Cancer Patients Caregivers Comfort

Estudo transversal cujo objetivo foi avaliar o conforto de cuidadores de pacientes com câncer. Envolveu 88 cuidadores de pacientes em atendimento ambulatorial de um hospital especializado em oncologia. Utilizou-se o General Comfort Questionnaire (GCQ) validado para o português. Verificou-se que o escore médio do GCQ dos cuidadores foi de 203,9. Os melhores escores de conforto estiveram relacionados à idade e ocupação do cuidador; os aspectos positivos do conforto envolveram sentir-se amado, o conforto ambiental e físico do paciente e a espiritualidade do cuidador. Cuidadores que não exerciam atividade remunerada ou lazer apresentaram piores escores de GCQ. Concluiu-se que escala de GCQ pode ajudar a identificar fatores que interferem no conforto dos cuidadores de pacientes com câncer, assim como necessidades que permitam a intervenção dos profissionais de saúde.

Estudio transversal que tuvo como objetivo evaluar la comodidad de los cuidadores de pacientes con cáncer. Participaron 88 cuidadores de pacientes en atención ambulatoria de un hospital oncológico. Para la recolección de los datos, se utilizó el General Comfort Questionnaire (GCQ) validado para el portugués. La puntuación media del GCQ de los cuidadores fue de 203,9. Las mejores puntuaciones de comodidad estaban relacionadas con la edad y la ocupación del cuidador; los aspectos positivos fueron sentirse amado, comodidad física del paciente y de su ambiente y la espiritualidad del cuidador. Las peores puntuaciones fueron observadas en los cuidadores que no tienen trabajo remunerado o descanso. Se concluye que la escala GCQ puede ayudar a identificar factores que interfieren en la comodidad de los cuidadores de pacientes con cáncer, así como identificar las necesidades que permitan la intervención de los profesionales de la salud.
Cross-sectional study, carried out at the outpatient clinic of an oncology hospital. Data were collected from 88 caregivers of cancer patients using the Caregiver General Comfort Questionnaire (GCQ) to assess the caregivers’ comfort. The caregivers’ GCQ score mean was 203.9; better comfort scores was associated with age, care time and current occupation; positive aspects of comfort were related to the fact that caregivers felt loved, to patients’ physical and environmental comfort and to caregivers’ spirituality. 203.9; better comfort scores were associated with age of the caregiver and current occupation; positive aspects of comfort were related to the fact that caregivers felt loved, to patients’ physical and environmental comfort and to caregivers’ spirituality. Caregivers, who didn’t have a paid job or leisure’s activities showed a worse GCQ. The GCQ scale can help to identify factors that interfere in caregivers’ comfort, as well as needs that can be modified through health professionals’ interventions.

Therapeutic relationships in day surgery: a grounded theory study

Aim: The aim of the study was to explore patients’ experiences of day surgery. Background: Therapeutic relationships are considered to be a core dimension of nursing care. However in modern healthcare with short hospital stays the formation of these relationships may be impeded. A major theme to emerge from this study was the development of therapeutic relationships in the day surgery setting. Methodology: The Glaserian method of Grounded Theory was utilised. Semi –structured interviews with 145 patients took place from 2004-2006 in two day surgery units in the United Kingdom. Analysis involved transcriptions of interviews and memos. Lists of key words and phrases were made and constantly compared until core categories began to emerge. Results: Patients spoke highly of the relationships they developed with nurses during their stay in the day surgery unit. Analysis of the data revealed the core category of therapeutic relationships and four sub core categories: “presence,” “extra special” “befriending” and “comfort-giving.” Conclusion: This paper adds to the growing body of literature which demonstrates that therapeutic relationships can be developed within the short stay arena of health care : routine interactions which may not be considered to be significant by nurses may be of importance to patients. The patients in this study felt supported, comforted and befriended by day surgery nurses. However a minority of patients were disappointed with the nursing staff responses to patient needs. Relevance to clinical practice: Anecdotal and empirical evidence suggests that personnel working within day surgery are not always aware of their therapeutic potential. Therefore raising awareness of this through research generated from patients’ experiences might encourage nurses to further realise their capabilities in this fundamental area of nursing

Cultural adaptation and validation of the Portuguese End of Life Spiritual Comfort Questionnaire in Palliative Care patients

AbstractBackgroundHolistic comfort is an important outcome in palliative care and an important goal for patients, relatives and healthcare workers. Holistic comfort considers one's acceptance of life circumstances, support from loved ones and health care professionals, and peaceful resolution of relationships during stressful situations. However, this type of comfort is still difficult to measure, particularly in palliative care patients, as there is a lack of instruments available, especially in the Portuguese language. This study aims to provide an accurate and sensitive instrument to assess the spiritual comfort of Portuguese palliative care patients.ObjectiveTo perform the cultural adaptation and validation of a Portuguese version of the End of Life Comfort Planning Questionnaire in Palliative Care patients.MethodsMethodological research, with analytical approach. The translation, synthesis, back translation, review, pretest, semantic evaluation and analysis of the psychometric properties were performed. A total of 141 palliative care patients from acute medical-surgical settings at a central hospital in the north of Portugal were recruited. The Ethics Committee approved the research.ResultsThe internal consistency analysis of the adapted instrument resulted in a global alpha value of 0.84 and the factor analysis presented a solution with five factors with rational meaning. The Portuguese version comprised 20 items.ConclusionsThe instrument has good psychometric properties. It was reliable, valid and sensitive to the existence of the spiritual comfort of palliative care patients, and appropriate for further research

Distracting people from sources of discomfort in a simulated aircraft environment

BACKGROUND: Comfort is an important factor in the acceptance of transport systems. In 2010 and 2011, the European Commission (EC) put forward its vision for air travel in the year 2050 which envisaged the use of in-flight virtual reality. This paper addressed the EC vision by investigating the effect of virtual environments on comfort. Research has shown that virtual environments can provide entertaining experiences and can be effective distracters from painful experiences. OBJECTIVE: To determine the extent to which a virtual environment could distract people from sources of discomfort. METHODS: Experiments which involved inducing discomfort commonly experienced in-flight (e.g. limited space, noise) in order to determine the extent to which viewing a virtual environment could distract people from discomfort. RESULTS: Virtual environments can fully or partially distract people from sources of discomfort, becoming more effective when they are interesting. They are also more effective at distracting people from discomfort caused by restricted space than noise disturbances. CONCLUSIONS: Virtual environments have the potential to enhance passenger comfort by providing positive distractions from sources of discomfort. Further research is required to understand more fully the reasons why the effect was stronger for one source of discomfort than the other

Instruments to assess the patient comfort during hospitalization : a psychometric review protocol

The aim of this study was to analyse the psychometric properties, outcomes and utility of instruments measuring the patient comfort during hospitalization. Background: While there are numerous systematic reviews assessing the psychometric properties of healthcare instruments, none of them is devoted to evaluate the psychometric properties of instruments measuring comfort, which is considered an indicator of quality in health care and is associated to quicker discharges, increased patient satisfaction and stronger cost-benefit ratios for the institution

Comfort from the perspective of families of people hospitalized in the intensive care unit

This study aimed at understanding the meaning of comfort to the families of people in intensive care units. It consists of a qualitative study carried out in the intensive care unit of a hospital in Salvador-Bahia. Fourteen family members were interviewed. The authors utilized the theoretical principles of symbolic interactionism and the technique of qualitative data analysis. Results indicated that the categories Safety, Receptiveness, Information, Proximity, Social and Spiritual Support, Convenience and Integration expressed the meaning of comfort, which was comprised of reliability in terms of technical-scientific competence and a supportive and sensitive attitude of the team, chance of recovery, access to information and the opportunity to be close to the patient, support of people in their social life, spiritual sources and the environmental structure of the hospital, preservation of self-care and routine activities. It was concluded that the family is important as objects and subjects of the actions in healthcare and must be the focus in public health policies and programs in Brazil

An Exploration of Comfort and Discomfort Amongst Children and Young People with Intellectual Disabilities Who Depend on Postural Management Equipment

© 2016 John Wiley & Sons Ltd Background: The natural response to the intrusive bodily sensation is positional change. This study explored how children and young people (CYP) with intellectual disabilities had their comfort needs met when using adaptive positioning equipment. Methods: Thirteen qualitative case studies were undertaken. A parent, a teacher/key worker and a therapist for each CYP were interviewed, and daily routines were observed, with selective video recording. Single case and cross case analyses were undertaken. Results: Attentive caregivers read the behavioural expressions of the CYP and responded reassuringly, safeguarding them from discomforting experiences. Threats to comfort include the restrictive nature of some equipment accessories, positioning errors and procedural stretching. Conclusions: The same item of equipment can be both comfortable and uncomfortable. Given the social and interactional world in which the CYP live and learn, it is others who must accept responsibility for ensuring their optimal level of comfort