Development and Validation of the Interprofessional Collaboration Practice Competency Scale (IPCPCS) for Clinical Nurses.

Interprofessional collaborative practice is a core competency and is the key to strengthening health practice systems in order to deliver safe and high-quality nursing practice. However, there is no Interprofessional Collaboration Practice Competency Scale (IPCPCS) for clinical nurses in Taiwan. Therefore, the purposes of this study were to develop an IPCPCS and to verify its reliability and validity. This was a psychometric study with a cross-sectional survey using convenience sampling to recruit nurses from the seven hospitals of a medical foundation. A self-designed structured IPCPCS was rolled out via a Google survey. The data were analyzed using descriptive statistics, principal-axis factoring (PAF) with Promax rotation, Pearson correlation, reliability analysis, and one-way ANOVA. PAF analysis found that three factors could explain 77.76% of cumulative variance. These were collaborative leadership and interprofessional conflict resolution, interprofessional communication and team functioning, and role clarification and client-centered care. The internal consistency of the three factors (Cronbach's α) was between 0.970 to 0.978, and the Pearson correlation coefficients were between 0.814 to 0.883. Significant differences were presented in the IPCPCS score by age, education level, total years of work experience, position on the nursing clinical ladder, and participation in interprofessional education. In conclusion, the three factors used in the IPCPCS have good reliability and construct validity. This scale can be used as an evaluation tool of in-service interprofessional education courses for clinical nurses.

Growth and development of oncology nursing in Asia.

Oncology nursing is increasingly recognized around the world as being vitally important for an effective cancer control system. Granted, there is variation between and among countries/regions regarding the strength and nature of that recognition, but oncology nursing is clearly seen as a specialty practice and as a priority for development in cancer control plans, especially for high resource countries/regions. Many countries/regions are beginning to recognize that nurses are vitally important to their cancer control efforts and nurses require specialized education and infrastructure support to make a substantial contribution. The purpose of this paper is to highlight the growth and development of cancer nursing in Asia. Several brief summaries are presented by nurse leaders in cancer care from several Asian countries/regions. Their descriptions reflect illustrations of the leadership nurses are providing in cancer control practice, education, and research in their respective countries/regions. The illustrations also reflect the potential for future development and growth of oncology nursing as a specialty given the many challenges nurses face across Asia. The development of relevant education programs following basic nursing preparation, the establishment of specialty organizations for oncology nurses, and engagement by nurses in policy activity have been influential factors in the growth of oncology nursing in Asia.

Are we of one mind about core competencies of nurse preceptors? A nominal group technique study.

AIM: This paper explored the differences in perspectives on the core competencies of nurse preceptors among postgraduate-year nurses, clinical nursing preceptors and head nurses. DESIGN: Cross-sectional design with nominal group technique (NGT). METHOD: The sample consisted of 32 postgraduate-year nurses, 42 preceptors and 27 head nurses. Two rounds of NGT were used to collect the group opinions. RESULTS: While the rank/level of importance varied, three groups all agreed that teaching traits, clinical nursing profession, communication and collaboration, teaching pedagogy, reaction of contingency and consultation of academic writing were important core competencies for nurse preceptors. The three groups disagreed on critical thinking and reflection, as well as lifelong learning. This study clarifies cognitive differences and expectations among three groups and can assist medical institutes in designing preceptor training courses.

[Revising the Taiwan Code of Ethics for Nurses].

BACKGROUND: The 2005 revision of the code of ethics for nurses has been in effect in Taiwan for more than 17 years. Although this code has been smoothly implemented during this time, changing social expectations and ethical perspectives, advancements in science and technology, and the evolution of the nurse-patient relationship suggest this code should be once again be updated. PURPOSE: This study was conducted to suggest revisions to the Taiwan code of ethics for nurses necessary to meet current needs and address social and medical care environment trends. METHODS: A multivariate research approach was adopted. The classification of the code of ethics for nurses norms in six international nursing organizations and evidence-based ethical and philosophical thinking literature were referenced, with the main notification demands incorporated into the Ministry of Health and Welfare's Nursing Workplace Controversy Reporting Platform. After drafting the aspects and provisions of Taiwan code of ethics for nurses norms, expert review procedures such as focus groups, Delphi expert consensus, and public forums were conducted. RESULTS: After three expert focus group discussion rounds, a structured questionnaire was completed, and 50 Delphi experts in six fields completed the online questionnaire. After the second consensus round, the importance and clarity of the 47 ethical code provisions in the four aspects were determined with 100% and 99.8% agreement reached, indicating no significant difference in scores between the multidisciplinary expert group and the ethical code. The resulting revision proposed for the Taiwan code of ethics for nurses includes: nursing staff and care recipients (14 provisions), nursing staff and practice (13 provisions), nursing staff and the profession (10 provisions), and nursing staff and society (10 provisions). CONCLUSIONS / IMPLICATIONS FOR PRACTICE: In terms of education, the revised Taiwan code of ethics for nurses should be integrated into the nursing education curriculum of nursing colleges and used as teaching material for the continuing education of nurses. In terms of policy, these norms should be included as evaluation benchmarks and inspection items for hospitals. In addition, the attention and support of senior managers in institutions must be secured and a handling protocol for moral dilemma cases and related consultation mechanisms must be established. Nursing supervisors should be guided to develop the ability to address these dilemmas to help foster a positive workplace and a respectful team atmosphere. All professional groups should participate actively in promoting issues related to nursing ethics, organize seminars and continuing education activities, and make the revised Taiwan code of ethics for nurses and learning cases available online for reference by nursing staff nationwide.

Exploring core competencies of clinical nurse preceptors: A nominal group technique study.

AIM: The aim of this study was to explore core competencies of nurse preceptors based on the perspectives of postgraduate-year nurses, nurse preceptors and head nurses. BACKGROUND: Perspectives of core competencies of nurse preceptors are varied among postgraduate-year nurses, nurse preceptors and head nurses, which makes it difficult to establish preceptor training programs and develop evaluation instruments. DESIGN: A nominal group technique study. METHODS: A nominal group technique procedure was applied to small-group and large-group discussion. The participants were recruited from the inpatient units at five nonprofit hospitals, each having over 1000 patient beds, in Taiwan. A total of 101 participants were involved in this study: 32 postgraduate-year nurses, 42 nurse preceptors and 27 head nurses, who were respectively sorted into five, six and four small groups with six to eight members in each group. After applying nominal group technique procedure, the core competencies were scored and ranked. Based on the final scores and ranking, the core competencies that the participants felt to be most important for nurse preceptors were identified. The expert panel then integrated these core competencies and derived a consensus. RESULTS: Seven core competencies of nurse preceptors were derived, in order of declining importance: teaching traits, clinical nursing profession, communication and collaboration, teaching pedagogy, reaction of contingency, critical thinking and reflection and consultation on academic writing. All participants perceived that teaching traits (198 points) and clinical nursing profession (161 points) were the most important. Consultation of academic writing is unique, which may be due to the clinical ladder system still being implemented in Taiwan. CONCLUSIONS: The nominal group technique is an efficient and proper method to conduct a consensus for specific issues or values among individuals and groups. The results of this study can facilitate the development of evaluation indicators or instruments as well as provide a direction of continuing education program for preceptor training.

[Factors and Medical Costs Associated With Fall Events in Hospitalized Patients].

BACKGROUND: Patient falls are a common, adverse event in hospitals that may result in economic and care burdens on the patient and his/her family afterward. PURPOSE: To analyze the factors that relate to falls among inpatients and to estimate the associated days of hospitalization and medical costs. METHODS: The present study used a retrospective matched case-control design to analyze inpatient fall data for 2009 to 2011 from a regional teaching hospital in northern Taipei. We matched fallers and controls according to gender, age ∓ 5 years, and ICD-9-CM (International Classification of Diseases, Ninth Revision, Clinical Modification) code. Data were analyzed using descriptive and inferential statistics. RESULTS: A total of 160 inpatients participated in the present study (80 fallers in the fall group and 80 nonfallers in the control group). The results revealed that fallers had more previous fall experiences and longer hospital stay than nonfallers. Multiple logistic regression analysis revealed that the risk factors that were significantly associated with inpatient falls included: no family accompaniment, use of more than 3 fall-related medications, and no intravenous catheter placement. Results further found that medical costs increased with the degree of injury. Third-degree injuries bore the highest post-fall medical costs of all of the injury-degree categories. The average medical cost for patients with third-degree injuries was 18,257 New Taiwan dollars. CONCLUSIONS / IMPLICATIONS FOR PRACTICE: The findings provide a reference for hospitals to promote patient safety, to prevent the occurrence of inpatient falls, and, ultimately, to reduce fall-associated medical costs.

[Transformative Care Rooted in Evidence-Based Nursing].

As clinical scientists on the interdisciplinary healthcare team, nurses use the art and science of current nursing knowledge to provide evidence-based healthcare to each patient and his/her family. Nurses not only comprise the largest contingent of medical personnel and provide 24-hour patient care but are also professional scientists that develop unique nursing knowledge through reflective practice. Five strategies for expanding the body of current evidence-based nursing scientific knowledge include: (1) reflecting empirically on the practice-service domain, (2) developing nursing knowledge using rigorous methodology, (3) emancipating nursing knowledge using innovative transformation, (4) using collaborative interdisciplinary healthcare that is based in patient-centered care, and (5) initiating innovative transformation in nursing education. Nurses are critical healthcare providers that make important contributions to today's healthcare system. Nursing scientists provide frontline, evidence-based transforming care that deserves to be respected and valued on an equal basis with the care and services that are provided by other medical personnel.

Change and predictors of symptom distress in breast cancer patients following the first 4 months after diagnosis.

BACKGROUND/PURPOSE: Breast cancer patients may encounter a wide range of physical and psychosocial distress symptoms during diagnosis, while awaiting treatment, and during treatment. This study of newly diagnosed breast cancer patients explores: (1) changes in symptom distress over 4 months; and (2) factors predicting changes in symptom distress. METHODS: A prospective longitudinal design was used to collect data from breast cancer patients in northern Taiwan. A set of questionnaires was used to measure anxiety, symptom distress, social support, and demographic and treatment-related characteristics. Repeated measures analysis of variance (RM-ANOVA) with least significant difference (LSD) was used to examine differences in symptom distress, state anxiety, and social-support levels across four time-points. Generalized estimating equation (GEE) is used to determine predictors for the change in symptom distress. RESULTS: Participants showed mild overall symptom distress during treatment that increased from cancer diagnosis to treatment phases, with a peak at 4 months after diagnosis. Insomnia was the most commonly identified distressful symptom over time. Changes in overall symptom distress were significantly predicted by state anxiety, health professional support, and time since cancer diagnosis. CONCLUSION: Change in symptom distress following the first 4 months after diagnosis was predicted by state anxiety, health professional support, and time. Patients should receive social support and be trained in problem-solving skills to relieve distressful symptoms from diagnosis through treatment.

Education and psychological support meet the supportive care needs of Taiwanese women three months after surgery for newly diagnosed breast cancer: a non-randomised quasi-experimental study.

BACKGROUND: Few studies have comprehensively examined the effectiveness of information and psychosocial support on all dimensions of cancer patients' supportive care needs. OBJECTIVES: To investigate the effects of education and psychological support on anxiety, symptom distress, social support, and unmet supportive care needs of Taiwanese women newly diagnosed with breast cancer over 3 months after surgery. DESIGN: Two-group, non-randomised quasi-experimental design. SETTING: The general surgical outpatient department of the largest teaching medical centre in northern Taiwan. PARTICIPANTS: Women newly diagnosed with breast cancer (N=80) were divided into experimental (n=40) and control (n=40) groups. METHODS: The experimental group received education and psychological support in the form of individual face-to-face and telephone follow-up sessions; the control group received routine care. Data were collected during the patients' first postoperative visit (baseline), 1 month after surgery, and 3 months after surgery. RESULTS: After adjusting for covariates, the levels of symptom distress and unmet needs for participants in the experimental group were lower at 1 and 3 months after surgery than for those in the control group, with the results at 3 months achieving significance. However, the sexuality needs for both groups were not significantly different at 1 and 3 months. Furthermore, levels of state anxiety were significantly lower for the experimental group at 1 and 3 months than for the control group. CONCLUSION: The education and psychological support components of our intervention programme effectively improved the unmet supportive care needs of patients newly diagnosed with breast cancer 3 months after surgery. Following prolonged treatment, women with breast cancer still have physical, psychological, and information care needs. Thus, clinical healthcare personnel should continually and actively provide culturally sensitive, individualised, and accessible information and psychological support to these patients.

Changes and predictors of unmet supportive care needs in Taiwanese women with newly diagnosed breast cancer.

PURPOSE/OBJECTIVES: To investigate changes in unmet supportive care needs and factors affecting those needs in Taiwanese women with newly diagnosed breast cancer. DESIGN: Prospective longitudinal survey. SETTING: Two general surgery outpatient departments at a large medical center in northern Taiwan. SAMPLE: 124 women with newly diagnosed breast cancer. METHODS: Needs were assessed with the Supportive Care Needs Survey-Short Form at diagnosis (T1) and one month (T2), two months (T3), and three months (T4) after diagnosis. MAIN RESEARCH VARIABLES: Supportive care needs. FINDINGS: Women had moderate-to-high levels of unmet needs, with the highest being in the health system and information domain at each time point. Levels in the domains of psychological, health system and information, and sexuality needs were higher (p < 0.001) at T1 than at T2, T3, and T4. However, levels of unmet physical and daily living needs increased significantly over time (p < 0.001). Unmet supportive care needs were significantly predicted by younger age and higher levels of education, symptom distress, trait anxiety, state anxiety, and time since diagnosis. CONCLUSIONS: Supportive care needs changed significantly over time and were predicted by personal characteristics, as well as physical and emotional factors. IMPLICATIONS FOR NURSING: Oncology nurses should assess the needs of patients with breast cancer and provide them with individualized, culturally sensitive informational, social, and emotional support from breast cancer diagnosis through the first four months of treatment.

Body image and its predictors in breast cancer patients receiving surgery.

BACKGROUND: Negative body image may reduce patients' ability to cope with breast cancer after surgery. OBJECTIVES: The purposes of this study were to (1) assess breast cancer patients' perceived level of symptom distress, anxiety, depression, disease impact, and body image and (2) evaluate factors associated with body image in breast cancer patients during the postoperative period. METHODS: A cross-sectional and correlational design was used to collect data for this study, conducted in northern Taiwan. A set of questionnaires was used to measure body image, symptom distress, anxiety, depression, psychological impact of disease, and demographic and disease-related information. Stepwise regression was conducted to determine significant factors related to body image. RESULTS: Surgical procedure and age were found to be important factors related to body image concerns. Patient receipt of mastectomy and younger age were associated with greater body image concerns. CONCLUSION: The average age of breast cancer patients is declining in Taiwan, and body image problems in these patients are growing. Several factors are significantly related to body image distress among these patients. IMPLICATIONS FOR PRACTICE: By understanding variables associated with breast cancer patients' body image, health professionals can coordinate interventions to improve these women's body image. Among women with breast cancer, those who have received mastectomy and those who are younger are particularly vulnerable to body image concerns. Nursing assessment of body image indicators and implementation of strategies to increase self-confidence and self-acceptance are needed for high-risk women.

Effects of massage on pain, mood status, relaxation, and sleep in Taiwanese patients with metastatic bone pain: a randomized clinical trial.

To date, patients with bony metastases were only a small fraction of the samples studied, or they were entirely excluded. Patients with metastatic cancers, such as bone metastases, are more likely to report pain, compared to patients without metastatic cancer (50-74% and 15%, respectively). Their cancer pain results in substantial morbidity and disrupted quality of life in 34-45% of cancer patients. Massage therapy (MT) appears to have positive effects in patients with cancer; however, the benefits of MT, specifically in patients with metastatic bone pain, remains unknown. The purpose of this randomized clinical trial was to compare the efficacy of MT to a social attention control condition on pain intensity, mood status, muscle relaxation, and sleep quality in a sample (n=72) of Taiwanese cancer patients with bone metastases. In this investigation, MT was shown to have beneficial within- or between-subjects effects on pain, mood, muscle relaxation, and sleep quality. Results from repeated-measures analysis of covariance demonstrated that massage resulted in a linear trend of improvements in mood and relaxation over time. More importantly, the reduction in pain with massage was both statistically and clinically significant, and the massage-related effects on relaxation were sustained for at least 16-18 hours postintervention. Furthermore, massage-related effects on sleep were associated with within-subjects effects. Future studies are suggested with increased sample sizes, a longer interventional period duration, and an objective and sensitive measure of sleep. Overall, results from this study support employing MT as an adjuvant to other therapies in improving bone pain management.

[Hospital perspective on nursing staff role and function in infection control].

Medical treatment-related infections may increase mortality rates and worsen patient conditions while raising medical costs and reducing quality of treatment. Hospitals must shield patients as well as their families, visitors, and hospital staff from infection. Therefore, an important mission of hospital medical staffs is infection prevention. Nurses have the most frequent and extensive contact with patients and their families. Their work also requires frequent contact with fellow medical staffs. Nurses thus face a particularly high risk of infection. This paper identifies those individuals in hospital settings who face the highest risk of medical care-related infections and describes existing infection control and monitoring practices as well as medical care-related infection prevention and control measures in order to identify the infection control role and function of nurses.

An exploration of Papanicolaou smear history and behavior of patients with newly diagnosed cervical cancer in Taiwan.

BACKGROUND: Papanicolaou (Pap) smear is an effective preventive measure in reducing cervical cancer incidence and mortality. The national health insurance made free annual cervical screening available to all Taiwanese women 30 years or older. OBJECTIVE: The objective of this study was to increase knowledge about Pap smear screening history, attitudes, and behavior in Taiwanese women with newly diagnosed cervical cancer. METHODS: One hundred forty-one women with newly diagnosed cervical cancer were prospectively enrolled between January 2007 and June 2008. Data were collected via a questionnaire survey, which included (1) demographic and socioeconomic characteristics, (2) reasons for receiving or not receiving a Pap smear test, and (3) knowledge of and sources of information on Pap smears. RESULTS: Of the 141 patients, 62 (44.0%) had never had a Pap smear before diagnosis, 10 (7.1%) did not know about the Pap smear, and only 30 (21%) reported having had more than 3 Pap smears in their lifetime. Stepwise logistic regression identified perceived potential pain, fear of embarrassment, and the number of sexual partners of the male consort as independently associated with the number of previous Pap smears (0 vs > or =1). CONCLUSION: Our results highlight the need for a better understanding of women's knowledge and experiences with Pap smear screening and developing more comfortable methods of cervical cancer screening. IMPLICATIONS FOR PRACTICE: Education strategies should be focused on improving access to never-users. The need for a better understanding of women's experiences with Pap smear screening is highlighted.

Effect of supportive care on the anxiety of women with suspected breast cancer.

AIM: This paper is a report of a study of the effect of supportive care on anxiety levels of women with suspected breast cancer during the diagnostic period. BACKGROUND: Informational and psychosocial support has been shown to improve care outcomes for women with breast cancer. However, little is known about the effect of supportive care on women's psychological status during the breast cancer diagnostic period. METHODS: For this longitudinal quasi-experimental study, 122 participants were recruited from a large teaching hospital in Taiwan. The experimental group (n = 62) received a supportive care programme that included health education pamphlets about breast cancer diagnosis and treatment, three face-to-face sessions of informational and emotional support, and two follow-up telephone consultations. The control group (n = 60) received routine care. Data were collected from October 2006 to April 2007 using the State-Trait Anxiety Inventory at baseline (notification of need for breast biopsy), before biopsy, and after receiving biopsy result (diagnosis). FINDINGS: After adjusting for covariance of breast discomfort, regular breast self-examination, and biopsy result, the anxiety levels of women receiving supportive care were significantly lower before biopsy (P = 0.017) and after diagnosis (P = 0.001) than those of women receiving routine care. CONCLUSION: Supportive care that incorporates informational and emotional support and follow-up telephone consultations can decrease anxiety levels of women with suspected breast cancer. These findings can serve as a reference for clinical nursing staff to improve care quality during the breast cancer diagnostic period by providing women with individualized and culturally sensitive care.

Supportive care for Taiwanese women with suspected breast cancer during the diagnostic period: effect on healthcare and support needs.

PURPOSE/OBJECTIVES: To investigate the effect of supportive care on healthcare and support needs for women with suspected breast cancer during the diagnostic period. DESIGN: A quasiexperimental design with two nonrandomly assigned groups. SETTING: Two general surgery outpatient departments at a large teaching hospital in Taiwan. SAMPLE: Experimental and control groups included 62 and 60 women with suspected breast cancer, respectively. METHODS: The experimental group received supportive care, including health education pamphlets regarding breast cancer diagnosis and treatment; three sessions of individual, face-to-face health education and emotional support; and two follow-up telephone counseling sessions. The control group received routine care. Data were collected upon notice of need for breast biopsy, before biopsy, and after biopsy results were revealed. MAIN RESEARCH VARIABLES: Healthcare and support needs. FINDINGS: Levels of healthcare and support needs before breast biopsy and after results were revealed were significantly lower for the experimental group than the control group. Supportive care and biopsy results predicted healthcare and support need levels after diagnosis confirmation, explaining 57% of the total variance. CONCLUSIONS: Supportive care incorporating information, emotional support, and continuous follow-up care improved the degree to which women with suspected breast cancer perceived that their healthcare and support needs were met. IMPLICATIONS FOR NURSING: Supportive care, when individually designed and culturally sensitive, can help clinical nurses improve quality of care for clients with suspected breast cancer during the diagnostic period.

Prevalence of allergic diseases of schoolchildren in central taiwan. From ISAAC surveys 5 years apart.

The prevalence of allergic disorders is increasing around the world. This study used the standardized written questionnaire from International Study of Asthma and Allergies in Childhood (ISAAC, phase III) to collect two cross-sectional appraisals of schoolchildren 5 years apart-one performed 2002 and another on 2007, to focus on the secular trends in prevalence of allergies in central Taiwan. This questionnaire was administered to schoolchildren from over 46 schools across Changhwa County in 2002, and again in 2007. The present study is a follow-up study and uses data collected from a previously reported study conducted in the year 2002 of the same location using the same methodology. Although the repeated cross-sectional survey after a 5-year lapse suggests a mere increase of diagnosed asthma cases from 7.1% to 7.4%, the prevalence of its related symptoms--nocturnal cough, rhinitis, and eczema--was found to increase significantly by 2.6% (p < 0.0001), 6.8% (p < 0.001), and 5.9% (p < 0.001), respectively. Additionally, comparing the secular trends in asthma prevalence, rhinitis, and eczema between several polluted areas in Changhwa County with its less polluted neighbors in 2002 and 2007 indicates that schoolchildren in TaiHao area, which is noted to be polluted by a petrochemical company, has a significantly increased prevalence of wheezing (3.7%, p < 0.05) and nocturnal cough (3.6%, p < 0.05). For schoolchildren living in the coastal areas, a 6% (p < 0.05) increase in the prevalence of rhinitis is noted. The prevalence of eczema uniformly increased for all areas of Changhwa County (p < 0.01). In the downtown areas, besides eczema, the prevalence of asthma and rhinitis also increased significantly (p < 0.05). Of note is the consistent finding in these two periods of the higher prevalence of childhood asthma, rhinitis, and eczema in the downtown areas compared with that from both the polluted and coastal areas. The secular trends in prevalence of asthma, rhinitis, and eczema in these two periods seem to correlate to environmental factors. While the symptoms of asthma, rhinitis, and eczema in schoolchildren affected boys more than girls, it is observed that affected girls have more marked manifestations, although it did not reach statistical significance.

Uncertainty and anxiety during the diagnostic period for women with suspected breast cancer.

A possible diagnosis of breast cancer imposes a huge psychological impact on most women, but few studies have addressed uncertainty and anxiety changes at different diagnostic stages in women with suspected breast cancer. Thus, this longitudinal study examined uncertainty and anxiety and predictive factors for uncertainty in women with suspected breast cancer. Data were collected on uncertainty (Uncertainty in Illness Scale) and anxiety (State Anxiety Inventory) from 127 women at 3 times: upon notice of a breast biopsy, before biopsy, and after diagnosis. The results showed that uncertainty and anxiety levels were significantly higher before than after diagnosis. At the 3 data collection times, uncertainty and anxiety were significantly lower for participants diagnosed with benign tumors than for those with malignant diagnoses. Uncertainty and anxiety were positively, moderately correlated. Uncertainty was predicted by age, marital status, education level, religious status, family history of benign breast tumor, regular breast self-examination, self-perceived probability of receiving a breast cancer diagnosis, and biopsy result. Therefore, nursing professionals should be aware of the uncertainty and anxiety changes and impact of personal attributes on women with suspected breast cancer during the diagnostic period and provide care programs to alleviate their psychological distress.

Healthcare and support needs of women with suspected breast cancer.

AIM: This paper is a report of a study to investigate changes in the healthcare and support needs during the diagnostic period, and factors that affect these needs in women with suspected breast cancer. BACKGROUND: Although the needs of women with breast cancer are well recognized, few studies have examined the needs of women with suspected breast cancer during the diagnostic period. METHOD: This longitudinal study used an investigator-developed, self-administered questionnaire to collect data from 127 women in Taiwan on three occasions: notification of need for breast biopsy, before biopsy and after diagnosis. The data were collected from November 2004 to April 2005. FINDINGS: Participants had high need levels before and after diagnosis, with their top needs in the domains of healthcare services for diagnosis, follow-up and consultation, and information about the disease. They needed disease- and treatment-related information more than emotional support. Need levels were higher (P < 0.01) before diagnosis than after, highest before biopsy, and lowest after diagnosis. Furthermore, needs were higher (P < 0.01) before than after diagnosis for diagnostic services, disease information, and involvement of family and friends. Higher needs were found in married women with more education and no history of benign tumours. Need level did not differ statistically significantly by age, religious status, degree of social support, family history and breast symptoms. CONCLUSION: Need levels of women with suspected breast cancer vary during the diagnostic period, are highest before breast biopsy, and related to personal characteristics and cultural context. Therefore, during this period, nursing staff should provide patients and families with culturally sensitive, individualized, supportive care.