The effectiveness of reminiscence therapy on the symptom management, the life satisfaction, and the self-transcendence in palliative care patients: a randomized controlled trial.

PURPOSE: To examine the effect of individualized reminiscence therapy on the management of global distress and physical and psychological symptoms, life satisfaction and self-transcendence levels of palliative care patients. METHODS: In a single-center palliative care service in western Turkey, 48 patients without cognitive impairment and able to communicate were included in the study. However, 44 patients completed the study. Patients who met the inclusion criteria were randomly assigned to the reminiscence therapy (intervention), unstructured social interviewing (placebo), and control groups (16 people for each group) before the start of the study. The sessions for the interview and placebo groups were conducted face-to-face in the patient's room (while the patient was sitting or lying down) for 15 days (2 weeks), every other day, for a total of eight sessions (each session was approximately 30 min). Data collection instruments-the Memorial Symptom Assessment Scale, the Contentment with Life Assessment Scale, and the Self-Transcendence Scale-were collected at baseline (first day) and after the intervention (day 15th). Statistical significance level was accepted as p < 0.05. RESULTS: There was no decrease in physical and total symptom burden (p > 0.05). There were significant reductions in general distress and psychological symptoms in the intervention and placebo groups within the group (p < 0.05), but there were no significant differences between the control group and all groups when compared (p > 0.05). Group × time interactions were statistically significant for life satisfaction and self-transcendence (p < 0.001), and there was a substantial increase in the intervention group compared to the other groups. CONCLUSION: It may be recommended that reminiscence therapy intervention be included in routine nursing care as it may contribute positively to the psychological recovery of palliative care patients approaching the end of life. TRIAL REGISTRATION: ClinicalTrails.gov (Registration number: NCT05242016). Prospectively registered on 1 February 2022.

The relationship between mental health continuum and care dependency in individuals with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease: A cross-sectional study.

AIM: To examine the relationship between mental health continuum and care dependence of hospitalized patients, who were diagnosed with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). DESIGN: Descriptive, cross-sectional study. METHODS: The data were obtained from 448 inpatients diagnosed with COPD, who were treated in clinics, by utilizing questionnaires and face-to-face interviews between November 2021 and February 2022. The Mental Health Continuum Short Form and Care Dependency Scale were used by the researchers with the sociodemographic and clinical characteristics form created in line with the literature. The data were analysed using the SPSS 23.0 software. RESULTS: It was determined that a moderately significant positive relationship between mental health continuum and care dependency. In addition, the patient's perception of own health, disease stage and severity of dyspnoea were also found to be associated with mental health and care dependency. Gender, marital status, employment status and income level were found to be associated with mental health continuum, but not with care dependency. Advanced age, low educational level, alcohol consumption, antidepressant use and comorbidities were found to be associated with both care dependency and mental health continuum. CONCLUSION: Individuals with COPD who have low mental health, poor health perception, high disease stage and dyspnoea severity have high care dependency. IMPACT: In this study, it was revealed that the level of mental health continuum was significantly associated with care dependency in individuals with COPD; in addition, the individual's perception of poor health, disease stage and dyspnoea severity were other factors associated with care dependency. It is important for nurses working with individuals with COPD to evaluate the mental health of individuals with poor health perception, high disease stage and dyspnoea severity and to plan appropriate interventions to reduce care dependency. PATIENT OR PUBLIC CONTRIBUTION: No patient or public contribution was required in the design, conduct, analysis or interpretation of this study. Patients/public members only contributed to data collection. Data were obtained from patients hospitalized in the chest diseases clinic of a training and research hospital.

Effects of adherence to the Mediterranean diet on fatigue and activities of daily living in geriatric individuals with COPD.

BACKGROUND & AIMS: Fatigue is a commonly diagnosed symptom in cancers and many other chronic debilitating diseases. The second most important complaint after dyspnea in patients with Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD) is the feeling of fatigue. Fatigue can have significant consequences on health status as it can limit patients' activities of daily living, lead to worsening prognosis, and is an indicator of mortality. It remains unclear how fatigue affects the daily life of COPD patients and what physical, social, and emotional challenges it brings. Some studies are showing that adhering to the Mediterranean diet significantly improves fatigue. In this study, the relationship between fatigue and adherence to a Mediterranean diet in COPD patients was investigated. METHODS: The present study is a descriptive, cross-sectional, and correlational study. The study population included ≥65-year-old patients with a diagnosis of COPD who were hospitalized in Chest Diseases Clinics of Izmir Dr. Suat Seren Chest Diseases and Surgery Training and Research Hospital and Chest Diseases Clinic of Sivas Cumhuriyet University Hospital. The Personal Information Form, Mediterranean Diet Adherence Screener (MEDAS), COPD and Asthma Fatigue Scale (CAFS), and KATZ Activities of Daily Living Scale (Katz ADL) were used as data collection tools. RESULTS: Of the total 526 participants, 58.7% were men, 52.1% were overweight, 54.3% were ex-smokers, and 65.8% were non-drinkers. In the variables related to the disease, the mean duration of having COPD was 16.41 (SD 5.26) years. According to the GOLD classification of the participants, the severity of the disease was determined as Stage III in 57.4% of them, and the severity of dyspnea was determined as "3" (moderate severity) in 54.5% of them according to the mMRC scale. According to the results of the analysis, the mean MEDAS score was 7.84 (SD: 2.76). According to the participants' levels of adherence to the MD, of them, 43.8% had high adherence to MD and 29% had low adherence to MD. The mean CAFS score indicating the level of disease-related fatigue was 69.17 (SD: 15.73), and the lowest and highest scores were 25 and 100 respectively. According to the independence in activities of daily living of the participants, 77.3% were semi-dependent and 6.4% were independent. The comparison of the level of the participant's adherence to the MD according to their mean CAFS scores demonstrated that those who had high adherence to the MD obtained significantly lower scores than the participants in the other groups (p < 0.05). The comparison of the participants' mean MEDAS scores according to their KATZ ADL independence status demonstrated that there was a significant difference (p < 0.001). CONCLUSIONS: Adherence to the MD was associated with fatigue and independence in older COPD patients. It was found that high adherence to MD is associated with decreased fatigue and increased independence in activities of daily living in older COPD patients.

The effectiveness of music interventions on stress response in intensive care patients: A systematic review and meta-analysis.

AIM AND OBJECTIVE: To investigate the effectiveness of music interventions on physiological and psychological stress response in intensive care unit (ICU) patients. BACKGROUND: ICU patients are exposed to several physiological and psychological stressors during their treatments. Music interventions can be implemented to control these negative effects. DESIGN: Systematic review and meta-analysis conducted according to PRISMA Guidelines. METHOD: Seven electronic literature databases, reference lists of similar reviews, grey literature and the Clinical Trials Registry were searched for potential studies up to 30 January 2022. Studies were expected to meet PICOS inclusion criteria. Two reviewers independently assessed the risk of bias of the included studies by using the Cochrane Collaboration tool. Overall, meta-analysis and subgroup analyses (comparator group and music session frequency) were performed using RevMan 5.4. Meta-analysis was conducted when data were available; otherwise, a narrative description was provided. RESULTS: Twenty-five articles were included in this meta-analysis. Across all studies, regardless of the comparator, music was found to significantly reduce anxiety scores with an SMD of 1.81 ([95% CI: -3.09,-0.53]; p = .006). Music was found to significantly reduce anxiety scores with an SMD of 1.97 (95% CI: -3.66, -0.28) compared to standard care (p = .02), but there was no significant change in anxiety scores in comparison with the noise cancellation group (p > 0.05). It was found that multiple music sessions reduced the anxiety level better than a single music session. Music had no effect the systolic/diastolic blood pressure, respiratory or heart rate level in both subgroup and general analyzes concerning the physiological stress (p > 0.05). CONCLUSIONS: Music interventions involving multiple sessions can be used as a nursing intervention to control the anxiety levels of ICU patients. RELEVANCE TO THE CLINICAL PRACTICE: Using music to reduce anxiety and stress levels may reduce the pharmacological need (for sedative or antipsychotic medications) and the risk of associated side effects in ICU patients.