Comparison of Standard Technique, Ultrasonography, and Near-Infrared Light in Difficult Peripheral Vascular Access: A Randomized Controlled Trial.

OBJECTIVES: Successful placement of a peripheral intravenous catheter (PIVC) on the first attempt is an important outcome for difficult vascular access (DVA) patients. This study compared standard technique, ultrasonography (USG), and near-infrared light (NIR) in terms of success in the first attempt in patients with DVA. METHODS: This was a prospective, randomized controlled study. The study was conducted in a tertiary care hospital. Emergency department patients who describe DVA history, have no visible or palpable veins, and were assessed by the nurse to have a difficult PIVC were included to study. The PIVC procedure was performed on patients by standard, USG, or NIR device techniques. For all approaches, the success of the first attempt was the primary aim. Total procedure time, the total number of attempts, and the need for rescue intervention were secondary aims. RESULTS: This study evaluated 270 patients. The first attempt success rates for USG, standard, and NIR methods were 78.9%, 62.2%, and 58.9%, respectively. The rate of first attempt success was higher in patients who underwent USG (USG versus standard, P = .014; USG versus NIR, P = .004; standard versus NIR, P = .648). The total median (IQR) procedure time for USG, standard, and NIR methods was 107 (69-228), 72 (47-134), and 82 (61-163) seconds, respectively. The total procedure time was longer in patients undergoing USG (standard versus USG, P <.001; NIR versus USG, P = .035; standard versus NIR, P = .055). The total median (IQR) number of attempts of USG, standard, and NIR methods were 1 (1-1), 1 (1-2), and 1 (1-2), respectively. A difference was found among the groups regarding the total number of attempts (USG versus NIR, P = .015; USG versus standard P = .108; standard versus NIR, P = .307). No difference was found among groups in terms of the need for rescue methods. CONCLUSION: It was found that USG increases the success of the first attempt compared with the standard method and NIR in patients with DVA.

Secondary traumatic stress in nurses working with patients with suspected/confirmed COVID-19 in Turkey.

PURPOSE: This study aimed to determine the level of secondary traumatic stress in nurses (n = 205) working with patients with suspected or confirmed COVID-19 in Turkey. DESIGN AND METHODS: Data were collected using the personal information form and Secondary Traumatic Stress Scale. FINDINGS: Of the total sample, 62% were female and 52% of nurses were in the 20- to 30-years age range. 67.8% of the nurses experienced high and severe secondary traumatic stress symptoms, the mean score was 49.66 ± 0.86. At the level of secondary traumatic stress subscales, the highest average score was avoidance symptom (20.09 ± 5.06). PRACTICE IMPLICATIONS: More than half of the nurses experienced high and severe secondary traumatic stress where the highest symptom "avoidance." The nurses may need psychosocial support during and after the pandemic.

In the Turkish News: Coronavirus and "Alternative & complementary" medicine methods.

BACKGROUND AND OBJECT: The object of this study is to analyze the complementary and alternative treatments for the prevention of COVID-19/Coronavirus in the Turkish news. MATERIAL AND METHOD: The sample of this descriptive study consisted of 160 news articles published between 11 March and 11 April 2020 on the websites of the three highest-circulating newspapers throughout the nation. A quantitative media context analysis method, consisting of 14 questions and 2 sections was employed to evaluate news on the newspapers. The data was analyzed using SPSS 21.0 statistical package program using numbers and percentages. RESULTS: Forty percent of the news analyzed within the scope of the study were obtained from the newspaper's own news, reporter or columnist, 56.9 % were informative, 6.3 % were advisory and critical against the CAT methods. 95 % of the news included preventive or protective methods against COVID-19. 77.5 % of the complementary and alternative medicine methods mentioned in the news were biologically-based, 20.6 % were mind-body practices. It was determined that 85.0 % of the benefits, harm and side effects of the methods mentioned in the news were announced, but their impact on COVID-19 is not clarified (78.1 %), and there was insufficient information provided about the method and dosage of the method. It was seen that all news contained information on protection against COVID-19 or prevention of COVID19. CONCLUSION: It was concluded that the sources and methods and the number of news items changed from one newspaper to another, the news lacked a scientific basis, and as a result, it might lead to misinterpretations among the public. There were different opinions among the experts in the proposed or criticized complementary and alternative medicine methods. It was observed that there was an increase in the number of news items related to using complementary and alternative medicine methods for the treatment of COVID19, a clear and easily understandable language was used in the news, but the content and sources of the news were insufficient in conveying the correct and scientific information. It was reported by previous literature potential interactions between herbal remedies/dietary supplements and prescribed drugs, complications of medical conditions and some adverse effects cause of CAM usage.

Assessing psychometric properties of Turkish version of the stressor scale for emergency nurses.

OBJECTIVES: This study was carried out as a methodological study to adapt the stressor scale for emergency nurses to Turkish and to test its validity and reliability. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Data were collected between April 2019 and December 2019 from 250 emergency nurses working in the emergency department of two different universities and two state hospitals. The scale was reapplied to 40 emergency nurses from the sample group 3 weeks after the first application. For the validity studies of the scale, language validity, content validity, and construct validity studies were used, and for the reliability studies, internal consistency and test-retest reliability methods were used. RESULTS: It was found that the content validity index of the final form was determined as 0.92 (0.78-1.00) according to expert opinions, the scale explained 69.19% of the total variance in four subdimensions, the Cronbach's alpha value was 0.90, and the test-retest intraclass correlation coefficient value was 0.97. CONCLUSION: It was concluded that the reliability and validity of the scale was high for Turkish society.

Investigation of the effect of web-based diabetes education on metabolic parameters in people with type 2 diabetes: A randomized controlled trial.

OBJECTIVES: The study was done experimentally to test the effect of diabetes on body mass index (BMI), low-density lipoprotein (LDL), high-density lipoprotein (HDL), systolic blood pressure, diastolic blood pressure, fasting blood glucose and postprandial blood glucose. METHODS: In the randomization performed, with 80 percent power, 80 people with Type 2 diabetes were found to be suitable for sampling. Personal data forms were filled in by conducting a face-to-face interview with both the experimental and control groups for randomization purposes. In the study, monitoring of BMI, LDL, HDL, systolic blood pressure, diastolic blood pressure, fasting blood glucose and postprandial blood glucose were used as outcome measures. Parameters were monitored pre-trial and at the 3rd, 6th, 9th, and 12th months. Data from the experimental group were collected online while data belonging to the control group were collected by the researcher from patientsâ¿¿ medical records in the Endocrinology Outpatient Clinic. Repeated measures analysis of variance (rANOVA) was performed to analyze pre-trial, 3rd, 6th, 9th, and 12th-month data. RESULTS: BMI, LDL, HDL, systolic and diastolic blood pressure, fasting and postprandial blood glucose average of the experimental group at 12 months were proven to be ameliorated compared to the average values at the start of the study (month 0). CONCLUSIONS: The metabolic data of the experimental group, who had web-based diabetes education, significantly improved between the start of the study (month 0) and the 12th month. In this era of technology, the importance of web-based monitoring of diabetes patients was once again proven.