Health and nursing legislation in Austria: nursing science and nursing research are legislated

In November 1996 a yellow fever (YF) outbreak occurred near Kaffrine in the central part of Senegal. Thirty-six deaths were notified, all children under 15 years of age. The YF diagnosis was confirmed by MAC-ELISA or by virus isolation. The immune status against YF virus of a sample population of 449 individuals was determined, and 31 confirmed cases and 69 asymptomatic cases were reported. Distribution of YF cases and incidence rate decreased with age, while the attack rate was stable in all age groups. Larva indices were high and Aedes aegypti was common in all villages, causing man-to-man transmission. The greatest risk of YF disease was lack of immunity, especially in individuals <20 years of age. The outbreak was rapidly controlled by an emergency immunization campaign. YF epidemics occurred in Senegal over two consecutive years. The last outbreak reached the main road to Dakar and the risk of spread to urban areas has increased.     

Creating a link between research and practice.

Reviews the book, Understanding Research in Clinical and Counseling Psychology by J. C. Thomas; M. Hersen (Eds.) (see record 2003-02257-000). This is a research methods textbook written primarily for clinical and counseling students and would be useful for any students who are planning on pursuing a helping vocation, or for current practitioners. Targeted for this specific audience, it bridges the gap between research and practice by describing clear links between the two throughout the text. Even though this is an edited book, with different authors for each chapter, the writing across the chapters is similar, and thus is easy to read and understand. The authors' foci on bridging this gap sets this text apart from other available research textbooks. The most prominent difference with this text is the use of examples. The emphasis of the examples is on aspects of research that are relevant and important to the field of psychology. The 16 chapters are divided into four sections: Research Foundations, Research Strategies, Research Practice, and Special Problems. Each section has a different scope, which creates structure and links between the various topics. The gap between research and practice can be vast and difficult to close for many practitioners. The book keenly focuses on the issue of closing this gap by presenting research concepts interwoven with practice issues. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2011 APA, all rights reserved)     

Nursing science research to support nursing care practice

It is stated in this article that nursing is a professional science the goal being to utilize the nursing practice. New theories are formed or existing theoretical hypotheses are tested by nursing research. The difference between these two approaches is introduced. Nursing research for health promotion, prevention from illness and rehabilitation is discussed. The subject is viewed by the basic concepts of nursing: person, environment, health, nursing interventions. It seems to be essential to develop nursing theory for practise. It means to accept the point of view in which clinical nurses are theorists like academic researches.     

以责任制护理为基点的优质护理服务示范工程研究

目的:分析落实责任制护理对推动优质护理服务示范工程工作效率的作用,力图通过责任制护理的实施提高"患医护"的满意度.方法:在学习理解"优质护理服务示范工程"精神实质基础上,秉承以患者为本、争创和谐病区的工作理念,改革护理人员工作模式,落实责任制护理,为患者提供连续的、全程的护理服务.结果:患者、医生、护士针对责任制护理提出合理化建议37条,试点病区患者、医生、护士对优质护理服务示范工程的知晓率为100%,其中7个病区的环境得到有效改善.落实责任制护理后无一例护患纠纷发生,患者满意度为98.1%,医生满意度为97.9%,护士满意度为98.5%.结论:在推行优质护理服务工程时落实责任制护理对于提高护理质量、提升患医护满意度、实现优质护理服务工程的精神实质具有重要意义.     

Are there necessary linkages between research practices and the philosophy of science?

Describes articles by D. E. Polkinghorne (see record 1985-07630-001), G. S. Howard (see record 1985-07626-001), and M. J. Patton (see record 1985-07629-001), as representing healthy trends in a liberalizing of approaches to counseling psychology research. All 3 share the implicit position that narrow positivist dogma can be transcended in practice to address core issues of the person as active agent. They suggest that successful research practice does not need a direct infrastructure from the philosophy of science. Eclectic, diverse ways of knowing may be most useful. (20 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

A nursing perspective on the interrelationships between theory, research and practice

Recessive dystrophic epidermis bullosa is ultrastructurally characterized by the absence of anchoring fibrils, and genetic analyses have revealed that recessive dystrophic epidermolysis bullosa results from mutations in the type VII collagen gene (COL7A1). The mutations disclosed thus far are largely family specific, with no evidence for mutational hotspot(s). In this study, we report a recurrent premature termination codon mutation detected in two apparently unrelated Italian families in different regions of the country. This mutation, 497insA in exon 4 of COL7A1, was found in combination with two different premature termination codon mutations in these families. Haplotype analysis suggested a shared genetic background in the allele containing the mutation 497insA, suggesting that this genetic lesion may represent an ancestral mutation within the Italian gene pool.     

Oncology nursing research in the USA

Cancer treatment requires a comprehensive team of multidisciplinary health care professionals, and especially nursing is central to provide the complementary care aspect of the cure objective. Nurses involved in cancer care provide public education about the disease, its prevention, screening and early diagnosis. Also they have an important role for patients with any stage of cancer. Oncology nursing as a specialty in the U.S.A. is relatively recent as an organized profession. There have been an increasing number of researches in this field, since the first national cancer nursing conference was held in 1973 and the first national Oncology Nursing Society Congress in 1975. Psychosocial issue is a major area in oncology nursing research, which is discussed in more details in this article.     

Risk assessment and research: an essential link

Regulatory agencies, such as the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, use health risk assessment information in developing pollution control regulations and for setting regulatory and research priorities. The risk assessment process, however, is hampered by limitations in test methods, in models for exposure and dose-response, and by chemical-specific data gaps. The research/risk assessment/risk management framework provides opportunities for targeting and coordinating research to address these limitations. Enhanced communication among researchers, risk assessors and risk managers to foster better development and use of scientific information in decision making, and incentives for interdisciplinary research efforts, are needed.     

Decubitus prevention in theory and practice--a study structure with the VIPS model

In 1990, the Bureau of Dental Health Services of the New York City Department of Health launched a major initiative to modernize a network of school-based dental clinics located throughout the city. Since 1913, the bureau has provided dental care to public school children; however, the clinics were not properly maintained or upgraded, and were in a state of disrepair and obsolescence. Anticipating that the survival of the program was in question, the school program was converted to a fleet of state-of-the-art portable dental clinics permitting targeting of underserved, high-risk poor and immigrant populations. Demographics had changed dramatically over the years; the program could now situate services where they were needed most, and provide a broader array of care where access was a problem. This paper presents a six-year analysis of the program and builds a strong case to show that a portable delivery system can equal or in many ways surpass the effectiveness and capabilities of a fixed-state approach.     

Competitiveness mediates the link between personality and group performance

The performance of individuals within groups, and of groups as units, is the product of immediate goal structures and personality differences pertinent to those goals among group members. A level-of-analysis approach linked the dimension of agreeableness to situated competitiveness and task performance in group settings. Hypotheses were (a) individual differences in self-rated and other-rated competitiveness are related (inversely) to the Big Five dimension of agreeableness, (b) immediately situated promotive and contrient goal structures influence self-ratings of competitiveness, (c) immediate goal structures differentially activate competitiveness to affect task performance in groups, and (d) agreeableness effects on task performance are partially mediated by competitiveness. Structural equation modeling corroborated hypotheses about the links among agreeableness, competitiveness, and task performance.     

Using the 'new' statistics in nursing research

This paper argues that quantitative methods are under-used in nursing research. Although this is often because the qualitative approach is the most appropriate, it may also be because nurse researchers are not fully aware of modern, sophisticated data analysis techniques and have tended to use simple statistical techniques that often make the quantitative analysis of complex data very difficult and produce simplistic and unsatisfactory answers. The paper briefly discusses probability and survival modelling techniques suitable for use in complex nursing research situations and argues that these methods may help to bridge the qualitative-quantitative gap. Although these techniques are mathematically complex, they are easily applied in practice using dedicated computer programs. The paper describes their application using one such program, GLIM 4.     

Philosophy of science in doctoral nursing education revisited

Because every scientific theory and all research methods are tied to some philosophical framework, it is important that scientists within a given discipline be aware of the philosophical orientations that serve as the basis for developing theory and advancing knowledge. Nurse scientists have been challenged recently to examine the discipline's philosophical underpinnings in order to understand the evolutionary process of nursing science. The inclusion of the study of philosophy of science in doctoral nursing curriculum has remained a topic of periodic discourse. Whereas some assert that it promotes the essential process of philosophical reflection necessary for scientific exploration of relevant phenomenon, others contend that nurse scientists' preoccupation with this issue has diverted their attention from the real business of nursing science--that of knowledge development that will lead to legitimization of nursing as a discipline. Philosophy of science provides a useful frame of reference in which to appreciate the unfolding of nursing as a discipline. It should not be viewed as a distraction but rather a critical step in the transformation of the doctoral student into a productive nurse scientist. Doctoral programs remain the most logical place in which to educate future scholars regarding nursing's unique philosophical foundations and their implications for scientific inquiry and continued knowledge development. Creating and maintaining liaisons between nursing and philosophy departments--as well as requiring courses that emphasize the interrelationships among philosophy of science, nursing theory, and nursing research--are just a few of the strategies whereby doctoral programs can actively promote advancement of the discipline.     

Computer science and the enrichment of psychological research.

An analysis is made of the impact of computer science on research method and theory construction in psychology. The influence is roughly divided into what is described as the Level of Application and the Level of Conceptual Enrichment. At the first level the new discipline is used as a tool to extend the facilities available to the psychologist. In spite of this, it is argued, the simple increase in technical power has led to important differences in the kind of research that can be considered and has been the determining factor in the direction and the extent of the development of various research areas in psychology. At the second level computer science has contributed a wealth of conceptual resources. It has been the source of many theoretical constructs and, even more significantly, has contributed an alternative language for the expression of psychological theory--the language of a computer algorithm which simulates the relevant behaviour. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Historical research in nursing: standards for research and evaluation

Historical research, a method of inquiry that combines science and literature, often supports a common thesis that an informed understanding of nursing history provides insights that can contribute effective approaches to current professional issues. Historical research was formally recognized by the American Nurses Association (ANA) in 1965. A review of 11 recent historical research studies supports the concept that adherence to established standards of research and presentation contributes to the value of historical research. While relating an interesting story is an intrinsic element of historical research, the research gains purpose and meaning when the presentation of data includes a statement of purpose utilizing a research question, a review of literature establishing a relation to the greater nursing community, and a concluding analysis relating the research to current and future professional issues.     

The link between knowledge and remembering in Alzheimer''s disease

This article presents results from a retrospective study of psychological assessments of elderly persons with chronic mental illness residing in nursing homes. All residents (N = 570) received this assessment as part of federally mandated screening for mentally ill persons residing in long-term care. The process, the Preadmission Screening and Resident Review, was mandated by the Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act (OBRA 87). These assessments were the first stage in a process to determine if the nursing home was the most appropriate placement for each resident. If nursing home care was deemed appropriate, then a psychological treatment program was to be established within the nursing home setting. The sample ranged in age from 50 to 104 (mean of 70). The majority had a diagnosis of schizophrenia and a history of psychiatric hospitalization occurring early in their life. The assessments did not include any quantifiable data on activities of daily living, cognitive functioning, or level of psychiatric impairment. Therefore, the researchers coded the narrative data so that it could be interpreted. The majority functioned within the none-to-mild range of cognitive impairment, and very few were completely dependent in the need for physical care. The most recorded symptom was social withdrawal. Neuroleptic medications were administered to 64% of elderly persons with chronic mental illness. Importantly, there was no relationship between demographic or clinical information and treatment recommendations. Implications of these findings for psychiatric nurses are discussed.