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A growing body of literature has acknowledged that a high number of populations with low Health Literacy (HL) is related to poor health outcomes, inequities in healthcare and high economic costs. Those findings have formulated the research questions of this review: (i) what ethical issues arise within the context of patients' HL and (ii) What is the relationship between HL and quality of life? This review followed the guidelines of Joanna Briggs Institute (JBI) and the Preferred Reporting Items for Scoping Reviews (PRISMA-ScR) and it was conducted in five databases: PubMed, CINAHL, MEDLINE, Scopus and Science Direct between June 2022 and December 2023. Out of the 3164 titles retrieved, 285 abstracts were eligible to proceed. Following a thorough examination of the full text of 61 papers, 45 sources were identified that met the inclusion criteria. The data analysis process was guided by the research questions, employing a thematic approach. Four themes were identified: the use of language and patient understanding, human rights, the principlism approach (justice, beneficence, non-maleficence and autonomy) and quality of life. The first theme mainly focused on the relation of HL with the notion of consent forms and national action plans. Human rights in relation to HL were discussed as a minor issue. The bioethical framework by Beauchamp and Childress (Principles of Biomedical Ethics, 6th edn. Oxford University Press, New York, NY, 2009), was addressed by several studies, with a particular focus on justice and the loss of autonomy. Quality of life indicated a positive correlation with HL by most of the authors, while few studies revealed a moderate correlation.
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Alfabetización en Salud , Calidad de Vida , Humanos , Derechos HumanosRESUMEN
AIMS AND OBJECTIVES: To investigate nurses' intention in accepting COVID-19 vaccination and the factors affecting their decision. BACKGROUND: COVID-19 vaccination has started in most European countries with healthcare personnel being the first group receiving the vaccine shots. Their attitude towards vaccination is of paramount significant as their role in the frontline could help in the awareness of general population. METHODS: A study was conducted in Albania, Cyprus, Greece, Spain and Kosovo with the use of an online questionnaire. The Fear of COVID-19 Scale was used. The STROBE checklist was followed for this cross-sectional study. RESULTS: Study population consisted of 1135 nurses. Mean age of the participants was 38.3 years, while most of them were female gender (84.7%) and married (53.1%). Acceptance of a safe and effective COVID-19 vaccine was higher among Greek (79.2%) and Spanish (71.6%) nurses, followed by Cypriot (54%), Albanian (46.3%) and Kosovo (46.2%) nurses. Key factors for willingness to get vaccinated were male gender, living in a country with a high mortality rate in comparison with low mortality, being not infected with COVID-19, having high level of knowledge about COVID-19 vaccines and having been vaccinated for influenza in the last 2 years. Moreover, trusting the government and doctors regarding the information about the COVID-19 and having high level of fear about this virus were key factors for willingness to get vaccinated. CONCLUSION: Vaccination of healthcare personnel is a crucial issue not only for their own safety but also for their patients'. Healthcare acceptance to get vaccinated can work as a role model for general population. RELEVANCE TO CLINICAL PRACTICE: Gender, country, mortality rate, trust in government and health professionals and the level of fear were key factors that should be managed in clinical practice.
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COVID-19 , Vacunas contra la Influenza , Enfermeras y Enfermeros , Adulto , COVID-19/epidemiología , COVID-19/prevención & control , Vacunas contra la COVID-19 , Estudios Transversales , Femenino , Humanos , Intención , Masculino , SARS-CoV-2 , VacunaciónRESUMEN
BACKGROUND: Sarcopenia and polypharmacy are both prevalent conditions in the geriatric population, leading to poor quality of life and adverse outcomes. OBJECTIVE: To explore the evidence on the relationship between sarcopenia and polypharmacy and to summarize the findings and the gaps from the existing literature. METHOD: A systematic scoping review was conducted between March and May 2021, with no restriction on publication date, using the Arksey and O'Malley framework and reported according to PRISMA-ScR. Four bibliographic databases, PubMed, Web of Science, Scopus, Proquest One Academic, and four sources of gray literature were searched for studies written in English or Greek. Data were extracted quantitatively and using thematic analysis. RESULTS: Of the 397 initially retrieved records, 22 studies were finally included in this review, 20 published articles and 2 posters-presentations. Most of the studies used cross-sectional data. The relationship between sarcopenia and polypharmacy should be interpreted on the basis of the definition of polypharmacy, the diagnostic criteria of sarcopenia used, and the population setting. Sarcopenia or risk for sarcopenia are associated with polypharmacy or the number of medications in community-dwelling older adults, regardless of diagnostic criteria used for sarcopenia. CONCLUSION: There is an association between sarcopenia or risk for sarcopenia and polypharmacy or the number of medications in community-dwelling older adults but not among residents of nursing homes or inpatients. Specific widely accepted definitions of polypharmacy and sarcopenia, a consensus on the method of sarcopenia assessment, and prospective studies are needed to identify polypharmacy as a potential risk factor for sarcopenia.
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Polifarmacia , Sarcopenia , Anciano , Estudios Transversales , Humanos , Vida Independiente , Calidad de Vida , Sarcopenia/epidemiologíaRESUMEN
BACKGROUND: Levels of fear have increased since the COVID-19 pandemic outbreak. The absence of a safe and effective vaccine for mass-vaccination deteriorates this situation, which has a significant impact on mental health. This study aimed to assess the feelings of fear among nurses and nursing students in five European countries. METHODS: A multicenter cross-sectional study was conducted in five European countries (Greece, Albania, Cyprus, Spain, and Kosovo) before the start of mass vaccination in Europe. Data collection was conducted in December 2020-January 2021 using an online questionnaire for nursing students and professional nurses. Fear of COVID-19 Scale (FCV-19S) was used for measuring levels of fear. IBM SPSS version 21.0 was used for statistical analysis. RESULTS: The study population included 1135 nurses and 1920 nursing students from Kosovo (n = 1085), Spain (n = 663), Greece (n = 534), Albania (n = 529), and Cyprus (n = 244). According to multivariable analysis, females (OR = 2.53, 95% CI = 1.89-3.15), married (OR = 0.86, 95% CI = 0.24-1.48), nurses (OR = 0.87, 95% CI = 0.28-1.45) and those with a chronic disease (OR = 0.86, 95% CI = 0.11-1.62) were more fearful of COVID-19. CONCLUSIONS: It is important to decrease fear in the population of nurses who are at the frontlines of the pandemic. The provision of appropriate education and training activities for nurses and students to manage their stress levels is of high importance. Future studies should focus on levels of fear after the administration of several safe and effective vaccines worldwide.
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AIM: The aim of the present review was to examine the evidence of the relationship between self-reported or perceived fatigue and falls among older adults. METHODS: A systematic review, following the PRISMA recommendations, was performed. PubMed, Scopus, Web of Science, and Cinahl were searched from February 2021 until March 2021, without any limitation on publication date. The methodological quality of the recruited studies was assessed with the Newcastle-Ottawa scale. RESULTS: Of the 2,296 initially retrieved records, 20 met the inclusion criteria; 11 cohort and 9 cross-sectional studies. They were classified as "good or very good" studies. Data on 59,852 older adults was reported. Most studies reported a strong association between fatigue and incidence or risk of falls, with odds ratios ranging from 1.04 to 3.53. Evidence obout the relationship between fatigue and recurrent, as well as injurious, falls is limited. CONCLUSIONS: Self-reported or perceived fatigue is associated with the incidence of falls or risk of falling among older adults. Nurses could contribute to decreasing the inicdence of falls through prevention and proper geriatric assessment, including the management of fatigue in their daily clinical practice. The evidence about the potential effect of fatigue on falls-related injuries is inconclusive and on recurrent falls remains to be further defined.
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Accidentes por Caídas , Evaluación Geriátrica , Anciano , Estudios Transversales , Fatiga/epidemiología , Fatiga/etiología , Humanos , AutoinformeRESUMEN
PURPOSE: To examine the relationship between sleep quality and duration and muscle strength among community-dwelling middle-aged and older adults. METHODS: A systematic review was conducted from March 2020 until May 2020. Searches were done for peer-reviewed and English-written articles reporting results of studies in PubMed, Embase, Scopus, Cochrane Library, and in article references lists. The Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses was used as well as the Newcastle-Ottawa Scale (NOS) to appraise the methodological quality. RESULTS: Twenty-one cross-sectional, three prospective studies and a total of 92,363 subjects were included. The majority of the included studies are classified as "high quality". Handgrip strength is the main method of muscle strength assessment. Sleep assessment is usually conducted using subjective measures, such as validated sleep scales or self-reported questionnaires. Actigraphy, as an objective measure, is used less often. Most studies support strong evidence on the association between weak muscle strength and poor sleep quality and duration among middle-aged and older adults; whereas the results for the gender-specific association and the impact of short or long sleep duration were inconclusive. CONCLUSION: This review has identified strong evidence on the relationship between sleep quality and duration and muscle strength among middle-aged and older adults. Health professionals should consider this relationship as a component of geriatric assessment in community practice and geriatric settings. Future rigorous research with a combination of subjective and objective measurements is needed to explore whether gender and specific sleep duration are related to muscle strength.
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Fuerza de la Mano , Fuerza Muscular , Anciano , Estudios Transversales , Humanos , Persona de Mediana Edad , Estudios Prospectivos , SueñoRESUMEN
PURPOSE: To record the health promotion behaviors of family caregivers of stroke survivors, as well as potential determinants that could affect these behaviors. METHODS: A cross-sectional study was carried out through home visits in the Attica region using the convenience sampling method. The studied population included 109 survivors who had suffered a stroke and experienced functional problems, and their 109 primary caregivers, who were family members, lived in the same house and were fully responsible for their care. The dependent variables were the caregivers' health promotion behaviors, while the independent variables were the survivors and caregivers' demographic characteristics, survivors' functional capacity, depression, social support and changes in caregivers' lives from caring. RESULTS: Better health promotional behaviors were associated with the following: patient having advanced age and a high level of functionality, caregivers assessing their own state of health as "good", greater social support, a higher educational level and a higher income level. In addition, more hours of patient care were associated with a less healthy lifestyle for caregivers. CONCLUSIONS: Promoting the health of family caregivers of stroke survivors is crucial for both survivors and caregivers. For this reason, it is of great importance to detect factors that affect the health promotion behaviors of caregivers in order to carry out appropriate interventions and improve their quality of life.
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BACKGROUND: Experiencing the third wave of COVID-19 pandemic, high vaccination coverage by a safe and effective vaccine globally would be a great achievement. Acceptance of vaccination by nursing students is an important issue as they play a decisive role as future professionals in educating patients, counselling, and guiding them to the right clinical decision. OBJECTIVES: To explore the intention of nursing students to get vaccinated for SARS-CoV-2 infection and the factors acting either as motivators or as barriers towards vaccination. DESIGN: A multicenter cross-sectional design. PARTICIPANTS: In total 2249 undergraduate nursing students participated. METHODS: The study was conducted in 7 universities in participating countries (Greece, Albania, Cyprus, Spain, Italy, Czech Republic, and Kosovo) through a web survey. Data was collected during December 2020-January 2021 in all countries. RESULTS: Forty three point 8% of students agreed to accept a safe and effective COVID-19 vaccine, while the acceptance was higher among Italian students. The factors for intention to get vaccinated were male gender (p = 0.008), no working experience in healthcare facilities during the pandemic (p = 0.001), vaccination for influenza in 2019 and 2020 (p < 0.001), trust in doctors (p < 0.001), governments and experts (p = 0.012), high level of knowledge (p < 0.001) and fear of COVID-19 (p < 0.001). CONCLUSIONS: Understanding of factors that influence students' decision to accept COVID-19 vaccination could increase the acceptance rate contributing to a management of the pandemic.
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COVID-19 , Bachillerato en Enfermería , Estudiantes de Enfermería , Vacunas contra la COVID-19 , Estudios Transversales , Europa (Continente) , Grecia , Humanos , Intención , Italia , Masculino , Estudios Multicéntricos como Asunto , Pandemias , SARS-CoV-2 , España , Encuestas y Cuestionarios , VacunaciónRESUMEN
Home healthcare has just recently won the interest of policy decision makers in Greece and there is a lack of knowledge regarding the contributions provided by each team member. The aim of this study was to describe the home care interventions carried out by nurses, physicians, and physiotherapists during the AKEΣΩ-1 project. We examined the data from 1,094 patients who received home healthcare (HHC) from an interdisciplinary team from the Hellenic Red Cross HHC services in three major cities in Greece during a 20-month period. The visits and interventions by nurses, physicians, and physiotherapists were grouped and measured. Patients were mostly older adults (80.73%), women (68.37%) with medical problems (46.8%). Nurses conducted 70.76% of the visits, and provided 21,017 interventions. Physiotherapists conducted 22.83% of the visits and 4,627 interventions, and physicians conducted 6.4% of the visits and 2,117 interventions. Nurses provided a wide range of complex skilled nursing interventions that required knowledge of the community and ability to network. Physiotherapy and educating patients and caregivers were the most frequent interventions of physiotherapists. The main role of physicians was to conduct clinical exams. The Greek healthcare system is hospital- and physician-oriented. We documented that in HHC, nurses take a lead role in providing care, organizing services, and collaborating with other community services. From a health and social policy perspective, proper planning and staffing of HHC services are required. From an academic and licensing perspective, it is important to ensure that nurses working in the community have appropriate preparation.
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Atención a la Salud , Servicios de Atención de Salud a Domicilio , Anciano , Atención a la Salud/organización & administración , Atención a la Salud/estadística & datos numéricos , Femenino , Grecia , Servicios de Atención de Salud a Domicilio/organización & administración , Servicios de Atención de Salud a Domicilio/estadística & datos numéricos , Humanos , Enfermeras y Enfermeros/estadística & datos numéricos , Fisioterapeutas/estadística & datos numéricos , Médicos/estadística & datos numéricosRESUMEN
Experiences and outcomes of critically ill patients reflect quality of intensive care. The aim of this study was twofold: a) to investigate factors affecting patients' experiences to Intensive Care Units (ICUs) and b) to measure patients' post discharge Health-Related Quality of Life (HRQOL). METHODS: A cross-sectional study with retrospective data collection was carried out. The participants (n=108) were discharged patients from four ICUs of three military hospitals in Athens. Telephone interviews were conducted using the "Patient Empowerment Questionnaire" and "Quality of life Questionnaire". RESULTS: Patients suffering from pain (p<0.001), polytraumatized or patients underwent a "non-scheduled surgery" (p=0.001) reported worse sleep at night. Mechanical ventilation was associated positively with pain relief (p=0.021). Extended length of stay (p<0.001), bad health status prior ICU admission (p=0.005), "polytrauma" and "non-scheduled surgery" patients (p=0.032), mechanical ventilation (p=0.005) and pain during ICU stay (p=0.04) were correlated with worse HRQOL after discharge. CONCLUSIONS: ICU staff must consider the factors that affected patients' experiences during their ICU stay and worsened HRQOL after discharge. Adoption of new technological innovations could help them to improve the quality of intensive care provided.
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Enfermedad Crítica , Calidad de Vida , Tecnología , Estudios Transversales , Humanos , Unidades de Cuidados Intensivos , Tiempo de Internación , Estudios RetrospectivosRESUMEN
The purpose of the study was to investigate the experiences of discharged patients from Intensive Care Units (ICUs). A study with retrospective data collection (n=112) was conducted via interviews using the Intensive Care Experience Questionnaire. 93% of participants reported positive experiences from the ICU. Frightening experiences were restricted to minimum levels (mean score=9/25), while the feeling of security was prevalent (96.5%) and care satisfaction was high (mean score=18.2/20). Communicating the aforementioned experiences, professionals may better understand patients' needs in order to improve the IT systems and patients' hospitalization.
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Enfermería de Cuidados Críticos , Sistemas de Información en Hospital , Unidades de Cuidados Intensivos , Cuidados Críticos , Humanos , Informática Médica , Satisfacción del Paciente , Estudios Retrospectivos , Encuestas y CuestionariosRESUMEN
The study objective was to compare the cost and effectiveness of two surgical techniques: open repair and endovascular aneurysm repair (EVAR) of abdominal aortic aneurysm (AAA). We assessed 58 surgical operations of AAA repair conducted in 54 men and 4 women (aged 49-94 years) during 2003 and 2004. Open surgical repair was performed in 21 patients, and EVAR was performed in 37 patients. The evaluation of the effectiveness of both methods was based on the following factors: mortality within 30 days, surgery duration, total hospitalization time, and intensive care unit stay duration. The segmental costs of grafts, anesthesia, and extra materials were included in the calculations for the comparison of the costs of the two methods. A 30-day mortality of 5.17% and 0% was demonstrated for open surgical repair and EVAR, respectively. In regard to the operation's mean duration, this was calculated to 279.52 minutes for open repair and 193.57 minutes for EVAR. The mean duration of the in-hospital stay was 11.3 and 4.09 days for open repair and EVAR, respectively. Accordingly, the mean duration of intensive care unit stay was 2.81 and 0.23 days, respectively. The cost evaluation revealed a mean cost of 5374.3euro ($7,643.49) and 20,592.52euro ($29,287.50) for open repair and EVAR, respectively. Open repair is a "tested method" of its own time. EVAR seems to have the advantage on aspects of effectiveness, yet its major hallmark is its significant cost, as indicated in the relevant part of the current study.
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Angioplastia/economía , Aneurisma de la Aorta Abdominal/cirugía , Implantación de Prótesis Vascular/economía , Costos de Hospital/estadística & datos numéricos , Anciano , Anciano de 80 o más Años , Angioplastia/mortalidad , Angioplastia/enfermería , Implantación de Prótesis Vascular/mortalidad , Implantación de Prótesis Vascular/enfermería , Distribución de Chi-Cuadrado , Análisis Costo-Beneficio , Cuidados Críticos/economía , Femenino , Investigación sobre Servicios de Salud , Humanos , Tiempo de Internación/economía , Masculino , Persona de Mediana Edad , Rol de la Enfermera , Estudios Retrospectivos , Factores de Tiempo , Resultado del TratamientoRESUMEN
BACKGROUND: The research described in this paper is a cross-sectional study which surveys women who delivered their babies in a regional hospital in Greece to investigate their satisfaction with their postnatal care. This is the first published study which measures satisfaction of postnatal services in Greece. The aim of this study is to determine which factors most influence postnatal satisfaction, which areas are lacking and therefore identify specific areas which should be targeted to improve the performance of health services. METHODS: A cross sectional, quantitative study of 300 women who gave birth in a regional Greek hospital between January 2015 and July 2017 were surveyed 40 days after birth using a self-administered questionnaire. The questionnaire contained sociodemographic and clinical characteristic questions and a selection of questions from the WOMen's views of Birth Postnatal Satisfaction Questionnaire (WOMBPNSQ). RESULTS: This study found that the dimensions with the higher satisfaction scores were "Professional support" and "Continuity". The lower satisfaction scores were for the dimensions "Woman's health", "Contraceptive advice" and "Social support" indicating that these are areas for improvement. The three dimensions most correlated with general satisfaction were "Time with woman", "Feeding baby" and "Professional support". CONCLUSIONS: This study highlights the important role of health professionals showing that they can enhance postnatal satisfaction by spending time with the women, giving guidance on the care of the newborn and baby feeding. Focusing on improving these areas is expected to enhance the quality of postnatal care.
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INTRODUCTION: Smoking rates amongst people with a mental health disorder are significantly higher than in the general population and there is growing evidence to show a strong association between smoking and mental health disorders. The aim of the present study was to investigate views and attitudes of mental patients regarding smoking. MATERIAL & METHODS: The sample is composed of 356 patients treated in the Attica Psychiatric Hospital (a.k.a. "Dafni") as well as in other Units affiliated with the Hospital. The 'Smoking in psychiatric hospitals-a survey of patients' views' questionnaire was used in the form of semi-structured interviews. The PASW 18 (SPSS Inc.) package was used for the statistical analysis and statistical significance was set to p= 0.05. RESULTS: Overall, 40% of the participants were in-patients, the rest being treated in other settings, the average length of hospital stay was 4.4 years, and the most common diagnosis (61.5.%) was schizophrenia (F20, according to ICD-10), while almost all of the participants (97.5%) were smokers. Most patients (58.8%) said they had had a hard time trying to quit smoking although they had sufficient information and encouragement (≈90%); they also reported that watching the staff smoking did not affect them inasmuch as watching other patients smoking (41 % vs 54.8%). 75.5% of the patients felt that they had no particular difficulty to quit smoking. Men smoked significantly more cigarettes per day compared to females (36.70 vs 30.82, p=0.002). There were no significant differences among males and females regarding previous attempts to quit smoking. Information gathered from such studies should be taken into account when designing systematic smoking management plans in mental institutions. CONCLUSION: Although almost all mental patients smoke, they seem to be receptive to quitting smoking, since two thirds of them have already tried to quit, but one-third of the patients find smoking a little or not at all dangerous.
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Numerous surveys have confirmed that emerging technologies and Web 2.0 tools have been a defining feature in the lives of current students, estimating that there is a fundamental shift in the way young people communicate, socialize and learn. Nursing students in higher education are characterized as digital literate with distinct traits which influence their learning styles. Millennials exhibit distinct learning preferences such as teamwork, experiential activities, structure, instant feedback and technology integration. Higher education institutions should be aware of the implications of the Net Generation coming to university and be prepared to meet their expectations and learning needs.
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Comportamiento del Consumidor , Educación en Enfermería/organización & administración , Aprendizaje , Estudiantes de Enfermería/psicología , Simulación por Computador , Procesos de Grupo , Humanos , Mentores , Aprendizaje Basado en Problemas , Entrenamiento SimuladoRESUMEN
INTRODUCTION: Health is a public good and in the free market is not distributed equally in the society due to the inefficient allocation of resources. According to the economic approach of health, illness prevents the infected individual to participate in processes (work), instead causes costs to the society as a whole. The purpose of this study is the demonstration of existing studies with the main purpose to pinpoint the significance of the cost effectiveness procedures in primary health care services in Greece.
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Atención a la Salud/economía , Costos de la Atención en Salud/estadística & datos numéricos , Atención Primaria de Salud/economía , Análisis Costo-Beneficio/economía , Análisis Costo-Beneficio/métodos , Grecia/epidemiologíaRESUMEN
Purpose of this study is to explore those factors which affect the health of students in postadolescent age, focusing on smoking and alcohol use, especially in regard to ways of predicting adoption of this behavior and its frequency to detect future users of tobacco and alcohol use but also high-risk groups, i.e. those people who are led to abuses. On the basis of the research part is the Theory of Planned Behaviour, the axes of which are to be investigated. Specifically, the factors evaluated, except for population parameters, behavioral attitudes, i.e. attitudes towards the behavior of tobacco use and alcohol regulations subjective perceptions and perceptions of control, perceived behavioral control and self-efficacy. Intention is explored to continue or start using tobacco and alcohol in the future and evaluate the behavior. The sample consisted of 138 students of postadolescent age, 18-25 years of both sexes, all of the University of Peloponnese and the Technological Educational Institute of Kalamata, Department of Sparta, Greece. The results of a series of statistical analysis, via SPSS 21.0 statistical program revealed the predictive power of perceived behavioral control and subjective norms to the intention of interpreting 64% of the variance of the latter, of the attitudes toward alcohol in relation to intention that interpret 69% of the variance, of the normative beliefs toward smoking with 69% range of interpretation to the dependent variable, of the perceived behavioral control of smoking with 72% and of the attitudes toward smoking with 77% of interpretation. The results demonstrate the significance and application in universities and technological educational institutes appropriate primary preventive interventions for students nonusers of tobacco and alcohol and appropriate programs of secondary and tertiary prevention in heavy users of tobacco and alcohol use and high-risk individual.
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OBJECTIVES: The promotion of health and safety (H&S) awareness among hospital staff can be applied through various methods. The aim of this study was to assess the risk level of physical hazards in the hospital sector by combining workers' perception, experts' evaluation and objective measurements. METHODS: A cross-sectional study was designed using multiple triangulation. Hospital staff (n = 447) filled in an H&S questionnaire in a general hospital in Athens and an oncology one in Thessaloniki. Experts observed and filled in a checklist on H&S in the various departments of the two hospitals. Lighting, noise and microclimate measurements were performed. RESULTS: The staff's perception of risk was higher than that of the experts in many cases. The measured risk levels were low to medium. In cases of high-risk noise and lighting, staff and experts agreed. Staff's perception of risk was influenced by hospital's department, hospital's service, years of working experience and level of education. Therefore, these factors should be taken into account in future studies aimed at increasing the participation of hospital workers. CONCLUSION: This study confirmed the usefulness of staff participation in the risk assessment process, despite the tendency for staff to overestimate the risk level of physical hazards. The combination of combining staff perception, experts' evaluation and objective measures in the risk assessment process increases the efficiency of risk management in the hospital environment and the enforcement of relevant legislation.