ABSTRACT
A blind study was designed to determine if abdominal auscultation is an effective method for detecting the presence of intestinal sand. Fifteen horses divided into two groups were used in the study. There were seven horses in Group 1 and eight horses in Group 2. All horses were auscultated and determined to be free of sand sounds before initiation of Trial 1. Group 1 horses were given 4.2 g/kg body weight of sand via nasogastric tube using carboxymethylcellulose (CMC) as a suspending agent at 9.0 ml/kg body weight. Group 2 horses were given CMC only. Horses remained in the same group through all trials. A total of five trails, each lasting 24 hours, was performed. Dosing with sand and CMC or CMC alone was repeated at the beginning of each trial. Abdominal auscultation was performed on each of the 15 horses beginning on Trial 2 by an investigator with no knowledge of the grouping of the horses. The ventral abdomen was auscultated for 5 minutes at 7 hours and 17 hours after trial initiation. When a horse was considered positive for intestinal sand by auscultation, the horse was eliminated from future trials. On Trial 2, no horses were positive; on Trial 3, one horse; on Trial 4, two horses, and on Trial 5, four horses. Sounds considered characteristic for sand in the intestinal tract were eventually identified in all Group 1 horses. No horses in Group 2 were ever identified as having sounds characteristic for intestinal sand at any point during this investigation.
Subject(s)
Colic/veterinary , Gastrointestinal Diseases/veterinary , Horse Diseases/diagnosis , Silicon Dioxide , Animals , Auscultation/veterinary , Colic/diagnosis , Female , Gastrointestinal Diseases/diagnosis , Horses , Male , Random AllocationABSTRACT
This article describes family nursing with the control-congruence model (CC-model) developed at Wayne State University. The model is appropriate for clinical nurse specialists of all nursing disciplines who assist families to improve functioning together in order to cope with stress. Nursing care focuses on four dimensions of family functioning: system maintenance; system change; togetherness; and individuation. Two assessment tools are used: the assessment of strategies in families--functioning, which measures the emphasis on each of the four dimensions and the assessment of strategies in families--satisfaction, which assesses the satisfaction with family functioning. The paper cites four cases, one relative to each dimension, with examples of nursing care aimed at strengthening effective family strategies and introducing new behaviors. The examples include the interpretation of assessment of strategies in families scores before and after treatment.
Subject(s)
Adaptation, Psychological , Family/psychology , Stress, Psychological/nursing , Humans , Internal-External Control , Models, Psychological , Nursing AssessmentABSTRACT
The Alaska mental health program is endowed with a 1-million-acre trust fund. A coalition of groups that make up the mental health constituency of the state united in a lawsuit to establish the trust. The history of this legacy, the struggle to realize its benefits, its current status, and some of its psychopolitical significance are discussed.
