8 research outputs found
Nurses using physical restraints: Are the accused also the victims? â A study using focus group interviews
<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>To date, the literature has provided an abundance of evidence on the adverse outcomes of restraint use on patients. Reportedly, nurses are often the personnel who initiate restraint use and attribute its use to ensuring the safety of the restrained and the others. A clinical trial using staff education and administrative input as the key components of a restraint reduction program was conducted in a rehabilitation setting to examine whether there were any significant differences in the prevalence of restraint use pre- and post-intervention. Subsequent to the implementation of the intervention program, focus group interviews were conducted to determine the perspective of the nursing staff on the use of restraints and their opinions of appropriate means to reduce their use.</p> <p>Method</p> <p>Registered nurses working in units involved in the study were invited to participate in focus group interviews on a voluntary basis. Twenty-two registered nurses (three males [13.6%] and nineteen females [86.4%]) attended the four sessions. All interviews were audio taped and transcribed verbatim. Other than the author, another member of the project team validated the findings from the data analysis.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>Four themes were identified. Participants experienced internal conflicts when applying physical restraints and were ambivalent about their use, but they would use restraints nonetheless, mainly to prevent falls and injuries to patients. They felt that nurse staffing was inadequate and that they were doing the best they could. They experienced pressure from the management level and would have liked better support. Communication among the various stakeholders was a problem. Each party may have a different notion about what constitutes a restraint and how it can be safely used, adding further weight to the burden shouldered by staff.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>Studies about restraints and restraint use have mostly focused on nurses' inadequate and often inaccurate knowledge about the use of restraints and its associated adverse effects. These studies, however, fail to note that nurses can also be victims of the system. Restraint use is a complex issue that needs to be understood in relation to the dynamics within an environment.</p
The use of functional performance tests and simple anthropomorphic measures to screen for comorbidity in primary care
This is an accepted manuscript of an article published by Wiley in International Journal of Older People Nursing on 07/07/2020, available online: https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1111/opn.12333
The accepted version of the publication may differ from the final published version.Background
Many older adults are unaware that they have comorbid diseases. Increased adiposity and reduced muscle mass are identified as key contributors to many chronic diseases in older adults. Understanding the role they play in the development of comorbidities in older populations is of prime importance.
Objectives
To identify the optimal body shape associated with three common functional performance tests and to determine which anthropometric and functional performance test best explains comorbidity in a sample of older adults in Hong Kong.
Methods
A total of 432 older adults participated in this crossâsectional study. Researchers assessed their body height, body mass index, waist circumference, waistâtoâhip ratio, handgrip strength (kg), functional reach (cm) and results in the timedâupâandâgo (TUG) test (seconds). The Charlson Comorbidity Index was used to assess comorbidity.
Results
Allometric modelling indicated that the optimal body shape associated with all functional performance tests would have required the participants to be taller and leaner. The only variable that predicted comorbidity was the TUG test. The inclusion of body size/shape variables did not improve the prediction model.
Conclusion
Performance in the TUG test alone was found to be capable of identifying participants at risk of developing comorbidities. The TUG test has potential as a screening tool for the early detection of chronic diseases in older adults.
Implications for Practice
Many older people are unaware of their own coâexisting illnesses when they consult physicians for a medical condition. TUG can be a quick and useful screening measure to alert nurses in primary care to the need to proceed with more detailed assessments. It is an especially useful screening measure in settings with high patient volumes and fiscal constraints. TUG is low cost and easy to learn and is therefore also relevant for nurses and health workers in lowâresource, lowâincome countries.School of Nursing, The Hong Kong Polytechnic UniversityPublished onlin
A case study on a home-based caregiver-delivered music-with-movement intervention for people with early dementia
Background: Music has been found to improve sleep and reduce anxiety. Purpose: This article reports a 78-year-old Chinese female who had been diagnosed with early dementia underwent an 8-week music-with-movement intervention delivered by her husband at home after being trained in a day care center. Methods: Both the patient and the husbandâs data were collected through repeated interviews and regular observations. Conclusion: The results indicated signs of improvement of the patient in terms of sleep quality and depressive symptoms
A case study on a home-based caregiver-delivered music-with-movement intervention for people with early dementia
Background: Music has been found to improve sleep and reduce anxiety. Purpose: This article reports a 78-year-old Chinese female who had been diagnosed with early dementia underwent an 8-week music-with-movement intervention delivered by her husband at home after being trained in a day care center. Methods: Both the patient and the husbandâs data were collected through repeated interviews and regular observations. Conclusion: The results indicated signs of improvement of the patient in terms of sleep quality and depressive symptoms
A simplified 10-step Tai-chi programme to enable people with dementia to improve their motor performance: a feasibility study
Objective: To evaluate the feasibility and preliminary effects of a simplified 10-step Tai-chi programme to improve the motor performance of people with dementia. Design: A two-arm, single-blinded cluster randomized controlled trial, registered with ClinicalTrials.gov (NCT03341091). Setting: Community health centres. Participants: Twenty-six dyads of people with dementia and their family caregivers were recruited, with mean (SD) ages of 82.2 (7.43) and 51.3 (18.97), respectively. Interventions: The experimental group underwent a 16 week 10-step simplified Tai-chi training programme, with additional measures to enhance engagement. The control group joined recreational activities organized by the centres. Main outcome measure(s): The feasibility assessment included recruitment, attrition, adherence to, and engagement in the Tai-chi programme. The preliminary effects were assessed by the participantsâ performance in mobility tests. Results: Preliminary feasibility was established, with an acceptable recruitment rate of 58% (26 out of 45 assessed dyads) and a high attendance rate of 81% (25.88 out of 32 Tai-chi sessions). There was positive engagement in the training sessions, and no adverse incidents. However, five participants withdrew from the Tai-chi group, for a high attrition rate of 38%, and the mean home practice time decreased between weeks 8 and 16. In most of the motor performance tests, a slight but insignificant improvement was observed in the Tai-chi group compared to the control group. Conclusion: A tailored Tai-chi programme for people with dementia using a dyadic approach has been found to be feasible. However, stronger support must be provided to family caregivers to improve the participantsâ sustained participation
An individualized exercise programme with and without behavioural change enhancement strategies for managing fatigue among frail older people: a quasi-experimental pilot study
Test of light-lepton universality in decays with the Belle II experiment
International audienceWe present a measurement of the ratio of branching fractions of the lepton decaying to muons or electrons using data collected with the Belle II detector at the SuperKEKB collider. The sample has an integrated luminosity of 362 fb at a centre-of-mass energy of 10.58 GeV. Using an optimised event selection, a binned maximum likelihood fit is performed using the momentum spectra of the electron and muon candidates. The result, , where the first uncertainty is statistical and the second is systematic, is the most precise to date. It provides a stringent test of the light-lepton universality, translating to a ratio of the couplings of the muon and electron to the boson in decays of , in agreement with the standard model expectation of unity