iż poziom wiedzy w omawianym zakresie wzrastał istotnie wraz z wiekiem i stażem pracy pielęgniarek/pielęgniarzy. Wśród osób pracujących dłużej niż 15 lat zadowalający poziom prezentowało 79,5% ankietowanych. Stwierdzono, że satysfakcjonujący poziom wiedzy na temat wybranych alergii i nietolerancji pokarmowych posiadały częściej pielęgniarki/pielęgniarze z województwa podkarpackiego (76,5%) niż z małopolskiego (51,0%). Respondenci aktywnie angażujący się w rozwiązywanie problemów innych osób (80%) wykazali się większą wiedzą w omawianym temacie. Wnioski. Badana grupa wykazała się dostateczną wiedzą na temat alergii na gluten i nietolerancji laktozy oraz dietoterapii w tych chorobach. Wiek i staż pracy wpływają na poziom wiedzy pielęgniarek/ pielęgniarzy