Treino cognitivo para idosos baseado em estratégias de categorização e cálculos semelhantes a tarefas do cotidiano / Cognitive training for elderly adults based on categorization strategies and calculations similar to everyday tasks

Intervenções cognitivas podem melhorar o desempenho entre idosos. Objetivou-se testar a eficácia de um programa de treino cognitivo baseado em tarefas ecológicas, que mimetizam tarefas de compra, envolvendo a memorização de itens de supermercado e cálculos matemáticos simples. Realizou-se estudo de intervenção com grupo controle, com avaliação pré e pós-treino; 21 idosos participaram de oito sessões de treino e 12 idosos somente completaram as avaliações pré e pós-teste. Como medida de eficácia, foram usadas as provas da bateria CERAD, a Escala de Depressão Geriátrica, e quatro questões extraídas da Escala de Satisfação com a Vida. Durante o treino, os participantes realizaram tarefas semelhantes às atividades diárias, como a memorização de listas de supermercado, categorização dos itens de mercado e manuseio de dinheiro em tarefas de troco. O grupo treino apresentou melhora significativa particularmente no teste de fluência verbal categoria animais e no resgate imediato da lista de palavras (somatório das 3 tentativas) da bateria CERAD. O grupo controle não apresentou alterações significativas entre o pré e o pós-teste, para as variáveis avaliadas. Os resultados sugerem que o treino cognitivo pode gerar melhora no desempenho em tarefas de memorização e cálculos entre idosos

ED services: the impact of caring behaviors on patient loyalty.

INTRODUCTION: This article describes an observational study of caring behaviors in the emergency departments of 4 Ascension Health hospitals and the impact of these behaviors on patient loyalty to the associated hospital. These hospitals were diverse in size and geography, representing 3 large urban community hospitals in metropolitan areas and 1 in a midsized city. METHODS: Research assistants from Purdue University (West Lafayette, IN) conducted observations at the first study site and validated survey instruments. The Purdue research assistants trained contracted observers at the subsequent study sites. The research assistants conducted observational studies of caregivers in the emergency departments at 4 study sites using convenience sampling of patients. Caring behaviors were rated from 0 (did not occur) to 5 (high intensity). The observation included additional information, for example, caregiver roles, timing, and type of visit. Observed and unobserved patients completed exit surveys that recorded patient responses to the likelihood-to-recommend (loyalty) questions, patient perceptions of care, and demographic information. RESULTS: Common themes across all study sites emerged, including (1) the area that patients considered most important to an ED experience (prompt attention to their needs upon arrival to the emergency department); (2) the area that patients rated as least positive in their actual ED experience (prompt attention to their needs upon arrival to the emergency department); (3) caring behaviors that significantly affected patient loyalty (eg, making sure that the patient is aware of care-related details, working with a caring touch, and making the treatment procedure clearly understood by the patient); and (4) the impact of wait time to see a caregiver on patient loyalty. A number of correlations between caring behaviors and patient loyalty were statistically significant (P < .05) at all sites. DISCUSSION: The study results raised considerations for ED caregivers, particularly with regard to those caring behaviors that are most closely linked to patient loyalty but that occurred least frequently. The study showed through factor analysis that some caring behaviors tended to occur together, suggesting an underlying, unifying dimension to that factor.