Nurse/midwife-to-patient ratios: A scoping review.

BACKGROUND: A significant body of work has linked high nurse or midwife workload to negative patient outcomes. Anecdotal reports suggest that mandated ratio models enhance patient care and improve nurse job satisfaction. However, there is limited focused research. OBJECTIVE: To identify key outcomes, implementation processes, and research needs regarding nurse/midwife-to-patient ratios in the Australian healthcare context. DESIGN: Scoping review. METHODS: Data sources were CINAHL, Open Dissertations, Medline, and Scopus. 289 articles screened, and 53 full text documents independently assessed against criteria by two reviewers and conflicts resolved by a third reviewer, using Covidence™. Three studies were included in this review. RESULTS: Studies focused on nurse (job satisfaction, burnout), patient (mortality, readmission, length of stay) and system (costs) outcomes with limited information on implementation processes and no midwifery research. CONCLUSIONS: Ratios provide benefits for patients, nurses, and hospitals although there is limited research in Australia. Implementation was poorly reported..

Oncology Nurses' Experiences of Using Health Information Systems in the Delivery of Cancer Care in a Range of Care Settings: A Systematic Integrative Review.

OBJECTIVES: This systematic review aimed to identify oncology nurses' experiences of using health information systems (HIS) in the delivery of cancer care. DATA SOURCES: The electronic databases searched included CINAHL, MEDLINE (EBSCO host), SCOPUS, Web of Science Core Collection, Google Scholar, OVID, and ProQuest Central (using advanced search strategy) and hand searching of reference lists of the included articles and relevant systematic reviews. Studies published in English language were examined. CONCLUSION: Twenty-six studies were included. Three themes emerged: (1) the transparency and application of the nursing process within HIS, (2) HIS enhancing and facilitating communication between nurses and patients, and (3) the impact of HIS on the elements of person-centered care. Nurses' experiences with HIS were overall positive. However, digital systems do not fully capture all elements of the nursing processes; this was confirmed in this review, through the nurses' lens. Most studies used HIS for symptom reporting and monitoring within non-inpatient settings and largely biomedical and lack insight into the person-centeredness and overall holistic care. IMPLICATIONS FOR NURSING PRACTICE: There are evidently varied views of HIS adoption across the globe. HIS can improve health-related quality of life and symptom burden, including self-reporting of symptoms among patients. However, there is a need for ongoing high-quality research, and clearer reporting than is evident in the current 26 studies, to fully understand the impact of HIS within the nursing processes and patient outcomes across all specialty cancer fields.

Nurse-led interventions among older adults affected by cancer: An integrative review.

Objective: Aging can introduce significant changes in health, cognition, function, social status, and emotional status among older adults affected by cancer. Little is known about how existing nurse-led interventions address the needs of older adults. The objective was to identify existing nurse-led interventions among older adults to optimize recovery and survivorship needs. Methods: A integrative systematic review was conducted according to the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analysis (PRISMA) 2020 Guidelines. Electronic databases (APA PsycINFO, CINAHL, MEDLINE, Scopus, and Google Scholar databases) were searched using key search terms. Articles were assessed for inclusion according to a pre-determined eligibility criterion. Data extraction and quality appraisal were conducted. Findings were integrated into a narrative synthesis. Results: Twenty-one studies were included, and a total of 4253 participants were represented. There were a range of study designs: quantitative (n â€‹= â€‹10), randomised controlled trials (n â€‹= â€‹6), mixed methods studies (n â€‹= â€‹3), qualitative (n â€‹= â€‹1), and a non-randomized controlled study (n â€‹= â€‹1). Most participants had prostate cancer, with some representation in colorectal, lung, head and neck, renal, esophageal, and mixed cancer patient populations. Conclusions: This review shows a lack of evidence on the inclusion of geriatric assessments for older people with cancer within existing nurse-led interventions. Further research is needed to test nurse-led interventions with the inclusion of geriatric assessments and their contribution to the multidisciplinary team across the cancer care continuum for various cancer patient populations.