Home care providers' experience of translating evidence-based fall prevention programs into practice.

The purpose of the study was to obtain exploratory, descriptive information that would provide insights into the barriers to and facilitators of the implementation of fall prevention programs in home care settings. The study employed a qualitative approach through a series of focus groups with home care providers who work with patients with diabetes (N = 29). The study identified teamwork, resistance to change, and patient's readiness as major factors in fall prevention practice at home care. Understanding health-care providers' experiences with fall prevention in home care settings has the potential to facilitate better translation of evidence to practice for community-dwelling older adults.

Confirming the factor structure of the alcohol and alcohol problems questionnaire (AAPPQ) in a sample of baccalaureate nursing students.

The Alcohol and Alcohol Problems Perception Questionnaire (AAPPQ) is a multi-dimensional measure of clinicians' attitudes toward working with patients with alcohol problems. In the past 35 years, five- and six-subscale versions and a short version of the AAPPQ have been published. While the reliability of the AAPPQ subscales has remained acceptable, the factor structure has not been verified using confirmatory techniques. In the current study, we split a sample of 299 baccalaureate nursing students to use exploratory (EFA) and confirmatory factor analyses (CFA). When compared to the original six-factor solution and an imposed six-factor structure in CFA, the EFA seven-factor solution with three original items (19, 20, and 25) removed had the best model fit.

Effects of Screening, Brief Intervention, and Referral to Treatment (SBIRT) education and training on nursing students' attitudes toward working with patients who use alcohol and drugs.

BACKGROUND: Screening, Brief Intervention, and Referral to Treatment (SBIRT) can reduce alcohol use and negative health outcomes in patients with risky substance use. However, negative attitudes that some health care professionals have toward patients who use substances are a barrier to implementing SBIRT. METHODS: The University of Pittsburgh School of Nursing, in partnership with the Institute for Research, Education, and Training in Addictions (IRETA), developed a curriculum to train baccalaureate student nurses to deliver SBIRT. RESULTS: Following SBIRT education and training, students' perceived attitudes toward patients who use alcohol became more positive. Less robust changes were found for attitudes related to patients who use drugs. CONCLUSIONS: Nurses composing the largest group of healthcare workers are in key positions to screen, intervene, and provide education about substance use.

Collaborative learning among undergraduate students in community health nursing.

Teamwork can benefit students, enhancing their ability to think critically, solve problems creatively, and collaborate effectively. We piloted a collaborative learning project with undergraduate community health nursing students (N = 83) that entailed working in teams to explore epidemiologic data, synthesize the literature, and develop an evidence-based plan for nursing intervention and evaluation pertaining to a public health issue. Project evaluation consisted of pre- and post-project surveys by students, peer evaluation, and formative and summative evaluation by faculty. Having students work in teams, while challenging both for faculty and students, may be a viable strategy for preparing the next generation of nurses for inter- and intraprofessional collaboration. Our experience suggests that instituting a collaborative learning experience as part of an undergraduate course in community health nursing can be an effective way to expose students to constructive approaches to teamwork and prepare them for evidence-based nursing practice in the future.