Conceptual models used in clinical practice.

Nurses' difficulties in articulation of conceptual models may be due to several factors--not the least of which are the existence of discrete theories for each area of nursing specialization, dissociation in curricula of theory from practice, a holistic conceptual framework that may be inadequately defined at the process level, and an impulse toward idealism on the part of the nurses themselves. These observations challenge both the theorists and the practitioners of modern nursing to describe more clearly the definition of quality for the science and art of nursing. Nurses are beginning to grasp the idea of holism. It is not the summation of parts to make a whole. Holism is the identification of life patterns, which are reflective of the whole. Nurses in practice and research are starting to create methods of inquiry that portray the wholeness of the autonomous person in continual, dynamic change and exchange with a changing universe. These initial explorations are leading to the evolution of the concepts of person, environment, and health into a distinctive theoretical base for nursing practice. In practice, research, and education, nurses must be committed to excellent, current descriptions of these human life patterns.

Use of the Minnesota Rate of Manipulation Test for disability evaluation.

This study involved the validation of the Minnesota Rate of Manipulation Test in assessing permanent disability of the hand. 118 persons with permanent impairments of the hand were given four subtests of the Minnesota Rate of Manipulation Test. The impaired hand was assessed with the traditional measure for permanent impairment and a rating obtained. Scores for the impaired hand on each of four subtests were strongly correlated with the rating of disability.

Use of a text of psychomotor ability in an expanded role.

To examine the use of a test of psychomotor ability of disabled persons, a group of 118 persons with permanent impairment of one hand were given the disability rating together with the O'Connor Finger Dexterity Test. Scores showed a substantial correlation of .69 between these two instruments. Scores on the Finger Dexterity Test were strongly correlated to the activities of daily living subscale of the Hand Disability Rating Scale (.88), while rating of disability was not. Age appeared unrelated to either test or disability scores.

First-principles study of the diffusion of hydrogen in ZnO.

Zinc oxide, a wide-gap semiconductor, typically exhibits n-type conductivity even when nominally undoped. The nature of the donor is contentious, but hydrogen is a prime candidate. We present ab initio calculations of the migration barrier for H, yielding a barrier of less than approximately 0.5 eV. This indicates isolated hydrogen is mobile at low temperature and that thermally stable H-related donors must logically be trapped at other defects. We argue this is also true for other oxides where H is a shallow donor.

Women's capacities to perform strenuous work.

The literature was reviewed in an attempt to determine women's capacity to perform work. Although the review uncovered a relatively small amount of work devoted to this topic, the published studies suggest that women have both the physiological capacity to perform hard work and the endurance to complete a full day of hard work. However, the studies also suggest that women have limited capabilities to perform tasks requiring lifting, pushing, and pulling. In studies involving climbing and gripping, occupational comparisons were not available. On anthropometric measures the data will not be comparable with work data until occupational information is developed.

Researching nurses as educators.

This study uses a survey to investigate the nurse educator's perceptions of their work and goals. Respondents were educators selected from a national list of nurses with doctorates. The survey used a combination of objective and open-ended questions. The purpose was to seek a correlation between the interests of the faculty and the expectations of their hiring institutions. Suggestions are made on ways educators, clinicians, and administrators can collaborate and consult for their mutual benefit.

Reliability and validity of American Medical Association's guide to ratings of permanent impairment.

We examined the American Medical Association's Guides to the Evaluation of Permanent Impairment rating schedule to determine whether this guide provided a reliable and valid assessment of hand impairment. A sample of 118 patients with permanent hand impairment was assessed using the guide. In addition, each patient underwent tests of finger dexterity, hand strength, hand-eye coordination, and the rate of manipulation. The reliability, based on the correlation between the two raters, was 0.75. For the injured hand, psychomotor test scores were highly correlated with the rating of permanent impairment in all cases. These differences were statistically significant for approximately two thirds of the cases. The guide's ratings showed both substantial reliability and accuracy with the various tests of hand function.

Psychiatric nursing interventions in managed care: is there time for caring?

Today's managed care affects how health care is provided: Caregivers focus on the needs of patients while struggling to fulfill the demands of the institutions for which they work. Presented here are some underlying concepts of patient care as well as some suggestions for further research which include the collaboration and consultation of nursing faculty with service. This article which is intended as a primer for the transition of novice psychiatric nurses to experts considers the effects of managed care.

Stress and the caregiver.

What do we do with a stress level that is high in many areas of our life? How do nurses cope without becoming ill themselves? We look at the literature for documented causes of the stress that seems to pervade the workplace and for strategies that will help us to function as healthy human beings.