Iranian Journal Of Nursing and Midwifery Research
Volume:12 Issue: 4, Autumn 2007

Preconceptional care is very effective to ensure mothers and babies health during and after pregnancy. Theclinics and health center personnel are able to offer preconceptional care especially to the risky cases. Learning about theexperiences of health center personnel in such cases is useful for others to find solutions for the same problems which maycome up. This study tends to consider these experiences. This was a qualitative study based on the phenomenology method. The participants included the personnel of publichealth centers as well as some private clinics. Sampling was based on the objectives and the sufficient data soaked upby 15 participants. Data gathered through deep interviews during nine months from November 2005 to August 2006 andthe Colaizzi method was used for data analysis. The phenomena appeared in this study regarding the health care providers'' experiences and descriptions of how thepatients face the disease and pregnancy were as following; patients and family, teaching the patients. Health care provider can be the best options for educating diabetic pregnant women and their families regardingpreconceptional care, because they have the opportunity to access and communicate with this group of patients.

The rapid pace of elderly population growth and higher hospitalization of them has raised the need for anefficient relation between the nurses and elderly patients to promote their health. As there are some obstacles in nurses''relation with elderly patients, this study was implemented to clear nurses’ viewpoints in order to familiar them how toremove these barriers. The present study has been conducted to find out nurses'' attitude toward obstacles in nurseelderlyrelations. It was a descriptive study. The studied population was comprised of all nurses working in medical surgicalwards of Isfahan Medical University hospitals. The 110 subjects were selected by simple random sampling. Data werecollected by a questionnaire consisting of four sections and totally 54 closed questions. The data was analyzed descriptivelyand by binomial test through SPSS software. The most frequent cited nurse related obstacle was tiredness (89.8%) while the most frequent cited elder''s+related obstacles (from nurses'' viewpoints) was forgetfulness (92.6%). The most frequent cited institutional obstaclewas the existence of critical patients in the ward (97.2%). The related authorities should have a deeper look at nurses'' working condition and try to amend environmentalobstacles in their work place. Educational courses on aging related changes and also on nurse-elderly relationsshould be held for nursing students as well as working nurses.

Cardiac rehabilitation is used for preventing disease progression, improving quality of life, reducing disabilityand mortality in cardiovascular disease. Numerous studies mentioned cardiac rehabilitation effects on patients, butthe structure of its effects is not absolutely defined. The aim of this study was to identify and describe the patient’s experiencesof cardiac rehabilitation effects. It was a descriptive phenomenological study. Its participants were patients with cardiovascular accidents, participatingin cardiac rehabilitation programs in Isfahan Cardiovascular Research Center in 2006 selected by purposedsampling. Deep semi structured interview with 8 participants was done and data were analyzed by Collaizi method. Four obtained themes were "now I know", "to be able", "well being" and "healthy family". the structure of rehabilitation effects reflected in knowledge, physical and psychosocial aspects that improveparticipants and their family''s quality of life.

The age of menopause has not changed in past centuries; however the life span has gradually increased.Today''s women spend one third of their life time after menopause. This study investigates quality of life after the menopauseand its relation to marital status. A descriptive study was conducted. The sample consisted of 384 post-menopausal women in Isfahan in 2006.Data was collected using the menopause quality of life questionnaire (MENQOL) and the Utian quality of life scale(UQOL) filled by interviewing. Content validity and cronbach''s alpha were used respectively to ensure the validity andreliability of the questionnaires. Inferential and descriptive statistics via SPSS software were used for data analysis. In psychological dimension, the highest scores of quality of life was in divorced women and married womenlive with their husbands (MLH), in physical dimension, it was for widowed women, in social dimension it was for MLHwomen and in sexual dimension -based on the marital status– it was 18.84% for MLH women. There was a significantdifference between marital status and quality of life in psychological dimension (p=0.03) and sexual dimension(p=0.000). However, there is no significant difference between marital status and quality of life in social and physicaldimensions. Marital status and the marriage satisfaction are related to the post-menopausal women''s quality of life.Therefore, it is necessary to develop effective intervention programs to improve their marriage satisfaction and providehealth care services for them.

In recent year, the accreditation process as the most important assurance and improvement of the quality ofhigher education, especially in medical sciences, has been set forthed. The need for accreditation of nursing faculties asthe same of medical sciences has been acutely felt. Yet there are not compiled standards at the same time, to describepresent and desirable quality via accreditation process. So naturally accreditation without standards will not be possible.Therefore, the employment of international standards does not seem to be realistic. Accordingly, the researchers decidedto compile applicable accreditation standards to nursing education in Iran, using available international standardsas well as suggestions made by nursing education experts in Iran. This research is a Triangulation study carried out in three main steps. In the first step, sufficient documents oninternational standards for validation of nursing education were gathered from the Internet and the standards were dividedin ten different categories. Using these ten categories of global standards, in the second step of study, a questionnairewith open answers based on Delphi techniques was prepared. In the third step, 50 nursing educational experts ofthe country were selected and their suggestions regarding desirability and applicability of these standards to the educational,executive and sociocultural situations in Iran were investigated through a descriptive survey method. To analyzethe quantitative data gathered in the third step, descriptive statistical methodology of frequency distribution was used. 260 standards in 10 domains were drafted for accreditation of B.S nursing education in Iran (in input, output andprocess areas). The most of the standards had either appropriate or fairly appropriate level except in some cases without100% votes of agreement mostly on issues lack of appropriateness of these standards can be central educational systemand the prevailing atmosphere in national nursing education system in Iran. So, necessary changes in final standardshave been made based on subjects’ viewpoints.

The Intensive Care Unit (ICU) is one of the most stressful places for families thus; admission of a patient inthis unit will influence other members of family and their functions. According to continuous presence of researcher inthis ward, observing the stresses and concerning of the patients’ families and considering the valuable role of the experiencesof the family in planning and caring of the patients, attention to their needs and roles at the time of illness hasan essential importance. This study was aimed to describe the experiences (physical, psychological, social and spiritual)of the family of the patients who are admitted in ICU. This study was a qualitative research thus; the method was based on descriptive phenomenology. The samplingmethod was purposive and it was continued until the saturation of data. Fourteen family members of patients in ICU,who attended the including criteria, were selected and interviewed. The findings were analyzed using the seven-stepColaizzi method Findings showed that when a patient is admitted in ICU, his/her family members experience severe stresseswhich these experiences are described in physical, emotional, psychological and social concepts. Also, there were increasingand decreasing factors that influence their experiences. According to the results of this study, the physicians, nurses and other care providers can decline thesestresses by suitable therapeutic interventions. While adapting the family members, they guide the families in safe andright direction

Health literacy includes the ability to understand instructions come from health workers and units, cognitiveand social skills and the competence to use such information and services in ways, which are health-enhancing. Antenatalcare is an important key for a healthy maternity. Maternal health literacy and particular cognitive and social skillsrequired for healthy maternity include abilities to detect risk factors and taking actions for healthier life style and betternutrition during pregnancy. The association between maternal health literacy and outcome of pregnancy has been investigatedin this study. This descriptive study was carried out in Isfahan Beheshti hospital in 2005. 150 parturient were selected randomlyin postpartum ward based on inclusion criteria. Women with medical sciences education, chronic disease andpregnancy complications were excluded. Data were collected through questionnaires and analyzed with SPSS. Based on the scores they were given from the questionnaire, 34% were classified as having low, 48% moderateand 18% good maternal health literacy. Women with adequate health literacy had significant difference in starting earlierand frequency of antenatal care, neonatal birth weight, mother hematocrit (HCT), ferrous and folic acid tablet consumption,pregnancy weight gain, gestational age at birth, method of delivery and breastfeeding. Other birth outcomeswere similar between groups. Our findings suggest that good health literacy among pregnant women is associated with good pregnancyoutcome and the fact that poor health literacy causes poor chance to gain a positive pregnancy outcome. A collaborativeeffort to increase maternal health literacy by assessing maternal health literacy levels in prenatal care unit, revision ofeducational materials into simple language, and provision of pregnant women with oral and video instruction in additionto written educational materials are highly recommended.

Academic success depends on curriculum planning and goals- setting, choosing suitable teaching methods,considering students'' learning style and the teacher and the manner in which material is presented and effective timemanagement. Learning style is the processing of information and comprehension. If teachers present contents in a stylethat matches a student’s preferred learning style, academic performance and success will improve and promote.Assessing learning styles will benefit the student and the teacher as well as the educational system. If content retentionimproves it will result in an increase in the test scores. It is also important to determine if students, as a group, fit into aparticular style or a particular cycle as they move through an educational program. The study is a descriptive analytical research. Nursing Students at Isfahan Medical Sciences University completeda questionnaire formulated to assess learning styles. Analysis of variance was used to investigate the possiblerelationship between learning cycle and student''s grades in the curriculum (i.e. freshman, sophomore, junior, or senior).Cross tabulation was used to test for a relationship between learning style and student academic year of study in thecurriculum. 294 students received the Kolb LSI questionnaire. The data demonstrated that juniors preferred a convergerlearning style and the senior students were in the abstract conceptualization cycle of learning. There were no relationshipsdemonstrated between other groups in the study. The junior and senior students appear to prefer the stage of learning involving thinking and problem analysis.When a group of students demonstrate a preference for particular learning style teachers can develop their curriculumalong their learning style.