Nursing research
-
Comparative Study Clinical Trial
Backrest angle and cardiac output measurement in critically ill patients.
Cardiac output is an extremely important measurement in the care of critically ill patients, but the accuracy of measurement is unknown when patients are in positions other than flat and supine. ⋯ No differences in the continuous cardiac index values across the nine different measurement conditions were found. An examination of the determinants of cardiac output (stroke volume and heart rate) indicated that the lack of change in continuous cardiac index was not a result of a compensatory change in either stroke volume or heart rate. These data indicate that in daily clinical practice with critical medical surgical patients it may be unnecessary to reposition patients solely for the purpose of obtaining continuous cardiac index measurements. The measurements appear to be reproducible at head-of-bed angle up to 45 degrees.
-
Although hermeneutical interpretive phenomenological methodology has been used in many nursing research studies, reports of findings are generally not specific regarding the analysis, or "interpretive process," of this methodology. ⋯ Approaching the interpretive process as systematically as possible within a nonlinear methodology streamlines and clarifies interpretations of the interview data.
-
Randomized Controlled Trial Clinical Trial
Cognitive-behavioral intervention effects on adolescents' anxiety and pain following spinal fusion surgery.
Cognitive-behavioral interventions, typically effective in reducing anxiety and pain, have not been applied to adolescents undergoing major orthopaedic surgery. ⋯ Cognitive-behavioral interventions designed to prepare adolescents for surgery should be tailored to individual factors and developmental needs, especially the adolescents' preoperative anxiety level and age.
-
Limited data are available on the relationship between self-reported sleep quality, fatigue, and behavioral sleep patterns in women with fibromyalgia (FM). ⋯ Self-reported sleep quality and fatigue are associated with behavioral indicators of sleep quality at home in women with FM. Actigraphy is a useful objective measure of improved sleep outcomes in intervention studies.
-
Nurse staffing levels are an important working condition issue for nurses and believed to be a determinant of the quality of nursing care and patient outcomes. ⋯ Patients are experiencing adverse events during hospitalization. Care systems to reduce adverse events and their consequences are needed. Having appropriate nurse staffing is a significant consideration in some cases.