Development and validation of the climate change health protection behaviors scale for adolescents: a methodological study.

This study aimed to develop and validate the Climate Change Health Protection Behaviors Scale for adolescents. A total of 1036 adolescents were recruited from middle and high schools. The development of the assessment scale was carried out in three steps: item generation, content validity evaluation, and psychometric evaluation. Psychometric testing was conducted to determine the relationship between the resulting factors and the Healthy Lifestyle Belief Scale and Climate Change Awareness Scale. A 28-item scale was developed, consisting of four factors that account for 65.0% of the variance. The Cronbach's alpha value was 0.874. Additionally, a positive correlation was observed between the Climate Change Health Protection Behaviors Scale and both the Climate Change Awareness Scale and the Healthy Lifestyle Belief Scale for adolescents. These results suggest that the Climate Change Health Protection Behaviors Scale is a reliable and valid tool for evaluating health protection behaviors related to climate change in adolescents.

Turkish Cross-cultural Adaptation of the Post Hospitalization Behavior Questionnaire for Ambulatory Surgery (PHBQ-AS).

PURPOSE: The purpose of this study is to cross-culturally adapt the Post Hospitalization Behavior Questionnaire for Ambulatory Surgery (PHBQ-AS) to Turkish and test its validity and reliability. DESIGN: This is a methodological study. METHODS: This study was conducted with 121 children aged 1 to 12 years who underwent ambulatory surgery. The data of the study were collected using a Descriptive Information Form, PHBQ-AS, and the Parents' Postoperative Pain Measure. Data analysis and evaluation were performed using factor analysis, Cronbach's α analysis, item-total score correlation analysis, content validity, construct validity, and concurrent validity. FINDINGS: PHBQ-AS showed a high level of internal consistency (Cronbach's α = 0.801). The item-total correlation values of PHBQ-AS were found to be 0.458 to 0.753. PHBQ-AS was determined to be a single-factor scale explaining 66% of the variance in the examined variable. PHBQ-AS and Parents' Postoperative Pain Measure scores were moderately correlated. CONCLUSIONS: The Turkish version of PHBQ-AS was highly valid and reliable for the Turkish population. A recommendation for health care professionals in Turkey is to use the PHBQ-AS scale to evaluate posthospitalization behavioral changes in children who are admitted for ambulatory surgery.

Barriers experienced by nurses in communication for sexual health education for children with intellectual disability: a qualitative study.

Nurses have important responsibilities in the development of health and care services for children with intellectual disabilities. This is because it is usually the nurse who first encounters the child in all kinds of care and treatment services. Barriers to the provision of sexual healthcare by nurses have not yet been clearly discovered. This study aimed to identify the barriers experienced by nurses regarding communication for sexual health education for children with intellectual disabilities. This study was carried out with 19 nurses through in-depth interviews. The thematic analysis method was used for data analysis. Four themes emerged related to barriers in communication for sexual health education for children with intellectual disabilities by nurses as (1) communication of nurses with their patients, (2) communication on an individual level, (3) communication on the family level, and (4) institutional factors. These barriers included the lack of knowledge of children, families, and nurses, insufficient institutional support, attitudes towards sexuality and stigmatization of the family, and the prevention of sexual health education services by the aggressive behaviors of children. It is recommended to provide sexual health education to nurses and families to minimize problems in the sexual health of children with intellectual disabilities. Nurses should also be trained on sexual health policy and how to put it into practice.

The effectiveness of an education program based on healthcare transition in adolescents with asthma: A randomized controlled trial.

BACKGROUND: Adolescents diagnosed with asthma make a transition to adult care when they reach a certain age. Besides, these adolescents need specialized education for them to become autonomous, competent, and adult patients and gain the necessary knowledge and skills related to their disease. In this study, by using a prospective randomized controlled trial design, we evaluated the effectiveness of an education program based on healthcare transition provided to adolescents diagnosed with asthma. METHODS: After obtaining the consent of adolescents and their parents, 52 adolescents aged between 14 and 18 years who were diagnosed with asthma were randomly assigned to the intervention group (individual four face-to-face and six online education sessions) or the control group (standard care). The primary outcome was the differences between the Transition Readiness Assessment Questionnaire (TRAQ) scores of the two groups. The secondary outcomes included the differences between the Self-Efficacy Scale for Children and Adolescents with Asthma and Mind the Gap scores of the two groups. The outcomes were measured at two different time points: baseline (first assessment; Week 0) and immediately after the intervention (last assessment; Week 12). RESULTS: In the initial evaluations, there was no significant difference between the groups in terms of the primary or secondary outcomes (p > .05). In the final assessments, the TRAQ (Z = -4.740, p < .001) and Self-Efficacy Scale for Children and Adolescents with Asthma (t = 6.344, p < .001) scores of the intervention group were found to be significantly higher than the scores of the control group, while their Mind the Gap Scale scores were significantly lower (t = 6.146, p < .001). CONCLUSION: It was determined that the educational intervention integrated with pediatric care based on readiness for transition from pediatric care to adult care was effective in increasing the transition readiness and self-efficacy of the adolescents. The study was registered at ClinicalTrials.gov with the ID code NCT05550922.

Effect of the Helfer skin tap technique on pain, anxiety, and fear in children undergoing intramuscular injection: An open-label randomized controlled study.

BACKGROUND: Intramuscular injections, which children frequently experience during hospitalization, are one of the most significant causes of pain. Pain control is an important part of care. Therefore, it is necessary to provide practical methods in the field of nursing care to reduce injection-related pain. AIM: This study aimed to determine the effect of the Helfer skin tap technique on pain, anxiety, and fear in children undergoing intramuscular injection. METHOD: This randomized controlled clinical study (NCT05250804) was conducted in a pediatric emergency department between January and July 2022. A total of 64 children aged 4-10 years were randomly divided into two groups: 32 children in the Helfer skin tap group (HG), and 32 children in the control group (CG). Data were collected using the Wong-Baker FACES Pain Rating Scale, the Child Anxiety Scale-State, and the Child Fear Scale. RESULTS: After the intramuscular injection, children in the HG had significantly lower levels of pain, anxiety, and fear than those in the CG, with mean scores of 3.25±1.50 versus 5.18±1.51, 5.87±1.56, versus 6.23±1.46, and 1.68±0.53 versus 3.15±0.76, respectively (p<0.001 for all scores). CONCLUSION: The Helfer skin tap technique has positive effects on pain, anxiety, and fear in children during intramuscular injection. This technique can be used by nurses to reduce the pain, anxiety, and fear felt by children receiving an intramuscular injection.

Hospital classroom experiences of hospitalized school-age pediatric oncology patients: A qualitative study.

PURPOSE: In this study, it was aimed to examine the hospital classroom experiences of school-age children who received treatment and care at a pediatric oncology-hematology clinic in Turkey. METHODS: The study was conducted using the in-depth interview method with the participation of 17 children who were hospitalized in the pediatric oncology-hematology clinic of a research and training hospital in the Ankara province of Turkey. The data were collected using a "Semi-Structured Interview Form". The interviews started with the question "How do you perform the assignments given by your teacher while you are hospitalized?", and the interviews were recorded as audio with the consent of the children and their parents. RESULTS: As a result of the interviews, three main themes, (1) Learning, (2) Maintaining normalcy, and (3) Expectations, and 9 subthemes (teacher, continuation of learning, learning through play, feeling good, continuation of routines, peer interaction, communication with the school-teacher, basic sport activity, and tablet/internet access) were generated from the data. CONCLUSIONS: Hospital classrooms had a significant role in increasing the children's adaptation to hospital conditions and ensuring the continuation of school/learning. PRACTICE IMPLICATIONS: Pediatric nurses can refer children with long and repeated hospitalizations (e.g., pediatric oncology patients and children with chronic diseases) to hospital classrooms. Thus, children can adapt more easily to the procedures performed in the hospital.