Comfort and hope in the preanesthesia stage in patients undergoing surgery

Determining the Spiritual Care and Comfort Needs of Patients Having Undergone Open-Heart Surgery: Cross-Sectional Descriptive Study in Turkey

This study was aimed at determining the spiritual care and comfort needs of patients having undergone open-heart surgery. This cross-sectional descriptive study was conducted with 147 patients in the Cardiovascular Surgery Intensive Care Unit of a training and research hospital in Izmir, a province in western Turkey, between May 1, 2022 and November 1, 2022. The comfort level of the patients who had undergone open-heart surgery was moderate, and the levels of their spiritual care needs were high. A statistically significant relationship was found between the patients' Perianesthesia Comfort Scale total score and the Spiritual Care Needs Inventory (p < 0.05). We concluded that the patients' comfort levels decreased as their spiritual care needs increased. We recommend authors to conduct studies in the future which should include different sample groups and compare the data obtained before and after the surgery.

Mediating Effects of Perceived Social Support on the Relationship between Comfort and Hope in Hospitalized Patients with Acute Ischemic Stroke

Background

The relationship among comfort, perceived social support, and hope should still be further explored. Clarifying the relationship between the aforementioned variables can enable clinical staff to implement tailored and effective intervention strategies for enhancing the management and quality of care of patients with ischemic stroke.

Aim

This study aims to investigate the relationship between comfort, perceived social support, and hope in hospitalized patients with acute ischemic stroke and to explore the mediating effect of perceived social support on comfort and hope.

Methods

A correlational cross-sectional study was performed using an online questionnaire. The study was conducted from January to August 2023 among 572 patients with acute ischemic stroke, and finally 534 valid questionnaires were included in the analysis. The general information questionnaire, Modified Barthel Index, Shortened General Comfort Questionnaire, Perceived Social Support Scale, and Herth Hope Index were utilized for investigation. Mediation analysis was performed by structural equation modelling. Indirect effects were evaluated through bootstrapping. Data analysis was performed using the statistical program packages, namely, SPSS 29.0 and AMOS 24.0.

Results

The comfort, perceived social support, and hope scores of patients with acute ischemic stroke were 94.1 (11.92), 72.74 (10.26), and 40.55 (4.99), respectively. The participants' hope was positively related to comfort (r = 0.531, p < 0.001) and perceived social support (r = 0.589, p < 0.001). Perceived social support exerts a partial mediating role between comfort and hope, and the mediating effect was 0.159 (95% CI [0.117, 0.210]), accounting for 25.0% of the total effect.

Conclusion

We reported that comfort-directly and indirectly-exerts a positive impact on hope. Particularly, perceived social support enhances the impact of comfort on hope; perceived social support mediates the relationship between comfort and hope. Clinical staff should correctly understand the relationship among the three variables; they should effects targeted strategies to enhance patient comfort and social support, thereby increasing the hope level among ischemic stroke patients and bolstering confidence in disease management. Implications for Nursing Management. This study demonstrates that comfort and perceived social support serve as protective factors for hope among ischemic stroke patients. This observation provides evidence supporting the optimization of management for ischemic stroke patients from the perspectives of the cognitive adaptation theory and comfort theory. The findings of this study contribute to a more optimal understanding among clinical caregivers regarding the mechanisms underlying the relationship between comfort, social support, and hope, and it facilitates the adoption of effective intervention strategies for promoting the psychological management of ischemic stroke patients and enhancing patient care quality.

The effect of guided imagery applied on geriatric orthopaedic patients on preoperative anxiety and comfort

BACKGROUND

This study was designed to examine the effect of guided imagery applied to geriatric orthopaedic patients on preoperative anxiety and comfort.

METHODS

This study was conducted as a randomized controlled trial. The population of the study consisted of geriatric patients treated in the orthopaedics and traumatology clinic of a university hospital. The sample consisted of 80 patients, including the experimental group (n = 40) and the control group (n = 40). Personal Descriptive Form, The State-Trait Anxiety Inventory (STAI) and General Comfort Scale were used as data collection tools.

RESULTS

After the guided imagery application, it was determined that the anxiety of the experimental group decreased statistically significantly, and their comfort improved (P < 0.05).

CONCLUSION

After the imagery, it was determined that the patients in the experimental group had a decrease in their anxiety level and an improvement in their comfort. Since it is a low-cost and easily accessible method, applying imagery in the preoperative period is recommended.

Perioperative Comfort and Discomfort: Transitioning From Epidural to Oral Pain Treatment After Pancreas Surgery: A Qualitative Study

PURPOSE

To explore patients' experiences of pain treatment in the perioperative period after surgery for pancreatic cancer.

DESIGN

A qualitative descriptive design using semi-structured interviews.

METHODS

This study was a qualitative study based on 12 interviews. Participants were patients that had undergone surgery for pancreatic cancer. The interviews were conducted 1 to 2 days after the epidural was turned off, in a surgical department in Sweden. The interviews were analysed with qualitative content analysis. The Standard for Reporting Qualitative Research checklist was used for reporting the qualitative research study.

FINDINGS

The analysis of the transcribed interviews, generated one theme: Maintaining a sense of control in the perioperative phase, and two subthemes: (i) Sense of vulnerability and safety, and (ii) Sense of comfort and discomfort, were found.

CONCLUSIONS

The participants experienced comfort after pancreas surgery if they maintained a sense of control in the perioperative phase and when the epidural pain treatment provided pain relief without any side effects. The transition from epidural pain treatment to oral pain treatment with opioid tablets was experienced individually, from an almost unnoticed transition to the experience of severe pain, nausea, and fatigue. The sense of vulnerability and safety among the participants were affected by nursing care relationship and the environment on the ward.

The Relationship Between Perioperative Care Quality and Postoperative Comfort Level in Patients With Hip Replacement Surgery

PURPOSE

To examine the relationship between perioperative care quality and postoperative comfort level of patients undergoing hip replacement surgery.

DESIGN

This is a descriptive study.

METHODS

This study was conducted with 90 patients between February and September 2021 in a training and research hospital in Turkey. Data were collected from Information Form, the Good Perioperative Nursing Care Scale (for Patients) (GPNCS), and the Post Hip Replacement Comfort Scale (PHRCS).

FINDINGS

The mean age of the patients was 65.58 ± 15.10 years. The mean total scores of the patients in GPNCS and PHRCS were 134.61 ± 16.29 and 3.58 ± 0.40, respectively. In the correlation analysis, a statistically significant and positive weak relationship was determined between GPNCS and PHRCS, and as the quality of care during the surgery increases, the postoperative comfort levels increase (r = 0.253, P < .05).

CONCLUSIONS

Ensuring the comfort of patients during the surgery as well as in the pre-, intra- and postoperative period is necessary and important for the quality of care. In addition, since the quality of the care during surgery is effective on the postoperative comfort levels of the patients, quality nursing care is required pre-, intra-, and postoperative periods.

Do all patients in the epilepsy monitoring unit experience the same level of comfort? A quantitative exploratory secondary analysis

Aims

To find out which variables may be associated with comfort of patients in an epilepsy monitoring unit.

Design

Exploratory, quantitative study design.

Methods

Data were collected from October 2018 to November 2019 in Austria and Southern Germany. A total of 267 patients of 10 epilepsy centres completed the Epilepsy Monitoring Unit Comfort Questionnaire which is based on Kolcaba's General Comfort Questionnaire. Secondary data analysis were conducted by using descriptive statistics and an exploratory model building approach, including different linear regression models and several sensitivity analyses.

Results

Total comfort scores ranged from 83 to 235 points. Gender, occupation and centre turned out to be possible influential variables. On average, women had a total comfort score 4.69 points higher than men, and retired persons 28.2 points higher than high school students ≥18 years. Comfort scores of younger patients were lower than those of older patients. However, age did not show a statistically significant effect. The same could be observed in marital status and educational levels.

Conclusion

When implementing comfort measures, nurses must be aware of variables which could influence the intervention negatively. Especially, high school students ≥18 years should be supported by epilepsy specialist nurses, in order to reduce uncertainty, anxiety and discomfort. But, since the identified variables account only for a small proportion of the inter‐individual variability in comfort scores, further studies are needed to find out additional relevant aspects and to examine centre‐specific effects more closely.

Impact

Nurses ensure patient comfort during a hospital stay. However, there are variables that may impair the effectiveness of the nursing measures. Our study showed that the experience of comfort was highly individual and could be explained by sociodemographic variables only to a limited extent. Nurses must be aware that additional factors, such as the situation in the individual setting, may be relevant.

Identifying the Factors Affecting Comfort and the Comfort Levels of Patients Hospitalized in the Coronary Care Unit

Comfort, a concept associated with the art of nursing, is important for reducing the negative impact of hospitalization in a coronary care unit (CCU). Providing nursing interventions that ensure patient comfort is important for patients to respond positively to treatment. To determine the factors affecting comfort and the comfort levels of patients hospitalized in the CCU. A descriptive study. The study was conducted between December 2015 and February 2016 in the CCU of a state hospital located in Trabzon, Turkey. The sample consisted of 119 patients who complied with the criteria of inclusion for the study. Data were collected using the "Patient Information Form" and a "General Comfort Questionnaire." The mean patient comfort score was 3.22 ± 0.33, and we found significant relationships between comfort scores and age (r = -0.19; P = .03) and communication by nurses and physicians (P < .05). Regression analysis revealed that sufficient communication by physicians, education level, age, and having a companion were related to the comfort level (P < .05). Communication by nurses and physicians and having a companion could change the comfort levels of patients hospitalized in the CCU.

The Hope Research Community of Practice

Background

Clinical nurses have multiple challenges in conducting high-quality nursing research to inform practice. Theoretically, the development of a community of practice on nursing research centered on the concept of hope is an approach that may address some of the challenges.

Purpose

This article describes the delivery and evaluation of a hope research community of practice (HRCoP) approach to facilitate research expertise in a group of advanced practice nurses in one hospital. It addressed the question: Does the establishment of a HRCoP for master’s prepared nurses increase their confidence and competence in leading nursing research?

Method

Using interpretive descriptive qualitative research methodology, five participants were interviewed about their experiences within the HRCoP and facilitators engaged in participant observation.

Results

At 13 months, only four of the original seven participants remained in the HRCoP. While all participants discussed positive impacts of participation, they identified challenges of having protected time to complete their individual research projects, despite having administrative support to do so. Progress on individual research projects varied.

Conclusion

Nurse-led research remains a challenge for practicing nurses despite participating in an evidence-based HRCoP. Lessons learned from this project can be useful to other academic clinical partnerships.

Religious Practices and Self-Care in Iranian Patients with Type 2 Diabetes

This study aimed to examine the relationship between religious practices and self-care of patients with type 2 diabetes. A descriptive cross-sectional survey was conducted on 154 diabetic patients who were referred to two general teaching hospitals in Qom City (Iran). Data were collected using demographic questionnaire, private and public religious practices, and summary of diabetes self-care activities questionnaires. Data were analyzed using descriptive statistics and statistical tests including independent t test, and Pearson correlation coefficient. Significant positive correlations were observed between religious practices and self-care activities in diabetic patients (p < 0.05). Significant positive correlations were also found between some religious practices and self-care activities subscales (p < 0.05). Healthcare providers should be aware of the role that religion plays in the lives of diabetic patients and be able to take religious factors into account when developing care plans. Doing so will enhance a more patient-centered approach and thereby support patients in their role as self-care decision-makers.

Epilepsy monitoring - The patients' views: A qualitative study based on Kolcaba's Comfort Theory

PURPOSE

The aim of this qualitative study was to determine which perception of personal comfort patients name in the context of their hospitalization in an Austrian Epilepsy Monitoring Unit (EMU).

METHODS

Problem-centred interviews with twelve inpatients were conducted. Data analyses were done according to Mayring's qualitative content analyses following the technique of structuring-deductive category assignment.

RESULTS

Patients experienced different kinds of comfort along with their hospitalization in the EMU. Comfort-decreasing factors were bed rest, boredom, and waiting for possible seizures. As comfort-increasing factors, hope for enhanced seizure control, support by family and staff, and intelligible information about the necessity of restrictive conditions were identified.

CONCLUSIONS

The study results should assist health care professionals, enabling them to design comfort enhancing interventions for patients undergoing video-electroencephalography (EEG) investigations in an EMU. Some of these seem to be simple and obtainable without high financial or technical effort. Others are more complex and have to be further assessed for their feasibility.