Journal of clinical nursing
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The study investigated the lived experiences of older patients who had been in hospital, to explore their views on dignity and the factors which promote dignity. ⋯ Staff need to be aware that communicating in a way that conveys empathy and responds to the individual as a valued person is an important factor in maintaining dignity. Nurses on hospital wards particularly need to take measures to safeguard the dignity of older people with cognitive problems who have difficulty in making their needs known.
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The purpose of this phenomenological study is to explore the emotional labour nurses' face when caring for relatives of the critically ill in intensive care unit. ⋯ Registered nurses caring for families who have relatives in adult intensive care units expand considerable emotional labour. Potentially, unless appropriately supported and managed, emotional labour may lead to occupational stress and ultimately burnout.
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Daily sedation interruption (DSI) has been proposed as a method of improving sedation management of critically ill patients by reducing the adverse effects of continuous sedation infusions. ⋯ DSI may provide clinicians with a simple, cost-effective method of reducing some adverse effects of sedation on ICU patients. However, the evidence supporting DSI is limited and cannot be generalised to heterogeneous ICU populations internationally. More robust research is required to assess the potential impact of DSI on the physical and mental health of ICU survivors.
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This paper presents the results of a systematic review examining the practical information needs of informal caregivers providing home-based palliative and end-of-life care to people with advanced cancer. ⋯ Enhanced access to professional advice represents a potentially effective method of increasing carers' confidence in their ability to undertake practical aspects of home-based care. Evidence suggests that nurses and other health providers may better assist home-based carers by providing the information and skills-training necessary to facilitate this. This may necessitate the involvement of carers in the design and testing of new educational interventions.
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Randomized Controlled Trial
Does a telephone follow-up intervention for patients discharged with acute myocardial infarction have long-term effects on health-related quality of life? A randomised controlled trial.
An earlier combined proactive and reactive telephone follow-up intervention for acute myocardial infarction patients after discharge from hospital showed positive effects after six months. The aim of the present study was to assess whether the intervention has long-term effects up to 18 months after discharge. ⋯ Telephone follow-up after discharge from hospital is an easy implementable follow-up intervention enabling individualised provision of information and support in a time often experienced as stressful by patients. Our study indicates that six months is an adequate support period. Despite positive results six months after discharge no significant added long-term effects of telephone follow-up, compared to usual care were found in this study.