The Role of Observation in Grounded Theory: A Narrative Review

Introduction: Grounded theory has become one of the most important interdisciplinary methods of research because of its attention to social interactions and investigation of hidden processes in social behaviors. This study aimed to explain observation as a tool in grounded theory and to place this data collection method parallel to interviews in terms of importance. Method: This was a narrative review of the literature. First, the available databases (Google Scholar, PubMed, SID, and Magiran) were searched using the keywords observation, qualitative study, and grounded theory, and the indicators AND and OR. As a result, 21 books, 2 professional websites, and 38 articles in English and 18 in Farsi were retrieved. After the final revision, 6 books, and 10 articles in English and 4 in Farsi, which discussed the nature and scope of observation in qualitative studies, were included in the review. Results: Studies show that although interview is the most important and perhaps the most practical tool for collecting data in grounded theory studies, this method cannot always help the researcher to investigate a social phenomenon from different perspectives. Awareness of observation method, ability of the observer, the pros and cons of observation, ethics of observation, and applied guidelines for observation are issues which can help qualitative researchers who adopt symbolic interactionism as theoretical perspective in their qualitative inquiry. Conclusion: Conducting precise observation through which the researcher is totally immersed in the phenomenon under study with curiosity, application of scientific observation principles and methods, as well as employment of in-depth interviews can help qualitative researchers to discover social processes hidden in human interactions. Keywords: Observation, Grounded theory approach, Narrative revie

The Evaluation of Functional Quality in Bachelor Midwifery Students based on Objective Structured Clinical Examination (OSCE) in Islamic Azad University-Mashhad Branch

Abstract Introduction: Objective Structured Clinical Examination (OSCE) is one of the standardized and accepted methods for the certification of undergraduate midwifery in the world. OSCE is a type of examination often used in health sciences (e.g. midwifery), which is designed to test clinical skill performance and competence in skills such as clinical examination, medical procedures / prescription, exercise prescription, manipulation techniques. The aim of this study is to evaluate the quality of midwifery students’ performance before the final exam through the OSCE method in Islamic Azad University of Mashhad. Methods: This cross-sectional study was conducted in the summer of 1396 on 75 midwifery students before entering the final exam. Checklists for evaluation of skills were analyzed by the experts’ panel to increase the validity of checklists. For examining the reliability of the exam in studied population, the spilt-half method was used. Evaluation of the quality of students’ performance in various areas of pregnancy and childbirth, gynecological diseases, maternal and child health and they were carried out at three levels of diagnosis, decision making and therapeutic interventions. The exam was also carried out in 12 sections along with a rest one. Results: 75 volunteers were divided equally according existing stations. 89/3% were under the age of 25 years old 48% were single and 52% were married. The average score was calculated, when the students were able to answer 50% of the items in each domain. If the volunteer answered more than 50% of the items, she would be in good shape, while the volunteer answered fewer than 50% of the items, she would be weak. The performance of midwifery students was moderate and good at all stations except for Pap smear in gynecology domain, fetal health evaluation in pregnancy and childbirth domain, and Vaccination in maternal and child health domain. (PV<0.848, PV<0.666, PV<0.711 respectively both diagnosis and decision making level. Conclusions: Since the OSCE examines the strengths and weaknesses of students, this study indicated that weakness of midwifery students of Mashhad Azad University lied in some important areas such as, fetal health evaluation, Pap smear and Vaccination which should be more considered and emphasized on by the instructors and educational planners

A historical review of the concept of labor support in technocratic, humanistic and holistic paradigms of childbirth

Background: In the past century, maternal support during childbirth has been changed according to the different approaches suggested by various health care paradigms. Objective: The aim of this review was to argue the maternity supportive care paradigms of the past century and to closely analyze each paradigm. Methods: This is a historical review, in which published articles were retrieved from databases including Scopus, Science Direct, PubMed and Google Scholar. Sage Journals and Springer’s publications were also searched due to the high citation rate of their articles. The keywords entered were "Labor support", "Normal delivery", "Birth attendance", "Supportive approaches", "Health care paradigms", and "Midwifery models of care". They were entered alone or in combinations using "AND". Also, Persian articles were searched in local databases including Irandoc, SID, IranMedex, and Magiran using the above-mentioned keywords in Persian. Sixty articles met inclusion criteria. Results: The review revealed four main themes including the definitions of continuous labor support, the technocratic paradigm, the humanistic paradigm and the naturalistic paradigm as models of labor support. According to the evidence, labor support has changed from technocratic to humanistic and holistic approaches, which in turn, caused some changes in midwifery models of care used by midwives in the practice. Conclusion: Labor support based on the holistic approaches and the naturalistic paradigms could bring about remarkable outcomes, the most important being satisfied with the birth experience, increased mother’s self- confidence, enhanced mother’s ability in childbirth and better completion of the childbirth process

Iron supplementation protocols for iron deficiency anemia: A comparative review of iron regimens in three countries of India, Iran and England

Background and aim: Iron deficiency anemia is the most common micronutrient deficiency in the world today. It affects the lives of millions of women and children through contributing to poor cognitive development, increased maternal mortality and decreased work capacity.  Because of the important role of Iron in the physical and cognitive health, and for the universal consideration of eradication of this problem, this review aimed to compare iron supplementary programs in three countries if India, Iran and England. Method: The design was a comparative review of iron supplementary programs in three countries of India, Iran and England. These countries were selected for review, as they represent the spread of iron deficiency anemia in three different level of low, medium and high. Relevant data were retrieved from databases including PubMed as well as WHO, World Bank Ranking and BMJ Center reports and then were included in comparative tables to provide the basis for detecting similarities and differences. Results: The included countries in this review were different in terms of preventive and treatment strategies to overcome iron deficiency. The reason for this difference was due to health conditions, and availability of healthy drinking water, and also prevalence of various diseases like anemia, parasitic diseases, and malaria. In Iran and India the preventive programs are confined to all groups at risk, however, in England it just encompasses the immigrants and the people who are supported by the government. Conclusion: This review showed that in low income countries, the most economic and cost-effective practice is enriching the nutritionals. Additionally, the treatment and preventive programs and policies for anemia in different countries are related to health conditions and health indicators of that country

The process of coding and identifying major categories.

<p>The process of coding and identifying major categories.</p

Characteristics of the participants.

<p>Characteristics of the participants.</p

Risk Assessment of Using Entonox for the Relief of Labor Pain: A Healthcare Failure Modes and Effects Analysis Approach

Introduction: In order to prevent medical errors, it is important to know why they occur and to identify their causes. Healthcare failure modes and effects analysis (HFMEA) is a type of qualitative descriptive that is used to evaluate the risk. The aim of this study was to assess the risks of using Entonox for labor pain by HFMEA. Methods: A mixed-methods design (qualitative action research and quantitative cross-sectional research) was used. The modes and effects of failures in the process of using Entonox were detected and analyzed during 2013- 2014 at Hefdahe Shahrivar Hospital, Mashhad, Iran. Overall, 52 failure modes were identified, with 25 being recognized as high-risk modes. Results: The results revealed that 48.5% of these errors fall into the care process type, 22.05% belong to the communicative type, 19.1% fall into the administrative type, and 10.2% are of the knowledge and skills type. Strategies were presented in the forms of acceptance (3.2%), control (90.3%), and elimination (6.4%). Conclusion: The following actions are suggested for improving the process of using Entonox: Close supervision by the midwife, precise recording of all the stages of the process in the woman’s medical record, the necessity of the presence of the anesthesiologist at the woman’s bedside during labor, confirming the indications for use of Entonox, and close monitoring to ensure the safety of the gas cylinder guards