Exploration of Inflammatory Biomarkers and Psychological Cardiovascular Disease Risk Factors Among Community Dwelling Adults: A Gender Comparison Study.

Patients with rheumatic disease (RD) are at high risk for cardiovascular disease (CVD), which is the leading non-communicable chronic disease cause of death worldwide. Inflammatory biomarkers and psychological health status are reliable predictors of CVD in patients with RD. The primary aim of this study was to compare the inflammatory biomarkers and psychological CVD risk factors (CRFs) between a group of community-dwelling adults with RD and CRFs and a group of their peers with CRFs only. The secondary aim of this study was to analyze and compare the collected data by gender in the RD group. Data were collected and analyzed from 355 participants, with the 135 participants with physician-diagnosed RD assigned to the RD group and the remainder (n = 220) assigned to the comparison group. The measures used included a demographic datasheet, medical information, serum homocysteine (Hcy) levels, high sensitive C-reactive protein (hs-CRP) levels, and depression and global sleep-quality scale scores. The RD group had higher ratios of hypertension and depression diagnoses than the comparison group. The gender analysis of the RD group found significantly more-severe sleep disturbances in women than men and a significantly higher mean value of Hcy in men than women. The women in the RD group were significantly older, less educated, and less employed than their male counterparts and thus may be presumed to at higher risk of health illiteracy. Gender-tailored interventions to modify the risk factors of CVD identified in this study for patients with RD are recommended.

The mediation of health-promoting lifestyle on self-perceived health status and quality of life among nurses: a cross-sectional study.

BACKGROUND: Nurses with busy workloads lack the time to maintain health, leading to a decline in physical and mental health and quality of life. It is widely accepted that self-perception of health triggers health-promoting behaviors and impacts the quality of life; however, the relationship between these factors among nurses is unclear. The purpose of this study was to investigate the ability of a health-promoting lifestyle to mediate the relationship between self-perceived health and quality of life among nurses. METHODS: A cross-sectional survey was conducted in four regional Taiwanese teaching hospitals with over 500 beds. The survey used stratified random sampling of 600 nurses who had worked for more than six months. The Self-Perceived Health Questionnaire, the Health-Promoting Lifestyle Profile, and the World Health Organization Quality of Life Scale were used to measure nurses' self-perceived health (SPH), health-promoting lifestyle (HPL), and quality of life (QoL). A Hayes PROCESS analysis and bootstrapping method were used for the mediation analysis. RESULTS: A total of 518 nurses' data was included in the analysis. Nurses perceived their health status as less favorable than their colleagues, but frequently adopted health promotion behaviors. Nurses reported a moderate QoL. QoL and SPH were correlated (r = .33) and a high correlation between QoL and HPL (r = .64) was found. SPH and HPL both affect QoL (B = 0.077 and 0.070). SPH and HPL explained 42.6% of the variation in QoL. HPL played a partial mediation role. CONCLUSIONS: The study confirmed that HPL has an important role in mediating nurses' SPH and QoL. Nurse administrators are advised to encourage nurses to monitor their health status and provide health promotion mechanisms to improve their quality of life.

Burnout, resilience, and empowerment among COVID-19 survivor nurses in Indonesia.

The primary frontline healthcare providers who have frequent contact with COVID-19 patients are nurses. Many nurses have been infected with COVID-19 and have experienced severe emotional exhaustion and burnout. It is essential to assess nurses' psychological health during the COVID-19 pandemic. This study aimed to analyze the factors associated with burnout, resilience, and empowerment among Indonesian COVID-19 nurse survivors. In this cross-sectional study, 182 COVID-19 survivor nurses participated from September to November 2022 with convenience sampling. An online survey using the Copenhagen Burnout Inventory (CBI), the Connor-Davidson Resilience Scale (CD-RISC), and the Psychological Empowerment Scale (PES) were used to collect data. The data were analyzed using descriptive and binary logistic regression analyses. The majority of the nurses were aged between 30-45 years (61.6%), and females (67.4%) experienced burnout. Higher resilience was found among nurses contracting COVID-19 (83.1%). In the multivariate logistic regression analysis, the absence of psychological impact (OR = 0.44, 95% CI = 0.21-0.93) is significantly related to higher burnout experience. In addition, workplace, especially in hospital (OR = 4.32, 95% CI = 1.09-17.09) was associated with resilience, and a gap time after receiving negative COVID-19 result (OR = 3.90, 95% CI = 1.27-12.03) was correlated with psychological empowerment, in our results 4-6 month after had a negative result was at higher risk. To maintain a positive psychological aspect for COVID-19 nurse survivors, it needs to implement psychological support in the workplace and ensure an appropriate workload of nurse professionals.

Relationship between physical activity and perceptions of ageing from the perspective of healthy ageing among older people with frailty with chronic disease: a cross-sectional study.

BACKGROUND: In Taiwan, the 2019 Elderly Frailty Assessment found that 11.2% of older people have frailty problems. Some researchers have found that older persons' negative perspectives on ageing aggravate the progression of frailty, thereby increasing their risk of disability. This study aimed to investigate associations of physical activity and perceptions of ageing on perspectives of healthy ageing in older people with frailty and chronic diseases and to compare the differences in their frailty status. METHODS: This study used a descriptive cross-sectional design. Participants were recruited from community long-term care stations. The inclusion criteria were (1) no severe cognitive impairment and ability to communicate in Mandarin and Taiwanese; (2) over 65 years old; (3) at least one chronic disease; and (4) at least one debilitating item in the Study of Osteoporotic Fracture index. A total of 312 participants were recruited. The Brief Ageing Perceptions Questionnaire Chinese version, Healthy Ageing Perspectives Questionnaire, and Physical Activity Scale for the Elderly Chinese Version were used for measurement. RESULTS: The study results found that demographic variables, perceptions of ageing, and physical activity were significantly correlated with perspectives on healthy ageing, including age, Activities of Daily Living, education, all domains of perceptions of ageing, and household- and work-related physical activity. With regard to the frailty status level, prefrailty was better than frailty from the perspective of healthy ageing in older people with chronic disease (t = 5.35, p < 0.05). Hierarchical regression analysis was used to predict the healthy ageing perspectives of older persons with chronic disease involving a chronic time-line, positive control, health-related changes, and work-related activities. Those domains could predict 21% of the variance in healthy ageing perspectives. CONCLUSION: It is suggested that in community long-term care stations, health care providers can arrange activities to improve the perception of ageing that are acceptable for older people with frailty and chronic diseases and encourage older people to participate in service activities to achieve a sense of social participation.

A Qualitative Exploration of Older Patients' Experiences With Frailty and Related Management Strategies.

BACKGROUND: Frailty is highly prevalent in hospitalized older patients and may increase the risk of adverse health outcomes. Understanding the experiences of older patients and the management strategies they use to recover from frailty is crucial to developing appropriate interventions. PURPOSE: This study was designed to explore the frailty experiences of older adults and the management strategies they use to recover from frailty. METHODS: Using purposive sampling, semistructured, face-to-face interviews were conducted with 16 older patients with frailty. Data were analyzed using content analysis. RESULTS: The experiences of participants were classified into three phases, including the (a) individual sensing phase, (b) daily-living-threatening phase, and (c) acclimatization and acceptance phase. When experiencing frailty, the participants developed management strategies to facilitate recovery, which manifested in three phases: (a) making flexible adjustments to the daily routine, (b) using adequate support systems, and (c) adopting positive thinking. CONCLUSIONS/IMPLICATIONS FOR PRACTICE: The results indicate that familial support and positive thinking are important management strategies for successful recovery in frail individuals. Older patients require adequate support systems. Positive thinking was also found to be an effective management strategy for recovery. Healthcare professionals should not only focus on providing supportive resources but also provide support to older patients to facilitate their adoption of positive thinking to face life changes brought on by frailty.

Decreasing the incidence of central line-associated bloodstream infection in a medical intensive care unit: a best practice implementation project.

INTRODUCTION AND OBJECTIVES: Bloodstream infections are common in critically ill patients using central venous access devices (CVAD) in intensive care units (ICU). This project aimed to decrease the incidence of central line-associated bloodstream infections (CLABSI) by using evidence-based strategies. METHODS: The project applied the JBI audit and feedback methods. Thirty-two nurses and five resident physicians from the medical ICU of a medical center participated in the project. Preintervention compliance was measured for the 11 key evidence-based criteria (six audit criteria of central venous catheter insertion and five audit criteria of dressing and catheter securement). Strategies were implemented to overcome the barriers identified in the baseline assessment. Impact evaluation and sustainability were conducted to change the CLABSI rate and the competence of healthcare professionals in providing CVAD care. The JBI Practical Application of Clinical Evidence System and Getting Research into Practice audit tools were used for the data collection, analysis, and implementation planning. RESULTS: Barriers included insufficient knowledge among nurses and physicians, poor compliance with the standard CVAD insertion procedure by physicians, inadequate cooperation among the CVAD care team members, and lack of CVAD-related equipment. The strategies included education and training in CVAD care, the establishment of a team resource management program, and the provision of appropriate equipment. Following project implementation, the CLABSI rate decreased from 8.38 to 3.9 BSIs/1000 CVAD-days. CONCLUSIONS: The project successfully decreased the CLABSI rate and increased the competence of healthcare professionals. Implementation of best practices in clinical care should focus on leadership, team resource management, education, monitoring, and innovation.

Classification and citation analysis of the 100 top-cited articles on nurse resilience using chord diagrams: A bibliometric analysis.

BACKGROUND: Studies of most-cited articles have been frequently conducted on various topics and in various medical fields. To date, no study has examined the characteristics of articles associated with theme classifications and research achievements of article entities related to nursing resilience. This study aims to graphically depict the characteristics of the 100 top-cited articles addressing nurse resilience (T100NurseR), diagram the relationship between articles and author collaborations according to themes extracted from article keywords, and examine whether article keywords are correlated with article citations. METHODS: T100NurseR publications were retrieved from the Web of Science (WoS) core collection on October 13, 2022. Themes associated with articles were explored using coword analysis in WoS keywords plus. The document category, journal ranking based on impact factor, authorship, and L-index and Y-index were used to analyze the dominant entities. To report the themes of T100NurseR and their research achievements in comparison to article entities and verify the hypothesis that keyword mean citation can be used to predict article citations, 5 visualizations were applied, including network diagrams, chord diagrams, dot plots, Kano diagrams, and radar plots. RESULTS: Citations per article averaged 61.96 (range, 25-514). There were 5 themes identified in T100NurseR, including Parses theory, nurse resilience, conflict management, nursing identity, and emotional intelligence. For countries, institutes, departments, and authors in comparison of category, journal impact factor, authorship, and L-index scores, Australia (129.80), the University of Western Sydney (23.12), Nursing (87.17), and Kim Foster (23.76) are the dominant entities. The weighted number of citations according to Keywords Plus in WoS is significantly correlated with article citations (Pearson R = 0.94; P = .001). CONCLUSION: We present diagrams to guide evidence-based clinical decision-making in nurse resilience based on the characteristics of the T100NurseR articles. Article citations can be predicted using weighted keywords. Future bibliographical studies may apply the 5 visualizations to relevant studies, not being solely restricted to T100NurseR.

Effectiveness of Positioning in Unconscious Adults During Nasogastric Intubation on Correct Placement and Intubation Time: A Systematic Review and Meta-analysis.

Nasogastric intubation is a common procedure in hospitals that causes adverse outcomes if performed incorrectly. There is currently insufficient guidance for patient positioning, which increases the success of nasogastric intubation at the bedside. Therefore, a systematic review with a meta-analysis was performed to determine the effectiveness of changing an unconscious adults' positions compared with the supine position to improve the correct placement of a nasogastric tube, intubation time, and complications. The Cochrane Library, MEDLINE, Embase, PubMed, and CINAHL databases were searched from inception to April 2019 for randomized controlled trials. The Cochrane Collaboration Risk of Bias tool was used to assess the quality of eligible studies. Cochrane Review Manager 5.3 software was used to analyze the data. A total of 288 articles were obtained in the literature search, 10 of which were included in the analysis. Most of the included trials were at low risk of bias. All postures were significantly effective, though neck flexion had the highest success rate (odds ratio = 4.87, 95% confidence interval [2.48, 9.57], Z = 4.6, p < .00001, I2 = 0%) for nasogastric intubation. In terms of the time required for the procedure, compared with the usual posture, although the total effects were significant ( MD =-10.33, 95% confidence interval [-15.38, -5.29], Z = 4.02, p < .00001, I2 = 98%), only neck flexion and lifting of the larynx reduced the time. The meta-analysis suggests that patient positioning improves the success rate of nasogastric intubation and increases safety. Finally, the authors developed a procedural instruction sheet to aid practitioners with nasogastric intubation.

The Effects of Work Satisfaction and Work Flexibility on Burnout in Nurses.

BACKGROUND: The World Health Organization has encouraged improving working conditions for nurses to decrease turnover and increase nurse staffing and nursing capacity. The International Council of Nurses has pointed out that a positive work environment can improve satisfaction and decrease burnout in nurses. However, the effects of working conditions and work satisfaction on burnout in nurses remain unclear. PURPOSE: The purpose of this study was to explore the effects of working-condition-related flexibility and work satisfaction on burnout in nurses. METHODS: A cross-sectional design was employed, and 450 nurses from a single medical center participated in this study. In addition to demographic information, three survey instruments, including the Taiwanese Hospital Nurses' Job Satisfaction Scale, the Working Conditions and Flexible System Scale, and the Maslach Burnout Inventory-Chinese Version, were used to measure working condition flexibility, work satisfaction, and burnout. Descriptive statistics, the Pearson correlation coefficient, and hierarchical linear regression were used to analyze the data. RESULTS: Four hundred thirty-five nurses were enrolled as participants. Most were female, with a mean age of 29 years. Over four fifths (83.1%) were unmarried, and 65.5% had at least 2 years of prior experience working at other hospitals. Although the participants reported experiencing burnout several times per month, they reported feeling satisfied with their work. They noted flexibility related to working conditions, especially task-related flexibility, as important. Four variables (satisfaction/professional autonomy, interpersonal interaction, workload, and working condition flexibility/task flexibility) were found to be significant predictors of emotional exhaustion (adjusted R2 = 0.212). However, only professional autonomy was found to significantly predict a sense of low personal accomplishment (adjusted R2 = .077), whereas nursing competence significantly predicted depersonalization (adjusted R2 = .086). CONCLUSIONS: Work satisfaction and flexibility related to working conditions were shown to relate negatively to burnout. Nursing managers should improve the level of satisfaction related to professional autonomy, interpersonal interaction, and workload as well as task flexibility for nurses.

Effect of Vitamin B2 supplementation on migraine prophylaxis: a systematic review and meta-analysis.

OBJECTIVE: Migraine is a common disease worldwide and migraine prevention is primarily currently based on pharmaceuticals. The mechanism of Vitamin B2 may positively contribute to migraine. This systematic review and meta-analysis aimed to evaluate the impact of Vitamin B2 supplementation on the days, duration, frequency, and pain score of the migraine attack. METHODS: : The PRISMA guideline was used for the studying process. Five electronic databases, PubMed, Embase, Cochrane, CINAHL, and CEPS were searched from 1990 to March 2019. The search terms were Vitamin B2, migraine, and prophylactic. A meta-analysis was performed using Comprehensive Meta-Analysis (CMA) version. RESULTS: : Nine articles were included in systemic review and finally meta-analysis. Eight randomized controlled trials and one controlled clinical trial with 673 subjects were analyzed using meta-analysis. Vitamin B2 supplementation significantly decreased migraine days (p = .005, I2 = 89%), duration (p = .003, I2 = 0), frequency (p = .001, I2 = 65%), and pain score (p = .015, I2 = 84%). CONCLUSIONS: A pooled analysis of available randomized controlled clinical trials demonstrated that Vitamin B2 400 mg/day for three months supplementation had significant effect on days, duration, frequency, and pain score of migraine attacks.

Exploration of Geriatric Care Competencies in Registered Nurses in Hospitals.

BACKGROUND: Older adults occupy one third of acute care hospital beds, and the regular duties of many nurses include caring for older patients. A working knowledge of geriatric care competencies is necessary for nurses to provide high-quality care to older patients and their families. It is unclear how nurses who work in acute care hospitals self-evaluate their geriatric care competencies and how these self-evaluated abilities differ from the objective abilities of these nurses. PURPOSES: This study was designed to explore the geriatric care competencies of nurses in hospitals and to identify the factors associated with these competencies. METHODS: This was a cross-sectional study. Nurses who were employed and directly caring for patients aged 65 years and older in any of the adult wards of a medical center located in southern Taiwan were recruited as participants. A structured questionnaire was developed based on a review of the relevant literature and validated using expert consensus. This questionnaire included a demographic datasheet, knowledge of geriatric care scale, attitude of geriatric care scale, self-evaluation of geriatric care competency, and geriatric care competency test. Descriptive and inferential statistics were used to analyze the geriatric care competencies of the participants and related factors. RESULTS: One hundred seventy nurses were enrolled as participants. The average self-evaluation score for geriatric care competency was 67.74 (SD = 0.84). However, the average percentage of correct answers given on the geriatric care competency test was much lower (17.6%). The self-evaluation score was found to be significantly associated with job satisfaction and having received continuing education in geriatric care. In addition, age was shown to significantly affect the percentage of correct answers given on the geriatric care competency test. CONCLUSIONS/IMPLICATIONS FOR PRACTICE: A significant gap was found between the self-perceived and actual competencies of nurses in terms of providing geriatric care. Appropriate policies are necessary to improve the geriatric care competencies of nurses working in hospitals and to oversee the implementation of effective educational methods in Taiwan.

Validating a brief aging perception questionnaire (B-APQ) for older persons with chronic disease in Taiwan.

OBJECTIVES: The purpose of this study was to validate the Chinese version of the Brief Aging Perception Questionnaire (B-APQ) for older persons with chronic disease living in Taiwan. METHODS: This study recruited older patients with chronic diseases from outpatient departments of a medical center in southern Taiwan. Five steps were used to develop the Chinese version of the B-APQ, including assessment of item quality, testing of the original model by confirmatory factor analysis (CFA), establishing the new model by exploratory factor analysis (EFA) and CFA, testing the correlation between the new model and criterion instrument, and evaluating the reliability. RESULTS: A total of 415 participants completed the survey. The structure of the original version was not suitable for the Taiwanese elderly. We developed a Chinese version of the B-APQ from outpatient dimensions and one additional item that accounted for cultural differences (for a total of 18 items). The indicators of construct validity were Chi-square (387.79), GFI (0.91), AGFI (0.88), RMSEA (0.07), and SRMR (0.054). For the convergent validity, the correlation coefficient was -0.07-0.39 for the Physical Activity Scale and -0.07-0.71 for the scale of the World Health Organization Quality of Life. The Cronbach's alpha was 0.86-0.91. CONCLUSIONS: The Chinese version of the B-APQ has good validity and reliability and is suitable for the measurement of the aging perceptions of older persons with chronic diseases in Taiwan.

An App for Detecting Bullying of Nurses Using Convolutional Neural Networks and Web-Based Computerized Adaptive Testing: Development and Usability Study.

BACKGROUND: Workplace bullying has been measured in many studies to investigate its effects on mental health issues. However, none have used web-based computerized adaptive testing (CAT) with bully classifications and convolutional neural networks (CNN) for reporting the extent of individual bullying in the workplace. OBJECTIVE: This study aims to build a model using CNN to develop an app for automatic detection and classification of nurse bullying-levels, incorporated with online Rasch computerized adaptive testing, to help assess nurse bullying at an earlier stage. METHODS: We recruited 960 nurses working in a Taiwan Ch-Mei hospital group to fill out the 22-item Negative Acts Questionnaire-Revised (NAQ-R) in August 2012. The k-mean and the CNN were used as unsupervised and supervised learnings, respectively, for: (1) dividing nurses into three classes (n=918, 29, and 13 with suspicious mild, moderate, and severe extent of being bullied, respectively); and (2) building a bully prediction model to estimate 69 different parameters. Finally, data were separated into training and testing sets in a proportion of 70:30, where the former was used to predict the latter. We calculated the sensitivity, specificity, and receiver operating characteristic curve (area under the curve [AUC]), along with the accuracy across studies for comparison. An app predicting the respondent bullying-level was developed, involving the model's 69 estimated parameters and the online Rasch CAT module as a website assessment. RESULTS: We observed that: (1) the 22-item model yields higher accuracy rates for three categories, with an accuracy of 94% for the total 960 cases, and accuracies of 99% (AUC 0.99; 95% CI 0.99-1.00) and 83% (AUC 0.94; 95% CI 0.82-0.99) for the lower and upper groups (cutoff points at 49 and 66 points) based on the 947 cases and 42 cases, respectively; and (2) the 700-case training set, with 95% accuracy, predicts the 260-case testing set reaching an accuracy of 97. Thus, a NAQ-R app for nurses that predicts bullying-level was successfully developed and demonstrated in this study. CONCLUSIONS: The 22-item CNN model, combined with the Rasch online CAT, is recommended for improving the accuracy of the nurse NAQ-R assessment. An app developed for helping nurses self-assess workplace bullying at an early stage is required for application in the future.

An App Developed for Detecting Nurse Burnouts Using the Convolutional Neural Networks in Microsoft Excel: Population-Based Questionnaire Study.

BACKGROUND: Burnout (BO), a critical syndrome particularly for nurses in health care settings, substantially affects their physical and psychological status, the institute's well-being, and indirectly, patient outcomes. However, objectively classifying BO levels has not been defined and noticed in the literature. OBJECTIVE: The aim of this study is to build a model using the convolutional neural network (CNN) to develop an app for automatic detection and classification of nurse BO using the Maslach Burnout Inventory-Human Services Survey (MBI-HSS) to help assess nurse BO at an earlier stage. METHODS: We recruited 1002 nurses working in a medical center in Taiwan to complete the Chinese version of the 20-item MBI-HSS in August 2016. The k-mean and CNN were used as unsupervised and supervised learnings for dividing nurses into two classes (n=531 and n=471 of suspicious BO+ and BO-, respectively) and building a BO predictive model to estimate 38 parameters. Data were separated into training and testing sets in a proportion 70%:30%, and the former was used to predict the latter. We calculated the sensitivity, specificity, and receiver operating characteristic curve (area under the curve) across studies for comparison. An app predicting respondent BO was developed involving the model's 38 estimated parameters for a website assessment. RESULTS: We observed that (1) the 20-item model yields a higher accuracy rate (0.95) with an area under the curve of 0.97 (95% CI 0.94-0.95) based on the 1002 cases, (2) the scheme named matching personal response to adapt for the correct classification in model drives the prior model's predictive accuracy at 100%, (3) the 700-case training set with 0.96 accuracy predicts the 302-case testing set reaching an accuracy of 0.91, and (4) an available MBI-HSS app for nurses predicting BO was successfully developed and demonstrated in this study. CONCLUSIONS: The 20-item model with the 38 parameters estimated by using CNN for improving the accuracy of nurse BO has been particularly demonstrated in Excel (Microsoft Corp). An app developed for helping nurses to self-assess job BO at an early stage is required for application in the future.

Risk factors of chronic urticaria among nurses with insomnia: A nationwide population-based study.

Chronic urticaria has a high economic burden and reduces patient's quality of life. Nurses experience insomnia because of their shifting work, especially if they work night shifts and 3-shift rotational schedules. This study aimed to examine whether insomnia is a risk factor of chronic urticaria in nurses.Data were obtained from the Registry for Medical Personnel, which contains all registered medical staff between 2007 and 2008. All study subjects were divided into those with insomnia and without insomnia. The primary exposure of interest was chronic urticaria. In addition, potential comorbidities including diabetes mellitus, hypertension, hyperlipidemia, anxiety, and depression were estimated.A total of 103,242 registered nurses between 2007 and 2008 were enrolled. Around 97,899 (94.8%) nurses did not have insomnia, and 5343 (5.2%) had insomnia. The proportion of chronic urticaria in nurses with insomnia was significantly higher than those without (0.92% vs 0.50%, P < .0001). The odds ratio of chronic urticaria in nurses with insomnia was 1.67 (95% confidence interval: 1.22-2.29, P = 0.0014) compared to those without insomnia after adjusting for age, sex, hospital level, and comorbidities.The risk of chronic urticaria was higher in nurses with insomnia than in those without insomnia. The relationship between insomnia and chronic urticaria might not be a direct causal association. Other contributing factors of insomnia include different perceptions of stress from night shift work, stress coping and adaptation, positive self-image, and emotional equilibrium related to person's capacity to adapt to change. The same situation may have different effects on different individuals.

Depressive symptoms and nutritional status in the frail older adults.

OBJECTIVES: The purpose of this study is to determine the relationship between depressive symptoms and nutritional status in the frail older adults. METHODS: This study uses a cross-sectional, descriptive, and correlational design. A questionnaire was used to collect demographic data, and the Taiwan International Physical Activity Questionnaire Form Geriatric Depression Scale-Short Form Charlson Comorbidity Index, and Mini-Nutritional Assessment Short-Form were used to measure depression and nutritional status, respectively. Data were analyzed by independent-t tests, chi-square tests, spearman correlations, and multiple linear regressions. RESULTS: Of the total of 94 frail older adults, 17 (18.09%) had depressive symptoms (GDS > 5). The average MNA-SF score was 11.38 (SD = 2.45), 31 (32.98%) participants had a risk of malnutrition and 12 (12.77%) were malnourished. Participants' reports of dissatisfaction with their lives (72.1%) and feeling terrible about their lives (58.14%) were associated with a risk of malnutrition. Elderly age, multiple comorbidities, and high level of depressive symptoms were at increased risk of malnutrition. CONCLUSION: When clinicians are faced with a high-risk group, such as elderly patients with multiple comorbidities and depressive symptoms, they should perform an immediate assessment of nutritional status. If a risk of malnutrition is found, adequate nutrition and health care should be provided.

Significant effects of late evening snack on liver functions in patients with liver cirrhosis: A meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials.

BACKGROUND AND AIM: Reducing post-absorptive (fasting) phase by eating late evening snacks (LESs) is a potential intervention to improve substrate utilization and reverse sarcopenia. This study analyzed the results of published randomized controlled trials and controlled clinical trials to evaluate the effects of LES on liver function of patients with cirrhosis. METHODS: A meta-analysis was conducted. The search strategy included electronic database searches, and 300 articles were searched. Eight of these articles provided qualified data for pooling and analysis. Outcomes assessments included serum albumin, total bilirubin, alanine aminotransferase, prothrombin time, and aspartate aminotransferase, complications of cirrhosis, severity of liver disease, and blood glucose levels. RESULTS: Our analysis included eight studies comprising 341 patients (167 in LES groups and 174 in control groups). The results showed that LES intervention helped to maintain liver reserves. These eight studies demonstrated that LES intervention had significant effects for liver biochemical parameters on albumin, ammonia, and prothrombin time, with respective effect sizes of 0.233, -0.425, and -0.589; liver enzymes include aspartate aminotransferase and alanine aminotransferase, with respective effect sizes of -0.320 and -0.284. Studies on clinical signs of liver dysfunction showed lower occurrence rates of ascites and hepatic encephalopathy than in the control group. LES had no significant effect on Child-Pugh score. CONCLUSIONS: The overall results of the meta-analysis indicated that having LES can improve liver function reserve for patients with liver cirrhosis, with or without hepatocellular carcinoma. LES is a promising intervention for reversing anabolic resistance and the sarcopenia of cirrhosis, resulting in an improved quality of life for patients with cirrhosis.

Factors contributing to voluntariness of incident reporting among hospital nurses.

PURPOSE: This study aimed to (a) test the hypothesized model for hospital nurses' voluntariness of incident reporting (VIR) and (b) determine the extent to which reporting culture factors, nursing safety practices and perceptions of work predict VIR. DESIGN AND METHODS: A cross-sectional survey was applied to 1,380 frontline nurses recruited from six teaching hospitals in Taiwan. Data were collected using self-administered questionnaires. Correlation analyses and path analyses using structured equation modelling were used. FINDINGS: More than half of the nurses did not display a voluntary attitude towards reporting. VIR was correlated with factors of reporting culture, nursing safety practices and perceptions of work. Through path analyses, the safety practices mediated on the relationship between the reporting culture and VIR. CONCLUSIONS: Nurses still have modest willingness of reporting. The factors of reporting culture and nursing safety practices are critical determinants of VIR. Within more behavioural involvement in the safety practices, the reporting culture can support nurses to report voluntarily. IMPLICATIONS FOR NURSING MANAGEMENT: Strengthening nurses' engagement in safety practices can advance the reporting voluntariness and agreement with reporting culture concurrently. Nurse leaders should continue to optimize workload management and job satisfaction, which is advantageous to the safety practices enacted.

Relationship between authentic leadership and nurses' intent to leave: The mediating role of work environment and burnout.

AIM: The aim of this study was to explore the mediating effects of work environment and burnout on the relationship between authentic leadership and the intention of nurses to leave their job. BACKGROUND: Authentic leadership can contribute to a good work environment. Burnout is a critical factor that affects nurses‧ intent to leave. The mediating roles of work environment and burnout on the relationship between authentic leadership and intent to leave is unclear. METHODS: A cross-sectional design was used, and 946 nurses from three different levels of hospital (medical center, regional, and district), defined in terms of the number of beds and type of medical care provided, responded to four self-report questionnaires. RESULTS: Work environment and burnout mediated the effect of authentic leadership on intent to leave among nurses. The mediating effects of burnout on authentic leadership was present both for junior (ß = 0.073) and senior (ß = 0.081) nurses. CONCLUSION: Authentic leadership can affect nurses‧ intent to leave but the work environment and burnout are important mediators of this influence. IMPLICATIONS FOR NURSING MANAGEMENT: Administrators should adopt authentic leadership practices and make efforts to improve the work environment and decrease burnout in order to decrease nurses‧ intent to leave.