Predictors of sleep quality components in patients undergoing transarterial chemoembolisation: a cross-sectional study.

PURPOSE: Patients undergoing transarterial chemoembolisation experience postembolisation symptoms and interferences affecting sleep quality, which require intervention. The study aimed to identify the predictors of sleep quality components in patients undergoing transarterial chemoembolisation. METHODS: This study included two groups of participants: 50 patients undergoing transarterial chemoembolisation and 45 nurses caring for them. Data were collected from September to November 2022 using a structured questionnaire, and analysed using descriptive statistics, the t-test, analysis of variance, Spearman's rank correlation, and multiple regression analysis using the SPSS 27.0 program (IBM Corp., Armonk, NY, USA). RESULTS: The mean sleep quality score was 40.28±14.10. Heat sensation (t=-2.08, p=.043) and fatigue (t=-4.47, p<.001) predicted sleep fragmentation in 38.6% of the patients. Abdominal pain (t=-2.54, p=.014), vomiting (t=-2.21, p=.032), and the expected fatigue by the nurses (t=2.68, p=.014) predicted sleep length in 41.7% of patients. Abdominal pain (t=-2.05, p=.046) explained 42.9% of sleep depth. CONCLUSION: Based on the predictors of sleep quality components obtained in this study, strategies to improve sleep quality tailored to patients undergoing transarterial chemoembolisation should be developed. This study highlighted the need to bridge the gap between patients' and nurses' expected fatigue and its contribution to sleep fragmentation and sleep length. It also highlighted the importance of noncontact temperature measurement, controlling vomiting, and pain relief for improving sleep length in patients undergoing transarterial chemoembolisation.

Psychometric validation of the Korean Pressure Ulcer Knowledge Assessment Tool.

OBJECTIVE: The purpose of this study was to evaluate the psychometric properties, including content validity, validity of multiple choice items, and the reliability of the Korean version of the Pressure Ulcer Knowledge Assessment Tool (K-PUKAT 2.0), using classical test theory (CTT) and item response theory (IRT). METHOD: Linguistic validation process and factor analysis were conducted among wound care nurses, staff nurses and nursing students. Items were analysed according to the CTT and IRT using a two-parameter logistic model. Intraclass correlation coefficients were used to examine reliability. RESULTS: A total of 378 wound care nurses, staff nurses and nursing students participated in this study. While most items showed moderate difficulty based on the CTT, difficulty index values based on the IRT were more broadly distributed (low: 5 items; moderate: 9 items; high: 1 item). The intraclass correlation coefficient for K-PUKAT 2.0 was 0.72. CONCLUSION: The K-PUKAT 2.0 demonstrated concise and good psychometric properties. Based on the results of this study, repetitive use of K-PUKAT 2.0 will not only help in distinguishing whether an individual has sufficient clinical knowledge, but will also play a key role in supporting learning.

Effectiveness of Non-Contact Dietary Coaching in Adults with Diabetes or Prediabetes Using a Continuous Glucose Monitoring Device: A Randomized Controlled Trial.

We aimed to evaluate the effectiveness of dietary coaching and continuous glucose monitoring (CGM) in patients with diabetes or prediabetes to improve their behavioral skills and health outcomes. A randomized controlled study with pre- and post-testing was conducted. Data were collected between November 2020 and April 2021. Forty-five patients with diabetes or prediabetes who used a CGM device were enrolled and analyzed. Dietary education, individual coaching and group coaching were provided to participants in the experimental group for 4 weeks. After the intervention, the thigh circumference in men significantly differed between the two groups (z = -2.02, p = 0.044). For women, participants in the experimental group showed greater improvement in eating self-efficacy compared with those in the control group (z = -2.66, p = 0.008). Insomnia was negatively related to the change in eating self-efficacy (r = -0.35, p = 0.018) and increase in thigh circumference (r = -0.35, p = 0.017). Even if used within a short intervention period, non-contact dietary coaching programs can help enhance behavioral skills, such as eating self-efficacy and health outcomes, such as thigh circumference. Moreover, the changed variables can indirectly improve other health outcomes in patients with diabetes or prediabetes.

Nurses' comfort care of transarterial chemoembolization patients based on their perceptions around postembolization syndrome and symptom interference.

AIM: Post-embolization syndrome is a common adverse event following trans-arterial chemoembolization, which negatively impacts the daily life of the patients involved. This study examined whether perceptions around post-embolization syndrome and symptom interference among nurses affect their comfort care performance toward patients who have undergone this procedure. DESIGN: A descriptive cross-sectional study. METHODS: One hundred and fifty registered nurses were surveyed from September to November 2020. Perceived post-embolization syndrome, symptom interference, and comfort care (including physical, psychospiritual, sociocultural, and environmental dimensions) were measured. Data were analyzed using t-tests, analysis of variance, Pearson's correlation, and a multivariate analysis of variance. RESULTS: There were no individual effects found of perceived post-embolization syndrome or symptom interference on nurses' comfort care performance. However, statistically significant interaction effects were found in terms of their sociocultural and environmental care. CONCLUSION: Nurses who recognized both high post-embolization syndrome and symptom interference among their patients were found to provide greater sociocultural and environmental care. As such, nurses should improve their early symptom and symptom interference detection protocols based on current care guidelines and provide physical, psychospiritual, sociocultural, and environmental comfort care.

Development and Effectiveness of a Clinical Decision Support System for Pressure Ulcer Prevention Care Using Machine Learning: A Quasi-experimental Study.

This study was conducted to develop and evaluate the effectiveness of a clinical decision support system for pressure ulcer prevention on clinical (performance, visual discrimination ability, and decision-making ability) and cognitive (knowledge and attitude) workflow. After developing a clinical decision support system using machine learning, a quasi-experimental study was used. Data were collected between January and April 2020. Forty-nine RNs who met the inclusion criteria and worked at seven tertiary and five secondary hospitals participated. A clinical decision support system was provided to the intervention group during the same period. Differences in outcome variables between the two groups were analyzed using t tests. The level of pressure ulcer prevention nursing performance and visual differentiation ability of skin pressure and oral mucosa pressure ulcer showed significantly greater improvement in the experimental group compared with the control group, whereas clinical decision making did not differ significantly. A clinical decision support system using machine learning was partially successful in performance of skin pressure ulcer prevention, attitude, and visual differentiation ability for skin and oral mucosa pressure ulcer prevention. These findings indicated that a clinical decision support system using machine learning needs to be implemented for pressure ulcer prevention.

Relationships between Nursing Students' Skill Mastery, Test Anxiety, Self-Efficacy, and Facial Expressions: A Preliminary Observational Study.

Test anxiety and self-efficacy significantly influence the mastery of nursing skills. Facial expression recognition tools are central components to recognising these elements. This study investigated the frequent facial expressions conveyed by nursing students and examined the relationships between nursing skill mastery, test anxiety, self-efficacy, and facial expressions in a test-taking situation. Thirty-three second-year nursing students who were attending a university in a Korean metropolitan city participated. Test anxiety, self-efficacy, and facial expressions were collected while the students inserted indwelling catheters. Using Microsoft Azure software, the researchers examined the students' facial expressions. Negative facial expressions, such as anger, disgust, sadness, and surprise, were more common during the test-taking situation than the practice trial. Fear was positively correlated with anxiety. None of the facial expressions had significant relationships with self-efficacy; however, disgust was positively associated with nursing skill mastery. The facial expressions during the practice and test-taking situations were similar; however, fear and disgust may have been indicators of test anxiety and skill mastery. To create a screening tool for detecting and caring for students' emotions, further studies should explore students' facial expressions that were not evaluated in this study.

Canonical Correlation between Behavioral-Psychological Variables and Predictors of Coronary Artery Disease Prognosis.

Metabolic syndrome (MetS) and severity of coronary artery disease (CAD) are considered predictors of CAD prognosis. Unhealthy lifestyles and type-D personality are associated with MetS and are potential causes of primary and secondary CAD. In this cross-sectional descriptive study, we aimed to investigate the relationship between behavioral-psychological variables and predictors of CAD prognosis. The behavioral-psychological variable set contained six lifestyle categories and two type-D personality categories. Descriptive analyses, t-tests, analysis of variance, Pearson's correlation, and canonical correlation were used. The behavioral-psychological variable set was related to the predictor set for CAD prognosis, with a significant canonical variate of 0.67 (45% overlapping variance). Significant pairs of canonical variates indicated that poor physical activity and weight control (-0.77), poor dietary habits (-0.78), alcohol consumption and cigarette smoking (-0.37), lack of sleep and rest (-0.40), stress (-0.64) in the lifestyle set, higher negative affectivity (0.52), and social inhibition (0.71) in the type-D personality set were associated with a high MetS score (0.59) and severity of CAD (0.91). A combination of behavioral and psychological variables was found to be important in predicting the prognosis of CAD; therefore, interventions aimed at preventing combinations of these variables may be effective in improving CAD prognosis.