"Ariadne's Thread": Psycho-educational Empowerment Intervention for Patients with Metastatic Breast Cancer.

"Ariadne's thread" is a psycho-educational intervention designed by the Breast Unit and the Clinical Psychology Unit of an Italian Comprehensive Cancer Center and aims to promote empowerment in patients with metastatic breast cancer. It consists of 8 online meetings led by a psycho-oncologist in which informative sessions by patients' referring physicians alternate with moments of stress management techniques. This study aims to investigate (1) the feasibility of the "Ariadne's thread" pilot intervention and (2) the satisfaction and perceived benefits of the pilot intervention. We used a mixed method approach in which (1) it was detected: the number of acceptance to the single session of the intervention by both patients and professionals, the number of help requests by patients, and the number of change of date requests by professionals; (2) semi-structured interviews were conducted with the professionals who participated in the intervention; (3) 2 focus groups were conducted with patients, and (4) a questionnaire was submitted to each of them. The intervention is sustainable from the perspective of the organization, professionals, and patients. In particular, the patients declared perceiving benefits in many aspects: improved relationships with doctors, acceptance of their illness, learning of a relaxation technique, possibility to look at the world with trust and hope, etc. The questionnaires show an improvement in empowerment and satisfaction as a result of the intervention. "Ariadne's thread" is a psycho-educational intervention that effectively addresses the needs of patients with MBC. It can be applied to other contexts (1) if it has been confirmed that similar needs exist or (2) if it can be modified to accommodate other needs.

[Theoretical-practical training for personnel involved in patient assistance for limiting the risk of manual handling of the patients in a hospital company]. / Corso teorico-pratico di formazione al personale di assistenza per il contenimento del rischio da mobilizzazione manuale dei pazienti in una Azienda Ospedaliera.

Worker education and training must represent a deep cultural change that can be achieved, fulfilled and strengthened through constant guiding steps and periodical checks regarding practical application of acquired knowledge. In our hospital, a multi-subject team has been identified to face such problem of risk reduction from inpatient mobilization in a shared and synergic manner. Therefore a theory and practical training course is being proposed, with a theoretic part of one hour and a half to be held in a classroom to small groups (not more than 20 people) and a practical part (addressed to 8 people groups) composed of 4 sections of 1 hour and a half each: once listening in class and then being subdivided in the relative belonging wards as well as after an explanation, everyone will have here the chance to perform the correct manual mobilization handlings also in association with the use of minor aid devices. At the end of each section, a referent-educator is identified for each Operative Unit: such a figure is extremely important as a reference for his/her collegues, for new employees and to support and/or substitute the outside inspector in checking operations during the year following the end of the course itself. This latest phase is thus considered absolutely necessary to realize the actual change in the staff habits.