Efficacy of turmeric in the treatment of oral mucositis in patients with head and neck cancer after radiotherapy or chemoradiotherapy: a systematic review and meta-analysis.

Background: Oral mucositis is a major complication for head and neck cancer (HNC) patients after radiotherapy or chemotherapy. A meta-analysis was performed to assess the efficacy of turmeric in the treatment of oral mucositis in HNC patients. Methods: Randomized controlled trials investigating our topic were included in the meta-analysis. The clinical outcomes considered were the severity of oral mucositis, pain level, and weight loss. Results: A total of eight articles that met our inclusion criteria were included in our meta-analysis. At the 3-week follow-up visit, the turmeric group showed significantly lower grades of oral mucositis compared to the control group (p = 0.03). When compared to the placebo group, a significant difference in the degree of oral mucositis was observed at the 4-(p = 0.03) and 6-week (p < 0.00001) follow-up visits. No significant difference in pain levels was observed between the turmeric and control groups at any of the follow-up visits. However, a significant improvement in pain levels for the turmeric group when compared with the placebo group was observed only at the 6-week follow-up visit (p = 0.006). Interestingly, a significant improvement in pain levels was observed for the turmeric group at the 2-, 4-, 5-, and 6-week follow-up visits (p < 0.05) when compared to the non-placebo group. The turmeric group showed less weight loss than the control group at the final follow-up visit (p = 0.03). conclusion: Our meta-analysis showed that using turmeric may be effective in improving both the severity of oral mucositis and pain levels in HNC patients who have received radiotherapy or radiochemotherapy. In addition, the turmeric group experienced less weight loss.

Quality of Life and Emotional Problems of COVID-19 Patients after Discharge: A One-Month Longitudinal Study.

AIM: The first coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) outbreak in Taiwan occurred in May 2021 and many individuals were infected. All COVID-19 patients were quarantined in designated facilities until they fully recovered to prevent the spread of the disease. Prolonged quarantine could adversely affect these patients. In this study, we focused on investigating changes in the quality of life and mental health of individuals discharged from hospital after recovering from COVID-19. METHODS: This study employed a longitudinal design and surveyed individuals discharged from a teaching hospital in northern Taiwan in 2021 within one week of their discharge and again after one month. An online questionnaire comprising the participants' background, respiratory function (COPD Assessment Test), quality of life (WHOQoL-BREF), and emotional problems (DASS-21) was administered to the participants. RESULTS: A total of 56 participants actively took part in both surveys. We observed that participants with abnormal respiratory function had a lower physical and psychological quality of life, especially those with severe symptoms requiring endotracheal intubation during the treatment period of COVID-19. Additionally, approximately 30% of participants experienced anxiety problems throughout this study period. Finally, patients with COVID-19 symptoms exhibited a lower quality of life and higher levels of severe emotional problems. CONCLUSIONS: According to our findings, it is necessary to monitor and provide appropriate interventions for individuals who have recovered from COVID-19, especially those who experienced severe symptoms that required endotracheal intubation during COVID-19 treatment. These interventions, such as symptom management and psychological support, can help improve their quality of life and reduce emotional problems. Therefore, after the participants are discharged, hospitals should regularly track the patients' status and provide appropriate support or referrals to help these individuals. Otherwise, future research could include more participants and follow up with them for longer to investigate the longitudinal impact of COVID-19.

Relationship between nurses' resilience and depression, anxiety and stress during the 2021 COVID-19 outbreak in Taiwan.

AIM: The COVID-19 outbreak in Taiwan had a significant impact on medical services. These changes posed a threat to nurses' mental health. Resilience may protect nurses from the psychological impact of COVID-19. This study aimed to understand nurses' resilience and its relationship with nurses' characteristics (life and work situations) and mental health (depression, anxiety and stress) during the outbreak. DESIGN: A cross-sectional study. METHODS: This study surveyed the nurses at a hospital from 9 August 2021, to 20 August 2021. The content of the questionnaire included nurses' characteristics, resilience and mental health. RESULTS: There was an association between higher resilience and lower mental health problems. We also found that some nurses' characteristics were positively correlated with mental health problems. CONCLUSION: Some nurses' life and work situations predicted high levels of mental health problems during the pandemic. Additionally, higher levels of resilience were associated with lower levels of mental health problems.

The effects of proactive approach and integrated medical care on psychological distress in hospitalized patients: A single center experience.

PURPOSE: Psychological distress is common among patients with acute diseases and is associated with a poorer prognosis. Early detection and intervention are important for high-risk individuals. DESIGN AND METHODS: This retrospective study used the five-item Brief Symptom Rating Scale (BSRS-5) to assess psychological distress and evaluate whether proactive intervention may reduce distress levels among hospitalized patients in a single medical center in northern Taiwan. FINDINGS: Of the patients, 10.7% were found to have varying degrees of emotional distress (BSRS-5 ≥ 6). After providing integrated medical care for patients with psychological distress, the degree of stress decreased significantly (p < 0.001). These results were consistent across subgroups. PRACTICE IMPLICATIONS: The results highlight that proactive assessment and appropriate interventions may reduce patients' psychological distress during their course of hospitalization.

Exploring factors influencing the retention of nurses in a religious hospital in Taiwan: a cross-sectional quantitative study.

BACKGROUND: Long-term deficits in the nursing labor force and high turnover rates are common in the Taiwanese medical industry. Little research has investigated the psychological factors associated with the retention of nursing staff. However, in practice, religious hospitals often provide nursing staff with education in medicine or the medical humanities to enhance their psychological satisfaction. The objective of this study was to explore factors influencing nursing staff retention in their work in relation to different levels of needs. A further objective was to investigate whether medical humanities education was associated with the retention of nursing staff. METHODS: This study used self-administrated questionnaires to survey nurses working in northern areas of Taiwan. The questionnaire design was based on the six levels of Maslow's hierarchy of needs. Participation was voluntary, and the participants signed informed consent documents. Self-administrated questionnaires were distributed to a total of 759 participants, and 729 questionnaires were returned (response rate 96.04%). Logistic regression analysis was used to estimate the impact of seniority on nurses' reported intention to stay after adjustment for nurse characteristics (gender and age). RESULTS: In the Pearson correlation analysis, nurses' willingness to stay was moderately correlated with "physical needs", "safety needs", "love and belonging needs", and "esteem needs" (r = 0.559, P < 0.001; r = 0.533, P < 0.001; r = 0.393, P < 0.001; and r = 0.476, P < 0.001, respectively). Furthermore, nurses' willingness to stay was highly correlated with "self-actualization needs", "beyond self-actualization needs" and "medical humanities education-relevant needs" (r = 0.707, P < 0.001; r = 0.728, P < 0.001; and r = 0.678, P < 0.001, respectively). We found that the odds ratios (ORs) of retention of nursing staff with less than 1 year (OR = 4.511, P = 0.002) or 1-3 years (OR = 3.248, P = 0.003) of work experience were significantly higher than that of those with 5-10 years of work experience. CONCLUSIONS: With regard to medical humanities education, we recommend adjusting training, as the compulsory activities included in the official programs are inadequate, and adjusting the number of required hours of medical humanities education. Tailoring different educational programs to different groups (especially nurses who have worked 3-5 years or 5-10 years in the case study hospital) might improve acceptance by nursing staff.