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Topic Areas (topic + area)
Selected AbstractsStrategies to Facilitate Lifestyle Change Associated with Diabetes MellitusJOURNAL OF NURSING SCHOLARSHIP, Issue 3 2000Robin Whittemore Purpose: To critically examine the literature about strategies and factors that influence lifestyle change in people with diabetes mellitus. Method: This integrative literature review included an extensive search of published literature about strategies to facilitate lifestyle change related to diabetes mellitus. Articles reviewed were empirical studies focused on lifestyle change and were published between 1985 and 1999. Meta-analyses and relevant reviews of the literature were also included. Over 90 articles were initially identified, 72 met the specified criteria and could be categorized according to a theoretical framework or a broad topic area. Findings: Studies were clustered into the categories of educational, behavioral, cultural, and health beliefs that influence or are barriers to lifestyle change. Studies indicate that positive outcomes are associated with diabetes education programs that focus on self-management, emphasize behavioral strategies, and provide culturally relevant information. Conclusions: Theoretically grounded research in diabetes care is imperative for the future. Expansion of research methods, continued methodological rigor of studies, and instrument development would contribute to knowledge development in diabetes care. Research priorities are proposed. [source] Multiprofessional clinical supervision: challenges for mental health nursesJOURNAL OF PSYCHIATRIC & MENTAL HEALTH NURSING, Issue 3 2001K. Mullarkey ma bsc(hons) rn cpncert rnt Recent reform and developments in mental health care provision have increasingly espoused the value of multiprofessional teamwork in order to ensure that clients are offered co-ordinated packages of care that draw on the full range of appropriate services available (DoH 1999a; DoH 2000). Supervision in some form is seen as a key part of all professional practice to provide support to practitioners, enhance ongoing learning, and, to a greater or lesser degree, offer some protection to the public (Brown & Bourne 1996, UKCC 1996). Clinical supervision has gained increasing momentum within the nursing profession, but to a large extent this has been within a uni-professional framework , nurses supervising other nurses. This paper seeks to explore the ways in which multiprofessional working and clinical supervision interlink, and whether supervision across professional boundaries might be desirable, possible, and/or justifiable. Whilst our own view is that multiprofessional supervision is both possible and desirable, we seek to open up a debate, from our perspective as mental health nurses, about some of the issues related to the concept. Our motivation to explore this topic area emanates from our experiences as supervisors to colleagues within multiprofessional teams, as well as the experiences of those attending supervisor training courses. Following a brief overview of the development of clinical supervision in mental health care and recent policy guidelines, some models of clinical supervision are reviewed in terms of their suitability and applicability for multiprofessional working. [source] A classification of mental models of undergraduates seeking information for a course essay in history and psychology: Preliminary investigations into aligning their mental models with online thesauriJOURNAL OF THE AMERICAN SOCIETY FOR INFORMATION SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY, Issue 13 2007Charles Cole The article reports a field study which examined the mental models of 80 undergraduates seeking information for either a history or psychology course essay when they were in an early, exploration stage of researching their essay. This group is presently at a disadvantage when using thesaurus-type schemes in indexes and online search engines because there is a disconnect between how domain novice users of IR systems represent a topic space and how this space is represented in the standard IR system thesaurus. The study attempted to (a) ascertain the coding language used by the 80 undergraduates in the study to mentally represent their topic and then (b) align the mental models with the hierarchical structure found in many thesauri. The intervention focused the undergraduates' thinking about their topic from a topic statement to a thesis statement. The undergraduates were asked to produce three mental model diagrams for their real-life course essay at the beginning, middle, and end of the interview, for a total of 240 mental model diagrams, from which we created a 12-category mental model classification scheme. Findings indicate that at the end of the intervention, (a) the percentage of vertical mental models increased from 24 to 35% of all mental models; but that (b) 3rd-year students had fewer vertical mental models than did 1st-year undergraduates in the study, which is counterintuitive. The results indicate that there is justification for pursuing our research based on the hypothesis that rotating a domain novice's mental model into a vertical position would make it easier for him or her to cognitively connect with the thesaurus's hierarchical representation of the topic area. [source] Diagnostic accuracy of D-dimer test for exclusion of venous thromboembolism: a systematic reviewJOURNAL OF THROMBOSIS AND HAEMOSTASIS, Issue 2 2007M. DI NISIO Summary.,Background: The reported diagnostic accuracy of the D-dimer test for exclusion of deep vein thrombosis (DVT) and pulmonary embolism (PE) varies. It is unknown to what extent this is due to differences in study design or patient groups, or to genuine differences between D-dimer assays. Methods: Studies evaluating the diagnostic accuracy of the D-dimer test in the diagnosis of venous thromboembolism were systematically searched for in the MEDLINE and EMBASE databases up to March 2005. Reference lists of all included studies and of reviews related to the topic of the present meta-analysis were manually searched for other additional potentially eligible studies. Two reviewers independently extracted study characteristics using standardized forms. Results: In total, 217 D-dimer test evaluations for DVT and 111 for PE were analyzed. Several study design characteristics were associated with systematic differences in diagnostic accuracy. After adjustment for these features, the sensitivities of the D-dimer enzyme-linked immunofluorescence assay (ELFA) (DVT 96%; PE 97%), microplate enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) (DVT 94%; PE 95%), and latex quantitative assay (DVT 93%; PE 95%) were superior to those of the whole-blood D-dimer assay (DVT 83%; PE 87%), latex semiquantitative assay (DVT 85%; PE 88%) and latex qualitative assay (DVT 69%; PE 75%). The latex qualitative and whole-blood D-dimer assays had the highest specificities (DVT 99%, 71%; PE 99%, 69%). Conclusions: Compared to other D-dimer assays, the ELFA, microplate ELISA and latex quantitative assays have higher sensitivity but lower specificity, resulting in a more confident exclusion of the disease at the expense of more additional imaging testing. These conclusions are based on the most up-to-date and extensive systematic review of the topic area, including 184 articles, with 328 D-dimer test evaluations. [source] An Assessment of the Faculty Development Needs of Junior Clinical Faculty in Emergency MedicineACADEMIC EMERGENCY MEDICINE, Issue 7 2008Heather Farley MD Abstract Objectives:, Academic physicians must be able to access the resources necessary to support their ongoing professional development and meet requirements for continued academic advancement. The authors sought to determine the self-perceived career development needs of junior clinical faculty in emergency medicine (EM) and the availability of educational resources to meet those needs. Methods:, An educational "needs assessment" survey was distributed to 954 American College of Emergency Physicians (ACEP) members listed in the ACEP database as being faculty at EM residency programs in the United States and having graduated from an EM residency within the past 7 years. Respondents were asked to rank the importance of 22 areas of faculty development to their own professional growth and then to indicate whether educational resources in each area were available to them. Respondents were also asked to note the educational formats they prefer. A search for currently available resources in each topic area was undertaken and compared to the survey results. Results:, A total of 240 responses were received. Self-perceived career development needs were identified in the following areas: bedside teaching, lecture development, business skills, managerial skills, educational research, mentorship and career counseling, interpersonal skills, leadership skills, scholarly writing skills, physician wellness, and knowledge of the faculty development process. While a review of currently available educational resources revealed lectures, conferences, and online materials pertinent to most of these topics, a relative lack of resources in the areas of mentorship and physician wellness was identified. Conclusions:, Junior clinical faculty in EM perceive a lack of educational resources in a number of areas of faculty development. The academic community of EM should strive to improve awareness of and access to currently existing resources and to develop additional resources to address the area of physician wellness. The lack of mentorship in academic EM continues to be a problem in search of a solution. [source] Research reports on treatments for bipolar disorder: preliminary assessment of methodological qualityACTA PSYCHIATRICA SCANDINAVICA, Issue 1 2005F. Soldani Objective:, To assess frequencies of types of publications about bipolar disorder (BD) and evaluate methodological quality of treatment studies. Method:, We classified 100 randomly selected articles (1998,2002) from five psychiatric journals with highest impact ratings, by topic areas, and assessed methods employed in treatment studies. Results:, Topics ranked: treatment (41%; 37% on pharmacotherapy) > biology (31%) > psychopathology (14%) = miscellaneous (14%). Of treatment studies, only 19% of original articles were randomized, 15% were relatively large (n , 50) but non-randomized, 65% were small non-randomized, case-series or -reports, and 53% relied on baseline-to-endpoint contrasts without a control group. Patient dropout rates were ,40% in 43% of prospective studies. Only two reports provided confidence intervals; one included a power analysis, and 53% included no references on study design or statistical methods. Conclusion:, Even in highly respected journals, the typical methodological quality of recent reports on therapeutics for BD was unexpectedly limited, and psychopathology and psychotherapies were little studied. [source] Microbial ecology of corals, sponges, and algae in mesophotic coral environmentsFEMS MICROBIOLOGY ECOLOGY, Issue 1 2010Julie B. Olson Abstract Mesophotic coral ecosystems that occur at depths from 30 to 200 m have historically been understudied and yet appear to support a diverse biological community. The microbiology of these systems is particularly poorly understood, especially with regard to the communities associated with corals, sponges, and algae. This lack of information is partly due to the problems associated with gaining access to these environments and poor reproducibility across sampling methods. To summarize what is known about the microbiology of these ecosystems and to highlight areas where research is urgently needed, an overview of the current state of knowledge is presented. Emphasis is placed on the characterization of microbial populations, both prokaryotic and eukaryotic, associated with corals, sponges, and algae and the factors that influence microbial community structure. In topic areas where virtually nothing is known from mesophotic environments, the knowledge pertaining to shallow-water ecosystems is summarized to provide a starting point for a discussion on what might be expected in the mesophotic zone. [source] Symbolization and emotional engagement in mothers' reports of child care activitiesINTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF APPLIED PSYCHOANALYTIC STUDIES, Issue 1 2010Christopher Christian Abstract This study examines differences in mothers' emotional connection to their children as represented in narratives concerning a range of everyday parenting activities and interactions. First time mothers were interviewed over a period of approximately the first two years of their children's lives, using a semi-structured Parenting Function Interview (PFI), developed for purposes of this research. The new computerized Referential Activity (RA) measure, the Weighted Referential Activity Dictionary (WRAD), was applied to the interview transcripts. Significant differences in RA, representing differences in the symbolizing process and emotional engagement in particular parent,child activities, were found between mothers, and also according to child care topic. On average, mothers' RA was highest for topics of bathing, bedtime and pleasurable events, and lowest for angry and difficult moments. Themes of feeding were relatively low in RA for three of the four mothers, and reports of frightening events showed significantly higher RA than themes of anger for all mothers. Clinical implications of profiles of the mothers' emotional engagement in different topic areas are discussed. Copyright © 2010 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [source] Key palliative care topic areas for hospital medicineJOURNAL OF HOSPITAL MEDICINE, Issue 4 2006Jean S. Kutner MD [source] The emerging positive agenda in organizations: greater than a trickle, but not yet a delugeJOURNAL OF ORGANIZATIONAL BEHAVIOR, Issue 2 2009Thomas A. Wright The evidence is clear regarding applied science's longstanding fascination with the negative aspects of organizational life. The purpose of this special issue of the Journal of Organizational Behavior is to tangibly demonstrate that the concept of a "positive psychology" is gaining importance in both psychology and organizational behavior. To that end, our lead article focuses on five topic areas. First, we provide a limited historical backdrop of positive organizational research. Second, we suggest the theoretical basis for why the current overwhelming emphasis on the negative. Next, we introduce the seven peer refereed articles contained in this special issue which, when considered together, highlight the varied application and potentially widespread benefits of studying the positive in organizational research. Fourth, incorporating the "point/counterpoint" JOB framework, we offer two varying, but insightful, perspectives on positive organizational research by Luthans and Avolio and Hackman. Finally, the article concludes with a discussion of how emerging research on the positive can be used to help build a stronger science of organizational behavior. Copyright © 2009 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [source] Politics Lost, Politics Transformed, Politics Colonised?POLITICAL STUDIES REVIEW, Issue 1 2005Theories of the Impact of Mass Media In recent years, there has been a substantial increase in the literature on the relationship between politics and mass media, mainly in discrete topic areas such as the impact of mass media on electoral behaviour, the emergence of new forms of political communication, or media political economy. At the same time, this diverse literature has often focused on a single general issue, typically characterised in terms of the ,transformation' of politics. Despite this common theme, there has been relatively little attempt to connect and compare the different approaches. Looking at the theoretical differences in the new literature on politics and mass media reveals three perspectives , pluralist, constructivist, and structuralist. These approaches have too often tacitly co-existed, instead of more competitively striving to advance knowledge in the three main topic areas above. [source] The family impact of skin diseases: the Greater Patient conceptBRITISH JOURNAL OF DERMATOLOGY, Issue 5 2007M.K.A. Basra Summary Background, Although the impact of skin disease on patients' health-related quality of life (HRQoL) is well known, little work has been carried out to determine the secondary impact of a patient's skin disease on the patient's family or partner. Objectives, The aim of this study was to identify the different aspects of a family member's QoL that may be affected by having a family member with skin disease. Methods, Qualitative interviews were conducted with 50 family members/partners of patients attending the outpatient clinic of a university hospital, with a wide range of dermatological conditions (n = 21). Subjects were invited to discuss in detail all the ways that their lives were affected by living with a patient with skin disease. Results, The mean age of subjects (M = 19; F = 31) was 48·1 years (SD = 15·7) most were either parents (44%) or spouses/partners (44%) of the patients. Patients' ages (M = 16; F = 34) ranged from 5 months to 84 years. Fifty-nine aspects of QoL of family members were identified that were adversely affected by the patients' skin disease. These were categorized into 18 main topic areas: Emotional distress (98%), Burden of care (54%), Effect on housework (42%), Social life (48%), Holidays (46%), Financial aspect (30%), Physical well-being (22%), Job/study (40%), Leisure activities (26%), Sleep (20%), Food/drink (12%), Restriction of liked activities (14%), Need for support (12%), People's attitude (10%), Dissatisfaction with medical care (14%), Effect on sex life (8%), Role of religious faith (8%) and Miscellaneous (16%). There was no significant difference between male and female subjects regarding main QoL areas affected. The median number of main topic areas reported per family member was five (mean = 5·2, range = 1,10, SD = 2·64). Conclusions, This study has demonstrated that skin diseases can significantly impair the HRQoL of the patient's family in very diverse ways. Asking family members about this impact is greatly appreciated by them. We propose the ,Greater Patient' concept to describe the immediate close social group affected by a person having skin disease. [source] The Family Dermatology Life Quality Index: measuring the secondary impact of skin diseaseBRITISH JOURNAL OF DERMATOLOGY, Issue 3 2007M.K.A. Basra Summary, Background, Skin diseases are known to have a major impact on the lives of patients and their families. Many instruments are available to measure the health-related quality of life (HRQoL) of patients but no measure has been developed so far to quantify the secondary impact on family members of the patients. Objectives, To develop and validate a dermatology-specific instrument to measure the adverse impact on the HRQoL of family members of patients with skin disease. Methods, Detailed semi-structured interviews were conducted with family members of patients to identify different aspects of HRQoL affected. An initial draft version of the questionnaire based on the main topic areas was pilot tested to assess the face and content validity. A 10-item questionnaire, the Family Dermatology Life Quality Index (FDLQI), was finalized after modifications to the draft questionnaire based on feedback from families and dermatology professionals and on item reduction. Psychometric evaluation was conducted on a new cohort of family members (n = 132) who completed the FDLQI and the patients (n = 109) who completed the Dermatology Life Quality Index (DLQI). Results, Fifty-nine different aspects of family members' HRQoL were identified from the analysis of the interviews, which were categorized into main topic areas. Factor analysis of 10 items of the final questionnaire revealed two factors and together these explained 60% of the common variance. The FDLQI demonstrated high internal consistency (Cronbach's , = 0·88) and test,retest (intraclass correlation coefficient = 0·94) reliabilities. The responsiveness of the instrument to change was shown by significant change in the family members' FDLQI scores in cases where patients' clinical condition either improved or worsened. Construct validity was assessed by testing a number of a priori hypotheses. A strong correlation was seen between the family members' FDLQI scores and patients' DLQI scores (r = 0·69), a significantly higher FDLQI score was seen for inflammatory skin diseases compared with noninflammatory diseases/isolated lesions (P < 0·0001), and there was a positive relationship between the family members' FDLQI scores and patients' disease severity (r = 0·49). Conclusions, The FDLQI is simple and practical and seems to have the potential to be used as an additional outcome measure in clinical practice and evaluation research. [source] How do teenagers manage their food allergies?CLINICAL & EXPERIMENTAL ALLERGY, Issue 10 2010H. Monks Summary Background The peak incidence of deaths from anaphylaxis associated with nut allergy occurs in teenagers and young adults. During adolescence, the management of food allergy shifts from being the responsibility of parents to that of the young person. This is a group who therefore need special attention in the clinic. Objective This study aimed to understand the practical challenges that teenagers with food allergy experience using a qualitative approach and generate potential interventions for tackling these. Methods Teenagers aged 1118 years with food allergy completed a questionnaire about their food allergy and underwent a focused, semi-structured interview with open questions guided by a priori topic areas. Interviews were recorded, transcribed and analysed using a thematic approach. Results The study enrolled 18 teenagers with a median age of 15 years (10 females); the most common food allergens were peanuts and tree nuts. Three key themes emerged: avoidance of allergens, preparation for reactions and the treatment of reactions. The majority of teenagers reported eating foods labelled as ,may contain' an allergen as they perceive that they are actually very unlikely to contain an allergen. Many of the teenagers only carried their self-injectable adrenaline when they thought they are particularly at risk of a reaction. Some do not know how to appropriately treat an allergic reaction. More than half believed that educating other students at school about the seriousness of food allergies would make it easier to live with their food allergy. Conclusions A significant number of teenagers demonstrate risk-taking behaviour in the management of their food allergies. Teenagers also felt it would be helpful for their peers to be educated about food allergy. This novel strategy might help them to avoid trigger foods and enable teenagers to access help more readily if they suffer a reaction. Cite this as: H. Monks, M. H. Gowland, H. MacKenzie, M. Erlewyn-Lajeunesse, R. King, J. S. Lucas and G. Roberts, Clinical & Experimental Allergy, 2010 (40) 1533,1540. [source] | ||||||||||