[The main health problems according to patients' opinion]. / Los principales problemas de salud según la opinión de los usuarios.

OBJECTIVE: To know the health problems or diseases that patients of 2 basic health areas (BHA) assess as the most important for Spanish population and for themselves; to know if any relation exists between these problems and their existence in the family or social patients' environment. DESIGN: An observational cross-sectional and descriptive study. SETTING: Four clinics of the BHA Sant Josep (L'Hospitalet de Llobregat) and 2 clinics of the BHA Sant Martí (Barcelonés).Patients. The sample consists of 360 patients aged above 26 years who attended clinics for some health problem. Participants were chosen by a randomised systematic sampling, from May to October 2000. MEASUREMENTS AND MAIN RESULTS: Data were gathered from a questionnaire of ten items. According with the participants, the main problems for Spanish population and for themselves were: cancer, cardiovascular diseases and AIDS. Cancer (58,61%; 95% CI, 53,53-63,69) and AIDS (15,27%; 95% CI, 11,56-18,98) are the problems pointed out as research priorities. The aparato locomotor (22,10%; 95% CI, 17,82-26,38), hypertension (14,74%; 95% CI, 11,08-18,40) and diabetes (13,14%, 95% CI, 9,66-16,62) are the main problems suffered by the surveyed. Cancer is the disease that more participants' relatives suffered. CONCLUSIONS: Cancer and cardiovascular diseases are the pathologies that cause more concern among the surveyed and these are the diseases which mostly affect their relatives and relationships. Nevertheless their worry for the AIDS don't show their immediate reality. Frequently, patients don't recognize the health problem that motivated their visit as a real disease.

[The scientific evidence. A strategy for nursing practice]. / La evidencia cientifica. Estrategia para la práctica enfermera.

As in any professional field, nursing practice based on evidence deals with the application of decisions based on the best available scientific testing data. Carrying out one's professional obligations in accordance with the best evidence is a demand society requires which is valid for all human behavior and is an essential ethical component in any profession. In this article, the elements of scientific evidence are presented; the steps to follow in the application of this evidence are described; and lastly, there is an analysis of the reasons which justify the implementation of these steps in nursing practice.