Nurses’ Experiences in a Turkish Internal Medicine Clinic With Syrian Refugees

Introduction: The increasing flow of Syrian refugees to Turkey, coupled with their extended stay, highlights the need for culturally competent health care, which includes nursing interventions. Purpose: The purpose of this study was to describe the experiences of nurses who provide care for Syrian refugees in internal medicine clinics in a hospital located in Turkey. Method: This descriptive study was based on qualitative content analysis using an inductive approach and involved discovery and description of the data. The study sample consisted of 10 nurses who work at the internal medicine clinic of a State Hospital in Turkey. Data were collected using semistructured interviews. Results: Three themes with related subthemes were derived from the data. Nurses who participated in the study experienced: (a) Nurses found communicating with Syrian refugees and their families difficult in the clinic. (b) Nurses observed and experienced differences and similarities in caring for Turkish and Syrian patients. (c) Nurses expressed and displayed compassion toward Syrian refugees during the caring process. Conclusion:In order for nurses to provide the best care for Syrian refugee patients, it is important to identify cultural caring behaviors observed by nurses in the promotion of culturally congruent nursing and health care.

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Patient Characteristics and Utilization of an Online Patient Portal in a Rural Academic General Internal Medicine Practice

10.21203/rs.3.rs-965879/v1 ◽

2021 ◽

Author(s):

Stephen K. Liu ◽

Annette E. Osborne ◽

Sigall Bell ◽

John N. Mecchella ◽

Shoshana Hort ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Internal Medicine ◽

Health Care ◽

General Internal Medicine ◽

Chronic Conditions ◽

Patient Portal ◽

Care Providers ◽

Care Clinic ◽

General Internal ◽

Medicine Clinic ◽

Internal Medicine Clinic

Abstract Background: Online patient portals have the potential to improve patient engagement and health care outcomes. This is especially true among rural patient populations that may live far from their health care providers and have transportation barriers to access care. This study compared the characteristics of active users of an online patient portal to non-users and assessed utilization among users in a rural academic primary care clinic to identify disparities in adoption and use. Methods: We conducted a cross sectional study of 28,028 patients in a general internal medicine clinic between June 2019 and May 2020 to assess a) characteristics of patients who had an online patient portal account and used the patient portal compared to those who did not register for an account, and b) the frequency of use of the patient portal (number of logons and number of messages sent and received) by patients over the study period. We compared results based on demographic characteristics, focusing on gender, age, race, presence or absence of nine chronic illnesses, smoking status, and BMI. Results: In the study cohort of 28,028 patients, 82% were active users of the patient portal. Females, patients aged 41-65, and non-smokers were more likely to use the portal than their counterparts. In total, patients with eight out of nine chronic illness groups studied (heart failure, cerebrovascular disease, history of a myocardial infarction, peripheral vascular disease, and renal disease) were less likely to use the patient portal than patients without these chronic conditions. On average, patients log onto the patient portal 25 times per year and send and receive 6 messages to and from the clinic. We found that females, patients older than 65, former smokers and obese patients logged on and sent and received more messages compared to the overall cohort. Although the sample size was small, on average Black patients logged onto the patient portal 19 times and sent and received 3.6 messages compared to White patients who logged on 25 times with 5.8 messages on average over the yearlong study period.Conclusions: In a rural academic internal medicine clinic, female patients, aged 41-65, non-smokers, and those without certain chronic conditions were more likely to use an online patient portal. Recognizing and addressing barriers to patient portal use is essential for robust and sustained patient portal uptake and ensuring that the benefits of portal use are equally distributed among all patients.

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Screening for Military Service History and Risk for Suicide in a Civilian Internal Medicine Clinic

The Journal for Nurse Practitioners ◽

10.1016/j.nurpra.2021.01.011 ◽

2021 ◽

Author(s):

Krista Roberts ◽

Annette Jakubisin Konicki ◽

Joy Elwell ◽

Sean Collins

Keyword(s):

Internal Medicine ◽

Military Service ◽

Medicine Clinic ◽

Internal Medicine Clinic

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Advancing Medication Reconciliation in an Outpatient Internal Medicine Clinic through a Pharmacist-Led Educational Initiative

INNOVATIONS in pharmacy ◽

10.24926/iip.v1i1.194 ◽

2010 ◽

Vol 1 (1) ◽

pp. 11

Author(s):

Sarah M. Westberg ◽

Kathrine Beeksma

Keyword(s):

Internal Medicine ◽

Nursing Staff ◽

Medication Reconciliation ◽

Future Research ◽

Original Research ◽

Educational Initiative ◽

Medicine Clinic ◽

Internal Medicine Clinic ◽

The Impact ◽

Competency Assessments

Objectives: To develop and deliver an effective pharmacist-led educational initiative to clinic staff to advance medication reconciliation in the electronic medical record of an outpatient internal medicine clinic. Methods: An educational initiative designed to improve the ability of nursing staff in medication reconciliation was launched in the outpatient internal medicine clinic of a regional healthcare system. The education was provided by the pharmacist to clinic nursing staff, including registered nurses, licensed practical nurses, and certified medical assistants. The impact of this training was measured through pre-initiation and post-implementation surveys, competency assessments and an audit. Results: The educational initiative was successfully designed and delivered to clinic nursing staff. Assessment of the initiative found that all nursing staff completing competency assessments successfully passed. Pre-initiation- and post-implementation- survey responses on the self-assessed ability to gather and document accurate medication lists did not show significant changes. Informal observations in the clinic indicated that this initiative changed the culture of the clinic, creating increased awareness of the importance of accurate medications and increased emphasis on medication reconciliation. Conclusions: The expertise of pharmacists can be utilized to educate nursing staff on the skills and abilities necessary to gather and document accurate medication lists. This study did not find measurable changes in the accuracy of medication lists in this clinic. Future research is needed to determine the best methods to train health professionals in medication reconciliation to ensure accurate medication lists in the outpatient setting. Type: Original Research

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