What is the Impact of Outreach Services on Medication Adherence for COPD Patients? A Systematic Review.

Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) patients have been known to have poor medication adherence rates. The purpose of this systematic review was to assess if outreach services could impact on medication compliance rates. CINAHL, Medline, Clinical Key and Cochrane library were all searched electronically along with grey literature for all eligible studies conducted on COPD patients in a non-acute hospital setting. Systematic review methodology was followed for data selection, extraction and risk of bias, validity testing and data analysis. Eight studies met all inclusion criteria. 4 randomised control trials and 4 quantitative intention-to-treat studies. 2 of the studies failed validity testing but due to a lack of articles, were included in the synthesis. Given the heterogeneity of data, a narrative synthesis was adopted. All 8 studies demonstrated the ability for an outreach service to improve medication adherence in the community setting. Secondary to this result, this systematic review showed the ability to reduce hospital admissions of exacerbations of COPD due to increased medication adherence. Quality of life was assessed but did not improve but importantly did not decrease. Medication adherence has the potential to be improved from an outreach programme but requires more high-quality research in the area to develop a standardised plan of care to identify the most effective way of educating patients on medication adherence. Medication adherence education should not be a once-off assessment, this systematic review has shown it must be continuous, re-checked and re-educated regularly.

The impact of implementing speech recognition technology on the accuracy and efficiency (time to complete) clinical documentation by nurses: A systematic review.

INTRODUCTION: Speech recognition technology (SRT) recognises an individual's spoken word signals through a microphone and subsequently processes the user's words into digital text by means of a computer. SRT remains well established and continues to grow in popularity among the various health disciplines. Many studies have been done to examine the effects of SRT on nursing documentation, however, no previous systematic review (SR) on the effects of SRT on accuracy and efficiency of nursing documentation was identified. AIMS AND METHODS: To systematically review the impact of speech recognition technology on the accuracy and efficiency of clinical nursing documentation. A SR was conducted that measures the accuracy and efficiency (time to complete documentation) of SRT on nursing documentation. An extensive search of the literature included Web of Science, CINAHL via EBSCO host, Cochrane Library, Embase, MEDLINE and Google Scholar. The PRISMA checklist screened eligible papers. The quality of each paper was critically appraised, data extracted and analysed/synthesised. RESULTS: A total of 10 studies were included. Various devices and systems have been used to examine the accuracy, efficiency and impact of SRT on nursing documentation. A positive impact of SRT with significant advances in accuracy/productivity of nursing documentation at the point of care was found. However, a substantial degree of initial costing, training requirements and studied interface modification to individual healthcare units are needful in incorporating SRT systems. CONCLUSIONS: Speech recognition technology when applied to nursing documentation could open up a promising new interface for data entry from the point of care, though the full potential of the technology has not been explored. RELEVANCE TO CLINICAL PRACTICE: The compatibility/effectiveness of SRT with existing computer systems remains understudied. SRT training, prompt on-site technical support, maintenance and upgrades cannot be underestimated towards achieving high-level accuracy and efficiency (time to complete documentation) with SRT.

Advancing Nursing Practice: Management of Neuropathic Pain With Capsaicin 8% Without Physician Supervision.

PURPOSE/AIMS: The purpose of this study was to examine the management of patient's neuropathic pain with capsaicin 8% in a nurse-led clinic when administered by 1 registered advanced nurse practitioner without physician supervision. DESIGN: A longitudinal, single-group, descriptive research design was used to assess pain scores and quality of life 3 times over 3 months after treatment. METHODS: Patients with a diagnosis of neuropathic pain were assessed and treated with capsaicin 8% by 1 advanced nurse practitioner with prescriptive authority in a nurse-led clinic. Pain scores were collected at baseline, and self-assessed pain, activity level, and quality of life were assessed at 1 week, 4 weeks, and 3 months after treatment. Twenty-four patients were recruited, and data were analyzed using Friedman's test. In post hoc analysis, Wilcoxon signed-rank test was used with Bonferroni correction. RESULTS: Pain scores differed from pretreatment to posttreatment at each of the 3 time points, at rest (χ3 = 20.54, P = .001) and on movement (χ3 = 23.644, P = .001), and remained significant after Bonferroni correction. Overall, 62.5% (n = 15) of patients achieved at least a 30% reduction in self-reported pain at rest from pretreatment to 3 months, and 54% (n = 13) achieved the same reduction in pain on movement. Most improvements in patient's quality of life occurred between 1 and 4 weeks. Patient satisfaction was high, with 83% stating that they would be happy to have the treatment repeated. CONCLUSION: Single-dose capsaicin 8% decreased neuropathic pain after being administered in an outpatient setting by an experienced registered advanced nurse practitioner. Further multicenter research led by advanced nurse practitioners is needed to support high-quality, safe treatment of neuropathic pain with high-concentration capsaicin in nurse-led chronic pain clinics.

Health value & perceived control over health: behavioural constructs to support Type 2 diabetes self-management in clinical practice.

AIMS AND OBJECTIVES: To explore health value and perceived control over health in relation to self-management behaviours in adults with Type 2 diabetes mellitus. BACKGROUND: Helping people to modify health related behaviour in diabetes is complex due to a multitude of factors. Exploring the meaning of the constructs of Modified Social Learning Theory could be beneficial to identifying people at risk of poor diabetes self-management. DESIGN: An exploratory qualitative study. METHODS: Thirteen adults with insulin-treated Type 2 diabetes mellitus were purposively sampled. Data were collected through semi-structured interviews. An in-depth thematic analysis was carried out. RESULTS: Health became a value priority on diagnosis of Type 2 diabetes mellitus. Participants described holding both terminal (relating to desired end states) and instrumental (a means to an end) health values pre-diagnosis but these became instrumental post-diagnosis to meet new lifestyle needs and maintain their quality of life. Descriptions of 'conflicts' in locus of control beliefs when managing Type 2 diabetes mellitus demonstrated influences on levels of self-efficacy and health value. Common themes that impacted on diabetes self-management included co-morbidities, medication management, blood glucose monitoring and reasoning for Type 2 diabetes mellitus. CONCLUSIONS: Locus of control beliefs, levels of self-efficacy and health value were influenced by complications associated with Type 2 diabetes mellitus. The findings on Modified Social Learning Theory and instrumental health value as a moderator to health behaviour resulted in the development of a proposed framework with potential practical utility. RELEVANCE TO CLINICAL PRACTICE: This research demonstrates the relevance of exploring the constructs of Modified Social Learning Theory (MSLT) in relation to diabetes self-management behaviours in Type 2 diabetes mellitus. The proposed Type 2 diabetes mellitus Self-management Behaviour Support framework incorporates Modified Social Learning Theory and instrumental health value as the theoretical basis for development and could provide clinical nurses and doctors with a tool that will allow for in-depth assessment and planning of Type 2 diabetes mellitus patients' self-management behaviours.