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Accessible summary: What is known on the subject?: Many nursing students have inadequate preparation for practice in mental health nursing in the United States and China. The concept of mental illness has different connotations in different cultures. Studies differ from country to country concerning the influence of nursing education on students’ knowledge about and attitudes towards mental disorders. There is a lack of cross‐cultural research that takes a broad perspective to explore how nursing students’ knowledge and beliefs about mental disorders are influenced by the culture within education and healthcare systems. What this paper adds to existing knowledge?: Nursing students in the United States and China shared similar views on a broad range of intervention options including professional help, psychotropic medications and activity interventions for managing depression and schizophrenia. The major difference between the two nursing student groups was that the Chinese students showed more preference to occasional alcohol consumption and specialized therapies including cognitive‐behavioural therapy and electroconvulsive therapy and the US students held less skepticism towards traditional and religious practices as possible treatment options for depression and schizophrenia. What are the implications for practice?: The Chinese nursing students need to be educated about safe alcohol consumption guidelines adopted by the National Health and Family Planning Commission. The US nursing students need to increase their awareness of national practice guidelines for managing mental disorders, particularly with respect to the use of specialized therapies such as cognitive‐behavioural therapy and electroconvulsive therapy. We support professional and psychosocial interventions in caring for patients with mental disorders. Abstract: INTRODUCTION: Nursing students in the United States and China have reported inadequate preparedness for practice in mental health nursing. It is important to investigate nursing students’ mental health literacy levels for a better understanding of their practice readiness in mental health field upon completion of their education. Aim: This study was aimed at developing an understanding of American and Chinese nursing students’ mental health literacy regarding the effectiveness of specific interventions for managing depression and schizophrenia. Method: The “Australian National Mental Health Literacy Survey” was completed by a group of 310 nursing students including 152 Americans and 158 Chinese between April 2016 and April 2017 to compare students’ rated intervention options on two provided vignettes. Results: The two student groups reached consensus on many intervention options. However, the Chinese students showed more preference to occasional alcohol consumption and specialized therapies and the US students held less skepticism towards traditional practices as treatment options for depression and schizophrenia. Discussion and implications for practice: The findings support professional and psychosocial interventions in caring for patients with mental disorders. There is a significant need for specific education on safe alcohol consumption guidelines for Chinese nursing students and clinical practice guidelines for managing mental disorders for American nursing students. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Breast cancer is the most common cancer in women. Asian American women have experienced steadily increasing breast cancer incidence rates over the past several decades. The increased rate might be in part due to acculturation. We tested the hypothesis that higher level of acculturation was associated with higher mammographic breast density (MBD), an indicator of breast cancer risk, in a cohort of 425 premenopausal Chinese immigrant women in Philadelphia. Generalized estimating equations accounted for repeated observations and adjusted for age, type of mammographic image, body mass index, months of breastfeeding, number of live births, age at first birth, and menopausal stage (pre, early peri, late peri, post). Results indicated that acculturation level was not associated with any of the MBD measures. Findings were contrary to our hypothesis and previous, cross-sectional studies. In this study population, reproductive factors had a greater effect on MBD than acculturation-related behaviors in adulthood. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

To compare pain management outcomes in postoperative patients from an American hospital and a Chinese hospital. A convenience sample of 244 patients in the United States and 268 patients in China with similar surgical sites completed the American Pain Society Patient Outcome Questionnaire-Revised (APS-POQ-R) and the Pain Management Index (PMI) was calculated on their first postoperative day. Patients in the United States reported a higher score on the "perception of pain management" subscale of the APS-POQ-R and a higher proportion of adequate treatment as measured by the PMI (85.2% vs. 39.0%, p <.001). Patient education and degrees of pain relief predicted patient satisfaction with pain management (item in APS-POQ-R) in patients from both countries. A higher level of compliance with pain management guidelines has contributed to a higher level of perception in patients in the United States. Establishing procedure-specific protocols and clinical pathways may improve pain management outcomes for Chinese patients. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This descriptive comparative study aimed to compare caring ability between Chinese and American nursing students. A survey was conducted in 544 Chinese and 109 American nursing students using Caring Ability Inventory and socio-demographic data sheet. The results indicated that the Chinese nursing students reported significantly lower scores in the Caring Ability Inventory total and three subscales (p < .001) compared with their American counterpart. Years of program and number of siblings were factors affecting the Caring Ability Inventory scores among Chinese students (p < .05), whereas program, marital status, prior work experience, and gender were found to influence the Caring Ability Inventory scores of American students (p < .05). Some gaps and differences between the Chinese and America nursing students’ caring ability were identified. Nurse educator should leverage the influencing factors to strengthen the caring ability of nursing students in both countries. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The American Heart Association's ideal cardiovascular health score is based on 7 cardiovascular health metrics to measure progress toward their Impact Goal of reducing cardiovascular disease by 20 % before 2020. This study applied this construct to assess cardiovascular health in a sample of Asian Americans. Convenience sampling methods were used to enroll self-identified Asian American's over the age of 18 years who were attending community health fairs across the greater Philadelphia and urban areas of New Jersey. The heart health metrics of tobacco use, body mass index, physical activity, diet, blood pressure, and glucose were measured. In the greater sample (N = 541), 82 % were female, the mean age was 65.1 (SD = 15.5) years, 45 % were Vietnamese, 38 % were Chinese and 17 % were Korean. Prevalence of ideal heart health for the metrics of tobacco use (95 %) was high. Only 19.4 % achieved ideal levels of physical activity, 35.1 % for BMI, 28.9 % for glucose and 66 % for blood pressure. Dietary intake was ideal for 20.7 % of the sample. More years since migration and Korean race trended toward having a higher prevalence of poor health in some metrics. Most Asian Americans are not achieving ideal cardiovascular health for several of the metrics evaluated, with those residing in the United States for more than 13 years and Korean Americans being higher-risk groups. Targeted community based intervention approaches to improving and monitoring heart health in Asian American, and Asian American subgroups, are needed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Ethnic minority groups are less engaged than Caucasian American adults in advance care planning (ACP). Knowledge deficits, language, and culture are barriers to ACP. Limited research exists on ACP and advance directives in the Chinese American adult population. Using a pre-posttest, repeated measures design, the current study explored the effectiveness of a nurse-led, culturally sensitive ACP seminar for Chinese American adults on (a) knowledge, completion, and discussion of advance directives; and (b) the relationship between demographic variables, advance directive completion, and ACP discussions. A convenience sample of 72 urban, community-dwelling Chinese American adults (mean age = 61 years) was included. Knowledge, advance directive completion, and ACP discussions increased significantly after attending the nurse-led seminar (p < 0.01). Increased age correlated with advance directive completion and ACP discussions; female gender correlated with ACP discussions. Nursing education in a community setting increased advance directive knowledge and ACP engagement in Chinese American adults. [Journal of Gerontological Nursing, 47(8), 17-21.] [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]