ABSTRACT
Disease or injury affects not only specific structures and physiological or psychological mechanisms but also integrated human functioning. When integrated functioning is seriously affected, the ability of an individual disturbs permanently or transiently for self-care. Vegetative state is one of severe and periodic states of unconsciousness and complete unawareness of self and surrounding environment. The patient loses his self-care ability and requires a complete compensative care system. The aim of this case report was to describe a successful long-term dependent care of a vegetative patient by family members according to Orem's theory. Qualitative and quantitative data were gathered by interviewing with care givers, observing nursing care and examining the patient. The case was an Iranian 34-year-old injured man in persistent vegetative state for 17 years after an explosion leading to head injury at war. His immediate care giver was his 58-year-old father with primary education. In physical examination, his integumentary, respiratory, and urinaiy systems were normal. Laboratory tests including blood cell counts, urinalysis, urine culture and electrolytes were also normal. Immobility complications [bedsore, contractures..], malnutrition and infections were not found. This study confirms the healing nature of family care that ensures living by love and hope. According to Orem [2001], love is a positive human emotion that moves people beyond their situations. Benevolence as an active part of a perfect love enables nurses [care givers] to unite with their patients and this helps to realize specific life situations and to struggle to solve them. In critical conditions, the family power dominated by human love should be considered more than before by formal providers of care to empower family role. In addition, with respect to the role of human emotions in providing complete and effective care, developing humanistic attitudes and emotions should be of great concern in nursing education because caring needs not only professional knowledge but also human love, emotions and attitude
ABSTRACT
Nowadays prematurity is the major cause of death among infants during the first year of life and is responsible for most of admissions to nursing intensive care unit [NICU]. Having multiple neurodevelopmental problems, preterm infants are low birth weight because of staying in uterus for a shorter time. So, the survival of preterm infants would be depended on their birth weight. The stressful environment of NICU exposes preterm infants to inappropriate stimuli such as continuous light in day-night period, which in addition to the susceptibility of these infants, imposes the researcher to use alternative methods to promote their growth and health. The aim of study was to determine the effect of cycled light on weight gain in preterm infants. This study was a quasi-experimental study carried out on 66 hospitalized preterm infants in NICU in Al-Zahra Hospital in Isfahan. Subjects were selected by convenience sampling method. Data were gathered by interviews and observations. Weight of infants was measured by special infant scale. DX2 luxmeter was used in order to measure light intensity. In intervention group, light intensity of NICU was reduced from 180-200 lux to 5-10 lux by turning the lights off from 7.5 PM to 7.5 AM. At the beginning and at the end of study, infants' weights were measured. The length of intervention was matched between the two groups. Descriptive and analytic statistical methods were used for data analysis. The results showed a significant difference between weight gains [weight changes] of preterm infants in the two groups [P = 0.041] but there was no significant difference between weights of preterm infants before and after study in the cycled group [P = 0.058] and in the control group [P = 0.183]. According to the results, applying cycled light in NICU could improve growth and weight gain in preterm infants. The possibility of applying cycled light in clinical centers would be achieved if facilities were provided. Then, developmental interventions such as arranging environmental light are suggested to promote infants' health