Community-based intervention to promote breast cancer awareness and screening: The Korean experience

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>There are many differences in culture, community identity, community participation, and ownership between communities in Western and Asian countries; thus, it is difficult to adopt the results of community intervention studies from Western countries. In this study, we conducted a multicity, multicomponent community intervention trial to correct breast cancer myths and promote screening mammography for women living in an urban community in Korea.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>A 6-month, 2-city community intervention trial was conducted. In the intervention city, 480 women were surveyed at baseline and 7 months later to evaluate the effects of the intervention program. Strategies implemented in the intervention city included community outreach and clinic and pharmacy-based in-reach strategies.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>This study showed a 20.4-percentage-point decrease in myths about the link between cancer and breast size, a 19.2-percentage-point decrease in myths concerning mammography costs, and a 14.1-percentage-point increase in intention to undergo screening mammography. We also saw a 23.4-percentage-point increase in the proportion of women at the action stage of the transtheoretical model in the intervention city. In the comparison city, smaller decreases and increases were observed.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>Our study showed the value of an intervention study aimed at reducing belief in breast cancer myths in an urban community in Korea. The invention also made women more likely to undergo mammography in future.</p

Factors influencing nurses' compliance with Standard Precautions in order to avoid occupational exposure to microorganisms: A focus group study

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Nurses may acquire an infection during the provision of nursing care because of occupational exposure to microorganisms. Relevant literature reports that, compliance with Standard Precautions (a set of guidelines that can protect health care professionals from being exposed to microorganisms) is low among nurses. Additionally, high rates of exposure to microorganisms among nurses via several modes (needlesticks, hand contamination with blood, exposure to air-transmitted microorganisms) occur. The aim of the study was to study the factors that influence nurses' compliance with Standard Precaution in order to avoid occupational exposure to pathogens, by employing a qualitative research design.</p> <p>Method</p> <p>A focus group approach was used to explore the issue under study. Four focus groups (N = 30) were organised to elicit nurses' perception of the factors that influence their compliance with Standard Precautions. The Health Belief Model (HBM) was used as the theoretical framework and the data were analysed according to predetermined criteria.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>Following content analysis, factors that influence nurses' compliance emerged. Most factors could be applied to one of the main domains of the HBM: benefits, barriers, severity, susceptibility, cues to action, and self-efficacy.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>Changing current behavior requires knowledge of the factors that may influence nurses' compliance with Standard Precautions. This knowledge will facilitate in the implementation of programs and preventive actions that contribute in avoiding of occupational exposure.</p

The preventive services use self-efficacy (PRESS) scale in older women: development and psychometric properties

Background\ud Preventive services offered to older Americans are currently under-utilized despite considerable evidence regarding their health and economic benefits. Individuals with low self-efficacy in accessing these services need to be identified and provided self-efficacy enhancing interventions. Scales measuring self-efficacy in the management of chronic diseases exist, but do not cover the broad spectrum of preventive services and behaviors that can improve the health of older adults, particularly older women who are vulnerable to poorer health and lesser utilization of preventive services. This study aimed to evaluate the psychometric properties of a new preventive services use self-efficacy scale, by measuring its internal consistency reliability, assessing internal construct validity by exploring factor structure, and examining differences in self-efficacy scores according to participant characteristics.\ud \ud Methods\ud The Preventive Services Use Self-Efficacy (PRESS) Scale was developed by an expert panel at the University of Pittsburgh Center for Aging and Population Health - Prevention Research Center. It was administered to 242 women participating in an ongoing trial and the data were analyzed to assess its psychometric properties. An exploratory factor analysis with a principal axis factoring approach and orthogonal varimax rotation was used to explore the underlying structure of the items in the scale. The internal consistency of the subscales was assessed using Cronbach’s alpha coefficient.\ud \ud Results\ud The exploratory factor analysis defined five self-efficacy factors (self-efficacy for exercise, communication with physicians, self-management of chronic disease, obtaining screening tests, and getting vaccinations regularly) formed by 16 items from the scale. The internal consistency of the subscales ranged from .81 to .94. Participants who accessed a preventive service had higher self-efficacy scores in the corresponding sub-scale than those who did not.\ud \ud Conclusions\ud The 16-item PRESS scale demonstrates preliminary validity and reliability in measuring self-efficacy in the use of preventive services among older women. It can potentially be used to evaluate the impact of interventions designed to improve self-efficacy in the use of preventive services in community-dwelling older women

Insulin detemir improves glycaemic control with less hypoglycaemia and no weight gain in patients with type 2 diabetes who were insulin naive or treated with NPH or insulin glargine: clinical practice experience from a German subgroup of the PREDICTIVE study

The Predictable Results and Experience in Diabetes through Intensification and Control to Target: An International Variability Evaluation (PREDICTIVE) Study is a large, multi-centre, observational study assessing the safety and efficacy of insulin detemir in everyday clinical practice. This subgroup analysis of the German cohort of PREDICTIVE evaluates over 3 months, patients with type 2 diabetes who were transferred to insulin detemir +/- oral antidiabetic drugs (OADs) from an OAD-only regimen (n = 1321), NPH insulin +/- OADs (n = 251) or insulin glargine +/- OADs (n = 260). Among all groups, 3 months after starting treatment with insulin detemir, total, daytime and nocturnal hypoglycaemic events/patient were reduced by 84, 80 and 90%, respectively, from baseline. No major hypoglycaemic events were reported during treatment with insulin detemir. HbAlc was significantly reduced from baseline in each of the subgroups (-1.29,-0.60 and-0.59% for patients previously taking OADs only, NPH insulin +/- OADs and insulin glargine +/- OADs respectively; p < 0.0001), as was fasting blood glucose (FBG) (-58.1,-29.1 and-24.6 mg/dl; p < 0.0001) and FBG variability-8.2 mg/dl,-5.7 mg/dl; p < 0.0001 and -5.1 mg/dl; p = 0.0008). All subgroups combined lost an average of 0.9 kg of body weight (p < 0.0001) during the study. Total daily basal insulin dose increased slightly from baseline for those patients on a prior insulin regimen, and in this study 79% of patients used insulin detemir once daily. These data confirm the short-term safety and efficacy of insulin detemir +/- OADs in a real-world scenario and support the findings of randomized controlled clinical trials with insulin detemir, including its limited effects on body weight

Does insulin detemir have a role in reducing risk of insulin-associated weight gain?

Weight gain is often perceived as inevitable with insulin therapy, particularly as we strive for tight glycaemic control and are using increasingly proactive insulin titration regimes. The United Kingdom Prospective Diabetes Study documented that weight gain occurs most rapidly soon after insulin therapy is first initiated. The timing of this side effect is particularly undesirable, as weight gain may interfere with patients' adjustment to insulin therapy and may undermine appropriate diabetes self-management behaviours. Until recently, many patients had little alternative other than to accept unwanted weight gain if they were to achieve sufficient glycaemic control to reduce risk of chronic complications of diabetes. Insulin detemir is a novel basal insulin analogue that has consistently been shown in randomized, controlled trials to have a weight-sparing effect (i.e. weight loss or reduced weight gain compared with other insulins) in both type 1 and type 2 diabetes. Indeed, unlike neutral protamine Hagedorn (NPH) insulin, the weight-sparing effect of insulin detemir appears to be most prominent in people who are the most obese. The mechanisms behind the weight-sparing effect of insulin detemir are still being clarified. Reduced risk of hypoglycaemia with insulin detemir, coupled with a more consistent and reliable delivery of the desired dose than is available with traditional basal insulin, such as NPH, has been proposed to minimize defensive snacking by patients, and help to limit weight gain. However, even if this was proven, it would be unlikely to fully explain the weight-sparing effect of insulin detemir. Two additional theories have been put forward. One suggests that due to its novel method of prolonging action via acylation and albumin binding, insulin detemir may differentially influence hepatocytes more than peripheral tissues, thus effectively suppressing hepatic glucose output without promoting lipogenesis in the periphery. The second theory suggests that insulin detemir may be more effective than human insulin in communicating satiety signals within the central nervous system. Further clarification of these hypotheses is required