Contemp Nurse
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Menopause is a universal life experience, and yet there is a paucity of qualitative research giving voice to women who actually live this important life transition. Historically, menopause has been conceived as a pathological condition, and therefore, medicalized by healthcare providers. The purpose of the study was to give voice to the menopausal experiences of women. ⋯ The women interviewed repeatedly had questions and concerns regarding perimenopause, and often reported receiving conflicting and confusing information. The transition theory (Meleis, 2010) was used to understand the thematic results. Three major themes emerged: My Body, Sharing with Others: Not My Mother and Going on with Life.
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This paper reports a study aimed at exploring the nursing practices associated with the administration of pro re nata (PRN) postoperative analgesia to children, and at gaining a preliminary understanding of the decisions that nurses make about this important intervention. ⋯ Documentation surrounding this task is poor and needs to be addressed as a matter of urgency to ensure quality patient outcomes.
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Contemporary health care environments are increasingly challenged by issues associated with the recruitment and retention of qualified nursing staff. This challenge is particularly felt by residential aged care providers, with registered nurse (RN) numbers already limited and resident acuity rapidly rising. As a result, aged care service providers are increasingly exploring creative and alternative models of care. ⋯ Research findings suggest that the model of care is complex and multi-faceted and is an example of an integrated model of care. As a result of the implementation of this model of care a number of shifts have occurred in the practice experiences and clinical culture within this facility. Results suggest that the main benefits of this model are: (1) increased opportunities for RNs to engage in clinical leadership and proactive care management; (2) improved management and communication in relation to work processes and practices; and (3) enhanced recruitment and retention of both RNs and care workers.
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Perinatal anxiety and depression constitute one of the long term major public health issues in Australia and for too long they has been bundled under the over-arching term of 'postnatal depression'. However, the generation, funding, and implementation of the National Perinatal Depression Plan (NPDP) (Australian Government Department of Health and Ageing, 2008), across all Australian States and Territories, are proving to be wide-reaching and influential. Not only does the NDPD move from the umbrella term of 'postnatal depression' to establish the reality of perinatal anxiety and depression which women can experience from conception to the first year of the infant's life but also all States and Territories have made Individual Investment Plans for the implementation of the NPDP. ⋯ General nurses, maternal child health nurses, midwives, and mental health nurses are spread throughout primary health care settings. Three essential aspects of the NPDP are pertinent to their practice: (1) the Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale (EPDS); the 2008 beyondblue National Action Plan for Perinatal Mental Health (NAP); and the Draft beyondblue Clinical Practice Guidelines for depression and related disorders - anxiety, bipolar disorder, and puerperal psychosis - in the perinatal period (March 2010). The author addresses these three aspects of the NPDP by citing two personal accounts by women who have experienced perinatal anxiety and depression; these accounts are available in the public domain.
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The Australian government and aged care industry uphold the standard of care for persons who require high care and reside in residential aged care facilities. The residential aged care system is extremely complex and through research conducted at the micro level it is argued that the macro level of policy can be exposed for the effects on the ground. A case study methodology in the qualitative paradigm used a discourse analysis of the nursing care for three highly dependent residents in one accredited aged care facility. ⋯ The autonomy of the residents and advocacy by relatives were misinterpreted and unethical discourses were apparent with relatives having to be constantly vigilant. The nursing care provided by nurses (and non-nurses) failed to meet professional nursing standards and competencies, which adversely affected the residents' health compromising their safety. This situation is attributed to residential aged care policies, whereby nurses and nursing practice have been silenced and made invisible resulting in a substandard level of nursing care provision in this accredited facility that may be transferable to other facilities.