Factors inhibiting adaptation to nursing care, the neglected loop in the mental health of intensive care unit nurses: A qualitative study.

BACKGROUND: As intensive care unit (ICU) nurses mainly care for critically ill patients, they face many professional challenges, including communicating with patients and working with various devices. Therefore, they need to adapt to the existing conditions, thereby providing high-quality care. Explaining factors inhibiting adaptation to nursing care among ICU nurses. MATERIAL AND METHODS: This is a qualitative study conducted using a conventional content analysis approach in a health center affiliated to Shahroud University of Medical Sciences, Iran. This hospital was equipped with an air ambulance and four ICUs and was also considered as the regional trauma center in the Northeast of Iran. Data were collected using semi-structured face-to-face interviews (from January 2020 to April 2021) and then analyzed using Graneheim and Lundman's (2004) qualitative content analysis method. RESULTS: It was shown that factors inhibiting adaptation to nursing care among ICU nurses consist of three main categories including "personal barriers to adaptation", "dominant management", and "educational concerns". CONCLUSION: To adapt more and as a result to improve the mental health of nurses, it is important to know the barriers to adaptation. Efficient management, paying attention to nurses' issues, and practical training constitute key elements affecting the adaptation to critical nursing care. Therefore, it is necessary to take measures to ensure adaptation in this group of health workers. Thus, an environmental approach of health promotion has social experience and organizational development.

Comparison of Autar scale and Wells criteria in DVT risk assessment by nurses in patients with lower extremity trauma.

BACKGROUND: Deep vein thrombosis (DVT) is a common and preventable complication in patients with lower extremity trauma. DVT prediction is considered to be necessary. PURPOSE: This study aimed to compare the Autar DVT risk assessment scale with modified Wells criteria in predicting DVT by nurses in patients with lower extremity trauma. METHODS: Patients with lower extremity trauma patients who met the requirements for this study were assessed by both the Autar and Wells tools for DVT risk assessment during the first 24 hours after their admission. Statistical analysis was performed using SPSS 18. RESULTS: There was a significant and direct statistical relationship between the results of risk assessment of these two tools based on Pearson correlation (r= 0.731, P<0.0001). Kappa coefficient between the two was 53%. Sensitivity and specificity of the Autar scale were 100% and 68%, respectively, which revealed a higher degree of sensitivity than that of the Wells criteria. CONCLUSION: Although the results of DVT prediction for the Autar scale and modified Wells criteria were consistent, the Autar DVT risk assessment scale showed higher sensitivity. Therefore, it is recommended that the Autar scale be used to achieve more precise DVT predictions.

Bacterial Superoleophobic Fibrous Matrices: A Naturally Occurring Liquid-Infused System for Oil-Water Separation.

Nanocellulose fibers bioengineered by bacteria are a high-performance three-dimensional cross-linked network which can confine a dispersed liquid medium such as water. The strong chemical and physical interactions of dispersed water molecules with the entangled cellulosic network allow these materials to be ideal substrates for effective liquid separation. This type of phenomenon can be characterized as green with no equivalent precedent; its performance and sustainability relative to other cellulose-based or synthetic membranes are shown herein to be superior. In this work, we demonstrated that the renewable bacterial nanocellulosic membrane can be used as a stable liquid-infused system for the development of soft surfaces with superwettability and special adhesion properties and thus address intractable issues normally encountered by solid surfaces.

Underwater Superoleophobic Matrix-Formatted Liquid-Infused Porous Biomembranes for Extremely Efficient Deconstitution of Nanoemulsions.

Wettability is one of the most critical interfacial properties of any surface. Surfaces with special wettability such as superwetting or superantiwetting are being intensively explored for their wide-ranging applicability by a biomimetic exploration of unusual wetting phenomena in nature. This study provides a green water-infused superoleophobic composite membrane by boosting bacteria nanocellulose growth on a reinforcement fibrous substrate. It was shown that this versatile antifouling membrane is capable of removing water from surfactant-stabilized oil-in-water micro/nanoemulsions and helps to isolate the oil fraction with very high filtration efficiency. The renewable membrane based on bacteria nanocellulose matrices can vastly improve current technologies by cultivating a naturally occurring soft materials approach with lubricious conformal interfaces to effectively and simply cover suitable surfaces.

Psoralen and narrowband UVB combination provides higher efficacy in treating vitiligo compared with narrowband UVB alone: A randomised clinical trial.

BACKGROUND/OBJECTIVES: Side effects of current treatments and the need for a safe treatment with higher efficiency necessitate seeking new treatment options for vitiligo. Few studies have investigated the combination of psoralen with narrowband ultraviolet B (NBUVB). In this study, we compared the efficacy and safety of psoralen and NBUVB combination (P-NBUVB) with NBUVB alone in treatment of vitiligo. METHODS: This randomised clinical trial was carried out during 2015-2017 in dermatology clinics of Ghaem and Imam Reza hospitals, Mashhad, Iran on 40 vitiligo patients with 5-60% body involvement. The patients were randomly divided into two groups of NBUVB alone and P-NBUVB. Both groups underwent 60 phototherapy sessions (three sessions per week), and the repigmentation rate was measured using vitiligo area severity index (VASI) score. SPSS v. 16 software and appropriate statistical tests were used to analyse the data. P < 0.05 was considered statistically significant. RESULTS: The mean age of patients was 33.9 ± 11.3 years. Twenty patients (50%) were females. The P-NBUVB group showed greater VASI improvement in lower extremities (P = 0.003) and overall (P = 0.026) compared with NBUVB group. Moreover, the treatment response appeared sooner in P-NUVB group. CONCLUSION: Based on our results, we can conclude that adding psoralen to NBUVB phototherapy can result in increased efficacy. However, more studies are needed to evaluate the long-term effects and side effects of this treatment.

Bioengineering tunable porosity in bacterial nanocellulose matrices.

A facile and effective method is described to engineer original bacterial cellulose fibrous networks with tunable porosity. We showed that the pore shape, volume, and size distribution of bacterial nanocellulose membranes can be tailored under appropriate culture conditions specifically carbon sources. Pore characterization techniques such as capillary flow porometry, the bubble point method, and gas adsorption-desorption technique as well as visualization techniques such as scanning electron and atomic force microscopy were utilized to investigate the morphology and shape of the pores within the membranes. Engineering various shape, size and volume characteristics of the pores available in pristine bacterial nanocellulose membranes leads to fabrication and development of eco-friendly materials with required characteristics for a broad range of applications.

Nature-Inspired Liquid Infused Systems for Superwettable Surface Energies.

The development of an innovative interfacial wetting strategy known as liquid infused systems offers great promise for the advanced design of superwetting and superantiwetting substrates to overcome the drawbacks of textured surfaces classified under the heading of Cassie/Wenzel states. The potential value of nature-inspired surfaces has significant potential to address scientific and technological challenges within the field of interfacial chemistry. The objective of the current review is to provide insights into a fruitful and young field of research, highlight its historical developments, examine its nature-inspired design principles, gauge recent progress in emerging applications, and offer a fresh perspective for future research.

Effect of Family-Based Education on the Quality of Life of Persons With Type 2 Diabetes: A Randomized Clinical Trial.

BACKGROUND: Diabetes, a disease with increasing prevalence, requires comprehensive support from family members to ensure that sufferers are able to perform daily activities. The chronic nature of diabetes and its potential side effects impose high financial costs on patients and families, reduce their quality of life (QOL), and change the lifestyle of both patients and their families. PURPOSE: The aim of this study was to investigate the effects of a family-based training program on QOL in persons with Type 2 diabetes. METHODS: A randomized clinical trial was used to assess the effects of an educational program on QOL both before and after 12 weeks of training for the experimental group (40 patients and families) and of standard care for the control group (40 patients) at an endocrinology clinic in a hospital in Iran. A demographic and social questionnaire and the QOL questionnaire for patients with Type 2 diabetes were used for data collection. The study groups were selected using block randomization sampling, and results were analyzed using descriptive and inferential statistics. RESULTS: Both the experimental and control groups were homogeneousin terms of demographic characteristics and QOL before the intervention. The results of the mean score of patient QOL after the 12-week training program showed a significant difference between the scores for the two groups of patients in the physical, mental, social, economic, disease, and treatment dimensions. Moreover, the total score and QOL of the experimental group improved significantly after the patients' families had attended the training program. CONCLUSIONS/IMPLICATIONS FOR PRACTICE: Educating the families of patients was shown in this study to improve the QOL of the patient. The design of educational programs for nursing students must emphasize the role of the family in the care of chronic patients.