Psychometric properties of the Chinese version of the Functional Assessment of Cancer Therapy-Cervix (FACT-Cx) measuring health-related quality of life

Background: The Functional Assessment of Cancer Therapy (FACT) is one of the most commonly used self-report instruments for evaluation of health-related quality of life in oncology patients. However, cultural considerations necessitate testing of the subscales in different populations. We sought to qualitatively and quantitatively investigate the applicability and psychometric properties of the Chinese version of the FACT-Cervix (FACT-Cx) in Chinese women with cervical cancer. Methods: Ten personal interviews were conducted in order to explore patients' opinions about the scale and its items in depth. In addition the questionnaire was administered to 400 women with cervical cancer to test its psychometric properties. Reliability was assessed using Cronbach's alpha coefficient and item-subscale correlation while validity was evaluated using factor analysis and known-group validity. Results: Some items related to sex and the ability to give birth were questioned in the personal interviews, mostly regarding their significance and acceptance in the Chinese cultural context. The Cronbach's alphas of FACT-Cx and the subscales were greater than 0.7, except for the cervical-cancer-specific subscale which was 0.57. Factor analysis demonstrated that the FACT-G construct generally paralleled the original. There were significant differences in the FACT-Cx and some subscales between those receiving and not receiving treatment and among the patients with different performance status. Conclusions: In general, psychometric properties of the Chinese version supported its use with cervical cancer patients in Mainland China. Further work is needed to improve the psychometric adequacy of the cervical-cancer-specific subscale and adjust it to cultural considerations

Electric Versus Manual Tooth Brushing among Neuroscience ICU Patients: Is it Safe?

Poor oral hygiene has been associated with ventilator-acquired pneumonia. Yet providing oral care for intubated patients is problematic. Furthermore, concerns that oral care could raise intracranial pressure (ICP) may cause nurses to use foam swabs to provide oral hygiene rather than tooth brushing as recommended by the American Association of Critical-Care Nurses. Evidence is needed to support the safety of toothbrushing during oral care. We therefore evaluated ICP and cerebral perfusion pressure (CPP) during oral care with a manual or electric toothbrush in intubated patients in a neuroscience intensive care unit (ICU). As part of a larger 2-year, prospective, randomized clinical trial, 47 adult neuroscience ICU patients with an ICP monitor received oral care with a manual or electric toothbrush. ICP and CPP were recorded before, during, and after oral care over the first 72 h of admission. Groups did not differ significantly in age, gender, or severity of injury. Of 807 ICP and CPP measurements obtained before, during, and after oral care, there were no significant differences in ICP (P = 0.72) or CPP (P = 0.68) between toothbrush methods. Analysis of pooled data from both groups revealed a significant difference across the three time points (Wilks' lambda, 12.56; P < 0.001; partial eta(2), 0.36). ICP increased significantly (mean difference, 1.7 mm Hg) from before to during oral care (P = 0.001) and decreased significantly (mean difference, 2.1 mm Hg) from during to after oral care (P < 0.001). In the absence of preexisting intracranial hypertension during oral care, tooth brushing, regardless of method, was safely performed in intubated neuroscience ICU patients

Exploring determinants for quality of life among older people in pain and in need of help for daily living.

Aims and objectives. The aim of the study was to investigate the quality of life and related factors among older people who are in pain and in need of help to manage daily living. Background. To intervene against the low quality of life in nursing care knowledge about factors affecting it is needed and this is especially important for vulnerable people such as those who suffer from pain and who are in need of help to manage daily living. Methods. Five hundred and twenty-six people, aged 75–102 years participated in this study. Results. Those in pain reported a significantly higher degree of all complaints and lower quality of life in all measures compared with those not in pain. Overall quality of life was associated with mobility problems, sleeping problems and depressed mood, while health-related quality of life was associated with living in special accommodations, walking problems, mobility problems and fatigue. Conclusions. Those in need of help to manage daily living and in pain seem to be at higher risk of lowered quality of life than those not in pain and the lower quality of life among those in pain is probably caused by the complex of complaints rather than pain per se. Relevance to clinical practice. Daily nursing care should identify and treat the complex of complaints related to pain as well as pain itself, to improve everyday life and quality of life for older people in pain

Home care with regard to definition, care recipients, content and outcome: systematic literature review.

In spite of the fact that home care has grown considerably during the last few years and will continue to grow even more in the future, home care as a phenomenon and a concept is not clearly defined. The aim of this study was to review the empirical literature for the description of home care as a phenomenon and as a concept, especially with regard to who the care recipients are, what actions and assessments are performed and what effects are achieved for the care recipient in terms of functional health status and quality of life (QoL). Twenty-six relevant studies meeting the inclusion criteria and requirements for methodological quality were identified. The phenomenon of home care is described through content, outcome and objectives. The content of home care involved a range of activities from actions preventing decreased functional abilities in old people to palliative care in advanced diseases. The outcome had two different underlying foci: (1). for the benefit of the patient based on the assumption that being cared at home increases their QoL, (2). in the interests of the society, to minimize hospital care by moving activities to the home of the patient. The objectives were found to be aiming at improving the QoL and/or maintaining independence, by means of actions and assessments, based on the patient's needs, undertaken to preserve and increase functional ability and make it possible for the person to remain at home. In conclusion, home care as a phenomenon was the care provided by professionals to people in their own homes with the ultimate goal of not only contributing to their life quality and functional health status, but also to replace hospital care with care in the home for societal reasons; home care covered a wide range of activities, from preventive visits to end-of-life care

A comparison of the Nottingham Health Profile and Short Form 36 Health Survey in patients with chronic lower limb ischaemia in a longitudinal perspective

BACKGROUND: Different generic quality of life instruments such as the Nottingham Health Profile (NHP) and the Short Form 36 Health Survey (SF-36) have revealed conflicting results in patients with chronic lower limb ischaemia in psychometric attributes in short-term evaluations. The aim of this study was to compare the NHP and the SF-36 regarding internal consistency reliability, validity, responsiveness and suitability as outcome measures in patients with lower limb ischaemia in a longitudinal perspective. METHODS: 48 patients with intermittent claudication and 42 with critical ischaemia were included. Assessment was made before and one year after revascularization using comparable domains of the NHP and the SF-36 questionnaires. RESULTS: The SF-36 was less skewed and more homogeneous than the NHP. There was an average convergent validity in three of the five comparable domains one year postoperatively. The SF-36 showed a higher internal consistency except for social functioning one-year postoperatively and was more responsive in detecting changes over time in patients with intermittent claudication. The NHP was more sensitive in discriminating among levels of ischaemia regarding pain and more able to detect changes in the critical ischaemia group. CONCLUSION: Both SF-36 and NHP have acceptable degrees of reliability for group-level comparisons, convergent and construct validity one year postoperatively. Nevertheless, the SF-36 has superior psychometric properties and was more suitable in patients with intermittent claudication. The NHP however, discriminated better among severity of ischaemia and was more responsive in patients with critical ischaemia

Importance of Sex Differences in Impulse Control and Addictions

Background Nursing students are expected to deliver holistic care in their upcoming career. Developing spirituality during nursing training is poorly understood. Objectives The current study aimed to explore the process of developing spirituality among Iranian nursing undergraduates. Patients and Methods The study employed Grounded theory approach and purposive sampling with maximum variation to select the participants among undergraduate nursing students in their fourth-year of study in the nursing school of Tehran University of Medical Sciences. Data were gathered through semi structured interviews with nineteen nursing students and one faculty member (n = 20). Strauss and Corbin approach was selected for data analysis. Results Data analysis revealed that developing spirituality during nursing education is an intuitive development including three stages: early frustration, intuitive development through hardship and seeking meaning and fulfilment. This process is influenced by educational/caring environment as well as role models. Conclusions Upbringing capable nurses to deliver spiritual care require supportive environment and influential role models to encourage students’ spiritual development. Developing spiritually may end in delivering spiritual care and provide nursing students with inner strength for better confrontation with serious situations common in their upcoming career

Porównanie występowania bakterii szpitalnej w gardle środkowym i górnych drogach oddechowych przy zastosowaniu dwóch metod pielęgnacji jamy ustnej: badania na próbie losowej

Introduction. To compare changes in oral and respiratory nosocomial colonization during the first week of mechanical ventilation in adult Neuroscience ICU patients randomized to a standard or comprehensive oral care protocol. Development of ventilator associated pneumonia (VAP) within each protocol was also investigated.Material and methods. Patients were randomized to one of two groups. The standard oral care protocol included a manual pediatric toothbrush, toothpaste, and watersoluble lubricant. The comprehensive protocol consisted of tongue scraping, an electric toothbrush with a non-foaming toothpaste, followed by a moisturizing agent. Both groups received the assigned oral care protocol twice daily, with tooth brushing lasting two minutes per occasion. Oral and sputum cultures were obtained on admission and every 48 hours while intubated.Results. Data from a total of 78 patients were analyzed. The standard protocol included 40 patients (mean age 51 ± 18 years); the comprehensive protocol 38 patients (mean age 51 ± 18 years). No significant differences in Glasgow Coma Score, diagnosis, or co-morbidities were found on admission. Oral colonization on admission was noted in 25% of patients in each protocol. There was a trend of reduced oral and respiratory nosocomial colonization among those in the comprehensive protocol but no significant differences were noted between groups. Incidence of VAP was equivalent (p=0.61) for the standard and comprehensive groups at day six.Conclusions. Use of a tongue scraper, electric toothbrush, and oral gel resulted in less oral and respiratory colonization by known nosocomial pathogens. Larger studies are necessary to further investigate comprehensive oral care. (PNN 2012;1(1):10-18)Wprowadzenie. Porównanie zmian wywołanych bakterią szpitalną w obrębie jamy ustnej i górnych dróg oddechowych podczas pierwszego tygodnia wentylowania u dorosłych pacjentów neurologicznych, przebywających na oddziale intensywnej opieki medycznej, losowo wybranych do pielęgnacji jamy ustnej w sposób standardowy lub rozszerzony. Zbadanie przypadków odrespiratorowego zapalenia płuc w obu metodach zachowania higieny jamy ustnej.Materiał i metody. Pacjenci zostali losowo przydzieleni do jednej z dwóch grup. Standardowy sposób postępowania w pielęgnacji jamy ustnej polegał na zastosowaniu tradycyjnej dziecięcej szczoteczki do zębów, pasty do zębów i rozpuszczalnego w wodzie środka nawilżającego. Metoda rozszerzona polegała na szczotkowaniu języka, z zastosowaniem elektrycznej szczoteczki do zębów niepieniącą się pastą oraz środka nawilżającego. U każdej z grup przypisaną metodę stosowano dwa razy dziennie, każdorazowo szczotkując zęby przez 2 minuty. Przy przyjęciu na oddział oraz co 48 godzin pobierano od zaintubowanych pacjentów próbki śliny i wymaz z jamy ustnej w celu zbadania kultur bakterii.Wyniki. Analizie poddano wyniki 78 pacjentów. Standardowy sposób postępowania w higienie jamy ustnej zastosowano u 40 pacjentów (średni wiek 51-18 lat), natomiast rozszerzony u 38 pacjentów (średni wiek 51-18 lat). W chwili przyjęcia na oddział nie zaobserwowano statystycznie istotnych różnic w skali śpiączki Glasgow (GlasgowComa Scale), diagnozie ani współwystępujących chorobach. Bakterie w jamie ustnej w chwili przyjęcia na oddział zaobserwowano u 25 % pacjentów w każdej z dwóch grup. Zauważono tendencję spadkową w odniesieniu do liczby szpitalnych bakterii w jamie ustnej i układzie oddechowym u pacjentów przypisanych do metody rozszerzonej, ale nie znaleziono znaczących różnic pomiędzy grupami. W szóstym dniu odsetek odrespiratorowego zapalenia płuc w obu grupach (standardowej i rozszerzonej) był taki sam (p=0,61).Wnioski. W wyniku zastosowania szczoteczki do języka, szczoteczki elektrycznej oraz żelu do higieny jamy ustnej liczba bakterii szpitalnych atakujących jamę ustną i układ oddechowy była mniejsza. Potrzebne są szersze badania w celu dalszego zbadania działania rozszerzonej metody zachowania higieny jamy ustnej. (PNN 2012;1(1):10-18