[Seven hour shifts versus 12 hours in intensive nursing care: going against the tide]. / Turnos de 7 horas versus 12 horas en enfermería intensiva: vivir a contratiempo.

Working in shifts has an impact on the well being of health care professionals, affecting their quality of life. The main objective of this study is to describe the consequences of 12hours work shifts versus 7hours for nursing professionals working in intensive care units. A cost-sectional, descriptive study was conducted in two tertiary hospitals of Barcelona, these being the Hospital Clínico and Hospital Vall d'Hebron (of 7hour and 12hour shifts, respectively). The data was collected through a questionnaire having 29 closed questions that was anonymous and self-administered. The questionnaire was based on two scales: Standard Shiftwork Index and Shiftwork. locus of control. Data was processed through SPSS V.18.0. The target population consisted of 85 people, for whom 52 surveys were valid: 22 in Hospital Clínico of Barcelona and 30 in Hospital Vall d'Hebron. Professionals working a 12-hour shift express higher levels of work and family conciliation, especially in the case of leisure time to enjoy (×2: 10.635 p=0.031) and family-friends time dedication as well as lower levels of perceived fatigue. No differences were found between type of shift and ease of development of professional work, even though the 12-hour shift has higher levels.

[Minimally invasive dynamic hip screw technique: Shorter surgical time with similar post-surgical results compared to conventional DHS technique. A retrospective cohort study]. / Técnica DHS mínimamente invasiva: menor tiempo quirúrgico con similares resultados en el postoperatorio inmediato respecto al DHS convencional. Estudio retrospectivo de cohortes.

AIM: The treatment of intertrochanteric fractures using a minimally invasive dynamic hip screw (MIDHS) technique has been reported to provide better results than the conventional technique (CDHS). The present study aims to determine whether there are any differences in terms of transfusion needs, morbidity, length of hospital stay, and economical costs, based on a study of two retrospective cohorts. MATERIAL AND METHOD: Cohorts study of 80 patients with intertrochanteric femoral fractures (31-A1 and 31-A2.1) who underwent DHS procedure from July 2005 to September 2007; 40 of them were treated using the traditional technique (CDHS), and the other 40 using the minimally invasive technique (MIDHS). RESULTS: No differences were found in terms of blood loss, transfusion requirements or morbidity. Mean hospital stay for MIDHS group was 1.3 days lower, reducing the costs regarding the CDHS group by €306.3, but this difference was not statistically significant (P=.3). The time required to perform the surgery was shorter for the MIDHS group: 49.3 versus 78.8minutes (p=0.0001). DISCUSSION: Contrary to previous studies published, the present study did not show any advantage for the MIDHS technique, except for a shorter surgical time to perform the procedure. We consider that the MIDHS could help in improving operating room productivity and efficiency.

Técnica DHS mínimamente invasiva: menor tiempo quirúrgico con similares resultados en el postoperatorio inmediato respecto al DHS convencional. Estudio retrospectivo de cohortes / Minimally invasive dynamic hip screw technique: Shorter surgical time with similar post-surgical results compared to conventional DHS technique. A retrospective cohort study

Objetivos. El tratamiento de fracturas pertrocantéreas con clavo DHS (Dynamic Hip Screw) mediante técnica mínimamente invasiva (MIDHS) ha mostrado resultados superiores a la técnica convencional (CDHS) en estudios previos. El presente estudio pretende determinar si existen diferencias en requerimientos transfusionales, morbilidad, estancia hospitalaria y en el coste asociado, a partir de un análisis retrospectivo de 2 cohortes. Material y método. Estudio de cohortes en 80 pacientes con fracturas intertrocantéreas de fémur (31-A1 y 31-A2.1) tratados con implante DHS entre julio de 2005 y septiembre de 2007: 40 de ellos con la técnica convencional y 40 de ellos con técnica MIDHS. Resultados. No se observaron diferencias estadísticamente significativas ni en la pérdida sanguínea, ni en requerimientos transfusionales, ni en morbilidad. La estancia hospitalaria en el grupo MIDHS fue 1,3 días menor, con un coste directo de 306,3 Euros por caso, inferior al grupo CDHS, aunque sin significación estadística (p = 0,3). La duración de la intervención fue menor en el grupo MIDHS: 49,3 versus 78,8 min (p = 0,0001). Discusión. Contrariamente a lo publicado en estudios previos, en el presente estudio la técnica MIDHS no ha mostrado ventajas excepto por requerir un menor tiempo para realizar la técnica. Consideramos que la técnica MIDHS podría ayudar en mejorar la productividad y eficiencia en el uso de quirófanos (AU)

Aim. The treatment of intertrochanteric fractures using a minimally invasive dynamic hip screw (MIDHS) technique has been reported to provide better results than the conventional technique (CDHS). The present study aims to determine whether there are any differences in terms of transfusion needs, morbidity, length of hospital stay, and economical costs, based on a study of two retrospective cohorts. Material and method. Cohorts study of 80 patients with intertrochanteric femoral fractures (31-A1 and 31-A2.1) who underwent DHS procedure from July 2005 to September 2007; 40 of them were treated using the traditional technique (CDHS), and the other 40 using the minimally invasive technique (MIDHS). Results. No differences were found in terms of blood loss, transfusion requirements or morbidity. Mean hospital stay for MIDHS group was 1.3 days lower, reducing the costs regarding the CDHS group by Euros 306.3, but this difference was not statistically significant (P =.3). The time required to perform the surgery was shorter for the MIDHS group: 49.3 versus 78.8 minutes (p = 0.0001). Discussion. Contrary to previous studies published, the present study did not show any advantage for the MIDHS technique, except for a shorter surgical time to perform the procedure. We consider that the MIDHS could help in improving operating room productivity and efficiency (AU)