scholarly journals Patterns of Changes in Oncological Care due to COVID-19: Results of a Survey of Oncological Nurses and Physicians from the Region of Hanover, Germany

Healthcare ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 10 (1) ◽  
pp. 15
Author(s):  
Johannes Beller ◽  
Jürgen Schäfers ◽  
Siegfried Geyer ◽  
Jörg Haier ◽  
Jelena Epping
Keyword(s):  
Work Experience ◽  
Latent Class ◽  
Moral Distress ◽  
Routine Care ◽  
Healthcare Staff ◽  
Pandemic Preparedness ◽  
Future Studies ◽  
Oncology Care ◽  
Nurses And Physicians

Background: Healthcare staff is confronted with intensive decisional conflicts during the pandemic. Due to the specific burden of this moral distress in oncology, the investigation aimed at quantification of these conflicts and identification of risk factors that determine the extent and severity of these conflicts. We examined the heterogeneity of changes in oncology care due to COVID-19. Methods: We conducted a survey of oncological physicians and nurses in the region of Hanover, Germany in the second half of 2020. Overall, N = 200 respondents, 54% nurses, were included in the sample. Indicators of changes in oncology care were used to determine profiles of changes. To characterize these profiles, a diverse set of variables, including decision conflicts, uncertainty, age, gender, work experience, changes in communication with patients, psychological distress, work stress, process organization, and personnel resources, was obtained. Latent class analysis was conducted to determine these latent profiles. Results: We found that three distinct profiles best described the overall changes in oncology care due to COVID-19 in our sample, with each profile being associated with specific characteristics: (1) “Few Changes in Oncology Care” profile with 33% of participants belonging to this profile, (2) “Medium Changes in Oncology Care” profile with 43% of participants, and (3) “Severe Changes in Oncology Care” profile (24%). Participants from these profiles significantly differed regarding their age, work experience, occupational group, the prevalence of decision conflicts, decision uncertainty, quality of communication with patients, and quality of process organization. Conclusions: Distinct profiles of change in oncology care due to COVID-19 can be identified. Most participants reported small to medium changes, while some participants also reported severe changes. Profiles also differed regarding their associated characteristics. As such, specific consequences for better pandemic preparedness can be derived based on the current study. Future studies should investigate the patterns of changes in routine care due to COVID-19.

Psychological challenges for nurses working in palliative care and recommendations for self-care

2021 ◽  
Vol 30 (8) ◽  
pp. 484-489
Author(s):  
Feryad A Hussain
Keyword(s):  
Palliative Care ◽  
Compassion Fatigue ◽  
Moral Distress ◽  
Professional Lives ◽  
Healthcare Staff ◽  
Emotional Challenges ◽  
Individual Level ◽  
Care Services ◽  
Palliative Care Services

Working in palliative care services has an impact on the personal and professional lives of healthcare staff. The complex practicalities of the role and additional factors such as moral distress, burnout, compassion fatigue and death anxiety all impact on the overall quality of services and patient care. This article aims to highlight what is known of the practical and emotional challenges for palliative nursing care and offers recommendations to services to support staff at an organisational as well as individual level, to help create a more supportive workplace for staff and patients alike. It follows previous research on working in palliative and end-of-life care.

An Overview of Facilities Providing Clinical Services for Persons Who Stutter in Kuwait

2016 ◽  
Vol 1 (4) ◽  
pp. 79-95
Author(s):  
Latifa Alsalmi ◽  
Robert Mayo
Keyword(s):  
Special Education ◽  
Department Heads ◽  
Clinical Services ◽  
Medical Settings ◽  
Non Profit ◽  
Future Studies ◽  
Language Services ◽  
Medical Centers ◽  
Clinical Directors

Presently, no clear picture is available about the facilities providing clinical services for persons who stutter (PWS) in Kuwait. This information is crucial for any awareness program to be established in the future. The purpose of this study was to identify clinical facilities and speech-language personnel that provide services for PWS in Kuwait. Participants consisted of 21 clinical directors of governmental medical centers, non-profit clinics, and private clinics as well as department heads of governmental school clinics where speech-language services were provided. Participants were interviewed regarding the availability of speech-language services within their centers and whether or not PWS receive services. The results revealed that four out of five governmental medical centers with a total of 32 speech-language pathologists (SLPs) provided services for PWS. Additionally, 12 schools of special education were found to have 62 SLPs on their staff providing fluency services for students. Finally, two stand-alone private clinics and one non-profit clinic provided services for PWS. Results indicated an overall shortage of SLPs in the country, especially in medical settings. This study sets the foundation for a series of future studies investigating the type and quality of stuttering services provided by the identified facilities in Kuwait.

scholarly journals Psychological risk factors that characterize the trajectories of quality of life after a physical trauma: a longitudinal study using latent class analysis

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Eva Visser ◽  
Brenda Leontine Den Oudsten ◽  
Taco Gosens ◽  
Paul Lodder ◽  
Jolanda De Vries
Keyword(s):  
Quality Of Life ◽  
Latent Class Analysis ◽  
Health Care Providers ◽  
Psychological Health ◽  
Latent Class ◽  
Stress Disorder ◽  
Class Analysis ◽  
Care Providers ◽  
Physical Trauma

Abstract Background The course and corresponding characteristics of quality of life (QOL) domains in trauma population are unclear. Our aim was to identify longitudinal QOL trajectories and determine and predict the sociodemographic, clinical, and psychological characteristics of trajectory membership in physical trauma patients using a biopsychosocial approach. Methods Patients completed a questionnaire set after inclusion, and at 3, 6, 9, and 12 months follow-up. Trajectories were identified using repeated-measures latent class analysis. The trajectory characteristics were ranked using Cohen’s d effect size or phi coefficient. Results Altogether, 267 patients were included. The mean age was 54.1 (SD = 16.1), 62% were male, and the median injury severity score was 5.0 [2.0—9.0]. Four latent trajectories were found for psychological health and environment, five for physical health and social relationships, and seven trajectories were found for overall QOL and general health. The trajectories seemed to remain stable over time. For each QOL domain, the identified trajectories differed significantly in terms of anxiety, depressive symptoms, acute stress disorder, post-traumatic stress disorder, Neuroticism, trait anxiety, Extraversion, and Conscientiousness. Discussion Psychological factors characterized the trajectories during 12 months after trauma. Health care providers can use these findings to identify patients at risk for impaired QOL and offer patient-centered care to improve QOL.

Symptom profiles following combat injury and long-term quality of life: a latent class analysis

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Andrew J. MacGregor ◽  
Amber L. Dougherty ◽  
Edwin W. D’Souza ◽  
Cameron T. McCabe ◽  
Daniel J. Crouch ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Quality Of Life ◽  
Latent Class Analysis ◽  
Latent Class ◽  
Class Analysis ◽  
Combat Injury ◽  
Symptom Profiles

Health Care Utilization, Transition Readiness, and Quality of Life: A Latent Class Analysis

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Katherine A Traino ◽  
Christina M Sharkey ◽  
Megan N Perez ◽  
Dana M Bakula ◽  
Caroline M Roberts ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Quality Of Life ◽  
Health Care ◽  
Health Care Utilization ◽  
Latent Class Analysis ◽  
Latent Class ◽  
Care Utilization ◽  
Class Membership ◽  
Transition Readiness ◽  
High Utilization

Abstract Objective To identify possible subgroups of health care utilization (HCU) patterns among adolescents and young adults (AYAs) with a chronic medical condition (CMC), and examine how these patterns relate to transition readiness and health-related quality of life (HRQoL). Methods Undergraduates (N = 359; Mage=19.51 years, SD = 1.31) with a self-reported CMC (e.g., asthma, allergies, irritable bowel syndrome) completed measures of demographics, HCU (e.g., presence of specialty or adult providers, recent medical visits), transition readiness, and mental HRQoL (MHC) and physical HRQoL (PHC). Latent class analysis identified four distinct patterns of HCU. The BCH procedure evaluated how these patterns related to transition readiness and HRQoL outcomes. Results Based on seven indicators of HCU, a four-class model was found to have optimal fit. Classes were termed High Utilization (n = 95), Adult Primary Care Physician (PCP)-Moderate Utilization (n = 107), Family PCP-Moderate Utilization (n = 81), and Low Utilization (n = 76). Age, family income, and illness controllability predicted class membership. Class membership predicted transition readiness and PHC, but not MHC. The High Utilization group reported the highest transition readiness and the lowest HRQoL, while the Low Utilization group reported the lowest transition readiness and highest HRQoL. Conclusions The present study characterizes the varying degrees to which AYAs with CMCs utilize health care. Our findings suggest poorer PHC may result in higher HCU, and that greater skills and health care engagement may not be sufficient for optimizing HRQoL. Future research should examine the High Utilization subgroup and their risk for poorer HRQoL.

Preliminary Validation of the Severity of Nail Psoriasis Score (SNAPS) for the Assessment of Nail Psoriasis in Patients With Psoriatic Arthritis

2021 ◽  
pp. 247553032110114
Author(s):  
Anna Antony ◽  
Sadaf Saeed ◽  
Darren Hart ◽  
Preeti Nair ◽  
Charlotte Cavill ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Severity Index ◽  
Routine Care ◽  
Measurement Properties ◽  
Strong Correlations ◽  
Nail Dystrophy ◽  
Psoriasis Area Severity Index ◽  
Nail Psoriasis ◽  
Outcome Instrument ◽  
Preliminary Validation

Background: Psoriatic nail dystrophy is infrequently assessed in routine care and observational cohorts due to the lack of a feasible validated outcome measure. Objective: To assess the measurement properties of the “Severity of NAil Psoriasis Score” (SNAPS) in PsA. Methods: Nail photography was performed on prospectively recruited patients at baseline and 6 months. The modified Nail Psoriasis Severity Index (mNAPSI) and Physician Nail Visual Acuity Scale (PhNVAS) were comparator instruments for construct validity. Reliability and feasibility were assessed using intra-class correlations (ICCs) and timed scoring. Responsiveness was assessed by correlating the changes in SNAPS, mNAPSI and PhNVAS. Retrospective data from the Bath PsA database was further utilized to assess responsiveness. Results: 21 patients participated in the prospective validation at baseline. Inter- and intra-rater reliability of SNAPS were 0.94 and 0.93-0.96 (p ≤ 0.005). Mean times required to score SNAPS and mNAPSI were 59 and 136 seconds. There were strong correlations between SNAPS and mNAPSI (r = 0.95, p < 0.001) and PhNVAS (r = 0.77, p < 0.001) at baseline. There was a significant reduction in the mNAPSI and SNAPS (p < 0.005) at 6 months and a strong correlation between the change in SNAPS and mNAPSI (rho = 0.838, p < 0.001). Historical data from 57 patients commenced on Etanercept were evaluated. Mean SNAPS reduced from 3.6 to 2.0 at 3 months and 1.2 at 6 months (p < 0.05). Change in SNAPS correlated with changes in Psoriasis Area Severity Index and Dermatology Quality of Life at 3 and 6 months (r≥0.510; p ≤ 0.003). Conclusion: SNAPS is a feasible, reliable and responsive outcome instrument for psoriatic nail dystrophy.

scholarly journals Compassion fatigue of funeral directors during and after the first wave of COVID-19

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Roel Van Overmeire ◽  
Rose-Lima Van Keer ◽  
Marie Cocquyt ◽  
Johan Bilsen
Keyword(s):  
Compassion Fatigue ◽  
Work Experience ◽  
Online Survey ◽  
Secondary Trauma ◽  
Compassion Satisfaction ◽  
Funeral Directors ◽  
Quality Of Life Scale ◽  
Life Scale ◽  
And Gender

Abstract Background Compassion fatigue has not been studied among funeral directors. Yet, funeral directors have been exposed to the same risks for compassion fatigue as other caregivers during the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic. Methods An online survey was spread two times to 287 employees of funeral home DELA, in Belgium. Once during the height of the first wave of COVID-19 in Belgium, and a second time at the end of the first wave. The professional quality of life-scale 5 (PROQOL-5) was used to measure compassion fatigue, which includes burnout, compassion satisfaction and secondary trauma. Non-parametric tests were performed. Results In total, 104 participants answered the first survey, and 107 the second. Burnout increases from survey 1 to survey 2 (P &lt; 0.001), while compassion satisfaction (P = 0.011) and secondary trauma decrease (P &lt; 0.001). In survey 1, only age (P = 0.007) and gender (P = 0.040) were found to be significantly associated with secondary trauma. In survey 2, having more work experience is associated with having a higher burnout (P = 0.008) and secondary trauma (P = 0.001) score. Neither for burnout (P &lt; 0.001), nor for secondary trauma (P &lt; 0.001) are there any respondents in the highest category. Conclusions Although overall funeral directors do not have acute problems with compassion fatigue, burnout scores increase significantly after the first wave.

Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document