Journal of Caring Sciences
Volume:4 Issue: 2, Jun 2015

In the era of evidence based practice (EBP), health care delivery should be grounded on new or validated knowledge and evidence from research. The aim of the study was to assess research utilization by nurses and the influencing factors at Kenyatta National Hospital (KNH), the largest teaching hospital in Kenya. The study employed a descriptive design that utilized both quantitative and qualitative methods of data collection. It incorporated the Barriers to Research Utilization Scale. It was conducted in six specialized care areas at KNH. Data was collected using questionnaires, Focus Group Discussion and in-depth interviews. Data was analyzed using SPSS version 13 and qualitative data analyzed using themes. The study found that 20.6% of the nurses were participating in research related to their work and 53.6% of these were implementing research findings to practice. Over 2/3 (70.5%) of the respondents were basing their evidence for practice on the knowledge gained during their nursing school. The three greatest barriers to research utilization were that research reports are not readily available (68.7%), unclear implications for practice (66.5%) and inadequate facilities for implementation (66.4%). It is recommended that sensitization trainings on nursing research/ utilization of findings in nursing practice be established to create awareness, motivate and enhance nurses’ abilities and also facilities should be provided to enable implementation.

Postoperative nausea and vomiting (PONV) is the most common and unpleasant postoperative complication. There is much controversy on preoperative fluid therapy. The aim of this study was to examine the effect of crystalloid fluid (Ringer solution) versus colloid (Haemaccel solution) on the incidence of postoperative nausea and vomiting in patients receiving spinal anesthesia. In this double-blinded clinical trial, 46 patients were selected according to the inclusion and exclusion criteria. Patients were randomly allocated to one of two groups. The crystalloid group received Ringer solution at a volume of 7 ml/kg and colloid group received 7ml/kg of 3% Modified Gelatin (Haemaccel) as a preoperative intravenous bolus. We used a Verbal Rating Scale (VRS) for assessing the nausea and vomiting occurrence. Data were analyzed using SPSS software ver.13 and χ2 test and independent t-test. The result showed that the incidence of PONV was less frequent in both Ringer and Haemaccel groups, but the incidence of vomiting and the intensity of nausea was not significantly different in any time point after anesthesia. We conclude that preoperative fluid administration decreases the incidence of PONV, and both Crystalloids (Ringer) and colloids (haemaccel) solution were found to be equivalent in prevention of PONV. Therefore using of either Ringer or haemaccel solution is recommended for prevention of PONV.

People in various professions may face discrimination. In the nursing field, discrimination among nurses in the workplace, regardless of race, gender or religion have not been studied; a problem that leads to a reduction in the quality of nursing care and nurse turnover. Discovery of the concerns of nurses about inter-professional collaboration is the purpose of this study. The present study is conducted by using a qualitative content analysis. The data collection process included 22 unstructured and in-depth interviews with nurses between April 2012 and February 2013 in the medical teaching centers of Iran. A purposive sampling method was used. All interviews were recorded, typed, and analyzed simultaneously. The category obtained from explaining nurses'' experiences of inter-professional collaboration was “discrimination” that included two subcategories, namely (1) lack of perspective towards equality in authorities, and (2) professional respect and value deficit. Nurses'' experiences are indicating their perception of discrimination that influences the collaboration between nurses, which should be taken into account by managers. The findings of the present study help to managers about decision making on how to deal with staff and can be helpful in preventing nurse turnover and providing better services by nurses.

After coronary angiography to prevent potential complications, patients are restricted to 4-24 hours bed rest in the supine position due to the complications. This study was designed to assess the effect of changing position and early ambulation on low back pain, urinary retention, bleeding and hematoma after cardiac catheterization. In this clinical trial, 140 patients by using a convenience sampling randomly divided into four 35-individual groups. The patients in the control group were in the supine position for 6 hours without a movement. Change position was applied to the second group (based on a specific protocol), early ambulation was applied to the third group and both early ambulation and change position were applied to the fourth group. Then, severity of bleeding, hematoma, back pain and urinary retention were measured at zero, 1, 2, 4, 6, and 24 hours after angiography. The data was collected through an individual data questionnaire, Numerical Rating Scale (NRS) of pain and Kristin Swain’s check list was applied to evaluate the severity of bleeding and hematoma. None of patients developed vascular complications. Incidence of urinary retention was higher in the control group, although this difference was not significant. The mean of pain intensity in the fourth and sixth hours showed a significant difference. Based on the findings of this study, changing patients’ position can be safe and they can be ambulated early after angiography.

Anxiety increases significantly during labor, especially among nulliparous women. Such anxiety may affect the progress of labor and physiological parameters. The use of essential oils of aromatic plants, or aromatherapy, is a non-invasive procedure that can decrease childbirth anxiety. This study examined the effect of inhalation of the aroma of geranium essential oil on the level of anxiety and physiological parameters of nulliparous women in the first stage of labor. In study, was carried out on 100 nulliparous women admitted to Bent al-Hoda Hospital in the city of Bojnord in North Khorasan province of Iran during 2012-2013. The women were randomly assigned to two groups of equal size, one experimental group (geranium essential oil) and one control (placebo) group. Anxiety levels were measured using Spielberger’s questionnaire before and after intervention. Physiological parameters (systolic and diastolic blood pressure, respiratory rate, pulse rate) were also measured before and after intervention in both groups. Data analysis was conducted using the x2 test, paired t-test, Mann-Whitney U test, and Wilcox on test on SPSS 11.5. The mean anxiety score decreased significantly after inhalation of the aroma of geranium essential oil. There was also a significant decrease in diastolic blood pressure. Aroma of essential oil of geraniums can effectively reduce anxiety during labor and can be recommended as a non-invasive anti-anxiety aid during childbirth.

Sexual dysfunction is a major concern for people''s general health. The aim of this study was to determine the status of sexual function and help-seeking behaviors in newly married men. This descriptive study was conducted on 363 newly married men. Simple random sampling was used according to premarital counseling offices in the health center of Sari city. Data collection instruments included personal and social characteristics, Arizona Sexual Experience Scale (ASEX), and help-seeking behaviors questionnaires. In order to determine the relationship between characteristics and sexual function, general linear model and also between socio-demographic characteristics and receiving or lack of receiving help, multivariate logistic regression test were used. The mean of sexual function score was 21.3 (2.7) out of possible 5-30, and 26% of men suffered sexual dysfunction. The highest prevalence (27.2%) of dysfunction was in the dimension of sexual stimulation, and the lowest (15.7%) in maintaining erection. For the treatment of sexual dysfunction, only 32% men had sought help, and 40% of them had visited specialists. The most frequent reasons for not seeking help were feeling uncomfortable with doctor, and their belief that doctor is not able to do much. 65% of men desired to be treated. The results demonstrated relatively high prevalence of sexual dysfunction among men, and unfortunately, most of them did not seek help for their sexual problem. Since Sexual dysfunction can leave damaging effects on the quality of life and marital relationship, interventions to deal with these challenges and screening to identify such problems appear necessary.

Lifestyle during pregnancy has long-term effects on health of mother and child. Having previous illness or unexpected maternal or fetal conditions such as preeclampsia can complicate pregnancy and interfere with health-promoting behaviors and cause stress might interfere with health-promoting behaviors. This study was carried out to examine the relationship between health-promoting lifestyles and perceived stress in women with preeclampsia. This study is a descriptive correlation design that was conducted on 182 pregnant women with preeclampsia attending in the high risk clinics of Al-Zahra and Talegani hospitals in Tabriz 2014. Data gathering tools were three: demographics, health-promoting lifestyle (HPLP-II), and perceived stress questionnaires. SPSS Ver. 13 was used for data analysis. The mean (SD) of health promoting lifestyle among pregnant women with preeclampsia was 2.4 (0.4). Among the dimensions of health promoting life style, the highest mean score was for sub domain of nutrition, i.e. 2.8 (0.5), and the lowest score was achieved by the sub-domains of physical activity, i.e. 1.5 (0.5).The mean (SD) score of perceived stress was 27.3 (7.1). There was reverse relationship between perceived stress and health -promoting behaviors. Based upon the results, health promoting behaviors were decreased by increment of perceived stress. Therefore, midwives can help women with preeclampsia by promoting health behaviors to reduce their stress and increase health-promoting behaviors.

The importance of content validity in the instrument psychometric and its relevance with reliability, have made it an essential step in the instrument development. This article attempts to give an overview of the content validity process and to explain the complexity of this process by introducing an example. We carried out a methodological study conducted to examine the content validity of the patient-centered communication instrument through a two-step process (development and judgment). At the first step, domain determination, sampling (item generation) and instrument formation and at the second step, content validity ratio, content validity index and modified kappa statistic was performed. Suggestions of expert panel and item impact scores are used to examine the instrument face validity. From a set of 188 items, content validity process identified seven dimensions includes trust building (eight items), informational support (seven items), emotional support (five items), problem solving (seven items), patient activation (10 items), intimacy/friendship (six items) and spirituality strengthening (14 items). Content validity study revealed that this instrument enjoys an appropriate level of content validity. The overall content validity index of the instrument using universal agreement approach was low; however, it can be advocated with respect to the high number of content experts that makes consensus difficult and high value of the S-CVI with the average approach, which was equal to 0.93. This article illustrates acceptable quantities indices for content validity a new instrument and outlines them during design and psychometrics of patient-centered communication measuring instrument.