Considerations for resuscitation and transfer of paediatric patients with COVID-19

10.1016/j.bja.2020.04.063British Journal of Anaesthesia1251e183-e18

Lived experience of caregivers of persons with dementia in Hong Kong: A qualitative study

Objectives: To report the lived experience of caregivers of persons with dementia in Hong Kong, and to explore their service needs. Methods: This was a qualitative study of caregivers of persons with dementia. Four focus group interviews, each group comprising 6 to 7 informal caregivers, were conducted. A total of 27 participants were recruited. With the participants' consent, interviews were audiotaped and transcribed verbatim. Colaizzi's methods for phenomenological analysis were used. Results: Caregiving in dementia in Hong Kong is as demanding and challenging as reported in other developed communities. 'Confusion regarding diagnosis', 'Emotional impact', 'Difficulty in coping with the care recipient behaviours', 'Provision of care recipient's daily care needs is demanding', and 'Conflicts among social roles' were themes pervasive across every focus group. In addition, the needs of carers changed as the disease of their care recipients progressed. Conclusions: As the local population continues to age, family caregivers are faced with increasing demands. Understanding their experience is pivotal in the design of effective carer support services. Our findings highlight the sources of strain and unmet needs of Hong Kong Chinese caregivers, which may serve as a guide for future service development. © 2010 Hong Kong College of Psychiatrists.link_to_subscribed_fulltex

The effect of different information sources on the anxiety level of pregnant women who underwent invasive prenatal testing

Objective: The goal is to explore the effects of age, education, obstetric history and information sources on the (Beck) anxiety levels of pregnant women attending invasive prenatal testing.Methods: Questionnaire results from 152 pregnant women are utilized. Results are analyzed through an independent samples t-test and a two-step cluster analysis attempting to categorize patients in terms of the chosen variables.Results: t-Tests reveal that age, education and bad obstetric history do not significantly affect anxiety levels. Descriptive statistics indicate that almost 60% of patients feel anxious mostly because of the fear of receiving bad news, followed by the fear of miscarriage, the fear of pain and the fear of hurting the baby. According to the cluster analysis, patients who use doctors or nurses as information sources have significantly lower anxiety levels, while those who do not receive information from any source have the second lowest level of anxiety. Patients who receive information from personal sources (i.e. friends and family) have the highest level of anxiety. Anxiety levels do not change according to test type.Conclusions: Doctors and nurses should allocate enough time for providing information about prenatal diagnosis before the procedure. This will reduce the anxiety level as well as the felt necessity to search for information from other sources, such as personal or popular which will further increase the level of anxiety