Educational Needs of European Intensive Care Nurses with Respect to Multicultural Care: A Mix-Method Study.

The aim of the study is the analysis of educational needs of European intensive care nurses (ICNs) with regard to multicultural care. A mixed-method multinational study was performed among 591 ICNs coming from 15 European countries. An online survey was utilised with three research tools: participants' sociodemographic details, Healthcare Provider Cultural Competence Instrument, and a tool to assess the educational needs of ICU nurses with respect to multicultural care. The highest mean values in self-assessment of preparation of ICU nurses to provide multicultural nursing care and their educational needs in this regard were detected in the case of nurses coming from Southern Europe (M = 4.09; SD = 0.43). With higher age, nurses recorded higher educational needs in the scope of multicultural care (r = 0.138; p = 0.001). In addition, speaking other languages significantly correlated with higher educational needs related to care of patients coming from different cultures (Z = -4.346; p < 0.001) as well as previous education on multicultural nursing care (Z = -2.530; p = 0.011). Experiences of difficult situations when caring for culturally diverse patients in ICU were classified into categories: 'treatment procedures and general nursing care', 'family visiting', 'gender issues', 'communication challenges', and 'consequences of difficult experiences'. The educational needs of intensive care nurses in caring for culturally diverse patients are closely related to experiencing difficult situations when working with such patients and their families.

European intensive care nurses' cultural competency: An international cross-sectional survey.

OBJECTIVES: To determine the level of cultural competence of European critical care nurses. DESIGN: A multi-country survey performed in 2017 as a part of the European project Multicultural Care in European Intensive Care Units. METHOD: Online survey of critical care nurses in 15 European countries (n = 591) using the Healthcare Provider Cultural Competence Instrument consisting of 49 items divided into five subscales: awareness and sensitivity, behaviour, patient-centred orientation, practice orientation and self-assessment. Descriptive and correlational analyses were performed. RESULTS: Critical care nurses scored highest for 'awareness and sensitivity' (M = 5.09, SD = 0.76), and lowest for 'patient-centred communication' (M = 3.26, SD = 0.94). Nurses from northern and southern Europe scored higher across all subsets of the cultural competence instrument (all subsets, p < 0.001) than nurses from central Europe. Speaking other languages significantly correlated with higher scores in all subscales (all > 0.05) except 'practice orientation'. Previous education on multicultural nursing significantly correlated with higher scores in all subscales (all > 0.01) except patient-centred communication; and visits to other countries was negatively correlated with all subscales (all, p > 0.001) except patient-centred communication. CONCLUSION: Being exposed to cultural diversity in different ways, like living in a multicultural country, speaking a second language and visiting other countries may influence development of cultural competence. Therefore, programmes which facilitate multicultural clinical practice are strongly recommended in nursing education.

Relative Age Effect in Mind Games: The Evidence from Elite Chess.

Numerous studies have attempted to investigate the factors affecting superior intellectual performance, and it has been proposed that a possible biological marker for superior intellectual performance is the month of birth. In this study, birth details of chess players were obtained from the official international chess federation website. The rating lists of top junior female chess players ("Girls" category), top junior male chess players ("Boys"), top female chess players ("Female"), and top male chess players ("Male") were collected between July 2000 and August 2015. The birth months of each player that appeared in the top rating list were categorized into quarters. Additionally, relative age of chess players was calculated. Results supported the existence of the relative age effect in chess in all categories although a "reverse" RAE was found in the "Male" category.

On the gender effects of handedness in professional tennis.

The aim of this study was to explore the effects of the gender variable in relation to other player and match characteristics on the advantage possessed by left-handed professional tennis players over their right-handed rivals. The data include 16 732 male tennis players and 16 432 female tennis players who played 438 937 and 415 346 matches, respectively, in the period from 1968 to the end of 2011. The results revealed that the advantage of left-handed professional tennis players is higher in males compared to females. The inverse impact of player and match quality on the left- handers' advantage was clearly confirmed. On the contrary, it seems that the type of court surface does not directly imply this advantage. To obtain an overview on the individual level, directed and weighted networks of tennis matches in both gender categories were constructed. Applying network analytic methods and the PageRank algorithm, the best left and right-handed players in the Open Era of tennis were identified. The top three ranked left-handed players in the male and female categories were found to be far more consistent in their ranks achieved against left and right-handed opponents compared to their right-handed counterparts. Key PointsThe advantage of left-handed professional tennis players over their right-handed opponents is higher in males compared to females.The quality of player and match is inversely proportional to the advantage of left-handers against their right-handed counterparts.On the contrary, it seems that the type of court surface does not directly imply this advantage.When the tennis talent appears in left-handers it is likely to be an outstanding one, particularly in the female category.

Retired matches among male professional tennis players.

The aim of this study was to explore the effect of characteristics of various games and players on the proportion of retired tennis matches in the Open Era of tennis. The data included over 420,000 matches played among 17,553 tennis players in the period from 1968 to the end of 2010. The influence of the surface type was clearly confirmed, with the proportion of retired matches being higher on hard and clay courts compared to grass and carpet surfaces. Similarly, more retired matches were observed in outdoor venues than in indoor ones. The impact of other variables, tournament types, rounds at which the game was played and both players' ranks, is more ambiguous. Our interpretation of the obtained results is presented in the paper. Network analytic methods were applied to extract players with the most retired matches in their careers. Eventually, we defined a group of top tennis players and gave a more precise insight into retired matches in that group. Correspondence analysis was used to visually display the two-mode network of top players and the proportion of retired matches by surface type. Key pointsThe proportion of retired matches among professional tennis players has been increasing recently.Clay and hard courts are the most risky surfaces in relation to retired matches, particularly if the match is played at an outdoor venue.The difference in rankings of both players is proportional to the number/proportion of retired matches in professional tennis.Network analytic techniques could serve as an effective method to ascertain (a) group(s) of tennis players with the highest number of retired matches played among them.