Pregnancy weight gain may affect perinatal outcomes, quality of life during pregnancy, and child-bearing expenses: an observational cohort study.

PURPOSE: We aimed to examine the effect of gestational weight gain (GWG) on perinatal outcomes, quality of life (QoL) during pregnancy, and medical costs of childbirth. METHODS: The observational cohort comprised 2210 pregnant women who were classified into three groups based on their pre-pregnancy body mass index (BMI) and GWG in relation to the 2020 Institute of Medicine (IOM) recommendations. The data were collected on perinatal outcomes, urinary incontinence (UI) during pregnancy, changes in sexual function, and medical costs of hospitalization for delivery. Univariate and multivariable logistic regression models were employed to explore those associations. RESULTS: Only 42.1% of women met the 2020 IOM guidelines. After adjustments for potential confounding factors, women with above-normal GWG had adverse pregnancy outcomes, including a large fetal head circumference and macrosomia, and women with below-normal GWG were more likely to deliver low-birthweight fetuses preterm than women with normal GWG. Only 16.8% of women reported sexual activity during pregnancy. There were not significant differences in sexual activity and satisfaction, or QoL among the three GWG groups. Child-bearing expenses were higher for women with above-normal GWG than for women with normal GWG. Although the child-bearing expenses were higher for the above-normal GWG, the proportion of women with expenses above the median increased according to pre-pregnancy BMI. CONCLUSION: Our results show that inappropriate GWG is associated with a greater risk of adverse perinatal outcomes and increased medical expenses for delivery. Healthcare providers are advised to counsel women to maintain their GWG following the 2020 IOM recommendations throughout pregnancy.

Impact of prepregnancy body mass index on pregnancy outcomes, incidence of urinary incontinence and quality of life during pregnancy - An observational cohort study.

BACKGROUND: To evaluate the effects of prepregnancy body mass index (BMI) on pregnancy outcomes, prevalence of urinary incontinence, and quality of life. METHODS: The observational cohort included 2210 pregnant women who were divided into 4 groups according to their prepregnancy BMI: underweight (<18.5), normal weight (18.5-24.9), overweight (25-29.9), and obese (≥30). Data were analyzed for pregnancy outcomes, prevalence of urinary incontinence during pregnancy, scores of the Short Form 12 health survey (SF-12) and changes in sexual function. RESULTS: Compared with normal weight, overweight and obesity were associated with advanced maternal age, low education level, multiparity, preterm delivery, cesarean section, gestational weight gain above the Institute of Medicine (IOM) guidelines, preeclampsia, gestational diabetes, macrosomia and large fetal head circumference. After adjusting for confounding factors, women with overweight and obesity were more likely to have adverse maternal outcomes (gestational weight gain above the IOM guidelines, preeclampsia and gestational diabetes) and fetal outcomes (large fetal head circumference and macrosomia) compared to normal weight women. Overweight and obese women (BMI ≥ 25) were more likely to have urinary incontinence than normal weight and underweight women. There were no significant differences in SF-12 scores among the 4 BMI groups, but more than 90% of pregnant women had reduced or no sexual activities regardless of BMI. CONCLUSIONS: Maternal prepregnancy overweight and obesity are associated with greater risks of preeclampsia, gestational diabetes, macrosomia and urinary incontinence. Health care providers should inform women to start their pregnancy at a BMI in the normal weight category.

Nurses' intention to resign and avoidance of emergency department violence: A moderated mediation model.

BACKGROUND: Studies that examined the negative impact of violence in emergency departments on nurses' leave and avoidance behavior are well-documented. However, few studies provided an integrated model of how and when violence influences their leave and avoidance behavior. PURPOSE: The study adopted Affective Events Theory to propose and examine a model of violent events, negative emotions, and (leave and avoidance) behaviors on nurses in emergency departments and further analyzed whether the model is salient to nurses' occupational burnout, nursing experience, and nursing rank. METHOD: The sample included 123 emergency department nurses at a teaching hospital in northern, Taiwan. RESULTS: All participants had experienced violent incidents within the preceding 6 months. Moderated mediation analysis suggested that nurses experienced one of two emotional processes following violent incidents: "violence-negative feelings toward work-intention to resign" or "violence-negative emotion and physical symptoms-avoidance tendencies." Moreover, nurses with high burnout levels expressed weaker intention to resign after violent incidents, while nurses with more experience and higher rank were less likely to avoid violence after violent incidents. CONCLUSION: Emergency nurses do not simply elect to escape but may engage in avoidance behavior. This study revealed that how violent incidents affect nurses' resignation or avoidance behaviors depends on how they feel. Occupational burnout and nurses' attributes affected their behavior.

Nurse occupational burnout and patient-rated quality of care: The boundary conditions of emotional intelligence and demographic profiles.

AIM: Most previous studies on the relationship between occupational burnout and the quality of care among nurses have used self-reported data on the quality of care from nurses, thus rendering evaluating the relationship between burnout and the quality of care difficult. Hospitals increasingly hire contract nurses and high turnover rates remain a concern. Little is known about whether nurses' emotional intelligence and demographic factors such as contract status, tenure, and marital status affect the quality of care when burnout occurs. This study investigated the relationship between burnout and patient-rated quality of care and investigated the moderating role of emotional intelligence and demographic variables. METHODS: Hierarchical moderated regression was used to analyze 98 sets of paired data obtained from nurses and their patients at a teaching hospital in northern Taiwan. RESULTS: The results suggest that occupational burnout has a less unfavorable effect on the quality of care from permanent, married, and senior nurses. CONCLUSION: Nursing management should pay particular attention to retaining permanent, married, and senior nurses. To ensure a sustainable nursing workforce in the future, newly graduated registered nurses should have access to permanent positions and opportunities for long-term professional development. In addition, married nurses should be provided with flexible work-family arrangements to ensure their satisfaction in the nursing profession.

Comparisons between Full-time and Part-time Pediatric Emergency Physicians in Pediatric Emergency Department.

BACKGROUND: Pediatric emergency medicine is a young field that has established itself in recent decades. Many unanswered questions remain regarding how to deliver better pediatric emergency care. The implementation of full-time pediatric emergency physicians is a quality improvement strategy for child care in Taiwan. The aim of this study is to evaluate the quality of care under different physician coverage models in the pediatric emergency department (ED). METHODS: The medical records of 132,398 patients visiting the pediatric ED of a tertiary care university hospital during January 2004 to December 2006 were retrospectively reviewed. Full-time pediatric emergency physicians are the group specializing in the pediatric emergency medicine, and they only work in the pediatric ED. Part-time pediatricians specializing in other subspecialties also can work an extra shift in the pediatric ED, with the majority working in their inpatient and outpatient services. We compared quality performance indicators, including: mortality rate, the 72-hour return visit rate, length of stay, admission rate, and the rate of being kept for observation between full-time and part-time pediatric emergency physicians. RESULTS: An average of 3678 ± 125 [mean ± standard error (SE)] visits per month (with a range of 2487-6646) were observed. The trends in quality of care, observed monthly, indicated that the 72-hour return rate was 2-6% and length of stay in the ED decreased from 11.5 hours to 3.2 hours over the study period. The annual mortality rate within 48 hours of admission to the ED increased from 0.04% to 0.05% and then decreased to 0.02%, and the overall mortality rate dropped from 0.13% to 0.07%. Multivariate analyses indicated that there was no change in the 72-hour return visit rate for full-time pediatric emergency physicians; they were more likely to admit and keep patients for observation [odds ratio = 1.43 and odds ratio = 1.71, respectively], and these results were similar to those of senior physicians. CONCLUSION: Full-time pediatric emergency physicians in the pediatric ED decreased the mortality rate and length of stay in the ED, but had no change in the 72-hour return visit rate. This pilot study shows that the quality of care in pediatric ED after the implementation of full-time pediatric emergency physicians needs further evaluation.

The relationship between healthy lifestyle and hospital utilization among adults with diabetes: results from a national cohort in Taiwan.

The aim of this study was to investigate whether adopting healthy lifestyle habits, such as engaging in leisure time physical activity (LTPA), adopting recommended dietary patterns, and not smoking, are associated with reduced hospitalizations over 1 year among adults with diabetes. We analyzed data from a national sample of people aged 18 years and above with self-reported physician-diagnosed diabetes (n = 664) through linkage to the 2001 National Health Interview Survey in Taiwan and the 2002 National Health Insurance claims data. Multivariate analysis showed that participants reporting greater than 150 min/wk of moderate-intensity activity had a significantly lower chance for hospitalization (odds ratio = 0.52; 95% confidence interval [CI] = 0.27-0.98), fewer admissions (incidence rate ratio [IRR] = 0.58; 95% CI = 0.33-1.00), and fewer hospital bed days (IRR = 0.42; 95% CI = 0.20-0.92) compared with inactive individuals. Diet control and smoking status did not significantly predict hospital use after controlling for other factors. Our findings indicate that increased LTPA results in reduced hospitalization among adults with diabetes.

Team innovation climate and knowledge sharing among healthcare managers: mediating effects of altruistic intentions.

BACKGROUND: This paper aims to provide empirical evidence concerning the impact of team climate on knowledge sharing behavior and the mediating effects of individuals' altruistic intentions in the context of healthcare settings. METHODS: Questionnaire data were collected from 212 administrators employed at a medical center in Taiwan. Team climate was assessed by the Team Climate Inventory composed of four factors, participative safety, support for innovation, vision, and task orientation. The proposed hypotheses were tested using structural equation modeling. RESULTS: The influence of the team innovation climate on knowledge sharing behavior was evident. Furthermore, individuals' altruistic intentions played a full mediating role in the relationship between team innovation climate and knowledge sharing behavior. CONCLUSIONS: These results contribute to the field of the people-orientated perspective in knowledge management. The full mediating effect of employees' altruistic intentions provides healthcare team managers the direction to accelerate knowledge sharing behavior.