Le persone in Terapia Anticoagulante Orale (TAO): costruzione di un intervento educativo gestito dagli infermieri e valutazione del gradimento

Contesto. Distretti socio-sanitari della ASL 3 “Genovese”. Nei sei distretti sono seguiti 3764 pazienti in TAO per il monitoraggio periodico del tempo di protombina-International Normalized Ratio (INR). Obiettivo. Migliorare le conoscenze delle persone in TAO afferenti ai servizi distrettuali mediante incontri educativi di gruppo gestiti da infermieri. Metodo. Formazione degli infermieri ed elaborazione di una prima bozza di opuscolo, alla versione finale hanno collaborato i cardiologi ospedalieri, i laboratori del Dipartimento di Patologia Clinica (DIPAC), l’Unità di Gestione del Rischio (UGR) e i Medici di Medicina Generale (MMG). Adattamento di un questionario di valutazione dell’incontro per indagare: chiarezza e utilità dei contenuti, appropriatezza del metodo educativo e utilità dell’opuscolo. Pianificazione dell’incontro. Risultati. Da Settembre a Dicembre 2008 hanno partecipato ai 96 incontri 1074 pazienti (51% degli invitati); sono stati coinvolti 120 infermieri. La percentuale di partecipazione si differenzia notevolmente nei sei distretti (dal 26% al 68%). L’età media dei partecipanti era 74 anni (range 33-95). Hanno risposto al questionario 1039 (97%); la maggioranza ha espresso un giudizio molto positivo sugli incontri. Sono stati individuati i problemi, i punti di forza e i limiti dell’intervento. Si è delineato il piano d’azione per il 2009. Conclusioni. Gli incontri di educazione sanitaria sono graditi ai pazienti. L’aspetto vincente è stato il coinvolgimento di tutte le figure

Taste and Smell Disorders in Cancer Treatment: Results from an Integrative Rapid Systematic Review

Taste and smell disorders (TSDs) are common side effects in patients undergoing cancer treatments. Knowing which treatments specifically cause them is crucial to improve patients’ quality of life. This review looked at the oncological treatments that cause taste and smell alterations and their time of onset. We performed an integrative rapid review. The PubMed, PROSPERO, and Web of Science databases were searched in November 2022. The article screening and study selection were conducted independently by two reviewers. Data were analyzed narratively. Fourteen studies met the inclusion criteria and were included. A high heterogeneity was detected. Taste disorders ranged between 17 and 86%, while dysosmia ranged between 8 and 45%. Docetaxel, paclitaxel, nab-paclitaxel, capecitabine, cyclophosphamide, epirubicin, anthracyclines, and oral 5-FU analogues were found to be the drugs most frequently associated with TSDs. This review identifies the cancer treatments that mainly lead to taste and smell changes and provides evidence for wider studies, including those focusing on prevention. Further studies are warranted to make conclusive indication possible

Taste and Smell Disorders in Cancer Treatment: Results from an Integrative Rapid Systematic Review

Taste and smell disorders (TSDs) are common side effects in patients undergoing cancer treatments. Knowing which treatments specifically cause them is crucial to improve patients’ quality of life. This review looked at the oncological treatments that cause taste and smell alterations and their time of onset. We performed an integrative rapid review. The PubMed, PROSPERO, and Web of Science databases were searched in November 2022. The article screening and study selection were conducted independently by two reviewers. Data were analyzed narratively. Fourteen studies met the inclusion criteria and were included. A high heterogeneity was detected. Taste disorders ranged between 17 and 86%, while dysosmia ranged between 8 and 45%. Docetaxel, paclitaxel, nab-paclitaxel, capecitabine, cyclophosphamide, epirubicin, anthracyclines, and oral 5-FU analogues were found to be the drugs most frequently associated with TSDs. This review identifies the cancer treatments that mainly lead to taste and smell changes and provides evidence for wider studies, including those focusing on prevention. Further studies are warranted to make conclusive indication possible

Transformation of a Ferry Ship into a Ship Hospital for COVID-19 Patients

Liguria is a northwestern region of Italy that, since the WHO has declared COVID-19 as a pandemic (11 March 2020), presented 108 patients hospitalized, 34 of which were in the intensive care unit. Due to this serious epidemiological emergency, the transformation of a long-distance ferry ship into a hospital ship for COVID-19 patients who were still positive after the acute phase of the illness was carried out to free up hospital beds for patients in the acute phase. The ship was moored in the port of Genoa, the capital of Liguria. The conversion was localized to a single deck, where designated healthcare areas were identified. From 23 March to 18 June 2020, 191 patients were admitted onto the ship; they were provided with high-level healthcare guaranteed by the multi-disciplinary nature of clinical competencies available. Patients had a favorable outcome in all cases, confirmed by their recovery and negative swab results. Moreover, no cases of voluntary discharge were recorded. To the best of our knowledge, this is the only example in the world in which a passenger ship was transformed into a ship hospital for COVID patients

Home Se-Cure: A Home Care Service for Cancer Patients during the COVID-19 Pandemic

Cancer patients are exposed to a greater risk of COVID-19 infection, resulting in treatment delays and unnecessary hospitalizations. International authorities have suggested reducing visits to hospitals and guarantee continuity of care. We developed a home care project called Home Se-Cure (HSC) to guarantee the continuity of oral, intramuscular, and subcutaneous cancer therapy during COVID-19. The Home Se-Cure project included cancer patients living near Galliera Hospital. Patients received home visits by registered nurses (RNs), whoperformed blood tests and delivered cancer therapies. Patients were instructed to take drugs after blood test results and therapy confirmation by oncologists. Sixty-six patients decided to participate and 38 declined the service. A customer satisfaction questionnaire was administered to a subgroup of patients participating in the project. The most prevalent disease in the HSC group was prostate cancer. The mean age of the patients in HSC was 78.4 years and 68.9 in the decliner group. The majority of the HSC participants appreciated the project because they could stay at home (71%) and reduce the risk of COVID-19 contagion (67.7%). Compared to decliners, the time the study group saved was 2033 hours. HSC guaranteed the continuity of care during the COVID-19 pandemic by reducing the number of patients in the hospital and avoiding crowds in the waiting room