Variables Predicting Academic Success of Nursing Students: a Longitudinal Study in a Nursing Bachelor's Degree Program.

Background: Academic failure can negatively impact on the student, the university and the nursing workforce in the short term. The aim of this study is to analyze the characteristics and predictors of academic success in two cohorts of students of a Nursing Bachelor's Degree program. Methods: This longitudinal study enrolled students who attended the Nursing Bachelor's Degree program. The Tor Vergata University includes 21 Nursing Bachelor's Degree programs at several Sanitary Institutions of the Rome area, with a mean annual recruitment of 800 students. We considered two cohorts of students beginning the program in the 2011-2012 and 2012-2013 academic years, respectively. The follow-up of these two cohorts ended in the 2017-2018 academic year. We considered socio-demographic and academic variables in the nursing field (pre-admission test grade, training exam grade in the first, second and third year and professional license exam grade). The outcome variable is academic success defined as gradua-tion on time; academic failure is defined as changing degree, delay in completion of the course, attrition and dismissal (failure to complete the studies). Data were collected at baseline (T0), at the end of the first year (T1), at the end of the second year (T2) and at the end of the third year (T3) of the course. A logistic regression was performed to identify predictors of academic success. Results: 2,041 students were enrolled, with an average age of 22.0 years (± 4.6, 18-50); 67.4% were female. Regarding academic success, 30.6% of students graduated on time and so achieved academic success, while 69.4% failed to complete the course within the established time: 5.4% (110/2,041) changed the course, the attrition rate was 7.3%, 0.3% (6/2,041) overdue from the course for expiring of the terms, 18.0% (368/2,041) is attending the course and 38.4% (784/2,041) graduated after more than three years. Pre-admission test grade (OR: 10.0, 95% CI: 10.020-10.054) and training exam grade at the second and third years (OR: 10.0 95% CI: 10.027-10.139; OR: 10.2 95% CI: 10.171-10.294) predicted academic success. Discussion and Conclusions: Some nursing students changed course during the last year of the program, while the training exam grade of the second and third years had predicted academic success; this is a brand new information derived from this study. In addition, we confirmed the association of age, gender, secondary school type and grade and preadmission test with academic success. For these reasons, clinical training should be improved and the quality of internship wards, as learning environments, should be monitored. Italian universities should undertake establishing the ideal cut-off in pre-admission tests to determine which students have a high probability of academic success.

Self-care research: How to grow the evidence base? (reprint).

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVE: The number of studies in the area of self-care is growing and international researchers are increasingly developing self-care interventions to improve outcomes of individual patients and communities. However, growth of the evidence is still slow due to challenges with designing and testing self-care interventions. In this article we address major methodological challenges with regard to the definition of self-care, use of theory, and research design, intended to provide guidance to researchers in this field. METHOD: During the inaugural conference of the International Center for Self-Care Research held in Rome, Italy in June 2019 we identified important issues in existing self-care research. Discussion and literature review lead to eight recommendation for future self-care research. RESULTS: In preparation, begin with a theoretically sound definition of self-care. In planning the intervention, build on and extend previous studies. Use theory to develop self-care interventions and consider translational models to guide development, evaluation and implementation of complex self-care interventions. Employ a study design that fits the current phase and objectives of the research and measure self-care and related factors carefully. In reporting, describe the sample and setting sufficiently so that others can draw conclusions about generalizability and applicability to their practice and patient population. In interpretation, describe how the intervention is assumed to work (causal assumptions) and its key components. CONCLUSION: Our review of existing self-care research clearly illustrates that the recommendations we provide are needed if we are to substantially grow the evidence base supporting self-care. Embracing a core set of principles will allow us to build on each other's work. Tweetable abstract: A core set of methodological principles is needed to substantially grow the evidence base supporting self-care.

Homecare workers in Italy: a narrative review.

INTRODUCTION: The progressive ageing and ever-increasing life expectancy of the world's population are accompanied by an increase in chronic pathologies. Italy continues to be the nation with the highest percentage of senior citizens. Recent economic crises and movements of social change have led to a gradual increase in the use of homecare workers for the territorial and family management of chronic illnesses. Contrary to what has happened in other countries, in Italy an informal logic has prevailed regarding the recruitment and the employment of homecare workers, hindering the evolution of this sector. AIMS: This narrative review focuses on the role of homecare workers, as it appears in Italian researches. METHODS: A narrative review was conducted using the following electronic databases: CINAHL Complete, MEDLINE, MEDLINE Complete, PsycINFO, and SocINDEX. Only studies conducted in the past 20 years with an Italian Homecare Worker (HCW) target population were considered. Data were extracted from each manuscript to allow for quick comparisons of information, such as research objectives, study methodologies, data collection tools, and relative results. Two reviewers independently extracted the following data for each study: region, setting context, participant characteristics, group description and sample, outcomes measured, and a description of the main results. RESULTS: From the analysis of heterogeneous Italian literature, the importance of homecare workers is clear. Their work not only influences assisted individuals but also informal caregivers and the direct costs of the Italian national health system. CONCLUSION: Homecare workers are important in Italian society. The little attention that the scientific literature has paid to this population may be due to the difficulty of finding subjects with a legal status and, therefore, who are willing to participate in specific investigations. Investigating the dyad of care and extending these investigations to the surrounding family context, seem to be the major priorities that should be explored by future research.

Socio-demographic analysis of free-lance nurses in a non-institutional employment regimen.

INTRODUCTION: The free-lance nurse, not bound to rigid organizational systems, can offer personalized assistance always respecting the rights of the person and of the profession. More recent graduates have decided to undertake the nursing profession by moving towards the free-lance nursing, considering it both as a career opening and as a professional opportunity, although this option never got much attention from the researchers in the Italian nursing scene. Free-lance nursing is now considered a valuable opportunity to develop a nursing career. This market is destined to grow for different reasons, such as an increasing chronicity of health conditions of more and more ageing population and the deficits of the National Health Service (Servizio Sanitario Nazionale - SSN) in community and home care. AIM: The aim of the study was to evaluate the correlation between the development of the free-lance nursing and the Italian socio-economic context. METHODS: The design of the study was descriptive - observational. Data collection and observation was carried out from January 2018 until April 2108. For the analysis a linear regression model was adopted to quantify a cause-effect relationship between one or more independent variables and the dependent variable which interprets the phenomenon investigated. The regression carried out was descriptive to analytically express the observed reality and represent it in a plausible way. The specification model was represented as: Free-lance nurses per capita = per capita income + Out of Pocket expense per capita + waiting lists in days + number of beds per inhabitants + NHS nurses per inhabitants. RESULTS: The estimate carried out had an R of 0.813, R-square equal to 0.6612, adjusted R-square 0.540 and standard error of the estimate 1.277, highlighting a correlation between the variables adopted in the model and a p = 0.005. From the analysis of the variables used, the average per capita income (p = 0.045) and the nurses working in the National Health Service /1,000 beds (p = 0.017) were statistically significant. CONCLUSIONS: It can be stated that the free-lance nursing profession is costly for patients and therefore develops more revenue where the average per capita income grows, but the research also seems to show that, where the National Health Service has too few nurses, the private demand increases in order to satisfy healthcare needs.

Self-care research: How to grow the evidence base?

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVE: The number of studies in the area of self-care is growing and international researchers are increasingly developing self-care interventions to improve outcomes of individual patients and communities. However, growth of the evidence is still slow due to challenges with designing and testing self-care interventions. In this article we address major methodological challenges with regard to the definition of self-care, use of theory, and research design, intended to provide guidance to researchers in this field. METHOD: During the inaugural conference of the International Center for Self-Care Research held in Rome, Italy in June 2019 we identified important issues in existing self-care research. Discussion and literature review lead to eight recommendation for future self-care research. RESULTS: In preparation, begin with a theoretically sound definition of self-care. In planning the intervention, build on and extend previous studies. Use theory to develop self-care interventions and consider translational models to guide development, evaluation and implementation of complex self-care interventions. Employ a study design that fits the current phase and objectives of the research and measure self-care and related factors carefully. In reporting, describe the sample and setting sufficiently so that others can draw conclusions about generalizability and applicability to their practice and patient population. In interpretation, describe how the intervention is assumed to work (causal assumptions) and its key components. CONCLUSION: Our review of existing self-care research clearly illustrates that the recommendations we provide are needed if we are to substantially grow the evidence base supporting self-care. Embracing a core set of principles will allow us to build on each other's work. Tweetable abstract: A core set of methodological principles is needed to substantially grow the evidence base supporting self-care.

Investigando el autocuidado en una muestra de pacientes con insuficiencia cardiaca descompensada: un estudio transversal / Investigating self-care in a sample of patients with decompensated heart failure: a cross-sectional study

Antecedentes: La información sobre el autocuidado en la insuficiencia cardiaca (IC) en España es escasa. En concreto, existe la necesidad de fijar el nivel de comprensión de los pacientes sobre la IC, así como su capacidad para reconocer los signos y los síntomas de la descompensación. Pacientes y métodos: Estudio transversal para determinar el nivel de autocuidado en una población de pacientes españoles ingresados en el hospital con un diagnóstico primario de IC descompensada. Para el estudio, se reclutó una muestra de conveniencia integrada por 108 pacientes (50 mujeres y 58 hombres) con una edad de 83+/-8 años. Resultados: Para cuantificar el autocuidado en nuestra muestra se empleó el Índice de Autocuidado en Insuficiencia Cardiaca versión 6.2. La media y la desviación estándar de la subescala de mantenimiento de autocuidado del Índice de Autocuidado en Insuficiencia Cardiaca fueron: a) «ejercicio durante 30 minutos», 1+/-1; b) «olvida tomar una de sus medicinas», 2+/-2; c) «pedir productos bajos en sal cuando sale a comer o de visita», 2+/-1. En el mes previo, el 67,6% experimentó dificultad para respirar o inflamación del tobillo. Sin embargo, era improbable que la gran mayoría de nuestros pacientes implementaran de forma independiente un remedio: a) reducir sal, 2+/-1; b) reducir la ingesta de líquidos, 1+/-1; c) tomar un diurético extra, 1+/-1. Más del 50% de los pacientes de nuestra muestra se sintieron confiados o muy confiados siguiendo los consejos profesionales (3+/-1), manteniéndose libres de síntomas (3+/-1), reconociendo los cambios en su enfermedad (3+/-1) y valorando la importancia de dichos cambios (3+/-1). Conclusiones: Al comparar a nuestros pacientes con IC con los de otros países el nivel de autocuidado es significativamente bajo, especialmente en lo que se refiere a la gestión de su enfermedad. La promoción del autocuidado debería ser una prioridad para todos los profesionales de la salud involucrados en la gestión de los pacientes con IC

Background: There is scarce evidence relating to self-care of heart failure (HF) in Spain. In particular, there is a need to establish patients' level of understanding of HF, as well as their ability to recognise signs and symptoms of decompensation. Patients and methods: Cross-sectional study to determine the level of self-care in a population of Spanish patients admitted to hospital with a primary diagnosis of decompensated HF. A convenience sample of 108 patients (50 women and 58 men) aged 83+/-8 were recruited to participate in this study. Results: The Self-Care of Heart Failure Index version 6.2 was used to quantify self-care in our sample. Mean and standard deviation from the Self-Care of Heart Failure Index self-care maintenance subscale were: a) "exercise for 30 minutes", 1+/-1; b) "forget to take one of your medicines", 2+/-2; c) "ask for low-salt items when eating out or visiting others", 2+/-1. A percentage of 67.6 had experienced shortness of breath or ankle swelling in the past month. However, the vast majority of our patients were unlikely to independently implement a remedy: a) reduce salt, 2+/-1; b) reduce fluid intake, 1+/-1; c) take an extra diuretic, 1+/-1. Over 50% of our sample felt confident or very confident at following professional advice (3+/-1), keeping themselves free of symptoms (3+/-1), recognizing changes in their condition (3+/-1) and evaluating the significance of such changes (3+/-1). Conclusions: HF patients have a significantly low level of self-care when compared with HF patients from other countries, especially when it comes to managing their condition. Self-care promotion should be a priority for all healthcare professionals involved in the care and management of HF patients

Investigating self-care in a sample of patients with decompensated heart failure: A cross-sectional study. / Investigando el autocuidado en una muestra de pacientes con insuficiencia cardiaca descompensada: un estudio transversal.

BACKGROUND: There is scarce evidence relating to self-care of heart failure (HF) in Spain. In particular, there is a need to establish patients' level of understanding of HF, as well as their ability to recognise signs and symptoms of decompensation. PATIENTS AND METHODS: Cross-sectional study to determine the level of self-care in a population of Spanish patients admitted to hospital with a primary diagnosis of decompensated HF. A convenience sample of 108 patients (50 women and 58 men) aged 83±8 were recruited to participate in this study. RESULTS: The Self-Care of Heart Failure Index version 6.2 was used to quantify self-care in our sample. Mean and standard deviation from the Self-Care of Heart Failure Index self-care maintenance subscale were: a) "exercise for 30 minutes", 1±1; b) "forget to take one of your medicines", 2±2; c) "ask for low-salt items when eating out or visiting others", 2±1. A percentage of 67.6 had experienced shortness of breath or ankle swelling in the past month. However, the vast majority of our patients were unlikely to independently implement a remedy: a) reduce salt, 2±1; b) reduce fluid intake, 1±1; c) take an extra diuretic, 1±1. Over 50% of our sample felt confident or very confident at following professional advice (3±1), keeping themselves free of symptoms (3±1), recognizing changes in their condition (3±1) and evaluating the significance of such changes (3±1). CONCLUSIONS: HF patients have a significantly low level of self-care when compared with HF patients from other countries, especially when it comes to managing their condition. Self-care promotion should be a priority for all healthcare professionals involved in the care and management of HF patients.

A nursing clinical information system for the assessment of the complexity of care.

BACKGROUND: The complexity of care can be described through a clinical nursing information system, in particular through the Professional Assessment Instrument -PAI-, encoding each health care activity in time units and analysing the relationship of observed time to patient characteristics in relation to the functional models of care needs. DESIGNS: Observational study. METHODS: Data were collected for 11 months in 2016-17 in four inpatient units of an Italian hospital using the Professional Assessment Instrument, and a survey grid to measure the time of the nursing activities delivered. All activities with a frequency of 20 or more have been included. The Work Sampling technique was used for time-tracking. RESULTS: The sample included 2765 nursing activities. The mean times for each care activity were compared showing significant differences. A statistically significant correlation (Sperman's correlation coefficient) was observed both between the observed time and the level of illness severity and between time and functional models. CONCLUSIONS: Patient complexity, both in terms of illness severity and level of dependence, can be coded through a clinical nursing information system. This facilitates the classification and measurement of nursing care delivered, which includes the entire care process.

Italian version of Nursing Students' Perception of Instructor Caring (I-NSPIC): assessment of reliability and validity.

BACKGROUND: Clinical experience is an essential component of nursing education since it provides students with the opportunity to construct and develop clinical competencies. Instructor caring is a pivotal facilitator at the forefront of clinical education, playing a key and complex educating role in clinical sectors. For these reasons the aims of this study was to assess the validity and reliability of the Italian version of NSPIC (I-NSPIC). METHODS: A validation multicentre study was conducted in three different Italian universities. A total of 333 nursing students were enrolled in the 2014/2015 academic year. Exploratory factor analysis (EFA) with oblique rotation was performed to test the construct validity of I-NSPIC. The Cronbach's alpha coefficient and test retest via Intraclass Correlation Coefficient (ICC) analyses were done to assess the internal consistency and stability of the scale. A Spearman's correlation with another scale (CLES-T) was used to examine the concurrent validities. RESULTS: Four factors (control versus flexibility, supportive learning climate, confidence through caring, appreciation of life meaning and respectful sharing) were identified in EFA. The Cronbach's alpha value showed that I-NSPIC was a reliable instrument (α = 0.94) and the ICC coefficient was satisfactory. CONCLUSION: The I-NSPIC is a valid instrument for assessing the perception of instructor caring in Italian nursing students. It may also prove helpful in promoting the caring ability of nursing students and in increasing the caring interactions in the relationship between instructor and nursing students. The knowledge emerged from this study provide important insight in developing effective training strategies in the clinical training of undergraduate nursing students.

An experience of field work learning for healthcare providers: new perspectives between disadvantages and critical issues.

INTRODUCTION: The learning models used in traditional education are not very effective for the continuing education of healthcare providers. Fieldwork learning is an active learning method that is feasible in the workplace and is also suitable for professionals who possess a style of experiential learning. Guardian Angel 2.0® is a fieldwork learning project designed to promote educational skills in nurses to improve the self-care and quality of life in women affected by osteoporosis. The purpose of this article is to present the Guardian Angel 2.0® project and its results. METHODS: The Guardian Angel 2.0® effort lasted nine months and involved 212 nurses in the north, centre and south of Italy. A socio-demographic questionnaire, an evaluation scale of the learning process and a participants' satisfaction questionnaire were used to evaluate and monitor the fieldwork learning project. RESULTS: Out of the 212 nurses who participated in the project, 119 (70%) completed it. The mean age of these participants was 48 years (± 7.98), and 83.5% were female. About half of the participants (52.0%, 55.4% and 45.0%, respectively) were good (a) at respecting deadlines, (b) at using the methodological instruments and (c) the information tools properly. Almost all nurses considered the project to be very relevant (96.4%). In regards to the project's quality, the nurses perceived it as excellent (51.0%) and very good (48.5%). Finally, the project was considered very useful or useful by 100% of nurses. CONCLUSIONS: The general satisfaction of nurses was high. The fieldwork learning was relevant and useful for developing educational skills in nurses. It would therefore be appropriate to use fieldwork learning in clinical settings to improve the existing experience of healthcare providers and thereby reduce the difficulties of transforming the knowledge from a theoretical to a practical level and to promote the development of new behaviours when the existing ones become obsolete or inefficient.

The lived experience of adults with heart failure: a phenomenological study.

BACKGROUND: Although a number of studies have been conducted on patients with Heart Failure (HF), they have not given a rigorous comprehensive description of what it is like to live with HF. The objective of this study was to describe the lived experience of adults with HF. STUDY DESIGN: A hermeneutic phenomenological design was used. METHODS: Cohen's method was used to conduct the study. Thirty HF patients were enrolled between February and July 2014 from an outpatient cardiovascular clinic in Tuscany, Italy. Phenomenological interviews took place at patients' homes, and the investigators analyzed verbatim transcripts. Once data saturation was achieved, to ensure data trustworthiness, participants were asked to confirm all the extracted themes. Atals.ti vers.7 was used for data analysis. RESULTS: The patients were mostly male (67%) with a mean age of 71 (SD 9.15) and an age range of 48-86. Seven themes emerged from the phenomenological analysis: 1) important life changes; 2) social isolation caused by the illness; 3) anger and resignation associated with the disease; 4) relief from spirituality; 5) will to live; 6) uncertainty about the future and 7) the inescapability of disease and death. CONCLUSIONS: The meaning that patients attribute to their lived experience helps to create their needs, which are important to direct care. Family support and religious beliefs are an important source for HF patients to better manage their fears and cope with the future. Findings of this study provide nurses with a comprehensive description of what it is like to live with HF, which can be useful in helping to meet patients' needs more effectively and in tailoring interventions.

Social media and nurse education: an integrative review of the literature.

INTRODUCTION: The exponential advance of social media has touched all areas of society, no exception for the professional and personal lives of healthcare people. The issue to be considered is not whether or not social media are being used, but how they are used. The line between proper and improper use, and even abuse, of social media is a subtle one. Thus, the key issue is to be aware of the tool that is being used and this should be supported with suitable training for healthcare professionals and, at an even earlier stage, for students at healthcare training institutions during their studies. OBJECTIVE: To describe, through an integrative review of the literature, the use of social media by teachers and students during teaching activity and practical training courses. MATERIALS AND METHODS: An integrative review of the literature was conducted in October 2014. The literature search was performed by consulting the main biomedical databases: PubMed, CINAHL and Embase. RESULTS: The literature search brought up a total of 854 citations. 804 abstracts were excluded as they were not relevant. Of the remaining 50, 31 were excluded for not meeting the general criteria and, hence, only 19 articles were included. Two aspects emerged from the works selected: the use and potential of social media in nursing education and the ethical and professional implications of their use. CONCLUSIONS: The analysis of the literature reveals two areas for further investigation: evaluating the level of moral awareness in nursing education with regards to the use of Web 2.0 communication tools and implementing teaching methods to promote the construction and development of moral reasoning in professionals.

Nurse coordinator leadership and work environment conflicts: consequences for physical and work-related health of nursing staff.

BACKGROUND: Research has amply demonstrated that positive leadership counters the onset of burnout and conflicting situations between colleagues that in turn create favourable conditions for a healthy organization and consequently for good quality of care. OBJECTIVES: To investigate if more positive leadership is associated with lower levels of conflict in the work environment that in turn are associated with lower levels of burnout, psychosomatic disorders and negative indicators of work environment (feeling not being adequately appreciated, lack of clarity about tasks and roles, gossip, resentment towards the organization), and with higher levels of work satisfaction. METHOD: Five scales of QISO (Nursing Organizational Health Questionnaire) and the Maslach Inventory (Burnout scale), were administered to a total of 192 nurses working in medical and surgical departments of two different Italian hospitals. The study design was cross-sectional. To test the hypothesis a structural equation model (SEM) was used. RESULTS: The results of this study demonstrate the crucial role played by positive leadership of nursing coordinators that, directly and indirectly, promotes a healthy work environment with lower conflicts, burnout, and psychosomatic disorders among nurses and limits the presence of negative indicators in workplace. CONCLUSION: This study demonstrates the key role of the nursing coordinator in creating a healthy work environment that contributes to physical and work-related health of the nursing staff.

Cultural adaptation and linguistic validation of the Family Decision Making Self Efficacy Scale (FDMSES).

INTRODUCTION: Nurses, following their ethical mandate, collaborate with other health and social professionals or people involved in caring activities. Caregivers in this context are becoming more and more significant for the family or the cared person, who for their stable presence and emotional proximity play a pivotal caring role. To maximize the contribution of caregivers, objective tools that emphasize their skill sets are necessary. The cross-cultural adaptation and validation of the Family Decision Making Self-Efficacy Scale is part of a larger project aimed at understanding the resilience of caregivers in the field of palliative care. Self-efficacy is one of the aspects of personality most closely associated with resilience. Self-efficacy is shown in a specific context, therefore, its study and evaluation of its level, require capabilities that enable individuals perceive themselves as effective in a particular circumstance. The Family Decision Making Self- Efficacy Scale assesses the behavior of caregivers of patients at the end of their life. METHODS: The Family Decision Making Self-Efficacy Scale was translated (forward and back translation) and was adapted to the Italian clinical cultural setting by a research team that included experts in palliative care, native translators with experience in nursing and experts in nursing. A consensus on the wording of each item in relation to semantic, idiomatic, experiential and conceptual equivalence was sought. The clarity of the wording and the pertinence of the items of the scenario with the conscious patient and with the unconscious patient were evaluated by a group of caregivers who tested the instrument. RESULTS: The Italian version of the instrument included 12 items for the scenario with the conscious patient and 12 for the scenario with the unconscious patient. The working group expressed consensus on the pretesting version of the instrument. The pre-testing version of the scale was tested on 60 caregivers, 47 taking care of conscious patients and 13 taking care of unconscious patients. In both cases the content of the items was judged relevant and understandable. CONCLUSIONS: The results for the cross-cultural validation were satisfactory and allowed the application of the instrument in the Italian context.

Impact of a nursing information system in clinical practice: a longitudinal study project.

BACKGROUND: The implementation of adequate clinical information systems helps to deal with the immense flow of health data to ensure the continuity of care and access to a safe and high-quality healthcare system. Currently there is an increasing awareness of the importance of evaluating and measuring the impact of such systems in clinical practice. Implementations often fail, due to inadequate interaction between technology and human elements. METHODS: This article describes a research project aimed at evaluating the impact of a clinical nursing information system (CNIS), called Professional Assessment Instrument (PAI), in clinical practice. The study will evaluate PAI Quality, Nurses Satisfaction, PAI Use, Nurses and Environment Characteristics, Net Benefits and Nurses' Experiences related to the PAI use. A theoretical model developed for this research will guide the study. A quali-quantitative longitudinal design will be performed involving two hospitals over a 9-month period. To measure different dimensions that affect the success/failure of CNIS we will use different tools/ methods of data collection (questionnaires, psychometric tools, surveys and focus groups). EXPECTED RESULTS: This study will evaluate the impact of a CNIS in hospitals providing an overview of the factors which can help and hinder the implementation of an information system. CONCLUSIONS: The results of the study will support interventions to improve and implement clinical information systems designed to computerize nursing data, with positive effects on public health and research in general, providing further evidence for health policy.

[Online information supplied by Italian Hospitals and Local Healthcare Units: a descriptive research on their compliance with the guidelines issued by the Italian Ministry of Health]. / L'informazione online fornita dai siti delle Aziende Sanitarie Ospedaliere Italiane: indagine descrittiva sull'aderenza alle linee guida del Ministero della Salute.

INTRODUCTION: In most countries where Internet is widely used the number of people surfing the web for healthcare information equals (and in some countries is more than) the number of people looking for healthcare assistance. More and more often, all over the world, Internet is integrated by advanced healthcare systems as a cornerstone of their e-health infrastructure, to meet citizens' needs for health information. Therefore, information plays a key role in the relationship between healthcare providers and citizenship. In 2010 the Italian Ministry of Health has worked out a set of guidelines to improve online communication, within the framework of health promotion. OBJECTIVE: To analyze if the web sites of the Italian public hospitals (PH) and the local healthcare units (LHU) comply with the guidelines of the Italian Ministry of Health (IMH) on the improvement of online communication within the framework of healthcare promotion. MATERIALS AND METHODS: All Italian PH and LHU web sites have been analyzed using the self evaluation tool of the IMH. RESULTS: The total number of web sites analyzed was 245. Their compliance with the IMH guidelines was low. Web sites linking to other professional sites, such as the College of Physicians, the College of Pharmacists, or the College of Nurses, were 32 (13%). One hundred and forty-two (58%) were the sites that did not offer any kind of health information, such as pathophysiology of diseases, the most relevant pathologic conditions, risky behaviors, primary and secondary prevention's interventions. A web navigation menu organized according to the most relevant life events or according to categories of users (I am ... /dedicated to...) was available only in 53 web sites (22%). CONCLUSIONS: The IMH's guidelines on online communication -- with reference to the aspects here analyzed -- have been in some ways disregarded and the criteria suggested by them have not been fully adopted by PHs and LHUs. Overall, communication is globally meant (and directed) "towards" citizenship and not "together with" the citizens. To reach this type of communication, experts suggest to redirect resources and efforts towards a different context, different tools and different models of communication, such as social networking. Further studies will be needed to fully understand information needs and expectations of users and the way to use social networking on behalf of healthcare providers.

Organizational health and quality of life: survey among ambulance nurses in prehospital emergency care.

BACKGROUND: The workplace plays a central role in causing stress and different kinds of syndromes and diseases. More generally, organizational procedures and practices could have an impact on nurses' quality of life. Although several studies have investigated this link, none of them considered nurses working in prehospital emergency care. OBJECTIVES: To investigate the role of organizational health factors that affect the quality of life and psychosomatic complaints of ambulance nurses. METHOD: Our sample included 411 ambulance nurses. Workers were administered two questionnaires to assess organizational health and quality of life. Descriptive and correlational analyses were used to test our assumptions. CONCLUSION: Several organizational health dimensions provided an explanation for the complaints reported by nurses working in prehospital emergency care in terms of quality of life and psychosomatic disorders. The results allowed identification of possible interventions focusing on specific duties and organizational aspects that would improve the quality of nurses' health.

[The chronic patient and the nurse-managed hospital unit]. / Il paziente cronico e la Unità Operativa di Degenza Infermieristica.

In this article we discuss the implementation of a hospital nursing care unit in a local health authority in Rome (Italy), The hospital involved provides a wide range of healthcare and social services. The project is a very innovative one at the national level, with respect to healthcare services offered to patients with chronic disorders and associated disabilities. Starting from the concept of "centrality of the patient" in the area of healthcare services, we developed an organizational model where nursing care represents one of the basic elements.

[Operating theatre and medical ward nurses: two different ways of perceiving one's organizational health]. / Infermieri di camera operatoria e infermieri di medicina generale: la diversa percezione della propria salute organizzativa.

BACKGROUND: It is widely recognized that the working environment is crucial in the genesis of stress and other disorders that may affect nurses' health. The specific job context and the tasks performed by nurses in different clinical settings can be positive or negative predictors of organizational health. OBJECTIVES: The aim of this study was to describe and compare organizational health among nurses working in operating theaters and medical wards. METHODS: For the study 670 nurses from six university hospitals in Italy were asked to participate and a total of 542 nurses constituted the final sample. The Nursing Organizational Health Questionnaire was used to collect the data and was administered from January to March 2010. A descriptive/comparative design was used. CONCLUSIONS: The results showed that nurses assigned to medical wards perceived their working environment as healthy and were significantly more satisfied and had less psychosomatic complaints than their colleagues working in operating theaters.

Quality of life in stroke survivors: first results from the reliability and validity of the Italian version of the Stroke Impact Scale 3.0.

The purpose of this study was to establish the reliability and validity of the Italian version of the Stroke Impact Scale 3.0 (SIS 3.0), a specific and multidimensional instrument that assesses quality of life (QOL) in stroke survivors. Forty-five patients treated in three Rehabilitation Hospitals of the Lazio Region were included in the study. Patients were assessed using the SIS 3.0, the SF-36, the Barthel Index, the Mini Mental State Examination, the Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale, the NIH Stroke Scale, the Modified Rankin Scale, and the Instrumental Activities of Daily Living. Results showed good internal consistency of the SIS 3.0 (Cronbach's alpha 0.86-0.98), and a good test-retest reliability (r > 0.70, p < 0.000) except for the Emotion and Social Participation subscales. At the re-test, 15 days after the first administration, SIS 3.0 showed a good responsiveness to change, documenting clinical improvement in stroke survivors. Significant correlations between the other instruments and the SIS 3.0 allowed to establish the concurrent validity of the SIS 3.0. Although the small sample size the Italian version of the SIS 3.0 showed good internal consistency and test retest reliability, as well as validity and responsiveness to changes. Since the SIS 3.0 is a specific tool to measure QOL in stroke survivors, its Italian version could be successfully used also in Italian population to better identify predictors of QOL and evaluate the effectiveness of health interventions.