International journal of nursing studies
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Identifying the most important issues for palliative care patients and their families, and assessing whether services address these appropriately is important. Little is known about the views of United Kingdom service users and whether, and in what ways, they differ from those in the published literature from other countries, or from health professionals. ⋯ The study was successful in identifying aspects of end of life care that are important to patients, families and health professionals in the United Kingdom. Although participants were not representative of the wider population in the United Kingdom, the degree of concordance with published studies from outside the United Kingdom increases the credibility of the findings. Quality assurance initiatives need to ensure that they act on information such as this on users' priorities. Further research is needed to test out the findings in other settings in the United Kingdom, to build on the findings about different participants' views and to identify similarities and variations between countries.
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The Faces Pain Scale (FPS) is effective with older adults in clinical assessment of pain intensity. The 0-10 numerical rating scale (NRS) has universally adapted for assessment of pain intensity. The commonly used versions of the FPS have six, seven or nine faces. ⋯ These results supported the appropriateness of the 11 FPS for use with the older adults in clinical practice to measure pain intensity. Additionally, this study provided cross-cultural evidence to evaluate usefulness of the FPS.
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The science and practice of resuscitation is recognised and endorsed on an international level, yet for more than a decade it has appeared in the literature alongside words such as witnessing or witnessed to signify the practice of family presence during a resuscitation attempt. This paper explores the meaning of witnessed resuscitation using the process for concept analysis proposed by Rodgers. ⋯ The reader is introduced to conceptual variations that challenge the way in which the concept has become associated with family or relatives presence in the resuscitation room of an accident and emergency department. Conceptual clarity is further enhanced through the identification of references, antecedents and consequences of witnessed resuscitation and by providing a model case of the concept that includes its defining attributes.
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To report on the beliefs of critical care nurses with regard to the discharge planning process, in Victoria, Australia. ⋯ The current discharge planning processes are ad hoc and influenced by patient acuity. Critical care nurses believe that workload issues, unplanned discharges and inadequate communication contribute to difficulties implementing the discharge plan.
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Critical care is both emotionally and intellectually challenging, yet little is currently known about the experience of nurses' new to this environment. ⋯ This study captures the unique experiences of nurses new to critical care and demonstrates the complexity of socialisation to the critical care milieu.