Fear of falling among Brazilian and Portuguese older adults.

BACKGROUND: Falling is the leading cause of physical disability, mortality and social exclusion in older adults. In Brazil and Portugal, falls cause thousands of hospitalisations every year. Fear of falling (FOF) causes loss of confidence in accomplishing daily tasks, restriction in social activities and increased dependence. AIM: To compare the prevalence of FOF between Brazilian and Portuguese community-dwelling older adults and the factors associated with FOF. METHODS: A secondary analysis of cross-sectional survey data collected from older adults residing in Brazil (n = 170; M age=70.44 years) and Portugal (n = 170; M age=73.56 years). RESULTS: The prevalence of FOF was significantly higher (p = 0.015) among Portuguese (n = 133, 54.1%) versus Brazilian (n = 113, 45.9%) older adults. FOF among Brazilian older adults was associated with being 76 + years of age and female. Among Portuguese older adults, factors associated with FOF were intake of daily medications, having fallen within the past year, and visual difficulties. CONCLUSIONS: Fear of falling is linked with modifiable and non-modifiable factors. Timely assessments of FOF and factors associated with FOF are essential. IMPLICATIONS FOR PRACTICE: Primary care nurses should assess and address FOF in older people with interdisciplinary practitioners.

Association of spiritual/religious coping with depressive symptoms in high- and low-risk pregnant women.

AIMS AND OBJECTIVES: To investigate the role of spiritual/religious coping (SRC) on depressive symptoms in high- and low-risk pregnant women. BACKGROUND: Spiritual/religious coping is associated with physical and mental health outcomes. However, only few studies investigated the role of these strategies during pregnancy and whether low- and high-risk pregnant women have different coping mechanisms. DESIGN: This study is a cross-sectional comparative study. METHODS: This study included a total of 160 pregnant women, 80 with low-risk pregnancy and 80 with high-risk pregnancy. The Beck Depression Inventory, the brief SRC scale and a structured questionnaire on sociodemographic and obstetric aspects were used. General linear model regression analysis was used to identify the factors associated with positive and negative SRC strategies in both groups of pregnant women. RESULTS: Positive SRC use was high, whereas negative SRC use was low in both groups. Although we found no difference in SRC strategies between the two groups, negative SRC was associated with depression in women with high-risk pregnancy, but not in those with low-risk pregnancy. Furthermore, positive SRC was not associated with depressive symptoms in both groups. CONCLUSIONS: Results showed that only the negative SRC strategies of Brazilian women with high-risk pregnancies were associated with worsened mental health outcomes. RELEVANCE TO CLINICAL PRACTICE: Healthcare professionals, obstetricians and nurse midwives should focus on the use of negative SRC strategies in their pregnant patients.

Psychometric assessment of the Spiritual Climate Scale Arabic version for nurses in Saudi Arabia.

AIM: To assess the psychometric properties of the Spiritual Climate Scale Arabic version for Saudi nurses. BACKGROUND: Evidence showed that a high level of spiritual climate in the workplace is associated with increased productivity and performance, enhanced emotional intelligence, organisational commitment and job satisfaction among nurses. METHOD: A convenient sample of 165 Saudi nurses was surveyed in this descriptive, cross-sectional study. Cronbach's α and intraclass correlation coefficient of the 2 week test-retest scores were computed to establish reliability. Exploratory factor analysis was performed to support the validity of the Spiritual Climate Scale Arabic version. RESULTS: The Spiritual Climate Scale Arabic version manifested excellent content validity. Exploratory factor analysis supported a single factor with an explained variance of 73.2%. The Cronbach's α values of the scale ranged from .79 to .88, while the intraclass correlation coefficient value was .90. The perceived spiritual climate was associated with the respondents' hospital, gender, age and years of experience. CONCLUSIONS: Findings of this study support the sound psychometric properties of the Spiritual Climate Scale Arabic version. IMPLICATIONS FOR NURSING MANAGEMENT: The Spiritual Climate Scale Arabic version can be used by nurse managers to assess the nurses' perception of the spiritual climate in any clinical area. This process can lead to spiritually centred interventions, thereby ensuring a clinical climate that accepts and respects different spiritual beliefs and practices.