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Purpose: Forensic nursing is a specialty in the nursing profession based on legal procedures. This study aimed to assess the effect of a forensic nursing virtual education course on knowledge and clinical decision-making among master's nursing students. Methods: In a quasi-experimental study with a pre- and post-test, 106 master's nursing students at Guilan (n=65) and Mazandaran (n=41) Universities of Medical Sciences, Iran were enrolled. Data were collected using census sampling from March to April 2021. Participants in the intervention group received a forensic nursing virtual education course in three 90-minute sessions for 2 days. Results: A total of 88 out of 106 master's nursing students were enrolled in this study. The mean post-education score for knowledge in the intervention group was significantly higher than in the control group (12.52 vs. 7.67, P<0.001). The mean post-education score for clinical decision-making in the intervention group was significantly higher than in the control group (16.96 vs. 13.64, P<0.001). Conclusion: The level of knowledge and clinical decision-making of master's nursing students regarding forensic evidence improved after the forensic nursing virtual education course in the intervention group compared to the control group. Nursing managers and policy-makers can develop appropriate strategies to improve the knowledge and clinical decision-making of nursing students by using forensic nursing education courses in the curricula of nursing programs, especially in postgraduate education as an elective or mandatory course. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Depression can lead to increased medical costs, impaired individual and social functioning, nonadherence to therapeutic proceeding, and even suicide and ultimately affect quality of life. It is important to know the extent of its prevalence for successful planning in this regard. This study was conducted to determine the prevalence of depression in the Iranian elderly. This systematic review and meta-analysis study was done through Medline via PubMed, SCOPUS, Web of Science, ProQuest, SID, Embase, and Magiran with determined keywords. Screening was done on the basis of relevance to the purpose of the study, titles, abstracts, full text, and inclusion and exclusion criteria. The quality of the articles was assessed using the Newcastle-Ottawa standard scale. After primary and secondary screening, 30 articles were finally included in the study. According to the 30 articles reviewed, the prevalence of depression in the Iranian elderly was 52 percent based on the random-effects model (CI 95%: 46–58). According to the results of the present study, depression in the Iranian elderly was moderate to high. Therefore, more exact assessment in terms of depression screening in elderly people seems necessary. Coherent and systematic programs, including psychosocial empowerment counselling for the elderly and workshops for their families, are also needed. Researchers can also use the results of this study for future research. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This descriptive correlational study was aimed at determining the relationship of hemodialysis shift with sleep quality and depression in 310 hemodialysis patients. Demographic and Clinical Questionnaires, the Pittsburgh sleep quality index, and Beck's Depression Inventory were used to ascertain the aforementioned relationship. Among the patients, 59.6% reported poor sleep quality and 44.8% reported experiencing depression. Results show that these conditions were significantly related to many factors. Although dialysis shift was not significantly related to sleep quality and depression, sleep quality was found significantly associated with age, female gender, illiteracy, unemployment, residence in rural areas, diabetes, addiction to sedatives, and phosphorus levels. A significant relationship was also found between depression and phosphorus levels. Logistic regression predicted age, gender, illiteracy, unemployment, residence in rural areas, and addiction to sedatives as factors for poor sleep quality. A body mass index (BMI) above 30, decreased urea, and increased phosphorus were predicted as factors for increased depression. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objectives: Futile medical care is considered as the care or treatment that does not benefit the patient. Staff of intensive care units experience moral distress when they perceive the futility of care. Therefore, this study aimed to determine the relationship between perceptions of nurses regarding futile medical care and their caring behaviors toward patients in the final stages of life admitted to intensive care units. Method: This correlation, analytical study was conducted with 181 nursing staff of the intensive care units of health centers affiliated to Mazandaran University of Medical Sciences, Mazandaran, Iran. The data collection tool included a three-part questionnaire containing demographic characteristics form, perception of futile care questionnaire, and caring behaviors inventory. To analyze the data, statistical tests and central indices of tendency and dispersion were investigated using SPSS, version 19. Pearson's correlation coefficient, partial correlation, t-test, and analysis of variance tests were performed to assess the relationship between the variables. Ethical considerations: The study was reviewed by the ethics committee of the Mazandaran University of Medical Sciences. Informed consent was obtained from participants. Results: Our findings illustrated that the majority of nurses (65.7%) had a moderate perception of futile care, and most of them (98.9%) had desirable caring behaviors in taking care of patients in the final stages of life. The nurses believed that psychosocial aspects of care were of utmost importance. There was a significant negative relationship between perception of futile care and caring behavior. Conclusion: Given the moderate perception of nurses concerning futile care, and its negative impact on caring behaviors toward patients, implementing suitable interventions for minimizing the frequency of futile care and its resulting tension seems to be mandatory. It is imperative to train nurses on adjustment mechanisms and raise their awareness as to situations resulting in futile care. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Many patients undergoing hematopoietic stem cell transplant (HSCT) experience fatigue due to their disease process and its long period of treatment. Using nonpharmacological methods to help reduce their fatigue is a reasonable endeavor. The present study was conducted to investigate the effect of Benson's relaxation technique on fatigue levels in patients after HSCT. Materials and Methods: Thirty-seven patients were randomly selected to the intervention (n = 19) and control group (n = 18). In the intervention group, the participants performed Benson's relaxation exercises for 20 min twice per day over a period of 15 days. The data collection tools used included a demographic and medical information form and the Brief Fatigue Inventory, completed by both groups on three different occasions (upon admission and days 8 and 14 after the HSCT). The data obtained were analyzed in Statistical Package for the Social Sciences version-20 using statistical tests. Results: The results of the independent t-test showed no significant preintervention differences in fatigue levels between the two groups. On days 8 (t = 11.21, p < 0.001) and 14 after the transplant (t = 15.62, p < 0.001), a significant difference was observed in the mean level of fatigue between the two groups. Conclusions: These findings indicate that Benson's relaxation technique would improve fatigue in HSCT patients. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: The number of patients with chronic renal failure is increasing in Iran. Quality of life is an important indicator that reveals the sense of well-being, positive understanding of their, and the effectiveness of health care in patients undergoing dialysis, which could be affected by duration of dialysis. Objectives: This study aimed at investigating the relationship between quality of life and duration of dialysis in hemodialysis patients. Methods: In this descriptive correlational study, 246 patients with chronic kidney failure were selected by Single-stage stratified cluster sampling. Hemodialysis patients were put into 2 groups with a duration of hemodialysis less than and more than 36 months andwere thencomparedwith each other. The quality of lifewasmeasuredusing the kidney disease quality of life shortform(KDQOLSF36). Data analysis was performed by the Pearson correlation coefficient, independent t-test, and ANOVA Results: The mean duration of hemodialysis patients was 34.03 months. There was no significant relationship between the quality of life in patients and duration of hemodialysis. Poor quality of life had a significant correlation with old age (P< 0.001), educational level (P < 0.001), job, and income (P < 0.001). Conclusions: The findings showed poor quality of life in patients on dialysis. The length of the disease and other accompanying diseases reduced the quality of life in dialysis patients as their age increased. It is evident that educated people who have better access to sources of support and are able to cope with disease complications have a higher quality of life. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The present study aimed to evaluate the effect of an empowerment program on the moral sensitivity and caring behaviors of nurses in emergency departments in Iran. Emergency department is often a high stress environment. Nurses who worked in the emergency departments are expected to work under pressure to many standards, guidelines and protocols related to patient care. It will expose emergency department nurses to psychological pressures and moral conflicts. A nurse's sensitivity to ethical issues is necessary to provide humane care; it is considered to be a professional competence for nurses. This study had a controlled quasi-experimental design. Data were collected before, immediately after, and 1 month after the intervention using a moral sensitivity questionnaire and a caring behavior questionnaire. A total of 131 emergency department nurses from 4 teaching hospitals were divided into an intervention group and a control group. The intervention group received six 60-minute training sessions; the control group did not receive the training. The mean moral sensitivity and caring behavior scores for both groups increased significantly immediately and 1 month after the intervention. However, the significance was higher in the intervention group than in the control group. A comparison of the mean moral sensitivity and caring behavior scores between the groups immediately and 1 month after the intervention did not show a statistically significant difference. Implementing a training program on ethical issues could thus have a significant impact on the clinical performance of nurses, which could be maintained through follow-up. • Nurses need to be able to make ethical decisions when faced with ethical problems. • Many barriers affect the moral sensitivity of nurses in practice. • Lack of moral sensitivity in nurses can negatively affect quality of care. • The ethical empowerment program can enhance the moral sensitivity of nurses. • The ethical empowerment program can improve the caring behaviors of nurses. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Nurses are at high risk of burnout, desire to leave the profession, and possibly missed nursing care due to the exhausting nature of caring. Missed nursing care may also affect nurses' burnout and desire to leave the profession. Therefore, the objective of this study was to determine the missed nursing care and its relationship with burnout and desire to leave the profession among intensive care unit nurses. The participants of this descriptive analytical study were 249 Iranian nurses working in intensive care units in 2022. The data were collected using a Demographic Information Questionnaire, Kalish's Missed Nursing Care Questionnaire, Maslach Burnout Inventory, and desire to leave the profession questionnaire. The majority of nurses (71%) were females. The generalized linear regression model showed that there was a significant relationship between missed care with gender (B = 5.55, P < .001), marital status (B = -7.37, P = .04), working shift (B = 7.80, P < .001), and employment status (B = -2.87, P = .02). Using structural equation modeling, it was found that the effect of missed care on burnout was significant. Considering the effect of missed care on burnout among nurses working in intensive care units, it seems that creating better working conditions, providing sufficient resources for nurses, supporting them, and changing the factors affecting missed care in order to improve the conditions can reduce the possibility of missing nursing care and, finally, burnout., Competing Interests: The authors declare no potential conflicts of interest with respect to the research, authorship, and/or publication of this study., (Copyright © 2024 Wolters Kluwer Health, Inc. All rights reserved.)

Background: Patients on hemodialysis can experience thirst distress. However, there is no valid and reliable Persian instrument to measure this condition in such patients. The present study aims to determine the psychometric properties of the Persian version of the thirst distress scale (TDS) for patients on hemodialysis., Materials and Methods: Our sample consisted of 142 hemodialysis patients completed the TDS Persian version. The face, content, and construct validity of the scale were ascertained. Reliability was also assessed using internal consistency, construct reliability, and intra-class correlation coefficient (ICC)., Results: Construct validity determined one factor with an eigenvalue greater than 0.7. The model revealed good fitness (χ 2 (121, N = 142) = 269.32, p < 0.001; χ 2 df = 2.225, goodness of fit index (GFI) = 0.912, normed fit index (NFI) = 0.866, comparative fit index (CFI) = 0.926, incremental fit index (IFI) = 0.961, and root mean square error of approximation (RMSEA) = 0.089 (90% confidence interval = 0.069 - 0.109)). The internal consistency, construct reliability, and ICC were greater than 0.70. The scale's convergent validity was demonstrated., Conclusion: This study confirmed the acceptable psychometric properties and the factor structure of the TDS in Iranian patients on hemodialysis.
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Background: One of the most important purposes of health-oriented educational centers is to train competent nurses. This study was intended to discover the meaning of "competency of nursing academic staff" among nursing students and instructors., Methodology & Methods: A qualitative study using the content analysis approach was conducted. The data was collected through in-depth interviews consisting of 30 individuals and a focus group., Results: Data analysis resulted in the extraction of 15 categories and 6 themes. The themes included 'providing effective education', 'increasing research capability of oneself and that of the students', 'promoting managerial competency', 'being a cultural and behavioral role model', 'motivating and nurturing the students', and 'boosting teaching values and disposition'., Conclusion: This study resulted in discovering the real meaning of professional competency among the nursing faculty staff. The findings could be utilized in designing assessment tools for professional competency of nursing academic staff in nursing schools and other medical fields.

The aim of this study was to determine the relationship between quality of life with stress in the haemodialysis patients. This descriptive correlation study was done on 100 haemodialysis patients selected by consent method from Imam Khomeini and Fatemeh Zahra Hospitals in Sari/Iran from March 2008 to February 2009. Data were collected in questionnaire consisting of 3 sections (demographic feature, quality of life and stress) in three months. In the questionnaire, first, quality of life then stress in the patients was studied and the variables described. Then the relation between them was determined by statistical analysis. From the total number of 100 patients (53 men and 47 women) under study, 42% with partial comfortable life had moderate tension. Pearson correlation coefficient showed that there is a significant linear relationship with quality of life and degree of tension, (r = 0.802). That is with increase of tension, quality of life declines (p < 0.001). Also Pearson correlation coefficient indicated that there is positive correlation between the number of hemodialysis per week and the history of dialysis (p = 0.001). History of dialysis in 69% of the patients was 1-5 years and 74% of them were dialyzed in the morning trice a week. Findings showed that, with increase of stress, quality of such patients' life decreases. Therefore, the nurses and the other members of medication team should know to reduce the patient's stress using the supportive procedures and adaptation techniques, help improve quality of life by proper intervention method.