Posttreatment Experiences of Breast Cancer Survivors in Turkey: A Qualitative Study.

OBJECTIVES: This study aimed to explore the posttreatment experiences of breast cancer survivors in Turkey. DATA SOURCES: The study was conducted in Turkey between February 2020 and April 2020 with 18 breast cancer survivors who completed the treatment process. The data were collected using the individual in-depth interview method with the semi-structured interview form. The interviews were transcribed verbatim, and the data were analyzed using the seven-step Colaizzi method. The Consolidated Criteria for Reporting Qualitative Research (COREQ) checklist was used to report the study. CONCLUSION: Four main themes emerged in the study which are symptom management, emotional responses, change in life, and challenges in health care. The cancer survivors in Turkey reported that moral values had more meaning for them after treatment, they started to feel extremely worried about their children, they tried to manage their own processes with the information they themselves gained and with some support systems, and they experienced radical changes in their family and social relations. In addition, cancer survivors criticized the inadequacy of health care services, including relapse follow-up after the treatment process. IMPLICATIONS FOR NURSING PRACTICE: This study provides an overview of the lived experiences of posttreatment breast cancer survivors in Turkey. The findings of this study can be used to better understand breast cancer survivors, identify their needs based on their experience, and develop interventions to improve patient outcomes.

Sleep of Intensive Care Patients: A Qualitative Study Based on Experiences of Nurses.

BACKGROUND: Intensive care patients experience a high rate of poor sleep quality. As the sleep quality is improved with nursing practices, patients' recovery and the length of stay in the intensive care unit (ICU) may be positively influenced, and patients may benefit from treatment and care at the highest level. Therefore, it is important to explore the experiences and evaluation of nurses working in ICUs. OBJECTIVES: This study was carried out to explore the experiences and evaluations of ICU nurses about patients' sleep. METHODS: The study is a qualitative study conducted in a descriptive phenomenological design. The data were collected using the individual in-depth interview method with the semistructured interview form. Thematic analysis was performed to analyze the data. The Consolidated Criteria for Reporting Qualitative Research (COREQ) checklist was used. RESULTS: The analysis revealed 4 main themes, which are (1) importance of sleep, (2) evaluation of sleep, (3) reasons for poor sleep, and (4) sleep promotion interventions. CONCLUSIONS: This study revealed that nurses are aware of the importance of sleep; however, they do not evaluate sleep and try to improve sleep quality only based on their own knowledge and experience rather than on evidence-based approaches. However, their interventions are not sufficient and they are restricted because of physical conditions and intensive care procedures.

The Effect of Using Eye Masks and Earplugs on Intensive Care Patients Quality of Sleep and Vital Signs.

ABSTRACT: BACKGROUND: Intensive care unit (ICU) patients with severe health problems experience a high rate of sleep deprivation that harms their psychological and physiological health. Environmental factors are considered to be the greatest cause of sleep deprivation in the ICU, and noise and light are leading among these factors. This study aimed to investigate the effect of eye masks and earplugs on the sleep quality and vital signs of conscious ICU patients. METHODS: This study used a quasi-experimental, in similar groups, pretest-posttest design with a control group. The Richards-Campbell Sleep Questionnaire (RCSQ) was used to collect data, and vital signs were recorded every 2 hours. On day 1, standard care was provided to the experimental group (n = 32), and they were provided with eye masks and earplugs on day 2. The control group (n = 32) was provided with standard care on both days. Chi-square, t, and McNemar and McNemar-Bowker tests were used to analyze the data. Multiple regression analysis was used for predictive analysis. RESULTS: The RCSQ mean (SD) pretest and posttest scores were 50.21 (16.02) and 68.50 (17.57), respectively, for the experimental group and 55.34 (16.62) and 49.03 (15.53), respectively, for the control group. In the experimental group, the posttest RCSQ score was significantly higher than the pretest RCSQ score (P < .01). No differences in vital signs were observed in the control group. All the vital signs were found to be similar in the experimental group, except for the mean daily pulse rate. CONCLUSION: The use of earplugs and eye masks may help reduce sleep deprivation. Eye masks and earplugs can be used by nurses to improve the sleep quality of patients in ICUs.