Cancer nursing
-
The purpose of this exploratory study was to examine the effects of therapeutic massage (consisting of effleurage, petrissage, and myofascial trigger point therapy) on pain perception, anxiety, and relaxation levels in hospitalized patients experiencing significant cancer pain. Thirty minutes of therapeutic massage was administered on two consecutive evenings to nine hospitalized males diagnosed with cancer and experiencing cancer pain. The subjects' self-reports of pain and relaxation (measured by Visual Analogue Scales) as well as anxiety (measured by the Spielberger State Anxiety Inventory) were recorded before and immediately after the intervention. ⋯ Massage therapy significantly reduced the subjects' level of pain perception (average = 60%) and anxiety (average = 24%) while enhancing their feelings of relaxation by an average of 58%. In addition to these subjective measures, all physiological measures (heart rate, respiratory rate, and blood pressure) tended to decrease from baseline, providing further indication of relaxation. In conclusion, although the exact mechanism is not known, therapeutic massage is a beneficial nursing intervention that promotes relaxation and alleviates the perception of pain and anxiety in hospitalized cancer patients.
-
Oncology nurses (n = 57) and oncology physicians (n = 40) employed in the same hospital completed the Cancer Attitude Questionnaire. Significant differences (p < or = .001) between nurse and physician attitudes were evident on the two major subscales addressing the issues of (a) aggressiveness of treatment/de-emphasis of socioemotional aspects of care and (b) the importance of patient-family attitudes. Physicians' attitudes were significantly more favorable on the first subscale; nurses' attitudes were significantly more favorable on the second. Implications of these findings as indicators of potential nurse-physician conflict are discussed.