Tips for better visual elements in posters and podium presentations.

CONTEXT: The ability to effectively communicate through posters and podium presentations using appropriate visual content and style is essential for health care educators. OBJECTIVES: To offer suggestions for more effective visual elements of posters and podium presentations. METHODS: We present the experiences of our multidisciplinary publishing group, whose combined experiences and collaboration have provided us with an understanding of what works and how to achieve success when working on presentations and posters. Many others would offer similar advice, as these guidelines are consistent with effective presentation. FINDINGS/SUGGESTIONS: Certain visual elements should be attended to in any visual presentation: consistency, alignment, contrast and repetition. Presentations should be consistent in font size and type, line spacing, alignment of graphics and text, and size of graphics. All elements should be aligned with at least one other element. Contrasting light background with dark text (and vice versa) helps an audience read the text more easily. Standardized formatting lets viewers know when they are looking at similar things (tables, headings, etc.). Using a minimal number of colors (four at most) helps the audience more easily read text. For podium presentations, have one slide for each minute allotted for speaking. The speaker is also a visual element; one should not allow the audience's view of either the presentation or presenter to be blocked. Making eye contact with the audience also keeps them visually engaged. CONCLUSIONS: Health care educators often share information through posters and podium presentations. These tips should help the visual elements of presentations be more effective.

An ecological approach to physical activity in African American women.

Physical activity in women has assumed increasing significance as a policy issue as a result of the release of the 1996 Surgeon General's Report on Physical Activity and Health. This report revealed that women in the United States were less likely than men to adhere to the recommended guidelines for physical activity. African American women are less likely than white women to participate in leisure time physical activity across age, occupational, and income groups. The purpose of this study was to use the Ecological Model of Health Promotion to explore policy, environmental, and individual factors influencing physical activity of middle- to older-aged African American women in a mixed income community in a large midwestern city. Focus group discussions were held with 3 groups of women -- administrators/community leaders, exercisers, and nonexercisers. Thirty-three women between the ages of 40 and 78 participated in the study. The women identified 6 themes influencing physical activity: perceptions of physical activity and exercise; perceived barriers to exercise; perceived benefits of and motivators to exercise; past and present opportunities for exercise; factors that enhance the successful delivery of an exercise program; and coalition building to deliver an exercise program to women in the community. The results of this study reveal that to successfully increase physical activity in an ethnic urban community, researchers and other concerned individuals need to collaborate at multiple ecological levels, with an initial emphasis on establishing coalitions between institutions, community groups, policy makers, and individuals.

Concerns and risk factor modification in women during the year after coronary artery surgery.

BACKGROUND: Future plans or return to a usual lifestyle has been shown to be of concern to persons recovering from coronary artery surgery. However it is not clear whether early concerns remain stable or evolve over time. OBJECTIVE: To examine women's concerns about having coronary artery surgery and living with coronary artery disease after surgery over time. METHODS: Concerns and risk factor modification strategies were measured in 55 women at 1, 6, and 12 months after coronary artery surgery. The Carr and Powers Stressor Scale and an investigator-developed interview were used. RESULTS: Women's primary concerns shifted over the year from surgical recovery to living with coronary heart disease. At 1 month after surgery, issues related to future plans, such as progress in recovery and resuming lifestyle, were rated as causing the most concern. Concern about diet was the highest rated concern 1 year after surgery. More than half of the women reported exercising more, and approximately three fourths reported eating a better diet 1 year after surgery. CONCLUSIONS: The findings demonstrate that women are concerned about diet and exercise, and many women attempt to change their behavior. Capitalizing on women's concerns about living with coronary artery disease may help address risk factors. However, specialized interventions may be needed that focus on women who are not concerned about and/or not engaged in risk reduction behaviors.

Patient delay in seeking treatment for acute myocardial infarction symptoms.

Patient delay before seeking treatment for the symptoms of acute myocardial infarction has a significantly negative effect on morbidity and mortality. Most patients delay 2 or more hours before accessing the emergency medical system, which limits the ability to use reperfusion strategies. This article reviews variables that have been implicated in delay and explores possible explanations for why certain characteristics may be associated with longer delays. The outcomes of educational campaigns that have targeted delay behavior will be examined and directions for future research are identified.

Treating urinary tract infections in the elderly.

Elderly patients in critical care settings are at increased risk for nosocomial infections, especially urinary tract infections (UTIs), the most common type of nosocomial infection. Catheter-related UTIs in critically ill elderly patients present a particular challenge to the advanced practice nurse and critical care nurse in terms of clinical features, diagnosis, and management.

Clinical simulation laboratory. An adjunct to clinical teaching.

Videotaped and telephone simulations role-played by students were used in a clinical laboratory setting to enhance student learning. The authors discuss the structure, implementation, evaluation, and potential uses of these simulated activities.

Acute myocardial infarction in the workplace.

1. Cardiovascular disease is a leading cause of death in the United States. Significant numbers of individuals in the work force experience an acute myocardial infarction (AMI) each year. 2. Strategies are available that can be used to facilitate rapid assessment and management of the employee suspected of having AMI. 3. The occupational health nurse can make a significant contribution in reducing the morbidity and mortality associated with AMI through the development of a system for rapid assessment and activation of the emergency medical system.

Symptoms of acute myocardial infarction: expectations of a community sample.

OBJECTIVE: To identify the lay public's expectations of the symptoms of acute myocardial infarction (AMI). DESIGN: Street-intercept survey method. SETTING: Four neighborhoods in a large metropolitan area. SAMPLE: One hundred ninety-seven women and 217 men. INSTRUMENT: The Representation of Heart Attack Symptoms questionnaire (RHAS), a 48-item instrument that identifies subjects' expectations concerning the associated symptoms of AMI and the location, quality, and intensity of the discomfort of AMI. RESULTS: The symptoms most individuals expected during AMI included: chest pain, irregular heart beats, inability to move, and shortness of breath. The locations selected as most likely included: middle, left, and right side of the chest, upper and lower back. The most common descriptors of the expected discomfort were "tight," "pressure," and "heaviness." More than 88% of subjects expected the intensity of a heart attack to be at least a 9 on a scale of 0 (No discomfort) to 10 (The most discomfort imagined). CONCLUSIONS: The lay public have both accurate and inaccurate expectations about the symptoms of AMI.

Optimism, coping and long-term recovery from coronary artery surgery in women.

Optimism, coping strategies, and psychological and functional outcomes were measured in 55 women undergoing coronary artery surgery. Data were collected in-hospital and at 1, 6, and 12 months after surgery. Optimism was related to positive moods and life satisfaction, and inversely related to negative moods. Few relationships were found between optimism and functional ability. Cognitive coping strategies accounted for a mediating effect between optimism and negative mood. Optimists were more likely to accept their situation, and less likely to use escapism. In turn, these coping strategies were inversely related to negative mood and mediated the relationship between optimism and this outcome. Optimism was not related to problem-focused coping strategies; this, these coping strategies cannot explain the relationship between optimism and outcomes.

Perceptions of patients with cardiovascular disease about the causes of coronary artery disease.

This study was an examination of perceptions about the causes of coronary artery disease and the timeline of the disease among 105 patients hospitalized because of myocardial infarction or for coronary angiography and receiving the diagnosis of coronary artery disease. Although 79% of subjects named at least one of three modifiable risk factors (smoking, hypertension, elevated cholesterol), only 7% identified all three. Subjects known to have risk factors varied in their recognition of those risks as a cause of their coronary artery disease. Sixty-four percent of smokers recognized smoking as a personal cause of their coronary artery disease, whereas only 15% of subjects with hypertension recognized hypertension as a cause. The majority of subjects (55%) believed that coronary artery disease was a chronic disease. The other subjects were unsure (13%) or believed the situation would be short term (28%). Despite general knowledge about coronary artery disease, individuals with known risk factors continue to be largely ignorant of their personal risks and to some extent of the course of the disease.