The Role of Participation in and Effectiveness of Shared Governance Councils in the Nurses' Perception of a Professional Practice Work Environment.

OBJECTIVES: The aims of this study were to identify the differences in nurses' perceptions of their professional practice work environment (PPWE) related to their participation in shared governance (SG) councils and to examine the perception of effectiveness of SG councils among nurses who participate in them. BACKGROUND: Research suggests that adopting SG in nursing can lead to significant, positive outcomes, such as patient and nurse satisfaction and enhanced nurse empowerment, engagement, and a PPWE. METHODS: The study used a cross-sectional design in a Magnet®-designated urban Jordanian cancer care hospital. A convenience sample of 580 direct care nurses was used. The data were collected using self-administered questionnaires, the Council Health (CH) instrument, and the Professional Practice Work Environment Inventory (PPWEI). RESULTS: Results demonstrated a significant difference in the total score of PPWE between the SG council members (4.85) and nonmembers (4.68) (t = 2.906, P = 0.004). The results also indicated small to strong correlations of the total overall council health mean and all domain means of council effectiveness with total overall PPWEI mean and all domain means of PPWE (P < 0.05) among nurses who participated in SG councils. CONCLUSION: Findings support involving more staff in SG councils and that enhancing the SG councils' effectiveness positively affects the PPWE.

Principales problemas en la gestión de establecimientos de salud en el Perú / Main problems in the management of health facilities in Peru

Introducción: Los directivos de las instituciones prestadoras de servicios de salud deben tomar decisiones oportunas y acertadas, e identificar de manera apropiada sus principales problemas, para proponer acciones de mejora de la gestión de sus instituciones. Objetivo: Identificar los problemas en la gestión de los establecimientos de salud en el Perú desde la perspectiva de sus directivos de acuerdo con la encuesta ENSUSALUD 2016. Métodos: Se realizó un análisis secundario descriptivo de la base de datos de la encuesta ENSUSALUD 2016. Se analizaron los datos correspondientes a personas que tenían un cargo directivo en las instituciones prestadoras de servicios de salud seleccionadas. Resultados: Se entrevistaron 366 personas con un cargo directivo en 184 instituciones prestadoras de servicios de salud peruanas del sector público y privado y de diferentes niveles de atención, de 25 regiones. El 68,03 por ciento de los entrevistados eran de sexo masculino y el 52,73 por ciento eran médicos. La edad promedio fue de 48,62 (± 11,10) y con un promedio de 11,7 (± 10,45) años trabajando en el centro de salud y 4,60 (± 6,63) asumiendo un cargo directivo. Casi la mitad de los directivos (43,7 por ciento) mencionaron que los principales problemas de gestión a nivel regional son el déficit de recursos humanos, el déficit presupuestal (38,2 por ciento) y el déficit de especialistas (34,7 por ciento). Conclusiones: Los principales problemas identificados por los directivos de los establecimientos de salud son la escasez de recursos humanos, la falta de insumos y medicamentos, la deficiente infraestructura y el déficit presupuestal. Estos resultados aportan conocimiento útil para los gestores y decisores en salud que tienen la responsabilidad de tomar decisiones adecuadas y oportunas para mejorar la calidad de los servicios y la satisfacción del usuario(AU)

Introduction: Managers of health service providers´ institutions must make timely and sound decisions, and appropriately identify their main problems, to propose improvement actions in the management of their institutions. Objective: Identify problems in the management of health facilities in Peru from the perspective of their managers according to the ENSUSALUD 2016 survey. Methods: A secondary descriptive analysis of the ENSUSALUD 2016 survey database was performed. Data of persons in a managerial position at selected health service providers´ institutions were analyzed. Results: 366 people with a management position were interviewed in 184 Peruvian public and private sector health service providers´ institutions and different levels of care, from 25 regions. 68.03 percent of respondents were male and 52.73 percent were doctors. The average age was 48.62 (±11.10) and with an average of 11.7 (±10.45) years working in the health institutions and 4.60 (±6.63) in a managerial position. Nearly half of managers (43.7 percent) mentioned that the main management problems at the regional level are the human resources deficit, the budget deficit (38.2 percent) and specialists deficit (34.7 percent). Conclusions: The main problems identified by managers of health facilities are the scarcity of human resources, the lack of inputs and medicines, the poor infrastructure and the budget deficit. These results provide useful knowledge for health managers and decision makers who have the responsibility to make informed and timely decisions to improve the quality of services and user´s satisfaction(AU)

[Interdisciplinary tumor boards in the radiological routine : Current situation based on an online survey in Germany]. / Interdisziplinäre Tumorkonferenzen in der radiologischen Routine : Statuserhebung basierend auf einer Online-Befragung in Deutschland.

PURPOSE: Interdisciplinary tumor boards are periodical conferences, where optimal individual therapy plans are developed among medical experts with different specializations. The presence of a board-certified radiologist is medically indispensable in almost all relevant boards. In order to systematically evaluate the current workload for radiologists caused by these boards, we evaluated the current situation within German radiology to obtain numbers for future personnel planning. MATERIALS AND METHODS: We performed an online survey. We invited all 33 German university chairmen and 50 randomly selected head physicians of radiology at level 3 hospitals to participate. RESULTS: We had a participation rate of 79% (26/33) at university hospitals and 56% (28/50) at of level 3 non-university hospitals. The average total number of tumor boards was 3.3/day or 16.7/week at university hospitals and 2.6/day or 13/week at level 3 non-university hospitals. We calculated an average time considering preparation and execution as well as the average number of boards of 33.1 h/week for university hospitals and 18.2 h/week for level 3 hospitals. This results in a 78.8% workload for a board-certified radiologist at a university hospital (regular weekly work time 42 h) and 45.5% work load for level 3 hospitals (regular weekly work time 40 h). CONCLUSION: "Speaking radiology" as in interdisciplinary tumor boards represents a fundamental matter of course in radiology. The active participation in boards accomplished by radiologists improves evidence-based patient care. However, given the prevailing scarcity of resources in medicine, the data collected here regarding personnel costs for clinical radiology for participation in tumor boards must be taken into account in future discussions on personnel compensation.

A Retrospective Analysis of Clinical Trial Accrual of Patients Presented in a Multidisciplinary Tumor Board at a Tertiary Health Care Center and Associated Barriers.

INTRODUCTION: Cancer clinical trial accruals have been historically low and are affected by several factors. Multidisciplinary Tumor Board Meetings (MTBM) are conducted regularly and immensely help to devise a comprehensive care plan including discussions about clinical trial availability and eligibility. OBJECTIVES: To evaluate whether patient discussion at MTBM was associated with a higher consent rate for clinical trials at a single tertiary care center. METHODS: Institutional electronic medical records (EMR) and clinical trials management system (OnCore) were queried to identify all new patient visits in oncology clinics, consents to clinical trials, and MTBM notes between January 1, 2011 and December 31, 2015. The association between MTBM discussion and subsequent clinical trial enrollment within 16 weeks of the new patient visit was evaluated using a χ2 test. RESULTS: Between January 1, 2011 and December 31, 2015, 11,794 new patients were seen in oncology clinics, and 2,225 patients (18.9%) were discussed at MTBMs. MTBM discussion conferred a higher rate of subsequent clinical trial consent within 16 weeks following the patient's first consultation in an oncology clinic: 4.1% for those who were discussed at a MTBM compared to 2.8% for those not discussed (p < 0.01). CONCLUSIONS: This study provides evidence that MTBMs may be effective in identifying patients eligible for available clinical trials by reviewing eligibility criteria during MTBM discussions. We recommend discussion of all new patients in MTBM to improve the quality of care provided to those with cancer and enhanced clinical trial accrual.

The Legacy of 1987 Boreali v. Axelrod: Board of Health Rule-Making Under Siege.

We explore how a 1987 New York State court decision-Boreali v. Axelrod-affected public health rule-making nationally and, with considerable impact, locally in New York City (NYC).We discuss the history of the origin of the NYC Board of Health (BOH), and establish that legislatures can be challenging venues in which to enact public health-related laws. We describe how, as the NYC Department of Health and Mental Hygiene began to tackle modern public health problems (e.g., chronic diseases caused by food and tobacco), the regulatory power of its BOH was challenged.In an era when industry funds political causes and candidates, the weakening of the independence of rule-making boards of health, such as the NYC BOH, might result in illness and death.

Representaciones socioculturales de género y la promoción de cuadros en el sector de la salud, 2013-2016 / Socio-cultural gender representations and promotion of cadres in the health care sector, 2013-2016

Las representaciones de género vinculadas a procesos de promoción a cargos de dirección, son expresión de contradicciones diarias desde la incorporación de las mujeres a espacios gerenciales; revelan la visión histórica sobre los roles socialmente asignados a ambos sexos. Objetivo: Identificar las representaciones socioculturales de los cuadros e investigadores/as, en relación con los requisitos que se tienen en cuenta en los procesos de promoción. Métodos: Investigación con enfoque mixto -2013 hasta 2016-, basada fundamentalmente en el paradigma cualitativo, en tres grupos de trabajo; se utilizó la revisión documental, entrevistas y cuestionarios para recoger la información, se conformaron bases de datos, se realizó el análisis descriptivo a través de distribuciones de frecuencias absolutas y porcentajes. Los datos cualitativos se examinaron por medio del análisis de contenido y del método inductivo deductivo. Resultados: Los requerimientos para ser seleccionados como cuadros están definidos en documentos legales. La formación técnica-profesional, experiencia, trayectoria laboral y el reconocimiento del desempeño en cargos anteriores, son requisitos considerados más frecuentes, que casi siempre se tienen en cuenta en la promoción. En los discursos de los cuadros se perciben otros requisitos que definen la selección. Conclusiones: Los requisitos en mujeres y hombres para promover como cuadros son iguales, al estar legalmente vigentes en el país, pero en los discursos se refleja influencia de las culturas sociales e institucionales en la promoción. En hombres, las representaciones estuvieron asociadas a responsabilidades de las mujeres con la atención a hijos y no con el reconocimiento a una cultura androcéntrica, como lo hacen las féminas(AU)

Gender representations linked to processes of promotion to management posts express daily contradictions since the incorporation of women to management environments and reveal the historical vision on the roles that are socially assigned to both sexes. Objective: To identify the socio-cultural representations of cadres and researchers with respect to requisites to be considered for promotion processes. Methods: Mixed research study -2013 until 2016- based on the qualitative paradigm of three working groups; document review, interviews and questionnaires were used to collect information; databases were created and a descriptive analysis was made through absolute frequencies distributions and percentages. The content analysis and the induction-deduction method served to analyze the qualitative data. Results: The requisites for selection of cadres are defined in legal documents. The technical and professional formation, experience, length of time at work and recognition of performance in previous posts are considered as the most common requisites that are almost always taken into account for the promotion of a person. In the cadres´ discourses, other requisites are perceived as defining ones for such selection. Conclusions: The requisites for women and men in terms of promotion of cadres are the same according to the present national legislation, but the discourses show the influence of social and institutional cultures on the promotion. In males, the representations are associated to the women´s responsibilities in child care rather than to acceptance of androcentric culture as females do(AU)

Defining Tobacco Regulatory Science Competencies.

INTRODUCTION: In 2013, the National Institutes of Health and the Food and Drug Administration funded a network of 14 Tobacco Centers of Regulatory Science (TCORS) with a mission that included research and training. A cross-TCORS Panel was established to define tobacco regulatory science (TRS) competencies to help harmonize and guide their emerging educational programs. The purpose of this paper is to describe the Panel's work to develop core TRS domains and competencies. METHODS: The Panel developed the list of domains and competencies using a semistructured Delphi method divided into four phases occurring between November 2013 and August 2015. RESULTS: The final proposed list included a total of 51 competencies across six core domains and 28 competencies across five specialized domains. CONCLUSIONS: There is a need for continued discussion to establish the utility of the proposed set of competencies for emerging TRS curricula and to identify the best strategies for incorporating these competencies into TRS training programs. Given the field's broad multidisciplinary nature, further experience is needed to refine the core domains that should be covered in TRS training programs versus knowledge obtained in more specialized programs. IMPLICATIONS: Regulatory science to inform the regulation of tobacco products is an emerging field. The paper provides an initial list of core and specialized domains and competencies to be used in developing curricula for new and emerging training programs aimed at preparing a new cohort of scientists to conduct critical TRS research.

The Role of Cancer Boards in the Treatment Decisions Regarding Chemotherapy.

Objective The influence of cancer boards with respect to the treatment decisions regarding chemotherapy remains to be elucidated. In the present study, we investigated the cases that presented at our institutional cancer boards, to assess the effect of cancer boards on the treatment decisions regarding chemotherapy. Methods Data from the cancer boards at Yamagata University Hospital, Yamagata, Japan, were collected. Along with data from the clinical records, the details of the discussions and the chosen plan of treatment of the cancer boards were analyzed. Results From February 2010 to February 2014, 1,541 cases were discussed at our cancer boards. Of these, 811 cases (52.6%) involved discussions about chemotherapy. Of those 811 cases, recommendations were made to alter the treatment plans for 189 cases (23.3%). The reasons for discouraging chemotherapy varied; however, 29/45 (64.4%) cases involved discouragement for the following reasons: old age, a comorbid condition, the physical (performance) status, or insufficient evidence to administer chemotherapy. Eighty-six patients were referred to the medical oncology department through the cancer boards. Conclusion Our results showed that cancer boards have a great influence on the treatment decisions regarding chemotherapy and the prompt referral of cases to medical oncologists as necessary. In terms of future research, we will evaluate the effect of cancer boards on the prognosis and outcomes of cases using the institutional cancer registry.

Increasing the Number of Oncology Nurses Serving on Boards

Nurses have knowledge about quality, safety, and the patient experience that is valuable to governing boards. In 2011, the Health and Medicine Division of the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine recommended that nurses be prepared and enabled to lead change to advance health care. Five years after the recommendation, work toward this goal is still needed.
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An approach for software-driven and standard-based support of cross-enterprise tumor boards.

INTRODUCTION: For tumor boards, the networking of different medical disciplines' expertise continues to gain importance. However, interdisciplinary tumor boards spread across several institutions are rarely supported by information technology tools today. The aim of this paper is to point out an approach for a tumor board management system prototype. METHODS: For analyzing the requirements, an incremental process was used. The requirements were surveyed using Informal Conversational Interview and documented with Use Case Diagrams defined by the Unified Modeling Language (UML). Analyses of current EHR standards were conducted to evaluate technical requirements. RESULT: Functional and technical requirements of clinical conference applications were evaluated and documented. In several steps, workflows were derived and application mockups were created. CONCLUSION: Although there is a vast amount of common understanding concerning how clinical conferences should be conducted and how their workflows should be structured, these are hardly standardized, neither on a functional nor on a technical level. This results in drawbacks for participants and patients. Using modern EHR technologies based on profiles such as IHE Cross Enterprise document sharing (XDS), these deficits could be overcome.

Estilos de dirección en salud en Cuba desde la perspectiva de género / Managing styles in health from a gender perspective in Cuba

INTRODUCCIÓN: el estudio de las diferencias en los estilos de liderazgo según el sexo ha adquirido un interés creciente en las investigaciones actuales. OBJETIVO: caracterizar los estilos de dirección en dirigentes desde la perspectiva de género. MÉTODOS: se realizó una investigación descriptiva y transversal en el 2014 utilizando la revisión bibliográfica y la aplicación de cuestionarios a 56 directores del policlínicos y hospitales de las provincias de Santiago de Cuba, Camagüey y Pinar del Río. La información numérica se resumió en frecuencias absolutas y porcentajes. RESULTADOS: el 61,3 por ciento de las mujeres se atribuyen un estilo paternalista, mientras que el 48,0 por ciento de los hombres consideran que este es un estilo atribuible a ellos y otro porcentaje se lo atribuyen a las mujeres pero sin diferencias estadísticas. Los rasgos del estilo autocrático son imputables en el 85,7 por ciento a los hombres. Más del 83,9 por ciento de las directivas considera que son más democráticas, carismáticas y tienen gran capacidad para escuchar y los hombres coinciden con estos criterios en más del 80,6 por ciento. La mitad de los varones considera que los hombres son más transformativos que las mujeres lo que no coincide con el criterio de las féminas. CONCLUSIONES: los resultados no muestran diferencias importantes como para afirmar la existencia de estilos distintos de dirección en hombres y mujeres, pero sí parece darse una mayor tendencia entre las mujeres a aplicar métodos de trabajo más participativos a diferencia de los hombres que pueden consultar a las personas, pero finalmente toman las decisiones(AU)

INTRODUCTION: the study of differences in the leadership styles according to gender has aroused growing interest in research work at present. OBJECTIVE: to characterize the managing styles in leaders from a gender perspective. METHODS: descriptive and cross-sectional research work was conducted by using literature review and the aplication of quizzes to 56 polyclinics and hospitals directors from Santiago de Cuba, Camagüey and Pinar del Rio Provinces. The quantitative information was summarized in absolute frequencies and percentages. RESULTS: sixty one percent of women considered that they had a paternalist style whereas 48,0 percent believed that this kind of style is attributable to them and another percentage attributed it to women but with no statistical differences. The features of bossy style are attributable to men by 85.7 percent of participants. Over 83.9 percent of female managers regard themselves as more democratic, charismatic with great capacity to listen to anybody and males agreed with these criteria in 80.6 percent of cases. Half of males stated that men like transformation more than women, but the criteria are not accepted by females. CONCLUSIONS: the results did not show significant differences that allow us to affirm the existence of different managing styles in men and females; however, there is growing tendency in women to implement more participatory working methods than men, being the later more prone to consult other people but they ultimately make the final decisions(AU)

Gastrointestinal tumor board: an evolving experience in Tehran Cancer Institute.

Gastrointestinal (GI) cancers are a significant source of morbidity and mortality in Iran, with stomach adenocarcinoma as the most common cancer in men and the second common cancer in women. Also, some parts of Northern Iran have one of the highest incidences of esophageal cancer in the world. Multi-disciplinary organ-based joint clinics and tumor boards are a well-recognized necessity for modern treatment of cancer and are routinely utilized in developed countries, especially in major academic centres. But this concept is relatively new in developing countries, where cancer treatment centres are burdened by huge loads of patients and have to cope with a suboptimum availability of resources and facilities. Cancer Institute of Tehran University of Medical Sciences is the oldest and the only comprehensive cancer treatment centre in Iran, with a long tradition of a general tumor board for all cancers. But with the requirements of modern oncology, there has been a very welcome attention to sub-specialized organ-based tumor boards and joint clinics here in the past few years. Considering this, we started a multi-disciplinary tumor board for GI cancers in our institute in early 2010 as the first such endeavor here. We hereby review this 2-year evolving experience. The process of establishment of a GI tumor board, participations from different oncology disciplines and related specialties, the cancers presented and discussed in the 2 years of this tumor board, the general intents of treatment for the decisions made and the development of interest in this tumor board among the Tehran oncology community will be reviewed. The GI tumor board of Tehran Cancer Institute started its work in January 2010, with routine weekly sessions. A core group of 2 physicians from each surgical, radiation and medical oncology departments plus one gastroenterologist, GI pathologist and radiologist was formed, but participation from all interested physicians was encouraged. An electronic database was kept from the beginning. The number of patients presented in the tumor board increased from 4 in January 2010 to 16 in December 2011. Most patients were presented by radiation oncology department (38%) and then surgical (36%) and medical oncology (20%) departments. Physicians' participation also grew from an average of 8 each session to 12 in the same months, with a number of cancer specialists taking part from other university hospitals in Tehran. A total number of 225 patients were presented with a treatment decision made in this 2-year period. The majority of cases were colorectal (32%), stomach (23%), and esophageal (17%) cancers. The number of pancreatic (7%) and hepatobiliary (6%) cancers were much smaller. Most decisions were for a primary treatment (surgery or radiochemotherapy) and then a neoadjuvant approach.  Tehran Cancer Institute's GI tumor board is one of the first multi-disciplinary organ-based tumor boards in Iran, and as such has made a successful start, establishing itself as a recognized body for clinical decisions and consultations in GI oncology. This experience is growing and evolving, with newer presentation and discussion formats and adapted guidelines for treatment of GI cancers in Iran sought.