Problem solving team interventions: Web-based and consultant-based experimental evaluations.

This research was designed to develop, implement, and evaluate an assessment and intervention protocol to increase problem-solving teams' (PSTs) adoption and implementation of evidence-based practices aimed at students with disruptive behavior problems. Participants included 15 PSTs. Adopting single-case design methodology, we examined whether a customized set of assessment and intervention consultant-led intervention procedures could be used to improve the activities, process, and recommendations of PSTs compared to a web-based intervention. We were interested in evaluating two variations of the problem-solving model based on the team initiated problem-solving (TIPS) approach. TIPS includes steps to successful problem solving and solution implementation for student academic and behavioral concerns. Based on visual analysis and statistical randomization tests, we found that a teleconsultation web-based model of PST intervention was not effective in improving the functioning of the PST. In contrast, a customized, consultation-led intervention model with PST facilitators that followed this approach was found to be effective in improving both the foundation and thoroughness of the PST's problem solving. Implications of future PST improvement models for practice and research are discussed.

Adults with CHD balancing motivations and concerns in pregnancy decision-making.

BACKGROUND: While the incidence of pregnancy has increased among individuals with adult CHD, little has been described about considerations and experiences of patients with adult CHD regarding pregnancy. OBJECTIVE: We aimed to explore patients' motivations, concerns, and decision-making processes regarding pregnancy. METHODS: In April 2019-January 2020, we conducted in-depth telephone interviews with patients (n = 25) with simple, moderate, or complex adult CHD, who received prenatal care at the University of Washington during 2010-2019 and experienced a live birth. Transcripts were analysed using thematic analysis. RESULTS: Participants described motivations for pregnancy as both internal desires (motherhood, marriage fulfillment, biological connection, fetal personhood, self-efficacy) and external drivers (family or community), as well as concerns for the health and survival of themselves and the fetus. Factors that enabled their decision to maintain a pregnancy included having a desire that outweighed their perceived risk, using available data to guide their decision, planning for contingencies and knowing their beliefs about termination, plus having a trusted healthcare team, social support, and resources. Factors that led to insurmountable risk in subsequent pregnancies included desire having been fulfilled by the first pregnancy, compounding risk with age and additional pregnancies, new responsibility to an existing child, and reduced healthcare team and social support. CONCLUSIONS: Understanding individuals' motivations and concerns, and how they weigh their decisions to become or remain pregnant, can help clinicians better support patients with adult CHD considering pregnancy. Clinician education on patient experiences is warranted.

Cardiac and Pregnancy Outcomes of Pregnant Patients With Congenital Heart Disease According to Risk Classification System.

Pregnancy risk assessment for patients with adult congenital heart disease (ACHD) must include physiologic and anatomic impacts. We aimed to determine whether maternal cardiac and pregnancy outcomes vary by disease severity defined according to the following 3 different classifications: ACHD anatomic severity, ACHD physiologic class, and modified World Health Organization (mWHO) class. Cardiac outcomes included a composite of arrhythmia, heart failure, stroke, and thromboembolism. Pregnancy outcomes included a composite of intrauterine growth restriction, preterm birth, preeclampsia, or postpartum hemorrhage. We employed generalized estimating equations to account for multiple pregnancies. Of the 245 pregnancies, 17.1% were preterm and 45.7% were cesarean deliveries. Cardiac hospitalizations occurred in 22.0% and arrhythmias in 12.7%. Cardiac outcomes tended to be more prevalent in people with more severe heart disease. Pregnancy outcomes were U-shaped or less prevalent in people with more severe disease. There was a 2.9-fold increased risk for the composite cardiac outcome for complex anatomy (adjusted incidence rate ratio 2.90, 95% confidence interval 1.08 to 7.81, p = 0.04), a 9.4-fold increased risk for physiologic class C or D (9.37, 1.28 to 68.79, p = 0.03), and a fourfold increased risk for mWHO class III or IV (3.99, 1.53 to 10.40, p = 0.005). There was a lower risk for the composite pregnancy outcome for mWHO class II or II to III (0.54, 0.36 to 0.79, p = 0.002) but no association with anatomy or physiology. In conclusion, physiologic class may be most accurately associated with adverse outcomes and therefore efforts to optimize hemodynamics before pregnancy may help to mitigate the risk.

Experience With Advance Care Planning Discussions Among Pregnant Women With Congenital Heart Disease.

CONTEXT: Women with adult congenital heart disease (ACHD) have an increased risk of adverse events during pregnancy. Advance care planning may therefore be an appropriate component of prenatal care. OBJECTIVE: The aim of this study was to describe the perspectives of women with ACHD surrounding advance care planning during pregnancy. METHODS: We conducted a thematic analysis of 25 semi-structured interviews with women with ACHD who had been pregnant. Purposive sampling was used to gain diversity in ACHD lesion complexity, race, age at pregnancy, and marital status. RESULTS: Mean age at pregnancy was 29 years (range 15-41 years), and ACHD was classified as simple (24%), moderate (44%), or complex (32%). We identified three primary themes: 1) the role of advance care planning in being prepared and providing security for family; 2) reasons for avoiding advance care planning, including its lower priority among more pressing concerns and the impact it might have on their current psychological state; and 3) varied openness to advance care planning discussions during pregnancy. CONCLUSION: Advance care planning is not a routine part of prenatal care in ACHD, and its role in this population requires further assessment.

Oral Feeding Outcome in Infants with a Tracheostomy.

PURPOSE: Currently, there is a lack of evidence-based guidelines on the proper protocol for feeding infants with a tracheostomy in the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU). The purpose of this study was to provide preliminary insight into the outcomes of these infants in one mid-Atlantic pediatric hospital. DESIGN AND METHODS: Retrospective and descriptive. The study team reviewed 114 patient records, 42 of which met the inclusion criteria. Data were organized based on: 1) general demographics and history; b) feeding-related variables at multiple points; c) speech-related variables, including assessments and swallowing studies; d) respiratory variables at multiple points; and, e) discharge data. Other variables included birth-related information, ventilation settings and feeding modifications. RESULTS: Infants were placed into three groups at discharge based on feeding outcomes. Forty-three percent were discharged on full oral feeds, 38% on combined oral and gavage, and 19% of infants were discharged on full gavage feeds. Informal analysis showed that all three categories of infants gained weight during hospitalization, different PEEP pressures and different lengths of hospitalization were observed among the groups, and infant characteristics (e.g., APGAR, gestational ages) were similar across groups. CONCLUSIONS: Overall results provide insight into factors that may be predictive of feeding status at discharge for infants with a tracheostomy in an NICU. PRACTICAL IMPLICATIONS: Results of this study can provide important insight into the feeding outcomes of infants in a NICU with a tracheostomy and can hopefully lead to additional research to help determine the most efficacious procedures for feeding this patient population.

Parental Satisfaction With Pediatric Preoperative Assessment and Education in a Presurgical Care Center.

PURPOSE: The aim of this study was to evaluate parental satisfaction with preoperative assessment and education in a pediatric presurgical care center (PSCC) as well as parental use of a computer instructional video, EMMI, which is a product of Emmi Solutions (Chicago, IL), a health information company for patients. DESIGN: A prospective, exploratory, comparative, and correlational descriptive design was implemented. METHODS: A 23-item questionnaire was completed by 542 parents or legal guardians at the end of their child's PSCC visit. FINDINGS: Very high overall satisfaction was seen with the visit. Highest overall satisfaction was seen related to nurse practitioner and registered nurse behaviors and lowest satisfaction to operational aspects. CONCLUSIONS: This study validates parents' perceptions of the high value of nurses' explanations, respect shown, and response to questions during preoperative assessment of the child and education of the family anticipating surgery. Identification of less satisfying aspects of the presurgical experience provides opportunities for improvement.

Orientation to emergency nursing: perceptions of new graduate nurses.

INTRODUCTION: Emergency nursing is one of the most challenging and understaffed areas of professional nursing. Currently, little is known about how new graduate nurses perceive their experiences as novice emergency nurses. The purpose of this study was to gain an understanding of how new graduate nurses who are oriented to emergency nursing as their first professional area of nursing employment perceive the orientation program and emergency nursing at the beginning and end of a 6-month program. METHOD: This descriptive study incorporated qualitative and quantitative methods consisting of interviews and a survey. Study participants included 15 women and 3 men. Their mean age was 32 years. All were employed full time in their first position as a graduate nurse. They were asked their perceptions of the program at 3 and 6 months. RESULTS: Participants shared their perceptions of why they had been attracted to the program, characteristics of the emergency department and emergency nursing, being in a new job and role, reflections on their performance, the classroom and clinical components of the program, and their recommendations for future orientation programs. Results of the quantitative survey on participants' perceptions of their first job as a registered nurse indicated that they found the work of the orientation program to be stressful. DISCUSSION: Understanding the experience of new graduate nurses to the emergency setting provides crucial information for orientation program design. Incorporating active teaching and socialization strategies early in the program may facilitate the transition from novice to beginning competent emergency nurse.

ENA's Delphi study on national research priorities for emergency nurses in the United States.

INTRODUCTION: This study identified and prioritized research questions with greatest value to emergency nurses and of highest importance for health care consumers. METHODS: Three hundred twenty emergency nursing leaders were invited to participate in 3 rounds of mailed surveys aimed at developing consensus. During round I, 147 nurses submitted 456 research problems. These problems were synthesized into 154 researchable questions, encompassing 17 themes. The round II questionnaire listed these questions in random order. Respondents used a 7-point Likert scale to rate each question's value for practicing nurses and importance for health care consumers. One hundred one nurses rated 106 questions >5.0. The round III questionnaire was individualized to provide each respondent's round II score and each item's median group score. Reflecting on these data, subjects again rated the 106 questions. RESULTS: Seventy-nine nurses rated 16 questions 6.0 or greater for value for practicing nurses; 3 questions were rated 6.0 or greater for importance to consumers. Optimum staff to patient ratios, effects of mandatory overtime, holding admitted patients, and ED overcrowding, as well as effective strategies for educating and ensuring competence of nurses, were highest priority research problems for practicing nurses. Pain relief, impact of and methods of decreasing holding/lengthy ED stay, and effective strategies for patient teaching were judged most important for consumers. DISCUSSION: Nurses' concerns with staff shortages and overcrowding of emergency departments and their effects on patients are paramount. Pain management and patient education were chief clinical issues requiring research. The mission of ENA is "to provide visionary leadership for emergency nursing and emergency care." This mission encompasses a number of values, including the following: "The discipline of emergency nursing includes a defined and evolving body of knowledge based on research."(1) In 1998, the ENA appointed vision councils to develop futuristic ideas to advance ENA's mission. The Research Vision Council proposed that ENA develop a center for emergency nursing research to provide leadership and focus for scientific approaches to the many issues that concern emergency nurses and their patients. The Board of Directors supported this idea by formulating a work group to develop the National Institute for Emergency Nursing Research. In 1999, the work group proposed that a study be conducted to determine national priorities for emergency nursing research. This article reports on the methods and results of a Delphi study conducted for that purpose.

Increasing perceptions of self-worth in preadolescents diagnosed with ADHD.

PURPOSE: To test the effectiveness of a school-based, nurse-facilitated support group in increasing perceptions of scholastic competence, social acceptance, behavioral conduct, perceived athletic competence, perceived physical appearance, and perceived global self-worth in preadolescents diagnosed with attention deficit disorder (ADD) or attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). DESIGN: A quasi-experimental design with 65 preadolescents diagnosed with ADD or ADHD in an upper-middle class community in the United States. METHODS: Participants randomly assigned to either the control or experimental group completed Harter's Self-Perception Profile for Children instrument at the beginning of the study and 4 weeks later. Students in the experimental condition participated in a school-nurse facilitated support group which met twice weekly for 4 weeks. FINDINGS: Participants in the support group had increased scores on each of the six subscales, with significant increases on four of the subscales, including perceived social acceptance, perceived athletic competence, perceived physical appearance, and perceived global self-worth. CONCLUSION: Participation in a school-based, nurse-led support group was positively associated with perception of self-worth in preadolescents diagnosed with ADD or ADHD.

A description of clinical nurse specialist programs in the United States.

Changes have occurred in clinical nurse specialist educational requirements in recent years, and it is not known how programs have responded. The purpose of this descriptive survey was to identify the number of clinical nurse specialist programs in the United States, describe curricula, and examine enrollment and employment trends. This report contains data from 157 separate clinical nurse specialist programs/majors representing 139 different schools. The mean number of credit hours for semester- and quarter-based programs was 41.4 and 52.2, respectively. The mean number of clinical/practical clock hours was 416.2. Approximately half of the respondents (56%) used the National Association of Clinical Nurse Specialists to guide curricula. Nearly 66% of the programs had from 1 to 10 applicants during the previous year. The majority (68%) indicated that their graduates do not have difficulty finding employment after graduating. These findings indicate that efforts to revise curricula and clarify the CNS role must continue.

Incidence of adult immunization for influenza and pneumonia in a preadmission testing unit.

Health care-associated (nosocomial) infection is now more common in surgical patients than surgical-site or wound infection. Elderly patients and those having abdominal, neck, cardiac, or other thoracic procedures are at the highest risk. Pneumococcal pneumonia and influenza are the fifth leading cause of mortality in the elderly population. In the United States, only 54% of persons older than 65 years have received a pneumococcal vaccine, whereas approximately 67% have been immunized for influenza. In this study, interviews were conducted with 160 elderly patients seen in the preadmission testing unit of a large community hospital. Results showed immunization rates of 57% for pneumonia and 76% for influenza. Similar to findings of previous studies, minorities were less likely to be immunized than whites. Of those who were not immunized for pneumonia or could not recall their immunization status, 71% stated they had not been offered immunization. Sixty-four percent stated they would take the vaccine to prevent pneumonia if it were offered. Of those patients who were not immunized for influenza, 54% had not been offered this protection and 41% stated they would take the influenza vaccine if offered. Although vaccination rates of participants in the present study surpassed the 1998 national baseline for noninstitutionalized adults, there is much opportunity for improvement. Perianesthesia nurses have an important role in reducing surgical patients' risks of developing health care-associated pneumonia and invasive bacteremia by assessing the patient's immunization status and being proactive in helping surgical patients obtain appropriate vaccinations. Routine documentation of a vaccination history for pneumococcal pneumonia and influenza during preadmission testing and use of a standard protocol for educating and immunizing those who lack this protection are strategies that can be easily implemented by nurses practicing in perianesthesia settings such as ambulatory surgical sites and preadmission testing units. This practice would foster achievement of the Healthy People 2010 goal of 90% vaccination rates for persons at high risk for these deadly diseases.

Into thinner air.

At a Colorado ski resort with an altitude of 8,500 feet, a guest is overcome by exhaustion, nausea, and headache. Could it be acute mountain sickness?