An evaluation of the effectiveness of 'Time to Adjust' a group-based cognitive-behavioural-therapy (CBT) programme for patients recovering from cancer.

OBJECTIVES: 'Time to Adjust' (TTA) is a 6-week group-based cognitive-behavioural-therapy programme for patients recovering from cancer. The TTA intervention is designed to facilitate patient's adjustment to life after cancer by enhancing existing coping skills, developing new coping skills and drawing on peer support within the context of group delivery of the programme. The study aims to explore patient psychological adjustment and to identify features of the intervention that patients find most beneficial. METHODS: This retrospective repeated measures design study represents a clinical evaluation of a group-based intervention routinely delivered by the Cancer Psychology Service at University Hospital Limerick. TTA was open to patients with a cancer diagnosis who had completed their surgery, radiotherapy and chemotherapy treatment by the programme start date. Patients self-referred and suitability for the programme was assessed by pre-programme clinical interview. Pre- and post-intervention data from 59 participants was collected using self-report measures of stress and coping. A brief end-of-programme questionnaire provided descriptive feedback on patients' experience of the programme. RESULTS: Findings revealed favourable trends in the psychological adjustment of patients. Self-reported depression, anxiety and negative adjustment was lower post-TTA. CONCLUSIONS: This study indicates that TTA supports patients' psychological recovery from cancer with multiple components of the programme facilitating psychological adjustment. Findings support the delivery of group-based therapeutic interventions for this patient group. Future research could use in-depth post-intervention interviews for a richer understanding of the programme benefits. Longer-term follow-up in could examine the degree to which benefits are maintained over time.

Evaluating the impact of structured text and templates in ambulatory nursing.

This evaluation looks at the use of templates for entering structured text nursing notes that generate both a legal text note that is the chart record and an underlying coded form of the note to support analysis and research. This study reflects the first phase of a prototype project of an integrated, computerized health record. Templates are notes that have been prewritten using a standard clinical vocabulary. Templates can be used as the basis of a new clinical note and can be either signed unchanged or modified to represent variations in clinical presentation. The prototype setting is a Primary Care clinic where both physicians and nurses are using the computer to enter clinical notes. In the prototype clinic team, nursing utilized the CPR for 100% of all documentation from day one. Use of templates was found to be the most frequent method of initiating a note.