Investigating the level of moral distress and its related factors among nurses in mazandaran burn center

Background and purpose: Moral distress is a common phenomenon in nursing professional and burn nurses are constantly faced with making different moral decisions for patients who are in terrible conditions. Therefore, nurses in burn units experience moral distress as mental tension. This study was conducted to determine the severity of moral distress and the factors associated with that in burn nurses. Materials and methods: A descriptive- analytical study was conducted using census sampling on 172 nurses working in Mazandaran burn center, 2014. Data was collected through identifying demographic and occupational characteristics of the nurses (using relevant questionnaires) and Corley’s Moral Distress Scale. Data analysis was performed applying Mann-Whitney and Kruskal-Wallis test. Results: The mean score for moral distress was 105.65±52.39 which indicates a moderate level experienced by nurses. Kruskal-Wallis test showed a significant positive correlation between educational level and level of moral distress (P=0.011). There was no significant association between moral distress and other individual and professional characteristics (P>0.05). Conclusion: Moral distress is accompanied by many complications that have direct effects on nurses’ professional practice. Therefore, nurse managers should consider this issue and plan for programs on appropriate coping strategies. © 2015, Mazandaran University of Medical Sciences. All rights reserved

Effects of salinity on antioxidant system in four grape (Vitis vinifera L.) genotypes

Salinity is a major environmental stress that restricts plants growth and production. Grapes are classified as moderately sensitive to salinity. The aim of this work was to investigate the salinity effects on lipid peroxidation level, antioxidant compounds and anti-oxidative enzymes activities and photosynthetic pigment contents in four grape genotypes that are commonly grown in the region around Urmia salt lake. Malondialdehyde content and protective enzymes activities in roots and leaves of four genotypes increased significantly (P < 0.05) under salinity. 'Chawga' showed lower and higher increases in malondialdehyde content and enzymes activities, respectively. Salinity had an obvious effect on the accumulation of total phenolics content and induced phenylalanine ammonia-lyase enzyme activity in all genotypes. There were significant positive correlations (P < 0.01, r2= 0.838) between anti-oxidative enzyme activities, total phenolics content and phenylalanine ammonia-lyase activity in the leaves of all genotypes. Chlorophyll a, b contents in leaves of all genotypes were reduced and carotenoid content increased significantly (P < 0.05) under salinity. 'Chawga' showed a lower decrease in chlorophyll content and a higher increase in carotenoid content than others. It seems that 'Chawga' had a better antioxidant system compared to other genotypes and showed a higher capacity to tolerate salinity.

Natural bioactive compounds: antibiotics

Antibiotics are powerful therapeutic agents that are produced by diverse living organisms. Over the last several decades, natural bioactive products particularly antibiotics have continued to play a significant role in drug discovery and has expanded the process for developing drugs with high degree of therapeutic index and specific action. Today, there is an alarming deficiency of new antibiotics in the pharmaceutical industry that could be due to the emergence of antibiotic resistance properties of some pathogens, toxicity and undesirable side effects of some used antibiotics. Although much progress has been performed in the field of chemical synthesis and engineered biosynthesis of antimicrobial compounds. Hence, there is a need in approach for novel antibiotics and research to improve the safety as well as therapeutic efficiency of the discovered bioactive compounds as part of the strategy to control the emerging drug-resistant pathogens in research programme around the world. This article reviews the history of antibiotics, different types of antibiotics, mechanisms of antibiotic action and new challenges in antibiotics.KEYWORDS: Secondary metabolites; microorganisms; Actinomycetes; Antimicrobialactivity; Pharmaceuticals

Assessing the optimum temperature for survival, growth and reproduction of adult Caspian Sea Pontogammarus maeoticus

This study was conducted to assess the effect of different levels of temperature on survival, growth and reproduction of adult Caspian Sea Pontogammarus rnaeoticus. Temperature effects were studied in 5 thermal levels (15, 20, 25, 30 and 35°C) where salinity was constant (7.1±0.2ppt). The sampling was made from Hassan-nrud coastal area in Guilan province. The results showed that survival was maximum at 20CC (95.56%) with higher temperatures showing a significant descending trend in survival (P<0.05) in which all samples perished on I 8th day at 35°C treatment. The number of produced brood followed a significant ascending , trend from 15°C to 25°C treatments and reached its climax at 25°C (117.3+12.2 broods). The minimum value for produced brood was reported at 15°C treatment (21.3±2.4 broods). A significant persistent increment of growth rate was observed throughout all treatments (P<0.05) where the maximum and minimum values were observed for the final (5.76±0.1mm) and the first (1.77±0.06mm) treatments, respectively. We suggest 25°C, 20°C and 30°C temperature treatments for producing the maximum brood per unit of time, the highest survival rate and the maximum growth, respectively. The temperature 25°C is defined as the best for aquaculture of pontogammarus as livefood of aquatic organisms

Evaluation of the perception of Iranian nurses towards spirituality in NICUs

Background: Holistic care is the evaluation of the physical and mental states of individuals. Considering the importance of spirituality in healthcare and its pivotal role as the first step toward providing spiritual care, this study was conducted to determine the perception of Iranian nurses towards spirituality in neonatal intensive care units (NICUs). Methods: This study was conducted on nine participants using qualitative content analysis. In addition, purposive sampling was used to select the participants. Study setting was the NICUs at hospitals affiliated to Ardabil University of Medical Sciences, Ardabil, Iran. Data collection was performed through semi-structured interviews with the samples. Results: Three main categories were discussed in this study, as follows: 1) "Meaning of spi rituality" with three subcategories of "connectedness to God", "sincerity", and "prayers or recourse to Ahl-al-Bayt"; 2) "nature of spirituality" with three subcategories of "peace of mind", "nursing performance beyond physical health care", and "problem-solving"; 3) "respect for spiritual beliefs" with two subcategories of "respect for beliefs and values" and "persistent faith". Conclusion: The results of this study indicated that the perception of Iranian nurses toward spirituality is directly influenced by their religious tendencies, which denotes the importance of educational courses on spirituality for nurses. Therefore, it is recommended that nursing managers and directors implement training programs for the personnel in order to enhance spirituality

Grammar Consciousness-Raising Activities and Iranian EFL Learners' Attitudes Toward English Language

The first purpose of this study was to investigate the effect of consciousness-raising (C-R) activities on learning grammatical structures by Iranian EFL learners. The second one was to investigate the effect of gender through C-R activities and tasks. Finally, this study wanted to investigate the Iranian students' attitudes toward learning English prior to and after applying the C-R activities. An attitude questionnaire was use to investigate the participants' attitudes toward learning English before and after applying C-R activities. Data analysis indicated that using C-R activities in is significantly more effective than the traditional approaches. Regarding gender, male outperformed females. Therefore, it is recommended that other teachers consider C-R activities as useful options in teaching other aspects of language. Based on the statistics and findings, Iranian students' attitudes toward learning English language were not much different prior to and after applying C-R activities

Determinant criteria for designing Health benefit package in selected countries

Health benefit package described as primary health interventions that provided with government using general funds for all regardless their financial ability. This study was aimed at determine appropriate pattern for Iran using comparative survey of Health benefit package in various countries. A review exploration was done, scholars was selected population of both developed and developing countries, required information was also extracted by articles, searches and reports of reliable sources and date were analyzed by SPSS, in brief. The vast majority frequencies was respectively allocated to accessibility (40.7%), cost- effectiveness (29.6%), prioritize, efficacy and cost (22.2%). most countries located in WHO African region were selected cost-effectiveness and accessibility, WHO southeast Asia region were selected, coverage, prioritize, efficacy and quality and finally most WHO Europeans region were elected effectiveness and services costs for including services in Health benefit package. According to most Health benefit package designer emphasis on criteria including accessibility and costeffectiveness, to design Health benefit package for Iran, these criteria must be noticed

Concept and challenges of delivering preventive and care services in prehospital emergency medical service: A qualitative study

Background and purpose: Prehospital emergency medical service (EMS) is an important part of the health care system. Today, the need for integrated emergency care services and delivering qualified preventive and care services felt more than before in accidents and emergencies. This survey aimed to investigate the views of emergency medical personnel on the concept and nature of preventive and care services and current challenges in delivering these services in prehospital EMS centers in Golestan province, Iran. Materials and methods: A qualitative study was done with 16 emergency medical personnel working in EMS sites in Golestan province using purposeful sampling. Data was collected by semistructured interview guide and framework analysis was implemented to analyze the data. Results: Two general themes were identified including 1) the concept of preventive and care services in the EMS and 2) the challenges in providing qualified services in the EMS sites in Golestan province. Also, five sub-themes and 12 subclasses were determined. Conclusion: To enhance and promote services, the EMS system of Golestan province need reforms in organizational structure, laws and administrative regulations, training programs, the system of monitoring and evaluation of personnel, also provision of equipment and manpower and provision of personnel amenities to improve the staff performance. Furthermore, it is necessary to boost emergency services at the community level through training people and enhancing collaboration and participation with other organizations. © 2015, Mazandaran University of Medical Sciences. All rights reserved

Histomorphological investigation of Liza aurata (Risso, 1810) (Mugilidae) ovary in the late oogenesis in the Caspian Sea

In the present study, various developmental stages of Liza aurata oocyte, especially IV and V stages have been described. On the basis of histological investigations, oocyte development in L. aurata comprises immature (I), the early maturing (II), the late maturing (III), mature (IV), ripe (V), and spent (VI) stages. In the stages I and II, nucleus occupied a large volume of oocyte. Vacuolization and vitellogenesis appearance started at stage III. Vitellogenesis increased by further growth of oocyte at stage IV and also vacuolization occurred. Zona radiata and follicular cells were more conspicuous at this stage. In the late stage IV, the number of vacuoles decreased due to the fusing of small vacuoles and nucleoli located on different places of the nucleus at this stage. At stage V, oocyte normally possessed one or two oil droplets; nucleus disappeared after migration to animal pole. Recently spawned oocytes were fluid, lemon in color and 779.2µm in diameter. The maximum gonadosomatic index (GSI) value was found at stage V