Obstetric violence in southwestern Turkey: Risk factors and its relationship to postpartum depression.

This study was conducted to determine the relationship between violence, risk factors, and depression at the end of pregnancy. The sample of this descriptive and cross-sectional study consisted of 426 women for normal postpartum monitoring during the six-month period and living in southwestern Turkey of the study. About 5.6% of the women who participated in the study were exposed to obstetric violence. 5.2% of them were intimate partner violence before pregnancy. 79.1% (n = 24), 29.1%, and 25% of them were subjected to physical, sexual, and economic violence, respectively. In addition, 7.5% of women were exposed to verbal obstetric violence. It was found that the postpartum depression scores of the women who had been subjected to violence from their husbands before pregnancy were high.

Psychiatric inpatients' view of the therapeutic environment: A Turkish interview study.

PURPOSE: The aim of the study was to determine the feelings, thoughts, and experiences of inpatients in a psychiatric clinic about the therapeutic environment of the clinic. DESIGN AND METHODS: The data were collected in interviews using the phenomenological method and interpreted using Strauss and Corbin's approach to qualitative data analysis. FINDINGS: As a result of the data analysis, four themes, "Activities," "Physical Environment," "Personnel," and "Rules" were determined, and each with a number of related subthemes. PRACTICE IMPLICATIONS: The therapeutic environment is a dynamic space that can be modified according to the needs of the patients. Psychiatric nurses will benefit from responding to the feedback from patients by providing, for example, more activities or additional psychotherapeutic interventions.

The Elephant in the Room: Nurses' Views of Communication Failure and Recommendations for Improvement in Perioperative Care.

Perioperative communication failures endanger patient safety and may reduce efficiency. The objective of our phenomenological research study was to determine the reasons for and consequences of perioperative communication failures and to seek recommendations for improvement. Fourteen perioperative nurses participated in this study. We conducted in-depth interviews with a semi-structured questionnaire following Colaizzi's seven-step methodology to extract themes. We organized the themes into categories: causes, consequences, and recommendations for preventing communication failure. Some themes for causes were inadequate time for preoperative preparation, lack of personnel, and disruptive behaviors of physicians. Consequences of communication failure were decreased staff retention, avoidance of colleagues, threats to patient safety, and intra-team violence. Two recommendations included enforcing institutional regulations and creating team spirit. The study revealed that nurses believe that institutional regulations should not only be present but enforced. Further, nurses believe that strengthening employees' interpersonal skills is essential to preventing communication issues.

Hope and belonging in patients with schizophrenia: A phenomenological study.

PURPOSE: The aim of this study was to examine in depth the senses of hope and belonging in patients with schizophrenia and factors which affect these. DESIGN AND METHODS: The data were collected through the phenomenological interview method and interpreted using Strauss and Corbin's approach to qualitative data analysis. FINDINGS: Patients with schizophrenia reported that having hope and feeling a sense of belonging were very important to them and patients with the same diagnosis, and that being accepted by society, being employed and being productive increased their senses of both hope and belonging. PRACTICE IMPLICATIONS: For the rehabilitation of patients with schizophrenia, which is a chronic disease, psychiatric nurses should carry out activities which increase their senses of hope and belonging.

Roles of Psychiatry Nurses Within a Therapeutic Environment of Psychiatry Clinics in Turkey.

OBJECT: The object of this study is to determine the roles of psychiatry nurses within the therapeutic environment of psychiatry clinics in Turkey. METHODS: This study was performed in a cross-sectional and descriptive design in 195 institutes comprising psychiatry clinics in Turkey. RESULTS: When the responsibilities of nurses for clinical activities were asked, the following answers were obtained: playing with patients or painting at a rate of 54,4%. It was determined that in the majority of psychiatry clinics, there were educational activities which were conducted by nurses. CONCLUSION: The researchers propose that the increase in the roles and responsibilities of nurses in such activities be supported.

Efficiency of antibacterial suture material in cardiac surgery: a double-blind randomized prospective study.

OBJECTIVE: Postoperative surgical site infections (SSI) still greatly affect mortality and morbidity in cardiovascular surgery. SSI may be related to the suture material. In this prospective, randomized, controlled, and double-blinded study, the effect of antibacterial suture material on SSI in cardiac surgical patients was investigated. METHODS: We randomly allocated 510 patients into 2 groups. Antibacterial suture materials were used for wound closure in 170 patients (triclosan-coated suture group), and routine suture materials were used in 340 patients (noncoated suture group). All patients were evaluated for SSI on days 10, 20, and 30 following cardiac surgery. RESULTS: Preoperative risk factors and laboratory findings were comparable for the 2 groups. Sternal infection occurred in 4 (2.4%) of the patients in the triclosan-coated suture group and in 3.5% of the noncoated suture group (P > .05). Leg wound infection occurred in 5 (3.5%) of the patients in the triclosan-coated suture group and in 3.8% of the noncoated suture group (P > .05). Only diabetes mellitus was an independent predictor of SSI. CONCLUSION: Both noncoated and triclosan-coated suture materials are safe. Larger studies may be needed to show the benefit and cost-effectiveness, if any, of triclosan-coated materials over noncoated materials.

Predictors of psychiatric symptom scores in a sample of Turkish high school students.

Most mental health problems start in adolescence and early adulthood. According to the literature, one out of five children and adolescents suffers at least one mental health problem. In this cross-sectional study, the distribution of psychiatric symptom scores among 728 Turkish high school students in grades 9, 10, and 11 was examined and associated with the students' gender, type of school, and grade level, as well as parental attitudes. The Brief Symptom Inventory and The Global Severity Index were used in this study. The latter is a global index of the former, and assesses indications of psychopathological disturbance. Girls score significantly higher than boys on all subscales of the Inventory, and specifically the Index. The highest Global Severity Index scores were obtained from the students who were attending vocational high schools, those who were in 11th grade, and those who indicated indifferent parental attitudes. This study revealed the need for a closer investigation of those students who are at severe risk of mental health problems.

Halofuginone, a specific inhibitor of collagen type 1 synthesis, ameliorates oxidant colonic damage in rats with experimental colitis.

To evaluate the effect of halofuginone on trinitrobenzene sulfonic acid (TNBS)-induced colonic injury, rats were given halofuginone (40 microg/kg, intraperitoneally) or saline 1 h before the induction of colitis, and the injections were continued twice daily for 3 days until they were decapitated. High macroscopic and microscopic damage scores, elevated colonic wet weights, colonic myeloperoxidase activity, malondialdehyde and tissue collagen level, and luminol chemiluminescence values, and marked reduction in glutathione level of the saline-treated colitis group were all reversed by treatment with halofuginone. In conclusion, halofuginone exerts beneficial effects in TNBS-induced colonic inflammation in rats. The anti-inflammatory effects of halofuginone appear to involve suppression of neutrophil accumulation, preservation of endogenous glutathione, and inhibition of reactive oxidant generation. Halofuginone also shows antifibrotic effect via inhibition of tissue collagen production. The present data encourage possible use of the antifibrotic halofuginone as an anti-inflammatory agent in improving oxidative injury in colitis.