[The transformation of nurses in holding and containing: a reflective group for end-of-life care].

BACKGROUND: Caring for dying patients is an emotional burden for nurses. PURPOSE: This study used reflective groups to explore the process of transition that nurses go through in caring for dying patients. METHODS: We adopted a phenomenological approach. Data were collected from nurses participating in 12 reflective groups. All nurses worked in oncology / hospice units in a general hospital in Taipei. We used thematic analysis to analyze data. RESULTS: Findings identified a transition in how nurses handled and contained their emotions within three main themes: (1) containing unpredictable reality, (2) cautious "holding back" in discussion, and (3) self-cultivation in order to serve others. These findings led us to extrapolate the three issues of wounded healer, facing others, and altruism in caring. CONCLUSIONS/IMPLICATIONS FOR PRACTICE: This study represented the holding and containing of nurses in caring for dying patients and held group dialogues to facilitate reflection. Findings will be used to facilitate nurse self-awareness and improve end-of-life care quality.

Irritable bowel syndrome: the bodily experiences of Taiwanese women.

Irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) results in a poor quality of life and absenteeism due to unpredictable abdominal pain, diarrhea, and bloating. IBS has prevalence rates of approximately 6% to 22% in various countries, and more women than men are diagnosed with this disorder. This study explored how Taiwanese women with IBS gain knowledge about the disorder and studied their experiences in using alternative remedies. An ethnographic study design involving interviews and Internet online discussions was used. Women (18-45 years) either diagnosed with IBS or with self-reported symptoms that met the Rome II criteria were included. All interviews were transcribed verbatim and analyzed by the constant comparison method. Results showed that symptom pattern recognition was used most often by participants to interpret symptoms. The bodily practices of the IBS women followed Taiwanese gender norms, with bodily experiences being represented as a dialogue between the disordered body and the social body. Linking diarrhea with social norms of female slenderness, IBS women applied cultural strategies to manage symptoms. The findings facilitate a partnership between healthcare professionals and IBS women, which can facilitate the development of an appropriate self-management manual, self-help groups, and Internet discussion groups to facilitate symptom management. It is hoped that this study will enhance nurse understanding of the traditional Chinese view of the body and the corresponding dietary practices used to harmonize the body's yin and yang. Although Asian women may resist Western medications due to their side effects, study results provide nurses with information on alternative therapies that may be more acceptable in the Asian context. In conclusion, the bodily experiences and practices of women with IBS are developed from personal cultural views of the body and gender norms.

[Reflections on technology and nursing profession development].

Discussions of the impact of technological innovation on nursing practices have focused on how technology enhances nursing professional abilities to deliver quality nursing care, on one hand, and the sacrifice of artistic and humanistic aspects of nursing on the other. The debate highlights the fundamental incompatibilities between technology and nursing. Instead of examining the interplay of technology and nursing with the view of technological optimism and romanaticism, the authors apply a social history of technology perspective and emphasize that technology is socially constructed and historically contingent. The technological system and its dissemination produce and reproduce the enduring patterns of power relations in areas such as gender, class and self-identity. This article discusses medical technology in the context of the nursing practice in an attempt to reveal the interplay between technology and nursing with four major themes including the transformation of the ownership of technology, the transformation of nurses' professional identity, the transformation of the relationship between physicians and nurses, and the transformation of the nursing labor process. Implications for nursing practice and directions for future research are suggested.