Perceived level of knowledge and difficulty in applying family assessment among senior undergraduate nursing students.

Because the structure, development, and functioning of a family plays an important role in health and illness, preparing nursing students to assess families in health care settings is of critical importance. A quasi-experimental design using a pre- and postcourse questionnaire was used to examine students' perceived knowledge about family assessment and perceived difficulty applying family assessment in the clinical setting. The Calgary Family Assessment Model (CFAM) was taught in an elective nursing course, "Families in Health and Illness," offered at the University of Hong Kong. At the completion of the course, 46 senior baccalaureate nursing students showed a significant increase in their perceived understanding of all subcategories in CFAM compared with the control group of 43 senior baccalaureate nursing students who completed an elective nursing course in women's health. Teaching family nursing assessment in undergraduate programs may be useful in ensuring that nurses attend to families in practice.

Predictors of poststroke quality of life in older Chinese adults.

AIM: This paper is a report of a study to identify the changes in poststroke quality of life and other clinical issues among older Chinese adults from 1 month to 6 months after stroke and the predictors of poststroke quality of life at 6 months. BACKGROUND: Stroke survivors are known to suffer from prolonged and multiple impairments leading to a compromised quality of life, but few studies report early predictors for quality of life among older Chinese adults after active rehabilitation has been undertaken during the first 6 months after stroke. METHOD: A total of 214 patients with first-ever ischaemic stroke were interviewed by a research nurse at 1 month and 188 patients were interviewed again 6 months after hospital admission for stroke. Assessment of quality of life was done using the Modified Rankin Scale for Quality of Life. Changes in and relationships between quality of life and variables in five domains were explored: bio-anatomical, physical, emotional, cognitive, communicative and social support. The data were collected in 2004-2005. RESULTS: Quality of life among two-thirds of participants was unchanged or lower when scores at 1 month and 6 months after stroke were compared. Length of hospital stay after admission for stroke and other 1-month factors - level of worry over current health, cognitive and self-care deficits - were identified as having independent effects on quality of life at 6 months. CONCLUSION: Clinicians need to observe for early signs of mild cognitive impairments and emotional needs of stroke survivors, as well as to consider longer-term interventions to enhance poststroke quality of life.

Incidence and predictors of depression after stroke (DAS).

Objective. Depression after stroke (DAS) poses a treble burden to patients, families and health care system. The purpose of this paper is to estimate the incidence of depression among first-ever ischemic stroke patients and identify the predictors of DAS. Methods. A longitudinal study design was undertaken. Of 836 patients admitted to the stroke unit of two regional hospitals in Hong Kong during the period 1 June 2004 to 31 May 2005, 295 patients fulfilled the inclusion and exclusion criteria. A total of 260 patients had given their consents and were interviewed at 1 month after stroke onset. Results. Nearly one-quarter of the first ischemic stroke patients, who were known to be free of personal and family history of psychiatric illnesses, were found to satisfy the criteria of depression using Diagnostic and Statistical Manual IV (24%, 48 out of 200 participants; 95% CI: 18.6%, 30.4%). This result was close to that assessed by the Geriatric Depression Scale (GDS) - 15 items. The psycho-emotional factor and level of dependency were found to be most significant predictors for DAS onset. Conclusion. The high incidence of DAS and low rate of accessibility to treatment indicate timely action to be undertaken.

Score in the Palmore's Aging Quiz, knowledge of community resources and working preferences of undergraduate nursing students toward the elderly in Hong Kong.

Health care professionals are the gate-keepers for elderly health information. Unfavorable attitude to the elderly posts an obstacle to health information delivery. Therefore, it is vital to identify the knowledge and attitude of nursing students toward working with the elderly. The present study aimed to examine the knowledge and working preferences toward the elderly among undergraduate nursing students in Hong Kong. Two hundred and sixty-nine students completed a questionnaire that incorporated 70 questions in the Palmore's Aging Quiz and 10 questions reflecting the knowledge on local community resources for the elderly. The results revealed that nursing students generally have a neutral to positive working preferences toward the elderly. 83% of them gained a mean Palmore's score of 40.90 out of 70 (SD=5.02) and good knowledge of the community resources (mean score=8.49, SD=1.85). Those who disliked working with the elderly had a significantly lower mean Palmore's score (F=7.73, p=0.001). Though the level of study had a positive correlation with the knowledge of community resources, it did not increase with Palmore's score. Further research on the study results and more detail examination of geriatric education for nursing students to refine their attitude toward the elderly are recommended.