Development of the sleep quality scale for coronary care patients (SQ-CC).

OBJECTIVES: In this study, it was aimed to develop a valid and reliable measurement instrument to measure sleep quality in coronary care patients. RESEARCH METHODOLOGY/DESIGN: This is a methodological study that was carried out with 201 patients at the coronary care unit of a university hospital. The validity and reliability of the scale were tested using exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses, Cronbach's alpha analysis, and Pearson's correlation analysis. RESULTS: The scale's Cronbach's alpha coefficient was found to be 0.816. There were significant positive relationships between the overall scale and its dimensions. The Pearson's correlation analysis showed a significant negative relationship between the Sleep Quality Scale for Coronary Care Patients and the Richards-Campbell Sleep Questionnaire. CONCLUSION: The Sleep Quality Scale for Coronary Care Patients was determined to be a valid and reliable measurement instrument for assessing the sleep quality of patients who are receiving care in coronary care units. IMPLICATIONS FOR CLINICAL PRACTICE: The scale that was developed in this study can be applied to coronary care patients because it is easy to implement and specific to intensive care settings. This way, the sleep quality levels of patients can be assessed quickly, and nursing interventions for potential problems can be defined. Hence, the emergence of sleep-related health problems can be prevented. Although RCSQ is the most commonly used scale to evaluate the sleep quality of patients treated in the intensive care unit, SQ-CC is thought to be more inclusive in considering noise-, environment-, and patient-related subjective factors. The evaluation of environmental factors can also provide objective data for improvements to be made to eliminate these factors in clinics. Furthermore, the use of this scale in national and international scientific studies where the sleep quality of coronary care patients is evaluated will contribute to not only our colleagues but also the relevant scientific field.

Relationship between burnout levels of nurses and their circadian preference, sleep quality, and personality traits.

Occupational stress and burnout are widely encountered among many healthcare professionals, including nurses and doctors, as well as among members of other professions. For example, nurses, who have disrupted circadian rhythms, are seen to have sleep problems. In addition, their personality traits are also considered to be related with burnout. This study aimed to identify nurses' circadian preference and personality traits along with their effects on sleep quality and their relationship with burnout. In this study, 211 nurses (40 male, 171 female) using the correlational model from quantitative research methods was used since the variables of morningness/eveningness, personality trait, sleep quality, and burnout were aimed to be investigated at once, without intervention, within the predictivity context of the relationship among them. When the scores obtained from the burnout scale were examined, it was observed that the emotional exhaustion and personal accomplishment subdimensions were so close to the median value and mean, while depersonalization was quite low compared to these sub-dimensions. The participants' sleep quality was seen to be at the lowest step of the poor sleep quality class. When the scores obtained from the MESSI scale are examined, it is seen that the scores obtained from the morning affect dimension are above the median value, and the highest average according to the Five-Factor Personality Traits Scale is obtained in the subdimensions of agreeableness and conscientiousness. Female gender, constantly work at night, having a high number of weekly working hours increased burnout level. Additionally Evening chronotype, poor sleep quality, neuroticism, agreeableness, extroversion and conscientiousness personality traits were found to be associated with burnout in this study. In the study, being of different chronotypes, having other personality traits, and varying sleep quality scores were seen to affect the sub-dimensions of burnout.

Pain experiences of patients with advanced cancer: A qualitative descriptive study.

PURPOSE: Uncontrolled pain, especially in patients with advanced cancer, affects quality of life negatively and causes negative physical and psychological conditions. The aim of this study was to explore the pain experiences of patients with advanced cancer and how they manage with pain, and to present a view of pain management approaches of nurses from the perspectives of the patients. METHODS: This was a qualitative descriptive study of sixteen hospitalized patients with advanced cancer. Data were collected using semi-structured interviews with patients. Data were analysed by Colaizzi's phenomenological method. RESULTS: This study found that patients with advanced cancer who had pain experienced anxiety, helplessness, hopelessness and many restrictions in daily life as well as inability to manage with pain. Most of the patients with advanced cancer were not satisfied with their nursing care with regard to pain management. The themes that emerged were pain perception and experiences, effects of pain on daily life, pain management and management strategies and the patients' perspectives about nursing approaches to pain. CONCLUSIONS: This study demonstrated the difficulties of patients with advanced cancer who experienced pain in their daily lives, yet lack pain management strategies. Furthermore, nurses' caring approaches to patients with advanced cancer who experienced pain was found inadequate. Oncology nurses should provide educational interventions in order to enhance knowledge and skills about pain assessment and non-pharmacologic and pharmacologic strategies used in pain management.