scholarly journals Twelve Years of the Italian Program to Enhance Relational and Communication Skills (PERCS)

2021 ◽  
Vol 18 (2) ◽  
pp. 439
Author(s):  
Lidia Borghi ◽  
Elaine C. Meyer ◽  
Elena Vegni ◽  
Roberta Oteri ◽  
Paolo Almagioni ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Communication Skills ◽  
Repeated Measures ◽  
Behavioral Changes ◽  
Chi Square ◽  
Future Directions ◽  
Public And Private ◽  
Learner Centered ◽  
Difficult Conversations ◽  
Booster Sessions ◽  
Before And After

To describe the experience of the Italian Program to Enhance Relations and Communication Skills (PERCS-Italy) for difficult healthcare conversations. PERCS-Italy has been offered in two different hospitals in Milan since 2008. Each workshop lasts 5 h, enrolls 10–15 interdisciplinary participants, and is organized around simulations and debriefing of two difficult conversations. Before and after the workshops, participants rate their preparation, communication, relational skills, confidence, and anxiety on 5-point Likert scales. Usefulness, quality, and recommendation of the program are also assessed. Descriptive statistics, t-tests, repeated-measures ANOVA, and Chi-square were performed. A total of 72 workshops have been offered, involving 830 interdisciplinary participants. Participants reported improvements in all the dimensions (p < 0.001) without differences across the two hospitals. Nurses and other professionals reported a greater improvement in preparation, communication skills, and confidence, compared to physicians and psychosocial professionals. Usefulness, quality, and recommendation of PERCS programs were highly rated, without differences by discipline. PERCS-Italy proved to be adaptable to different hospital settings, public and private. After the workshops, clinicians reported improvements in self-reported competencies when facing difficult conversations. PERCS-Italy’s sustainability is based on the flexible format combined with a solid learner-centered approach. Future directions include implementation of booster sessions to maintain learning and the assessment of behavioral changes.

Effect of communication skills based group counseling on mothers’ sex dialogue with their adolescent daughters

2018 ◽  
Vol 0 (0) ◽  
Author(s):  
Tayebe Ziaei ◽  
Maryam Ghanbari Gorji ◽  
Naser Behnampour ◽  
Masumeh Rezaei Aval
Keyword(s):  
Communication Skills ◽  
Group Counseling ◽  
Repeated Measures ◽  
Intervention Group ◽  
Health Centers ◽  
Chi Square ◽  
Significant Difference ◽  
Mother And Daughter ◽  
Post Hoc ◽  
And Control

AbstractBackgroundSex dialogue is one of the most critical and challenging topics between mothers and adolescents. The knowledge and skills of mothers in sex dialogue with their daughters are essential. The purpose of this study is to determine the effect of group counseling based on communication skills on mothers through their sex dialogue with their daughters.MethodsA randomized controlled field trial was conducted on 168 couples of mothers and their daughters selected by the stratified matching method and randomly divided into two control and intervention groups. The mothers in the intervention group participated in a communication-based consultation in groups consisting of 6–12 people for 6–7 weekly sessions, each one lasting 60 min. The data collection tool was a Persian-translated questionnaire by Jaccard for sex dialogue between mother and daughter. The data were analyzed using Chi-square (χ2), ANOVA with repeated measures and modified post hoc Bonferroni tests.ResultsThere was a significant difference in the mean score of mother-daughter sex dialogue 1 week after intervention between the intervention (34.48 ± 8.74) and control (40.44 ± 9.49) groups (p = 0.001) and 1 month after the intervention between the intervention (30.41 ± 10.07) and control (42.47 ± 9.62) groups (p < 0.001).ConclusionThrough applying communication skills, an increase in mother-daughter sex dialogue frequency was observed after group counseling. Therefore, it is suggested to promote mother-daughter communication skills by accessing the mothers via schools, health centers and with the aid of midwifery counselors, midwives and other trained caretakers.

scholarly journals Socially-Assistive Robots Using Empathy to Reduce Pain and Distress during Peripheral IV Placement in Children

2020 ◽  
Vol 2020 ◽  
pp. 1-7
Author(s):  
Margaret J Trost ◽  
Grace Chrysilla ◽  
Jeffrey I. Gold ◽  
Maja Matarić
Keyword(s):  
Repeated Measures ◽  
Self Report ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Chi Square ◽  
Assistive Robots ◽  
Socially Assistive Robots ◽  
Validated Questionnaire ◽  
Before And After ◽  
Chi Square Test ◽  
Demographic Surveys

Objectives. Socially-assistive robots (SAR) have been used to reduce pain and distress in children in medical settings. Patients who perceive empathic treatment have increased satisfaction and improved outcomes. We sought to determine if an empathic SAR could be developed and used to decrease pain and fear associated with peripheral IV placement in children. Methods. We conducted a pilot study of children receiving IV placement. Participating children were randomized to interact with (1) no robot, or a commercially available 3D printed humanoid SAR robot programmed with (2) empathy or (3) distraction conditions. Children and parents completed demographic surveys, and children used an adapted validated questionnaire to rate the robot’s empathy on an 8-point Likert scale. Survey scores were compared by the t-test or chi-square test. Pain and fear were measured by self-report using the FACES and FEAR scales, and video tapes were coded using the CHEOPS and FLACC. Scores were compared using repeated measures 2-way ANOVA. This trial is registered with NCT02840942. Results. Thirty-one children with an average age of 9.6 years completed the study. For all measures, mean pain and fear scores were lowest in the empathy group immediately before and after IV placement. Children were more likely to attribute characteristics of empathy to the empathic condition (Likert score 7.24 v. 4.70; p=0.012) and to report that having the empathic vs. distraction robot made the IV hurt less (7.45 vs. 4.88; p=0.026). Conclusions. Children were able to identify SAR designed to display empathic characteristics and reported it helped with IV insertion pain and fear. Mean scores of self-reported or objective pain and fear scales were the lowest in the empathy group and the highest in the distraction condition before and after IV insertion. This result suggests empathy improves SAR functionality when used for painful medical procedures and informs future research into SAR for pain management.

Research and Teaching: Think Before (and After) You Speak: Practice and Self-Reflection Bolster Oral Communication Skills

2016 ◽  
Vol 045 (06) ◽  
Author(s):  
Eleanor Sterling ◽  
Adriana Bravo ◽  
Ana Luz Porzecanski ◽  
Romi Burks ◽  
Joshua Linder ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Communication Skills ◽  
Oral Communication ◽  
Self Reflection ◽  
Research And Teaching ◽  
Before And After

scholarly journals A Randomized, Controlled, Parallel-Group, Trial on the Effects of Melatonin on Fatigue Associated with Breast Cancer and Its Adjuvant Treatments

2021 ◽  
Vol 20 ◽  
pp. 153473542098834
Author(s):  
Abdolazim Sedighi Pashaki ◽  
Kamal Mohammadian ◽  
Saeid Afshar ◽  
Mohammad Hadi Gholami ◽  
Abbas Moradi ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Breast Cancer ◽  
Adjuvant Chemotherapy ◽  
Intervention Group ◽  
Chi Square ◽  
Significance Level ◽  
Severe Fatigue ◽  
Before And After ◽  
Brief Fatigue Inventory ◽  
Chi Square Test ◽  
Student’S T

Objective: Fatigue associated with malignant conditions and their treatments is a disabling condition. This trial assessed the anti-fatigue effects of melatonin coadministration during adjuvant treatment of patients with the breast cancer. Material and Methods: Patients with breast cancer were randomly assigned to receive melatonin or placebo during adjuvant chemotherapy and radiotherapy. Thirty-seven patients were randomly enrolled in each group. The mean ages of patients in the intervention and control groups were 50.47 ± 10.79 and 46.05 ± 10.55 years, respectively ( P = .223). The intervention group received oral melatonin (18 mg/day) from 1 week before until 1 month after the adjuvant radiotherapy. The level of fatigue was assessed before and after intervention using Brief Fatigue Inventory (BFI) in both groups. To analyze data, the Student’s t-test and the Chi-square test were used at a significance level of P ≤ .05. Results: The BFI score was similar before the intervention in both groups, however, after the intervention, it was significantly lower in the melatonin group ( P < .001). Moreover, the frequency of severe fatigue in the melatonin group was significantly lower than in the placebo group after intervention (42.1% vs 83.3%, P < .001). Conclusion: Coadministration of melatonin during adjuvant chemotherapy and radiotherapy of women with breast cancer decreased the levels of fatigue associated with the malignant condition and its treatments.

scholarly journals The Acute Effects of a Swimming Session on the Shoulder Rotators Strength and Balance of Age Group Swimmers

2021 ◽  
Vol 18 (15) ◽  
pp. 8109
Author(s):  
Nuno Batalha ◽  
Jose A. Parraca ◽  
Daniel A. Marinho ◽  
Ana Conceição ◽  
Hugo Louro ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Repeated Measures ◽  
Training Session ◽  
Age Group ◽  
Acute Effects ◽  
Muscle Strengthening ◽  
Repeated Measures Design ◽  
Before And After ◽  
Shoulder Strength ◽  
Isometric Torque ◽  
Gender Specific

The purpose of this study was to analyze the acute effects of a standardized water training session on the shoulder rotators strength and balance in age group swimmers, in order to understand whether a muscle-strengthening workout immediately after the water training is appropriate. A repeated measures design was implemented with two measurements performed before and after a standardized swim session. 127 participants were assembled in male (n = 72; age: 16.28 ± 1.55 years, height: 174.15 ± 7.89 cm, weight: 63.97 ± 6.51 kg) and female (n = 55; age: 15.29 ± 1.28 years, height: 163.03 ± 7.19 cm, weight: 52.72 ± 5.48 kg) cohorts. The isometric torque of the shoulder internal (IR) and external (ER) rotators, as well as the ER/IR ratios, were assessed using a hand-held dynamometer. Paired sample t-tests and effect sizes (Cohen’s d) were used (p ≤ 0.05). No significant differences were found on the shoulder rotators strength or balance in males after training. Females exhibited unchanged strength values after practice, but there was a considerable decrease in the shoulder rotators balance of the non-dominant limb (p < 0.01 d = 0.366). This indicates that a single practice seems not to affect the shoulders strength and balance of adolescent swimmers, but this can be a gender specific phenomenon. While muscle-strengthening workout after the water session may be appropriate for males, it can be questionable regarding females. Swimming coaches should regularly assess shoulder strength levels in order to individually identify swimmers who may or may not be able to practice muscle strengthening after the water training.

scholarly journals Post-exercise pulsatility index indicates treatment effects in peripheral arterial occlusive disease (PAOD)

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Andrej Udelnow ◽  
Maria Hawemann ◽  
Ivo Buschmann ◽  
Frank Meyer ◽  
Zuhir Halloul
Keyword(s):  
Repeated Measures ◽  
Pulsatility Index ◽  
Treatment Effects ◽  
Resistance Index ◽  
Peak Systolic Velocity ◽  
Arterial Tree ◽  
Post Exercise ◽  
Diastolic Velocity ◽  
Before And After ◽  
Healthy Persons

Summary Background Hypothesis: Post-exercise measurements better discriminate PAOD-patients from healthy persons and they more sensitively detect hemodynamic improvements after treatment procedures than resting measurements. Methods A total of 19 healthy volunteers and 23 consecutive PAOD-patients underwent measurements of peak systolic velocity (PSV), end-diastolic velocity (EDV), minimal diastolic velocity (MDV), time-averaged maximum velocities (TAMAX), resistance index (RI) and pulsatility index (PI) before and after a standard exercise test (at 1, 2, 3, 4 and 5 min) before and after treatment (incl. epidemiological data, PAOD risk factors and comorbidities). Results In resting values, healthy persons and PAOD-patients did not differ significantly in any of the hemodynamic parameters. PSV increased after treatment in PAOD-patients by 5 cm/s (paired t‑test, p: 0.025); however, when the amplitude of autoregulatory changes related to the resting values were calculated, PAOD-patients showed clearly less hemodynamic changes after exercise than healthy persons (p: 0.04; 0.002; <0.001 for PSV, TAMAX and PI, resp.). The time course after exercise was compared by repeated measures of ANOVA. Healthy persons differed significantly in PI, RI and PSV from PAOD patients before and after treatment (p<0.001 each). The PAOD-patients revealed a significantly improved PI after treatment (p: 0.042). The only factor contributing significantly to PI independently from grouping was direct arterial vascularization as compared to discontinuous effects by an obstructed arterial tree. Conclusion Healthy persons cannot be well differentiated from PAOD-patients solely by hemodynamics at rest but by characteristic changes after standard exercise. Treatment effects are reflected by higher PI-values after exercise.

Spouse Caregivers' Perceptions of Influence of Dementia on Marriage

2002 ◽  
Vol 14 (1) ◽  
pp. 47-58 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ulla Eloniemi-Sulkava ◽  
Irma-Leena Notkola ◽  
Kaija Hämäläinen ◽  
Terhi Rahkonen ◽  
Petteri Viramo ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Behavioral Change ◽  
Intervention Study ◽  
Negative Impact ◽  
Behavioral Changes ◽  
Telephone Interviews ◽  
Before And After ◽  
Spouse Caregivers ◽  
Dementing Illness ◽  
Male Patients ◽  
Patients Experience

Objectives: To investigate what kind of changes spouse caregivers of demented patients experience after the onset of dementia (a) in the general atmosphere, happiness, and relations of marriage and (b) in the sexual side of marriage. Design: Semistructured telephone interviews of spouse caregivers of demented patients. Setting: Community-living demented patients and their spouse caregivers in eastern Finland. Participants: The spouse caregivers of 42 demented patients recruited from a previous intervention study. Measures: The questionnaire covered different areas of marriage from the time before and after the onset of dementia. Results: A statistically significant decline had occured in extent of happiness (p = .012), in equal relations (p = .001), and in patients' expressions of sexual needs (p < .001) when compared the time before and after dementia. Twenty-five (60%) of the caregivers reported that the demented patient had shown at least one negative sexual behavioral change during the course of dementia. Seven male patients (24%) had shown the behavioral symptom of constantly expressing need for making love. One in 10 caregivers had experienced positive sexual behavioral changes. In one third of the patients, the expressions of tenderness towards the caregiver had increased. Dementia did not affect significantly the general atmosphere of the marriage. Out of those still in home care, at 3 years from the onset of dementia, 19 couples (46%) continued to practice intercourse, at 5 years the number was 15 couples (41%), and at 7 years it had declined to 7 couples (28%). Conclusions: Dementing illness has a major negative impact on many dimensions of marriage. However, there are also positive changes and preserved aspects of marriage. Dementia seems to have a surprisingly little impact on whether the couple continues to have intercourse when compared with the general aging population.

scholarly journals 252 COMPARISON OF TWO SPERM SEPARATION PRODUCTS FOR USE IN BOVINE IVF

2005 ◽  
Vol 17 (2) ◽  
pp. 276 ◽  
Author(s):  
J. Pryor ◽  
S. Romo ◽  
D.D. Varner ◽  
K. Hinrichs ◽  
C.R. Looney
Keyword(s):  
Sperm Concentration ◽  
Embryo Production ◽  
Chi Square ◽  
Vitro Fertilization ◽  
Before And After ◽  
Chi Square Test ◽  
Group 2 ◽  
Live Sperm ◽  
Sperm Separation

In commercial bovine in vitro fertilization (IVF) companies, there is a continuous need to improve results. Efforts to maximize in vitro embryo production have included modifications in the use of sperm separation gradients. The development of commercially available sperm centrifugation gradients represents a new possibility of increasing the number of viable sperm that can be obtained from low concentration (fresh or frozen, sexed or unsexed) semen samples in order to improve the efficiency of the IVF system to make embryo production as efficient as possible. The objective of this study was to compare two different separation gradients, as follows: Group 1: Percoll (Sigma, St. Louis, MO, USA), in 45% and 90% gradients; Group 2: EquiPure (Nidacon, Gathenburg, Sweden), in top and bottom layers. Before and after separation, sperm were evaluated at 200× magnification for total motility, and then stained to assess viability at 400× with fast-green/eosin stain (Sigma). Sperm separation was performed using frozen/thawed semen from one bull. Semen was separated by centrifugation at 200g for 30 min in both density gradients. Results obtained from Groups 1 and 2 were compared by chi-square test. Sperm separation with Percoll yielded lower numbers of sperm (average sperm concentration after separation of 92 × 106, vs. 159 × 106 sperm/mL for EquiPure; P < 0.05) but resulted in higher motility (60% vs. 39%, respectively; P < 0.05) of separated sperm. Rates of live sperm cells were not significantly different between groups (69.5% vs. 70%, respectively; P > 0.1). These results indicate that the commercial separation medium EquiPure may be associated with higher sperm concentration levels but with lowered sperm motility when compared to Percoll for bovine sperm separation. However, Equipure provided similar percentages of live sperm when compared to Percoll, which is currently used in our laboratory.

scholarly journals Relationship between oral habits and spirometry maneuvers, in children

Revista CEFAC ◽  
2018 ◽  
Vol 20 (1) ◽  
pp. 37-43
Author(s):  
Rafaela Coelho Minsky ◽  
Tayná Castilho ◽  
Roseane Rebelo Silva Meira ◽  
Tatiana Godoy Bobbio ◽  
Camila Isabel Santos Schivinski
Keyword(s):  
Healthy Children ◽  
Chi Square ◽  
Cross Sectional ◽  
Public And Private ◽  
Oral Habits ◽  
Qualitative Variables ◽  
Chi Square Test ◽  
Kolmogorov Smirnov ◽  
Thumb Sucking ◽  
Smirnov Test

ABSTRACT Purpose: to analyze whether deleterious oral habits can influence the number of attempts of forced spirometry maneuvers performed by healthy children. Methods: this observational and cross-sectional analytical study included 149 healthy children aged 6-12 years attending public and private schools in Florianópolis, SC, Brazil. A validated protocol was applied for the analysis of deleterious oral habits. The children were grouped according to the number of spirometry maneuvers needed to achieve successful spirometry results, as follows: G1) children who needed 3 maneuvers; G2) 4 maneuvers; G3) 5-8 maneuvers. Data were analyzed with the Kolmogorov-Smirnov test and the Kruskal-Wallis test was applied to compare quantitative variables between the groups. The Chi-square test was used to assess the association between the groups and qualitative variables. Results: there was no association between the number of attempts and the qualitative variables evaluated by the protocol. There was also no difference between the groups regarding quantitative variables for breastfeeding time, breastfeeding occurrence, use of pacifiers, and thumb sucking. Conclusion: the presence of DOH did not influence the number of forced spirometry maneuvers, performed by the healthy children in this study.

A Critical Assessment and Review of Artificial Intelligence in Facial Paralysis Analysis: Uncovering the Truth

FACE ◽  
2021 ◽  
pp. 273250162110228
Author(s):  
David T. Mitchell ◽  
David Z. Allen ◽  
Matthew R. Greives ◽  
Phuong D. Nguyen
Keyword(s):  
Artificial Intelligence ◽  
Facial Paralysis ◽  
Critical Assessment ◽  
Facial Emotion ◽  
Data Systems ◽  
Computer Algorithms ◽  
Future Directions ◽  
Sample Data ◽  
Before And After ◽  
Facial Reanimation

Machine learning is a rapidly growing subset of artificial intelligence (AI) which involves computer algorithms that automatically build mathematical models based on sample data. Systems can be taught to learn from patterns in existing data in order to make similar conclusions from new data. The use of AI in facial emotion recognition (FER) has become an area of increasing interest for providers who wish to quantify facial emotion before and after interventions such as facial reanimation surgery. While FER deep learning algorithms are less subjective when compared to layperson assessments, the databases used to train them can greatly alter their outputs. There are currently many well-established modalities for assessing facial paralysis, but there is also increasing interest in a more objective and universal measurement system to allow for consistent assessments between practitioners. The purpose of this article is to review the development of AI, examine its existing uses in facial paralysis assessment, and discuss the future directions of its implications.

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