Implementing the nurse practitioner role in Oman: Implications for policymaking.

BACKGROUND: In Oman, limited access to adequately prepared healthcare providers in primary healthcare threatens the provision of quality care to patients and families and access to healthcare services. Nurse practitioners (NP) are in an excellent position to address safety issues and ensure quality healthcare with their advanced nursing skills, knowledge, and acumen for acceptable cultural and religious practices. AIMS: To explain Oman's national strategic plans, processes, challenges, opportunities, and both regional and global implications for the facilitation of NP role implementation and policies. SOURCES OF EVIDENCE: The Nursing and Midwifery Human Resources framework guided the NP implementation project. Guided by the framework, the World Health Organization and the Omani Ministry of Health conducted multiple situational analyses (2004-2016). Later, the NP role was planned and implemented in Oman. During and after implementation, monitoring and evaluation of the NP role implementation were continuously conducted using multiple focus groups, individual interviews, and field visits. DISCUSSION: The NP role implementation revealed multiple challenges and opportunities that either hinder or support NP role implementation. Additionally, the NP implementation project revealed various lessons learned. IMPLICATIONS FOR NURSING AND HEALTH POLICY: National and global nursing leaders and health policymakers should collaborate to discuss NP issues, especially NP role sustainability, legal approval and recognition, prescriptive authority, title protection, practice acts, and professional regulation. CONCLUSION: This paper informs nursing leaders and policymakers in the Middle East and other countries in the global community about Oman's experience regarding NP role implementation.

Isolation, characterization and prediction of biologically active glycoside compounds quercetin-3-rutinoside from the fruits of Ficus sycomorus.

Ficus sycomorus (F. sycomorus) is a medicinal plant which has been used traditionally for its medicinal benefits as metabolic, cardiovascular, respiratory, antispasmodic and anti-inflammatory remedy. Therefore the present work was designed to isolate and characterize antibacterial compounds from the fruits of F. sycomorus and their antibacterial activity was assayed. The crude extract was prepared by using different polarity solvents. The pure bioactive compounds were isolated and characterized from the ethyl acetate extract by using different chromatographic techniques. The antibacterial activity of the isolated pure compounds and crude extracts was assessed by using disc diffusion method. The crude extract and flavonoids quercetin-3-rutinoside 1 showed significant antibacterial activities against two Gram positive bacteria: Staphylococcus aureus (S. aureus) and Streptococcus pneunoniae (S. pneunoniae) and two Gram negative bacteria: Escherichia coli (E. coli) and Haemophilus influenza (H. influenza) in the disc diffusion assay. Inhibition zones were in the range of 0-13 mm. The maximum inhibition was shown by compound 1 at concentration 200 µg/ml against S. aureus (IZ = 13 mm) in comparison with the standard levofloxacin. Phytochemical investigation on the ethyl acetate crude extract of fruits resulted in the isolation of one glycoside compound named quercetin-3-rutinoside 1 with several other minor compounds. The structure was deduced on the basis of 1H NMR, 13C-NMR, DEPT, COSY, HMBC, and MS. The results showed that the isolated pure compound 1 has significant antibacterial activity, which can be used as natural antibiotics for the treatment of different infection diseases.

Promoting nursing research globally: the writing to improve nursing science (WINS) program.

AIM: To test the feasibility of a remote writing programme, Writing to Improve Nursing Science (WINS), for nursing scholars in low- and middle-income countries and assess its impact on scholarly writing and dissemination. BACKGROUND: The ability to write and publish scholarly manuscripts is critical for successful nursing research careers. Yet, there is a lack of resources to appropriately mentor nurse scholars in this area. This is especially true for low- and middle-income countries with fewer resources and a dearth of doctorally prepared nursing faculty. INTRODUCTION: We adapted an existing university-based writing class to mentor 10 nurse scientists through the writing and publication process utilizing three components: online didactic training, remote one-to-one mentorship and an in-person peer-reviewed writing workshop. METHODS: Ten nurse faculty from 10 countries selected via competitive application developed manuscripts with remote mentorship and online training for 6 months. Then, an in-person workshop was held to conduct peer reviews of manuscripts. Mentorship continued for an additional year until the manuscript was either published or the participant no longer wished to pursue publication. RESULTS: All participants prepared a manuscript and were trained in manuscript writing, editing, and the peer review and submission process. To date, four manuscripts have been published. DISCUSSION: The Writing to Improve Nursing Science Program is a feasible model to increase publications among nursing faculty or students globally and allow the sharing of resources across countries. CONCLUSION AND IMPLICATIONS FOR NURSING POLICY: Innovative solutions for sharing of intellectual resources, such as this program may contribute to improving the evidence base globally. Nursing research policies should include a mentorship component to increase publications to improve nursing practice and related patient outcomes.

Content Validation of the Arabic Translation of the Practice Environment Scale of the Nursing Work Index-Revised.

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE: There is no reliable and valid version of the Practice Environment Scale of the Nursing Work Index-Revised (PES-NWI-R) in Arabic. The purpose of this study was to describe the systematic instrument translation and validation of the PES-NWI-R. METHODS: Using the Content Validity Indexing-based approach, 32 expert nurses from four countries in the Eastern Mediterranean Region (Jordan, Oman, Saudi Arabia, and United Arab Emirates) participated in the validation of this translation. RESULTS: The content validity index score of the overall scale was excellent (0.87 for the relevancy, and 0.95 for the quality of Arabic translation). CONCLUSION: Our study supported the content validity of the Arabic version of the instrument which provided the first valid Arabic translation of the instrument.

Research Priorities of Clinical Nurses and Midwives in the Eastern Mediterranean Region: a Mixed Methods Study.

Effective use of resources in healthcare research is essential in meeting the United Nation's Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 3 to achieve universal health coverage, increase retention of healthcare workers, and strengthen the capacity of all countries to reduce risk and manage global health risks; the World Health Organization (WHO) also identifies nursing research as an important piece of the framework for improving global healthcare. Determining research priorities to reduce redundancy and ensure a solid evidence base for practice is especially critical in resource-limited countries or those facing healthcare crises such as those in the Middle East. To identify regional research priorities for nursing, focus group discussions composed of hospital-based nurses were conducted in Egypt, Oman, and Saudi Arabia. Forty-eight percent of research priorities were nearly the same as those identified as critical by regional nursing leadership in a previous study, demonstrating consistency between clinician- and administrator-identified research priorities, and suggesting healthcare administrators are well attuned to the research needs of clinicians. Both groups identified critical gaps in population and community health research. Across countries, research priorities identified were related to nursing workforce, health systems research, and quality of care, representing critical issues needing investigation to build a solid evidence base for nursing practice.

What do Omani Women know about Breast Cancer Symptoms?

OBJECTIVES: Breast cancer is one of the most common cancers and a leading cause of cancer-related mortality in women worldwide. Studies to detect the awareness of breast cancer among Arab women are few and point to a lack of breast cancer knowledge among females. Early detection of breast cancer plays a leading role in reducing mortality rates and improving prognosis. This study aims to assess the knowledge and awareness of breast cancer symptoms among Omani women. METHODS: A descriptive, cross-sectional survey design was carried out in Muscat, Oman. The study was conducted at three health centers and three shopping malls using convenience sampling. A total of 369 women consented to be part of the study and completed a questionnaire. Responses to the questionnaire were summed to give an overall knowledge score. Descriptive statistics were used to summarize the data, which was also analyzed statistically. RESULTS: Among the total number of women 68 (19%) were calculated to have poor knowledge, 219 (59%) had average knowledge, 77 (21%) had good knowledge, and five (1%) had excellent knowledge on breast cancer. Among the variables, education status (p=0.002, p<0.050), and family history of breast cancer (p =0.000, p<0.010) was significantly related to a higher knowledge level. CONCLUSION: The study revealed that there was lack of awareness and knowledge on breast cancer symptoms among Omani women. Breast cancer awareness and early detection through regular breast screening is important to reduce the mortality and morbidity of the disease.

Functional results-oriented healthcare leadership: a novel leadership model.

This article modifies the traditional functional leadership model to accommodate contemporary needs in healthcare leadership based on two findings. First, the article argues that it is important that the ideal healthcare leadership emphasizes the outcomes of the patient care more than processes and structures used to deliver such care; and secondly, that the leadership must strive to attain effectiveness of their care provision and not merely targeting the attractive option of efficient operations. Based on these premises, the paper reviews the traditional Functional Leadership Model and the three elements that define the type of leadership an organization has namely, the tasks, the individuals, and the team. The article argues that concentrating on any one of these elements is not ideal and proposes adding a new element to the model to construct a novel Functional Result-Oriented healthcare leadership model. The recommended Functional-Results Oriented leadership model embosses the results element on top of the other three elements so that every effort on healthcare leadership is directed towards attaining excellent patient outcomes.