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Objective. to measure psychometric properties of the Italian version of the Pediatric Evaluation of Disability Inventory (PEDI-I) in a population with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD). Methods. The PEDI-I was administered to different children with ASD. The internal consistency was examined by using Cronbach's Alpha, while the intraclass correlation coefficient (ICC) was used to investigate both inter-observer and intra-observer reproducibility. Its concurrent validity was evaluated with the Italian version of the Barthel Index. Results. The PEDI-I was administered to 60 children with a diagnosis of ASD. Cronbach's Alpha showed statistically significant values (.885-.965). Inter-observer and intra-observer investigations confirm the reproducibility of the scale with a range of high and very high parameters. The Pearson Correlation Coefficient with the Barthel Index showed significant data for all PEDI-I subscales with a p<0.01. Conclusions. The PEDI-I showed good psychometric properties and it is possible to confirm its validity and reliability in ASD population. However, for better understanding of how PEDI-I works in clinical practice, further researches are recommended. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This systematic review of randomized controlled trials (RCTs) aims at evaluating the efficacy of Occupational therapy (OT) interventions in Asperger's syndrome (AS) pediatric patients. We conducted a systematic review according to PRISMA guidelines. The screening of the literature was carried out on PUBMED, SCOPUS, WEB OF SCIENCE and OT SEEKER databases, TO December 2018. We selected three RCTs having the common objective to evaluate whether children with AS can improve their social skills thanks to OT treatments. The interventions targeted by the three selected studies were: LEGO therapy, Social Use of Language Programme, Let's Face It! software and Parent Training combined with the administration of risperidone. All the studies showed that the intervention groups improved their overall social ability. This review shows that OT interventions can help concretely AS children in overcoming their social issues. Nevertheless, more RCTs are needed to better understand the OT's benefits and limitations in AS patients. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective. The objectives of this work were to fill the gap in the scientific literature and to evaluate the results of physical therapy treatments in individuals affected by chronic fatigue syndrome, considering only studies that employed a randomized controlled trial. Methods. A systematic review was carried out according to PRISMA guidelines. Three bibliographic databases were searched: MEDLINE, Cochrane Library, and PEDro. The minimum prerequisites for papers to be included in the systematic review were that they had to (a) employ a randomized controlled trial; (b) be published in English; and (c) be published during the last ten years (2007-2017). The studies were evaluated according to Jadad score. Results. Four studies were included. This systematic review suggests that a treatment that is more effective than all the others cannot be defined. This conclusion is related to the low number of investigated studies; therefore, the collected results cannot be generalized. Conclusion. Chronic fatigue syndrome is not yet a well-understood pathology, and the physical mechanisms that influence the outcomes still need more study. Rehabilitation programs that promote physiotherapy techniques such as exercise, mobilization, and body awareness (e.g., MRT and GET) are the most effective in reducing medium and long-term fatigue severity in CFS patients. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

ANDERSON K.H., FRIEDEMANN M.L., BŰSCHER A., SANSONI J. & HODNICKI D. (2012) Immersion research education: students as catalysts in international collaboration research. International Nursing Review Background: This paper describes an international nursing and health research immersion program. Minority students from the USA work with an international faculty mentor in teams conducting collaborative research. The Minority Health International Research Training (MHIRT) program students become catalysts in the conduct of cross-cultural research. Aim: To narrow the healthcare gap for disadvantaged families in the USA and partner countries. Methods: Faculty from the USA, Germany, Italy, Colombia, England, Austria and Thailand formed an international research and education team to explore and compare family health issues, disparities in chronic illness care, social inequities and healthcare solutions. USA students in the MHIRT program complete two introductory courses followed by a 3-month research practicum in a partner country guided by faculty mentors abroad. The overall program development, student study abroad preparation, research project activities, cultural learning, and student and faculty team outcomes are explored. Results: Cross-fertilization of research, cultural awareness and ideas about improving family health occur through education, international exchange and research immersion. Faculty research and international team collaboration provide opportunities for learning about research, health disparities, cultural influences and healthcare systems. The students are catalysts in the research effort, the dissemination of research findings and other educational endeavours. Five steps of the collaborative activities lead to programmatic success. Conclusions: MHIRT scholars bring creativity, enthusiasm, and gain a genuine desire to conduct health research about families with chronic illness. Their cultural learning stimulates career plans that include international research and attention to vulnerable populations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Adherence to hand hygiene (HH) guidelines reduces the incidence of hospital-acquired infection, however, little research has been conducted on factors that influence healthcare students' HH practices. Methods: A questionnaire was administered to 1721 nursing and medical students from 20 universities in Australia, Sweden, Greece and Italy to determine their HH knowledge, beliefs, practices, education and assessment. Results: The mean score on the HH quiz was 66%. Self-reported HH compliance was 86%. Knowledge scores were significantly influenced by the frequency of HH assessment and the number of methods used to teach HH (p = .04). HH practices were significantly influenced by HH beliefs, knowledge, the frequency of assessment, number of teaching methods used, perceptions of the importance of HH as an infection control measure and the importance given to HH in the curriculum (p < .01). Hand hygiene beliefs were significantly influenced by HH knowledge, and by students' perceptions of the importance given to HH in the curriculum, by supervisors and facilities, and the importance of HH as an infection control measure (p < .01). Conclusions: There was room for improvement in healthcare students' HH knowledge, particularly in relation to the use of alcohol-based hand rubs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

BACKGROUND: The International Council of Nurses (ICN) has elaborated an international terminology for nursing practice [International Classification of Nursing Practice (ICNP)] that can be useful to catalogue the problems of a nursing nature in diagnosis and also find a system for the classification of nursing activities. ICNP is also the reason why the Italian association Consociazione, representing Italian Nurses at ICN, through the School of Advanced Nursing of the University 'La Sapienza' of Rome, has set up a working group for the translation and experimentation of the ICNP version Beta 2. CONTENT: In this article the ICNP beta translation and validation into Italian is considered with some scenarios of how benefit could be derived by its utilization for nursing's visibility. The visibility of nursing care can be measured not only through patient outcomes but also by studying the existing data of patient care documentation. To have a common language and terminology in nursing is important for a universal understanding. RESULTS: Some philosophical reasoning on the genesis and development of ICNP is discussed along with arguments for and against nursing classification systems. Some findings on Italian experimentation for nursing documentation as well as economical analysis are reported along with a vision for future development and utilization. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Family caregiving for those who suffer from Alzheimer's disease is an important but understudied area in Italian nursing. Population ageing and the existing burden of care for family caregivers indicate that there will be enormous pressure on families in the future to provide adequate and culturally appropriate care. This study attempted to redress this situation by examining anxiety and depression among 34 female Italian Alzheimer's caregivers over a total of 816 caregiving days. A descriptive, repeated measures design was used, using three instruments to survey caregiving: a General Questionnaire about Caregiving, the Spielberg State-Trait Anxiety Inventory and the Geriatric Depression Scale. Findings indicated that caregivers suffered high levels of anxiety (76%) and depression (42%). Statistical analyses showed that the anxiety and depression scores were positively correlated with hours of care, physical and psychological illness scores, and negatively correlated with level of education and time for leisure activities. However, no significant correlations were found with the Mini Mental State Examination scores, demonstrating that the burden of care is large, irrespective of the extent of mental impairment. Implications of the findings suggest that support and assistance given to Italian caregivers might be inadequate, particularly with respect to respite services and educational support. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background One of the scales most used to measure quickly and easily eHealth Literacy is the eHealth LiteracyScale (eHEALS); however, there was no validation of this scale in Italian. Therefore, the aim of this study was to adapt and validate the eHealth Literacy Scale (eHEALS) to the italian context. Methods:Italian translation of eHEALS was administered along unit to another two scale for measure lifestyle habits self-esteem and life satisfaction). A sample of 650 university students aged between 18 and 45 years was selected. An exploratory factor analysis, confirmatory factor analysis, analysis of invariance, reliability, stability and bivariate correlations were performed. Results:Exploratory factor analysis revealed a monofactorial structure that explained 67% of variance,. Reliability of 0.87 and test-retest correlation of 0.78 was obtained. The questionnaire was invariant by gender. Regarding the criterion validity, a statistically significant and positive correlations between 0.05 and 0.15 with three indicators was obtained (self-esteem, lifestyle habits and life satisfaction). The italian version of the eHEALS tested in this work has shown to be a valid and reliable scale to measure eHealth competence in university students. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Every day there is a data explosion on the web. In 2013, 5 exabytes of content were created each day. Every hour internet networks carries a quantity of texts equivalent to twenty billion books. For idea Iit is a huge mass of information on the linguistic behavior of people and society that was unthinkable until a few years ago. It is an opportunity for valuable analysis for understanding social phenomena, also in nursing and health care sector.This poster shows the the steps of an idealy strategy for textual statistical analysis and the process of extracting useful information about health care, referring expecially nursing care from journal and web information. We show the potential of web tools of Text Mining applications (DTM, Wordle, Voyant Tools, Taltac 2.10, Treecloud and other web 2.0 app) analyzing text data and information extraction about sentiment, perception, scientific activites and visibility of nursing. This specific analysis is conduct analyzing "Repubblica", first newspaper in Italy (years of analisys: 2012- 14) and one italian scientific nursing journal (years: 2012-14). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

An abstract of the article "Continence outcomes measurement: an overview of projects sponsored by the National Continence Management Strategy," by J. Sansoni, N. Marosszeky and E. Sanson is presented.