The Canadian journal of nursing research = Revue canadienne de recherche en sciences infirmières
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The purpose of this study was to develop a substantive grounded theory of courage among middle-aged adults with long-term health concerns. Twenty-five persons from rural and non-metropolitan areas of Central Illinois were selected to participate in this study based on theoretical sampling procedures. Interviews of 1 to 2 hours using openended questions were audiotaped and transcribed verbatim. ⋯ Courage is not limitless, and the process of becoming and being courageous is dependent on intrapersonal and interpersonal factors. Health-care providers facilitate this process by demonstrating competence and communicating effectively. Outcomes of being courageous include personal integrity and thriving in the midst of normality.
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A total of 184 Canadian nurses who were expected to publish scholarly and/or scientific work or whose roles provide for socialization of nurses in academic endeavours, research, and publication were asked to respond to 42 scenarios. This study replicated, with some modifications, surveys conducted in 1981, 1985, and 1987 to determine the views of American nurses on assignment of publication credit. The scenarios in the present survey required judgements about how authorship and footnote credit should be allocated among groups involved in research and academic writing; in some scenarios all the individuals were nurses (in both clinical and academic settings), while other scenarios featured collaboration between nurses and other health-care professionals or focused on interactions between nursing professors and students. ⋯ There was widespread agreement on these 2 principles. However, there was disagreement concerning collaborative academic work, particularly concerning the forms of collaboration that merit authorship credit and the forms that are sufficiently acknowledged through footnoting. Both the model responses and the areas of disagreement are discussed.
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The purpose of this grounded theory study was to describe the experience of HIV/AIDS family caregiving in the palliative phase. Seven in-depth interviews were conducted and analyzed using the constant comparative method. The analysis resulted in a conceptualization of HIV/AIDS family caregiving. ⋯ The need for the creation of supportive networks for HIV/AIDS caregivers cannot be overstated. Further research is required to help clarify and expand on how social support might have an effect on HIV/AIDS family caregiver bereavement. With this knowledge, health-care providers will be better prepared to anticipate difficulties faced by caregivers, plan appropriate interventions to address these difficulties, prevent future problems, and plan care based on theory and research.
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Critical illness creates stress in patients and their families. However, families' reactions vary and suggest that having a loved one in an intensive care unit (ICU) may not be a crisis for all families. The purpose of this study was to explore and describe the meanings that families ascribe to an ICU experience. ⋯ Interviews were analyzed qualitatively and revealed five categories of meanings that the ICU experience had for families: "it could go either way," "everything is good," "going upstairs," "like living on a roller-coaster," and "there is no hope." All eight families described an initial period of uncertainty during which they were unsure whether the patient would survive. The subsequent trajectory of critical illness followed one of two paths: positive or negative. The results of this study are of interest to nurses who seek to broaden their understanding of the impact of critical illness on the family.
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The objectives of this descriptive correlational study were to measure the degree of fear-anxiety in mothers and in their children who were having minor surgery, and then to verify if there was a relationship between these two variables. Other variables examined were: child's age, rooming-in, premedication and child's experience with surgery. Fifty (50) mothers described their emotional states both on the day before and during the surgery. ⋯ These results support the theory of social referencing: the child is influenced greatly by the mother's emotional state and he refers to her for the interpretation of events provoking anxiety. Therefore, nurses should inform and support mothers, especially those who are rooming-in; they should also make more use of parents in the preparation and the management of the child for surgery. The development and validation of an instrument measuring fear-anxiety-pain in younger children will facilitate evaluation of the effect of surgery or other procedures on the child, and the planning adequate interventions.