Turkish teachers' self-efficacy to manage food allergy and anaphylaxis: A psychometric testing study.

INTRODUCTION AND OBJECTIVES: Food allergy in school children ranges between 5.7 and 6.4% in Turkey. Studies emphasize the importance of improving school personnel's self-efficacy in managing food allergy and anaphylaxis. However, a brief and valid measurement tool for school personnel is not available in Turkey. The aim of this study was to determine the validity and reliability of the Turkish version of the School Personnel's Self-efficacy in Managing Food Allergy and Anaphylaxis (SPSMFAA-T) scale with teachers. PATIENTS OR MATERIALS AND METHODS: This methodological study was conducted by 282 primary school teachers. Data were collected with a demographic characteristics form and SPSMFAA-T. The psychometric properties of the SPSMFAA-T were evaluated by content, discriminant, construct validity and internal consistency. RESULTS: Cronbach's alpha for the scale was 0.91 and item-total correlations were between 0.50 and 0.82 (p<0.001). The discriminant validity suggested that the scale successfully discriminated the teachers who had training on food allergy and anaphylaxis from the teachers who did not. The model fit indices of scale were determined to be the root mean square error of approximation (RMSEA) at 0.08, goodness of fit index (GFI) at 0.96, comparative fit index (CFI) at 0.99. CONCLUSIONS: The results supported that the SPSMFAA-T was a valid and reliable measurement tool to assess Turkish teachers' self-efficacy levels to manage food allergy and anaphylaxis in school setting. The scale can be used in education programs to improve school personnel's skills to manage food allergy and anaphylaxis.

Student nurses' experience of supervision and Mentorship in clinical practice: a cross cultural perspective.

This paper reports a study, which explored student nurses experience in clinical practice. The aims of this study were to describe nurse education systems in clinical practice in eight nursing schools and compare the supervisory experiences of student nurses working in clinical settings. The nursing schools taking part in the study were members of the thematic european nursing network (TENN). A quantitative survey method was chosen for the method of this study. The sample (N=411) was collected using a validated research instrument from eight nursing schools participating in the TENN. The schools are located in Estonia, Belgium, Finland, Lithuania, Portugal, Romania, Turkey and United Kingdom. The data were collected during 2005. Although the nursing schools involved in TENN are in different development phases, however, the organisation of clinical practice is mainly similar. The percentage of clinical practice in a complete nursing programme varies from 38 to 57. Moreover, the duration of the clinical placements varies substantially across the nursing schools; from a couple weeks to 34 weeks. Students in this study evaluated their supervision experience positively. In three schools group or team supervision is the most common model. In the clinical placements where the pedagogical activities of staff nurses are notable, is a clear tendency towards a Mentorship model. However, approximately 10% of respondents perceived some practical problems in the organisation of Mentorship. Students' total satisfaction was observed to link with crucial variables but only connection with the variable Occurrence of supervision was statistically significant (p=0.000).

The effects of Islam and traditional practices on women's health and reproduction.

The aim of this study was to investigate the effects of Islam as a religion and culture on Turkish women's health. The study included 138 household members residing in the territory of three primary health care centers in Turkey: Güzelbahçe, Fahrettin Altay and Esentepe. Data were collected by means of a questionnaire prepared by a multidisciplinary team that included specialists from the departments of public health, psychiatric nursing and sociology. We found that the women's health behavior changed from traditional to rational as education levels increased, and that religious and traditional attitudes and behaviors were predominant in the countryside, especially practices related to pregnancy, delivery, the postpartum period, induced abortion and family planning. One of the most important prerequisites for the improvement of women's health is that nurses should know the religious practices and culture of the society for which they provide care, so that their efforts to protect and improve women's health will be effective.