Survey of knowledge, self-efficacy, and attitudes toward suicide prevention among nursing staff.

OBJECTIVE: This study aimed to explore the knowledge, self-efficacy, and attitudes toward suicide prevention among nurses with different demographic characteristics. METHODS: A cross-sectional descriptive design was adopted, and the study was conducted between August and September 2020. The content of the questionnaire included basic demographics, knowledge, self-efficacy, and attitudes toward suicide prevention. Correlation analysis was performed to determine nurses' knowledge, self-efficacy, and attitudes toward suicide prevention. RESULTS: The sample comprised 778 nursing staff from a medical center in southern Taiwan. The results showed that age, years of nursing experience, department type, education on suicide prevention, and care experience of nursing staff were associated with their knowledge, self-efficacy, and attitudes toward suicide prevention in general hospital patients. Younger and less experienced nurses demonstrated superior knowledge, self-efficacy, and attitudes toward suicide prevention. Nurses who received suicide-related education and training exhibited better self-efficacy and attitudes than those who did not. Nurses with care experience had better knowledge of suicide prevention than those without experience. Knowledge and self-efficacy in suicide prevention were both significantly and positively correlated with attitudes. CONCLUSION: Younger, less experienced, psychiatric nurses demonstrated superior knowledge, self-efficacy, and attitudes toward suicide prevention. Therefore, education on suicide prevention should be strengthened for older, experienced, and non-psychiatric nurses.

[Enhancing the attendance rate of psychiatric day care patients].

BACKGROUND & PROBLEMS: Attending rehabilitation programs at psychiatric daycare wards has been shown to stabilize psychiatric patients' daily routines, reduce patient symptoms, and help them regain social functions. Non-attendance increases risks of patient decompensation and return to the inpatient unit, which reduces quality of care and increases medical costs. The attendance rate for psychiatric daycare patients at our hospital was 73%. To maximize rehabilitation and treatment success, we developed a special project to raise patient program-attendance motivation. PURPOSE: This study aimed to enhance the attendance rate of our psychiatric day care patients to improve patient independence and their capacity to return to the community. RESOLUTION: Methods used included rehabilitation game cards, holding medication educational workshops, utilizing reward systems, making attendance passports, and designing activity booklets. RESULTS: The attendance rate of psychiatric day care patients rose from 73% to 89%, a 16% increase. CONCLUSION: This program not only increased the attendance rate of psychiatric day care patients but also improved communications between professional care staff and patient family members. In addition, this program strengthened daycare ward staff teamwork, which further enhanced treatment quality. We suggest considering rehabilitation program attendance as an important ward quality control criterion to assess and improve treatment and nursing care quality.

Medical conditions and medications as risk factors of falls in the inpatient older people: a case-control study.

OBJECTIVE: The majority of inpatient falls are older people who have various medical conditions and are on several medications. The purpose of this study was to examine the association between medical conditions and medications and falls in older people in hospital. METHOD: Using a case-control design, we selected older people (aged 65 or over) who were reported to the Taiwan Patient-Safety Reporting System for the fall incidents in a large academic hospital in 2006 (n = 165). They were individually (1:1) matched for gender, age, and period of hospitalization with the control non-faller group. Bivariate and multivariate logistic regressions were used to compare the cases and controls to examine the association of medical conditions and medication exposure within 24 h before the falls. RESULTS: Bivariate analyses showed that older people with cancer, or exposure medications such as zolpidem, benzodiazepines, narcotics, and antihistamines were significantly more likely to have falls during hospitalization. After controlling for cancer, zolpidem, narcotics, and antihistamine, we found benzodiazepine (Odds ratio (OR) = 2.26, 95% confidence interval (CI) = 1.21-4.23) and benzodiazepine doses ≥1 mg/day in diazepam equivalents (OR = 2.14, 95%CI = 1.04-4.39) were still significantly associated with the falls of older people in the hospital. CONCLUSIONS: Strategies to prevent falls in older people in hospital should include minimizing the use of zolpidem, benzodiazepine, narcotics, and antihistamines, especially in cancer patients.