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Aim and objective This paper aims to explore the ways in which neonatal nurses understand the experience of parents who have experienced infertility, conceived a baby via in vitro fertilisation and delivered an extremely premature infant. The chance of a poor long-term outcome for the baby is significant; therefore, parental anguish plays out in the neonatal intensive care. Background Current literature suggests that infertility is a significant issue for ageing women and many couples experience multiple cycles of invitro-fertilisation ( IVF) treatment to achieve a pregnancy. Babies conceived through IVF are more likely to have genetic disorders, and be born prematurely. When the baby is born through IVF and is also born extremely prematurely, it creates a crisis situation for the parents. This paper will focus on the parental anguish of achieving a pregnancy through IVF to see the baby born extremely prematurely (defined as ≤ 24-week gestation). It will examine parental anguish from caregiver perspective of the neonatal nurse who supports the parents through this very difficult time. Design This study used interviews with neonatal nurses, and drew insights from interpretative phenomenology. Methods This research used a combination of a questionnaire and a series of interviews in a qualitative study informed by phenomenology. The analysis of the interview data involved the creation of key themes following extensive coding of thematic statements and the analysis of the emerging themes. Results This paper outlines the neonatal nurses' understanding of parental anguish and overwhelming sadness in parents whose baby was conceived by IVF, and was also born extremely prematurely. The theme of 'seeking parenthood' was synthesised from two sub-themes - 'longing for a baby' and 'the desperation to become parents'. Conclusion This study identified that neonatal nurses bear witness to parental anguish as their hopes of taking home a live baby might not be realised. The time, effort and money required to achieve a pregnancy does not mean that the baby will be spared the outcomes of extreme prematurity and the risk factors associated with IVF. The parents may be left empty handed. Therefore, the word precious becomes a metaphor for the IVF baby as the neonatal team try desperately to give the parents their much longed baby. Relevance to clinical practice Delayed child bearing has an impact on fertility, with maternal age having the most impact on the ability to conceive. Babies conceived through IVF technologies have a higher risk of genetic abnormalities and being born prematurely, and this will impact on the neonatal intensive care availability. Extreme prematurity and IVF can significantly impact on the baby's outcome. Witnessing parental anguish can be a major source of stress for the neonatal nurses. Neonatal nurses need to develop strategies not only to help the parents but also to prevent the parents' overwhelming sadness from affecting their ability to function in the neonatal intensive care unit. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Aims and Objectives: The aims of this project were to (a) determine barriers to current handover and transport process, (b) develop a new protocol and process for team‐to‐team handover, and (c) evaluate staff satisfaction with the new process. Background: The handover and transport of critically ill patients from the paediatric emergency department to the paediatric intensive care unit is a period of vulnerability associated with adverse events. Design: A mixed‐methods study using a quasi‐experimental design and qualitative approach. Methods: Focus groups were conducted to determine the barriers and facilitators of the current handover and transport process. Using these themes, a multidisciplinary team developed and implemented a new process including establishment of eight patient criteria for specialised transport and a standardised, interdisciplinary handover tool for team‐to‐team handover. Staff satisfaction was examined pre‐ and postintervention. Results: Content analysis of focus groups revealed five categories: need for improved communication, cultural dissonance among units, defects in system and processes, need for standardisation and ambiguity between providers regarding acuity. Staff members reported improvements in their perceptions of satisfaction, safety, communication and role understanding associated with the new process. Conclusions: Standardisation through the establishment of severity of illness criteria and communication tools creates shared mental models and decreases risks to safety. A paradigm shift of team‐to‐team handover and transport is recommended. Relevance to clinical practice: This paper suggests the importance of improving communication during the handover and transport process through establishing standardised patient severity of illness criteria, use of standardised tools and team‐to‐team handover processes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Aims and Objectives: To reveal the existence of alarms in COVID‐19 intensive care units, where medical devices with alarm function are frequently used, the effects of alarms on nurses, especially their on‐the‐job performances and social lives, and their coping methods. Methodology/Methods: This was a mixed design, including descriptive and qualitative research methods with two stages, and was carried out between March and April 2021. The study adhered to the STROBE checklist for cross‐sectional studies and the COREQ guidelines for qualitative studies. Setting: Nurses in the COVID‐19 intensive care unit of a university hospital constituted the sample. 58 nurses participated in the quantitative data phase, and 18 nurses in the qualitative interviews. Results: More than half of the nurses worked in the COVID‐19 intensive care unit for more than 5 months and overtime, and 87.9 had day and night shifts. The monthly income level of 65.5% was between the hunger and poverty lines, and 12.1 % received psychiatric support in the last 6 months. A positive and significant relationship was found between the mean score obtained from the alarm fatigue questionnaire and the level of discomfort felt due to the alarms (1–10 points) (p = 0.001). Five themes and thirty sub‐themes were emerged in the focus group interviews. Conclusion: The number of alarms of the medical devices in the COVID‐19 intensive care units was more than the other intensive care units, resulting in fatigue in nurses. Since alarm fatigue is directly related to patient safety, the effective management of medical device alarms can reduce alarm fatigue and prevent potentially dangerous outcomes. Relevance to clinical practice: Nurses care for patients with severe clinical conditions in COVID‐19 intensive care units. This situation caused them to be exposed to more alarms. Nurses should make efforts to reduce their alarm intensity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Aims and objectives The purpose of the study was to describe the personal experiences of relatives of Syrian patients in the intensive care unit in one hospital in Turkey. Background The concept of the intensive care unit can be particularly frightening for family members. Current recommendations for training Intensive care unit nurses should support a holistic approach to patient (and family) care, including explanations at a level that families can easily understand and allowing family members to see the patient at regular intervals. Design This qualitative study was conducted between June and August 2014 and included a study sample of 30 Syrian family members related to patients receiving treatment at a state hospital intensive care unit in Turkey. Methods Data were collected by semi-structured interviews. We used percentages to represent descriptive data and conducted qualitative content analysis. Results Following data analysis, six themes arose: (1) communication-related difficulties, (2) difficulties receiving information regarding the patient's condition, (3) difficulties meeting personal needs, (4) difficulties communicating with other family members, (5) difficulties receiving support from other family members, and (6) unmet expectations from nurses and hospital administration. Conclusions Syrian patient's relatives receiving treatment in an intensive care unit in Turkey experienced communication difficulties in terms of receiving information from health care personnel, informing other family members, receiving social support from other family members, and having various unmet expectations from nurses and hospital administration. Relevance to clinical practice The results of this study can be used to develop guidelines and predictions for scenarios that are likely to arise for patients' relatives from foreign countries who arrive to support patients who receive healthcare services in our increasingly global world. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]