The effect of the eye movement desensitization and reprocessing intervention on anxiety and depression among patients undergoing hemodialysis: A randomized controlled trial.

PURPOSE: This study examined the effect of the eye movement desensitization and reprocessing intervention on depression and anxiety in patients undergoing hemodialysis. DESIGN AND METHODS: In this randomized controlled trial, 90 patients were enrolled. The intervention group received six sessions of the eye movement desensitization and reprocessing intervention. Data were collected before and 2 weeks after the intervention using the Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale. FINDINGS: Measured levels of anxiety and depression were significantly reduced in the intervention group compared with preintervention levels and to the control group. PRACTICE IMPLICATIONS: Nurses can use the eye movement desensitization and reprocessing intervention in clinical practice in combination with psychotropic drugs for the reduction of depression and anxiety in patients undergoing hemodialysis.

The effect of Tai Chi on quality of life in male older people: A randomized controlled clinical trial.

BACKGROUND AND AIM: Physical activity can improve the mental and physical functioning of older people. This study investigated the impact of Tai Chi exercise on the quality of life of older men. METHODS: This randomized controlled clinical trial was conducted on 132 older men in an urban area of Iran. The subjects were randomly assigned into two groups: a Tai Chi intervention group and a control group (n = 66 per group). Quality of life was evaluated using the Leiden-Padua quality of life questionnaire before and after the intervention. Data analysis was performed using analytical statistics via the SPSS software. RESULTS: After eight weeks of Tai Chi exercise, the mean scores of quality of life in different areas demonstrated a statistically significant difference between the two groups (p < 0 0.05). CONCLUSION: This study illustrated that the 8-week Tai Chi intervention had a positive effect on quality of life in older men.

The effect of guided imagery on anxiety, depression and vital signs in patients on hemodialysis.

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE: Patients on hemodialysis experience anxiety and depression. This study aimed to investigate the effect of guided imagery on anxiety, depression, and vital signs in patients on hemodialysis. MATERIALS AND METHODS: This randomized controlled clinical trial was conducted on 80 patients undergoing hemodialysis. The subjects were randomly assigned into two groups: a guided intervention group and a control group. Anxiety and depression were measured using the Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale. RESULTS: After the intervention, the level of anxiety and depression were significantly lower in the intervention group compared with the control group (p = 0.030, p = 0.001, respectively). A statistically significant reduction in the respiratory rate and heart rate was reported in the intervention group (p < 0.05). CONCLUSION: Nurses are suggested to use guided imagery along with other interventions for the management of anxiety and depression. It can alleviate adverse psychological responses among patients on hemodialysis.

The effect of the emotional intelligence education programme on quality of life in haemodialysis patients.

AIM: This study investigated the effect of the emotional intelligence education programme on quality of life of haemodialysis patients. BACKGROUND: Nurses need knowledge development regarding the impact of educational strategies on patients' quality of life suffering from chronic diseases. METHODS: A pragmatic quasi-randomized controlled trial was conducted with 47 haemodialysis patients attending a university hospital in an urban area of Iran. The patients were randomly assigned to intervention (n=23) and control (n=24) groups. A socio-demographic questionnaire, the Cyberia-Shrink Emotional Intelligence Questionnaire, and the Kidney Disease Quality of Life-Short Form were used to gather data. The intervention group attended an educational programme on emotional intelligence that consisted of six-group discussion sessions. To ensure the continuity of learning and to measure the subsequent expected behavioural changes, the patients filled out the data collection tools six and 12weeks after the completion of the education programme. RESULTS: The mean score of quality of life in the intervention group was 39.94±15.88 in pre-test, 44.87±16.04 six weeks and 52.47±16.07 at the 12weeks after the intervention (p=0.032). CONCLUSION: The consideration of emotional intelligence educational strategies by nurses requires its incorporation into pre-qualifying nursing degrees and professional development programmes. Nurse managers need to lead nurses for applying emotional intelligence in daily practice with the aim of providing an holistic patient care.

Iranian nurses perspectives on assessment of safe care: an exploratory study.

AIM: To explore the perspectives and experiences of nurse instructors and clinical nurses regarding the assessment of safe nursing care and its components in clinical practice. BACKGROUND: Safe nursing care is a key aspect of risk management in the healthcare system. The assessment of safe nursing care and identification of its components are primary steps to establish patient safety and risk management and enhance the quality of care in clinical practice. METHODS: This was an interview study, with qualitative content analysis. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with 16 nurse instructors and clinical nurses including nurse managers chosen by purposive sampling based on theoretical saturation. Data collection and analysis were carried out simultaneously until data saturation was reached. RESULTS: Data analysis led to the extraction of four main themes: holistic assessment of safe nursing care; team working and assessment of safe nursing care; ethical issues; and challenges of safe nursing care assessment. CONCLUSION: Identifying these four components in the assessment of safe nursing care offers a contribution to the understanding of the elements of safe care assessment and the potential for improved patient safety. IMPLICATIONS FOR NURSING MANAGEMENT: Safe care management requires the accurate and reliable assessment of safe nursing care and the need for strategies for reporting actual or potential unsafe care and errors to ensure patient safety.

A community of practice: the nurses' role on a medical assessment unit.

AIM: To explore the nurses' role on a medical assessment unit. BACKGROUND: Medical assessment units facilitate the acceptance of medical emergencies to one dedicated clinical space and are a response to politically driven strategies to enhance the provision of acute medical care in the UK. Despite the essential contribution that nurses make, there is a paucity of research-based literature that has investigated the nurses' role in these units. DESIGN: An ethnographic study of a medical assessment unit in Wales, UK. METHOD: Data were collected over a three-year period from 2003-2006 by participant observation (200 hours) with the researcher, a registered nurse and university lecturer, working alongside the nurses as a contributor to care delivery, semi-structured interviews with nurses, doctors, paramedics and patients (n = 19) and the collection of documentary and artefact evidence. RESULTS: Three main themes were identified: 'making beds': organising the clinical space; 'knowing your stuff': having professional knowledge; and 'loving the buzz': having the ability to work under pressure. CONCLUSION: A distinctive community of practice had developed to satisfy the workplace demands that the nurses faced in a culture that valued autonomous practice and provided a positive working environment. However, a cautionary note must be raised in that new approaches to care delivery, such as medical assessment units, whilst being operationally efficient, may not reflect a nursing ethos of holistic and individualised care delivery. RELEVANCE TO CLINICAL PRACTICE: The concept of community of practice aids the exploration of the interplay of the goals of practice and the attendant social relations developed in nursing teams. Findings from this study have identified aspects of the role of the nurse in a medical assessment unit setting and so can help inform educational programmes. Further research is required to enable the development of this distinctive nursing role.