Investigating factors affecting the evaluation of teachers' medical universities from the students' point of view: a systematic review.

BACKGROUND: Faculty evaluation is essential as a principle in educational organizations because it helps measure the quantity and quality of education in universities and educational institutions. There are various ambiguities regarding the desirable and deserving characteristics of a good teacher. Therefore, this study was conducted with the aim of investigating factors affecting the evaluation of teachers' medical universities from the perspective of students. METHODS: A systematic review study was conducted by searching for studies in both Persian and English languages from 2014 to 2022 in the following databases: Pubmed, Web of Science, Scopus, Cochrane, Google Scholar, and ScienceDirect, Magiran, SID, Iran Doc using keywords including Evaluation, Assessment, Estimate, Appraisement, Appraisal, Faculty Member, Professor, University, and College, as well as their MeSH equivalents, using "AND" and "OR" operators. The results of the articles about investigating factors affecting the evaluation of teachers' medical universities from the perspective of students were reviewed, summarized, and reported. RESULTS: In the initial search, 3949 articles were found, and after evaluation, finally 21 articles were included in the systematic review. Based on the findings, investigating factors affecting the evaluation of teachers' medical universities from the perspective of 130,187 students can be categorized into 6 dimensions and 53 components. These dimensions include individual and professional characteristics of the educational system, attitude within the educational system, educational programs and guides, teaching methodology, internal coherence of educational resources, and evaluation system information. CONCLUSION: The results of the articles about investigating factors affecting the evaluation of teachers' medical universities from the perspective of students were reviewed, summarized, and reported. It is necessary to pay attention to the factors affecting the evaluation of teachers in the recruitment of faculty members. Additionally, by holding practical training workshops with consideration of various dimensions that have an impact on faculty evaluation and student learning, it is possible to enhance the expertise of faculty members.

Predictive factors of occupational stress among nurses during the COVID-19 pandemic: a cross-sectional study in Kashan, Iran.

BACKGROUND: Considering the severe and sudden changes in the job conditions of nurses during the covid-19 pandemic, the increase in job tensions during this critical period and its consequences on the quantity and quality of nursing care, this study aims to investigate the job stress of nurses during the covid-19 pandemic and its predictors in Iran. METHODS: This cross-sectional study was conducted on 400 nurses in 'Kashan', Iran, who were randomly selected using stratified sampling. Data were collected using two questionnaires on occupational stress and potential related factors. The data were analyzed in SPSS version 16. RESULTS: The results showed that the occupational stress of nurses in Iran was at a medium to high level with a mean and standard deviation of 103.773 ± 15.742 (scale of 34-136). Factors such as satisfaction with physical health, quality of work life, satisfaction with the availability of facilities, sense of coherence, education level, work experience, job burnout, male gender, being native, and workplace were predictors of occupational stress and explained 23.3% of the variance in occupational stress score. The highest contribution was related to satisfaction with physical health. CONCLUSION: Considering the consequences of occupational stress for nurses, it is crucial for health and nursing authorities to take these factors into consideration in policy-making and planning.

The effect of ear acupressure on occupational cognitive failure in nurses after the COVID-19 crisis: a randomized controlled clinical trial.

BACKGROUND: In the aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic, nurses reported varying degrees of cognitive failure. To prioritize patient safety in clinical settings, it is important and necessary to address and mitigate the symptoms of cognitive failure among nurses. AIM: This study was conducted in Iran to evaluate the impact of ear acupressure on occupational cognitive failure in nurses. METHODS: This randomized controlled clinical trial was conducted with 54 nurses who experienced cognitive failure in 2022. Sampling was performed by convenience. Fifty-six nurses who scored 40 or higher on the occupational cognitive failure questionnaire were randomly assigned to either the intervention group (28 subjects) or the sham group (28 subjects). In the intervention group, pressure was applied to the shen-men point, zero point, hippocampus, master cerebral, brain, and memory 1 and 2 of the earlobes for six weeks using Vaccaria seeds. In the sham group, a sticker without seeds was applied at the same points as in the intervention group, and no pressure was applied. Cognitive failure was assessed at the beginning of the study (T0), at the end of the intervention (sixth week of study, T1), and four weeks after the end of the intervention (tenth week of study, T2). The data were collected using contextual data questionnaires and the Occupational Cognitive Failure Questionnaire (OCFQ). The data obtained from 54 nurses (28 in the sham group and 26 in the intervention group) were analyzed by SPSS v16 using repeated-measures ANOVA. RESULTS: The two groups had no significant differences regarding background variables. The between-group analysis revealed a significant interaction effect of time and intervention on cognitive failure (F = 60.320, p < 0.001, effect size = 0.537). The cognitive failure score in the intervention group was significantly lower at the end of the intervention and one month later than that in the sham group (p < 0.001). Within-group analysis revealed a significant difference in the cognitive failure scores of the intervention group at T0, T1, and T2 (61.231 ± 14.230, 34.000 ± 14.659, and 29.808 ± 14.266, respectively; F = 52.331, p < 0.001, effect size = 0.677). However, in the sham group, the cognitive failure score exhibited a brief but significant increase at T0, T1, and T2 (54.786 ± 11.239, 56.250 ± 10.950, and 56.000 ± 11.337, respectively; F = 6.369, p = 0.006, effect size = 0.191). CONCLUSION: Auriculotherapy has shown promise in improving occupational cognitive failure in nurses. It is recommended that nurses consider incorporating auriculotherapy as a complementary treatment modality, particularly through self-treatment programs, when experiencing symptoms of cognitive impairment. TRIAL REGISTRATION NUMBER (TRN): IRCT20100211003329N10 DATE OF REGISTRATION: 04/11/2022.

Social Health and Related Factors in Nurses: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis.

Background: The present study was conducted to evaluate the level of social health and related factors in nurses. Materials and Methods: This systematic review and meta-analysis were done based on searching English and Persian articles published in PubMed, Scopus, Web of Science, Science Direct databases, Google Scholar, Scientific Information Database, Iranmedex, and Magiran from inception to January 2022. The mean (SD) of nurses' social health scores, their various dimensions, and related factors were extracted from the retrieved articles. Data analysis was performed using Review Manager software, and p < 0.05 was considered significant. Results: A total of 36 studies were reviewed for systematic review and 34 studies for meta-analysis. The total mean (SD) of social health in 9281 nurses was 57.13 (6.82) (on a scale of 0-100) with a 95% confidence interval of 50.31-63.95. Social health of nurses showed a statistically significant relationship with some demographic-personal factors and occupational-organizational factors. Conclusions: The level of nurses' social health was moderate which needs to be improved. To improve the performance of professional roles and the nursing care quality, it is necessary for healthcare system managers, especially nursing managers, to consider individual and organizational factors affecting nurses' social health in planning and decision making and try to increase nurses' social health. Some of the limitations of this study were that only reviewing quantitative cross-sectional studies and couldn't combine words when searching in Iranian databases.

Delays in receiving Alteplase and related factors in patients with stroke referred to Shahid Beheshti Hospital in Kashan-Iran in 2020-2021.

BACKGROUND: The benefits of using Alteplase are time-dependent. This study aimed to evaluate delays between the onset of symptoms and the administration of Alteplase and related factors in patients with acute ischemic stroke (AIS). MATERIALS AND METHODS: In this cross-sectional study, 60 AIS patients receiving Alteplase were selected by census sampling from July 2020 to July 2021 from the eligible patients referred to Shahid Beheshti Hospital in Kashan, Iran. The data collection tool was a researcher-made questionnaire containing demographic information, time periods from the onset of symptoms to the injection of Alteplase, and associated factors. The required information was collected from the patients, their relatives, their health records, and Kashan Emergency Medical Service (EMS) information system. Data were analyzed in SPSS-16. RESULTS: Eighty-five percent of the 60 patients participating in the study were transferred to the hospital by EMS ambulances. The mean time intervals between different phases were as follows: Onset-To-Door (OTD) time 81.35 ± 33.76 minutes; Door-To-CT (DTC) scan time 16.12 ± 17.46 minutes; Door-To-Needle (DNT) time 51.30 ± 26.14 minutes; and the overall Onset-To-Needle (ONT) time 133.75 ± 39.17 minutes. Also, the mean ONT in people transferred by EMS was about 129 minutes, and the longest prehospital delay in these patients was related to the time between the arrival of the EMS ambulance to the hospital. Marital status and geographical location where the stroke had occurred showed a significant relationship with prehospital delay and pre-hospital notification (PHN) by EMS But there was no relationship between underlying diseases or economic status and prehospital delays; also, the patient's diastolic blood pressure at the time of receiving Alteplase showed a significant relationship with in-hospital delay. CONCLUSION: The findings of the study showed that the majority of people trust and use EMS ambulances to transfer to the hospital and the time spent in different stages, from the onset of symptoms to the injection of the thrombolytic drug, was in an acceptable range in the patients.

The effects of auriculotherapy on depression among elderly people: A randomized controlled clinical trial.

BACKGROUND: Given the high prevalence of depression in elderly people, appropriate interventions are essential. This study aimed to assess the effects of auriculotherapy on depression among elderly people. METHODS: This randomized controlled clinical trial was conducted in 2021. Fifty-two elderly were conveniently selected and randomly allocated to the sham (n = 26) and intervention (n = 26) groups through block randomization. The intervention group was subjected to four weeks of auriculotherapy at the Shen-Men, zero, heart, antidepressant, and master cerebral points using Vaccaria seeds fixed with adhesive tape. In the sham group, adhesive tapes were attached to the points with neither seeds nor compression. The elderly and data collector were blinded. The 15-item Geriatric Depression Scale was used to assess depression before, immediately after, and four weeks after the intervention (T1-T3). The statistical methods used were repeated measures analysis of variance and covariance. RESULTS: Groups significantly differed concerning participants' gender, education, and employment (p < 0.05). After adjusting for confounding effects, the time-group interaction significantly affected the mean depression score (p < 0.0001, effect size = 0.54). There was no significant difference between the depression score in the sham and intervention groups at T1 (9.6 ± 2.5 vs 9.5 ± 2.5, p = 0.263); however, this difference was found to be significant at T2 (8.6 ± 2 vs 4.2 ± 1.2, p < 0.0001, effect size = 0.68) and T3 (9.3 ± 2.3 vs 4.3 ± 1.3, p < 0.0001, effect size = 0.65). Within-group analysis revealed significant differences in the depression scores of the intervention group at T1 compared with those at T2 and T3 (p < 0.05). In contrast, the mean depression score in the sham group at T2 was significantly lower than that at T1 (p = 0.003) and greater than that at T3 (p = 0.049). CONCLUSIONS: Auriculotherapy alleviates depression and can be used as a complementary therapy for elderly people with depression.