Acupressure on Anxiety and Sleep Quality After Cardiac Surgery: A Randomized Controlled Trial.

PURPOSE: To determine the effect of acupressure on anxiety and sleep quality after cardiac surgery. DESIGN: A randomized pre-post test control group design. METHODS: Patients after cardiac surgery were divided into two groups: the intervention group (n = 50), who received acupressure on four different acupoints plus standard care, and the control group (n = 50), who received only standard care. Patients were admitted to the surgical clinic from the intensive care unit after 3 or 4 days of surgery. The levels of anxiety and sleep quality were evaluated during three postoperative days starting from their first day in the surgical clinic. FINDINGS: Among the patients in the intervention group, the usage of acupressure decreased the level of anxiety and increased the sleep quality significantly compared with the control group (P < .05). CONCLUSIONS: Our findings showed that acupressure decreased the level of anxiety and improved the sleep quality in the surgical clinic after cardiac surgery.

Two significant concepts in organ donation: Empathic tendency and altruism.

INTRODUCTION: The aim of this study was to investigate the effect of an empathic tendency and altruism on organ donation. MATERIAL AND METHOD: This descriptive and relationship-seeking research included adults who responded to a questionnaire delivered by e-mail with the snowball sampling method. The sample comprised 269 subjects according to 99% power and significance level of α = 0.05. Data were collected using a Personal Information Form, Empathic Tendency Scale, Altruism Scale, and the Organ Donation Attitude Scale. RESULTS: A positive, strong, statistically significant relationship was determined between the empathic tendency and altruism scales and the organ donation and transplantation scale (p < 0.001). Empathic tendency and altruism were determined to affect the positive attitude subscale of the organ donation attitude scale at the rate of 11.9%. CONCLUSION: The findings indicate that programs that foster empathy and compassion should be implemented in order to foster a positive attitude about organ donation.

Validity and reliability of the Turkish version of the Obesity-Related Well-Being Questionnaire (ORWELL 97-TR).

PURPOSE: This study aimed to perform the validity and reliability of the Turkish version of the Obesity-Related Well-Being Questionnaire (ORWELL 97-TR) for the Turkish society. DESIGN AND METHODS: This methodological study involved 125 people for obesity treatment. Data collection tools were the Patient Information Form, the ORWELL 97-TR, and the Obesity and Weight-Loss Quality of Life Instrument (OWLQOL). FINDINGS: The content validity index of the scale was 0.94, and Cronbach's alpha value was 0.906. The findings indicate that the three-factor structure of the scale, which was reduced from 18 items to 15, showed a good agreement. PRACTICAL IMPLICATIONS: The ORWELL 97-TR scale can be used to assess the life quality of Turkish patients seeking obesity treatment.

Healthcare professionals' social distance towards immigrant patients: A descriptive cross-sectional study.

OBJECTIVE: This study aimed to determine the attitudes, beliefs, experiences, and the level of social distance among healthcare professionals who provide healthcare to refugee patients. DESIGN: Descriptive cross-sectional study. PLACE AND DURATION OF STUDY: The researchers obtained the ethical approval of the study from the Non-Interventional Ethical Committee of Sakarya University Faculty of Medicine on 23/11/2018. The study was carried out between December 2018 and February 2019 at Sakarya University Research and Training Hospital. METHODOLOGY: A total of 1484 healthcare professionals work at clinics which are likely to offer care to refugee patients. Descriptive analyses were performed for the study. The data were collected by a questionnaire created by the researchers in light of related literature to investigate the sociodemographic characteristics of the participants and their work-related descriptive characteristics (such as, experience, beliefs, etc.) which may affect their attitudes while providing healthcare to refugee patients. The form was prepared by the researchers based on the literature knowledge. For determining the level of social distance towards refugee patients, Arkar's28 social distance scale was used. RESULTS: Health professionals show a serious level of social distance towards refugee patients due to various difficulties but mainly because of the language barrier. CONCLUSION: Healthcare professionals have great social distance to refugee patients. Moreover, they can continue their professional attitudes towards patients in emotional terms.

Mirror Therapy in the Management of Phantom Limb Pain.

In this case study, we investigated the efficacy of mirror therapy and online counseling in the management of phantom limb pain. The patient was a 28-year-old woman who experienced phantom limb pain after a traumatic transhumeral amputation three and a half months before initiating therapy. After a 40-minute educational session with a nurse researcher experienced in pain management and surgical nursing, the patient practiced mirror therapy at home for four weeks and kept in contact with the nurse using a mobile chat application. The patient scored the intensity of her pain before and after each practice session on a 0-to-10 numeric pain scale. The first week was difficult for her because of tiredness and the pain. In the second week she experienced less pain during the day than at night but claimed to feel much better than before. In the fourth week, she reported having difficulty sleeping, but she stated that her pain had decreased. The intensity of the pain didn't change following mirror therapy in the first week; however, her average pain score was 1.15 points lower after mirror therapy in the second week (from 4.57 to 3.42), and 1.57 points lower in the third and fourth weeks (from 5.42 to 3.85 and 4.85 to 3.28). Online counseling for mirror therapy is easy, economical, and time-saving for patient and nurse alike. However, physical and physiological problems experienced during this process may reduce the effectiveness of the therapy, highlighting the importance of a multidisciplinary approach to phantom limb pain management, which may include care from a psychologist, massage therapist, physiotherapist, and specialist in alternative therapies for relaxation, in addition to the surgeon and the nurse.

The Elephant in the Room: Nurses' Views of Communication Failure and Recommendations for Improvement in Perioperative Care.

Perioperative communication failures endanger patient safety and may reduce efficiency. The objective of our phenomenological research study was to determine the reasons for and consequences of perioperative communication failures and to seek recommendations for improvement. Fourteen perioperative nurses participated in this study. We conducted in-depth interviews with a semi-structured questionnaire following Colaizzi's seven-step methodology to extract themes. We organized the themes into categories: causes, consequences, and recommendations for preventing communication failure. Some themes for causes were inadequate time for preoperative preparation, lack of personnel, and disruptive behaviors of physicians. Consequences of communication failure were decreased staff retention, avoidance of colleagues, threats to patient safety, and intra-team violence. Two recommendations included enforcing institutional regulations and creating team spirit. The study revealed that nurses believe that institutional regulations should not only be present but enforced. Further, nurses believe that strengthening employees' interpersonal skills is essential to preventing communication issues.

The effect of hospital clown nurse on children's compliance to burn dressing change.

BACKGROUND AND AIM: Pediatric burn injury is a traumatic experience which affects the child both physically and psychologically. Following the burn injury, repetitive dressing changes are one of the main problems, and to manage the level of distress caused this procedure, various distraction strategies are being used. However, the effect of hospital clown during burn dressing change among children has not been studied before. Therefore, the present study aimed to investigate the effect of hospital clown-nurse on children's compliance to burn dressing change. METHODS: This randomized controlled experimental study was conducted with 50 children between 3-7years. There were 25 children in the experimental group and 25 children in the control group. In the intervention group, clown-nurse accompanied the child during burn dressing change while the children in the control group received standard care without hospital clown. Children's behavioral reactions were observed during dressing change. CONCLUSIONS: Children in the intervention group had better compliance to burn dressing change, in other words, they cried and/or yelled less, they were more active, had better mood, better communication and interaction with the accompanying parent and the nurse. In addition, older children in the experimental group had better compliance to the burn dressing change.

Staff Nurse Decisional Involvement in the United States and Turkey.

The purpose of this descriptive comparative study is to compare the levels of decisional involvement of staff nurses between one Midwestern health care system in the United States with a nongovernmental University hospital in Turkey. The Decisional Involvement Scale was used for data collection. U.S. ( n = 163) and Turkey ( n = 50) staff nurses were included in the study. Both samples preferred more decisional involvement than they currently experienced. However, Turkish nurses experienced and preferred lower levels of decisional involvement than the U.S. SAMPLE: Shared governance structures may be a strategy used to enhance staff nurse decisional involvement.