[SANITARY WASTE IN THE HOSPITAL SETTING: ATTITUDE OF HEALTH PROFESSIONALS TOWARD ADVANCED MANAGEMENT OF SANITARY WASTE]. / Residuos sanitarios en el ámbito hospitalario (y 3).

OBJECTVE: The aim of this study was to assess the attitude of nurse assistants, nurses, physicians, and lab technicians about advanced management of medical waste. METHODS: Cross-sectional study of Attitude and explanatory variable degree of concordance between Attitude, Knowledge, and Risk Perception. The sample size was 176 health professionals from three hospitals in,the Barcelona area. A questionnaire of 44 items with responses measured on a Likert scale type questions and free and spontaneous association and incomplete sentences was used. RESULTS: Mean Attitude of health professionals surveyed was 4.40, with a standard deviation of 0.4 on a scale of 1-5, where 1 is considered a very negative and five a very positive Attitude. According to the values obtained with the Professional Category, the nurse assistants had an average value of 4.45 in Attitude, followed by nurses (4.36), physicians (4.27), and lab technicians (4.47). In the Pearson correlation, coefficients between Attitude, Risk Perception, Global Assessment, and level of Knowledge, values of r = 0.172 andp = 0.023 were obtained, r = -0.156 and p = 0.039 and r = 0.013 and p = 0.865 respectively. The mean values of the variables Knowledge, Risk Perception, Attitude, and Overall Rating were significantly different (ANOVA) in Knowledge level, according to Professional Category and Welfare Service, but not in other categories. CONCLUSIONS: The results of the current study suggest that health professionals generally have a very positive Attitude towards the management of medical waste. A significant relationship between Attitude and Risk Perception and Overall Rating was observed. In terms of the analysis of Variance, there was a significant difference in the level of Knowledge according to the Professional Category and the Assistance Service.

[MANAGEMENT OF HEALTHCARE WASTE IN THE HOSPITAL SETTING. UNDERSTANDING RISK MANAGEMENT]. / Gestión de los residuos sanitarios en el ámbito hospitalario (2).

UNLABELLED: The sanitary waste represents a potential hazard for health workers. Given the high risk of infection in labor accidents, the correct management of sanitary waste minimizes this risk and improves labor and environment conditions. OBJECTIVE: To identify risk perception with health professionals in relation to the advanced sorting and management of healthcare waste (HW). METHODOLOGY: The current study is a descriptive, cross-sectional. The sample size was 177 health workers (nurse assistants, nurses, physicians, lab technicians) from three hospitals in Barcelona (Catalonia). Homemade questionnaire and questions with a free and spontaneous association and incomplete sentences were used to analyze labor variables, perception of risk and personal security through a Likert scale. RESULTS: Using a score from 1 (the lowest perception of risk) to 5 (the high perception of risk) to assess the risk perception, the average value for nurse assistants, nurses, physicians, and lab technicians was 3.71, 3.75, 3.83 and 4.03, respectively. Referring to items with free and spontaneous response association, 44.8% of workers consider HW as a biohazard, 29.6% consider it as waste material, 22.1% state that it must be managed properly and 3.5% described it as unknown residues. CONCLUSION: The results suggest that all health professionals generally have a perception of high risk. The lab technicians have a higher perception of the real risk of inadequate management of HW A 63.2% report that everyone has to make a proper management to preserve their occupational health; the 59% consider that the HW are a biological risk to the general population and only the 47.8% that are harmful to public health. Although it should be noted that only 44.8% think that HW are toxic and dangerous.

[Perceptions of dependent elderly cared for by immigrant workers concerning the help they need and receive]. / ¿Cómo perciben los mayores a sus cuidadoras inmigrantes? Sobre la ayuda que necesitan y reciben en el domicilio.

INTRODUCTION: Social-demographic changes such as the increasing number of dependent elderly people, the incorporation of women into the workforce, and declining family size have led to the emergence of a new occupation, that of home care for elderly dependents. This work is usually carried out by women immigrants. Little is known about how this care is perceived by the elderly. OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the daily lives of elderly people cared for by hired immigrants to identify aspects of their health and the care they receive. METHODOLOGY: A qualitative study conducted through twelve theoretical sampling interviews that were recorded, transcribed and analyzed with computer support of Atlas Ti V5. RESULTS: The elderly do not anticipate or prepare for the problems of old age. Their main concerns regarding health are illness, pain and death. All wish to remain as autonomous as possible. The need to arrange home care services is often first perceived by the family. Home-help workers assist in basic and instrumental daily activities and provide care and company. Cultural conflicts in the practice of care are rare. Despite general satisfaction with help received, the elderly consider that the workers lack specific training in caring for the elderly. CONCLUSIONS: The elderly are aware of the current difficulties of families to care for them and they are adapting to the new reality of home care. They value the worker who helps them because besides helping with housework, they provide company, entertainment and affection. Primary care nurses can play a key role in training immigrant workers in caring for the elderly.

[Evaluation of the nurse working environment in health and social care intermediate care units in Catalonia]. / Evaluación del ambiente de trabajo de las enfermeras en las unidades sociosanitarias de atención intermedia de Cataluña.

INTRODUCTION: A favourable work environment contributes to greater job satisfaction and improved working conditions for nurses, a fact that could influence the quality of patient outcomes. The aim of the study is two-fold: Identifying types of centres, according to the working environment assessment made by nurses in intermediate care units, and describing the individual characteristics of nurses related to this assessment. METHODS: An observational, descriptive, prospective, cross-sectional, and multicentre study was conducted in the last quarter of 2014. Nurses in intermediate care units were given a questionnaire containing the Practice Environment Scale of the Nursing Work Index (PES-NWI) which assesses five factors of the work environment using 31 items. Sociodemographic, employment conditions, professional and educational variables were also collected. RESULTS: From a sample of 501 nurses from 14 centres, 388 nurses participated (77% response). The mean score on the PES-NWI was 84.75. Nine centres scored a "favourable" working environment and five "mixed". The best valued factor was "work relations" and the worst was "resource provision/adaptation". Rotating shift work, working in several units at the same time, having management responsibilities, and having a master degree were the characteristics related to a better perception of the nursing work environment. CONCLUSIONS: In most centres, the working environment was perceived as favourable. Some employment conditions, professional, and educational characteristics of nurses were related to the work environment assessment.