European Union Project 'BestCARE': improving nursing care with best complementary therapy strategies.

AIM: This paper introduces the study on the European Union Project on complementary therapies and discusses project outputs and results. The goal of the European Union Project was to improve the professional knowledge and skills of women's health and oncology nurses regarding CT. BACKGROUND: The increasing and widespread use of complementary therapies in the women's health and oncology population requires nurses to be educated about their suitable and safe use. Many nurses do not have proper training in complementary therapies and therefore should not inform their patients about them. METHODS: The 'Improving the Nursing Care with Best Complementary Therapy Strategies Based on European Union Standards' (BestCARE) project was a strategic partnership within Erasmus plus for vocational education and training. The BestCARE project was coordinated by the Akdeniz University Nursing Faculty and was carried out with six partners from Turkey and Europe. RESULTS: Fifteen nurses from Turkey and Italy were trained in complementary therapies in England. In addition, training courses and seminars were held in Turkey and Italy for women's health and oncology nurses. The BestCARE programme consisted of 14 work packages. The BestCARE programme was implemented via websites, an e-learning training programme, training videos, reference and handbook, a curriculum proposal on complementary therapies and a simulation laboratory. CONCLUSION AND IMPLICATIONS FOR NURSING AND/OR HEALTH POLICY: The BestCARE project allowed nurses to gain knowledge, experience and skills about complementary therapies and created a cultural awareness and sensitivity towards patients, caregivers and health professionals.

Life experiences of caregivers of women with gynaecological cancer: a mixed-methods systematic review.

Family caregivers play a key role in meeting care needs of cancer patients. The aim of this review was to systematically examine life experiences of family caregivers of women with gynaecological cancer. A mixed-methods systematic review based on a retrospective review of the research on the topic was conducted. The review was limited to articles in English published between 1985 and 2014. The literature search was performed in CINAHL, Scopus, PubMed and ScienceDirect. A total of 16 full-text articles published in national and international journals were reviewed: 10 quantitative studies, 5 qualitative studies and 1 both qualitative and quantitative study. Of all caregivers with gynaecological cancer, 59% were partners, 27% were sons or daughters and 14% were brothers or sisters, mothers and friends. The qualitative research on caregivers' experiences revealed three themes: 'emotional devastation', 'change' and 'coping'. The family caregivers of women with gynaecological cancer had difficulty in areas examined, but the studies investigating caregivers' needs were limited to certain subjects and they were not solution-oriented. It is recommended that qualitative and quantitative studies including the solutions regarding family caregivers of women with gynaecological cancer should be integrated.