Depressive symptoms among community-dwelling, post-stroke elders in Hong Kong.

BACKGROUND: Depressive symptoms adversely affect functional recovery among post-stroke elders. Such symptoms manifest when elders face difficulties in realistic daily living after being discharged. AIMS: The aim of this study was to examine (1) the prevalence of depressive symptoms among community-dwelling post-stroke elders, (2) the relationship between depressive symptoms and demographic and clinical characteristics among community-dwelling post-stroke elders, and (3) the demographic and clinical factors that differentiate post-stroke elders with and without depressive symptoms. METHODS: A descriptive cross-sectional survey was performed on 50 post-stroke elders from a geriatric day clinic. FINDINGS: Depressive symptoms were highly prevalent (68%) among the community-dwelling post-stroke elders. Depressive symptoms were negatively correlated with social support network, social support satisfaction and functional independence. Lastly, poor social support satisfaction and lower functional independence was found to differentiate those post-stroke elders with and without depressive symptoms. CONCLUSION: The inclusion of psychosocial assessment and delivery of appropriate psychosocial interventions to post-stroke elders are recommended.

The establishment of an integrated skills training centre for undergraduate nursing education.

AIM: This paper details the experience of establishing an integrated skills training centre for use in undergraduate nursing education in The Open University of Hong Kong. BACKGROUND: Skills training is an essential element in undergraduate nursing education. Owing to the increasing complexity of the health-care system and patient health needs, undergraduate nursing students should be well prepared for integrated skills competency, critical thinking and rapid decision-making. To achieve this goal, the use of simulation as a skills training tool is being recommended. CONCLUSION: The Clinical Nursing Education Centre is established. It adopts simulation as a teaching and learning tool. It has four specific education units, namely: (1) clinical simulation education unit, (2) virtual reality education unit, (3) nursing skills education unit, and (4) Chinese medicinal education unit. These units are specifically designed for the teaching and learning of nursing skills related to general, mental and Chinese medicinal nursing from elementary to advanced level. Experiences pertaining to the conceptualization, exploration and actualization phases of the establishment are presented. Details of the structure and specific functions of the centre are also illustrated. Finally, there is discussion on the challenges encountered during the establishment process and how they were overcome.

Hong Kong enrolled nurses' perceptions of spirituality and spiritual care.

AIM: To explore Hong Kong nurses' perceptions of spirituality and spiritual care, and to investigate the relationship between their perceptions and their demographic characteristics. BACKGROUND: Many studies suggest that spirituality is the essence of human being and plays an important role in people's lives. Although studies have documented the positive relationship between spiritual care and patients' health outcomes, it has also been shown that the implementation of spiritual care is uncommon in nursing practice. Furthermore, there is little discussion on practising nurses' perception of spirituality and spiritual care in Hong Kong. METHODS: This study adopted a cross-sectional descriptive design to investigate nurses' perception of spirituality and spiritual care in Hong Kong. A convenience sample of 429 practising enrolled nurses were invited to complete the Spirituality and Spiritual Care Rating Scale (SSCRS) (response rate 91%). FINDINGS: Subjects showed satisfactory understanding of spirituality and appreciated providing spiritual care to patients. The mean scores for the SSCRS and its four subscales were greater than half of the maximum score. There were significant differences in the perceptions of spirituality between subjects with different education levels and religious affiliations. CONCLUSIONS: The findings suggest increasing the emphasis of spirituality both in undergraduate education and in continuing-development levels. Recommendations are also made regarding the implementation of spiritual care in nursing practice. Despite having a convenience sample, the present study has contributed to stimulating awareness and discussion among nurses on spirituality and spiritual care.