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Interprofessional collaborative practice is a core competency and is the key to strengthening health practice systems in order to deliver safe and high-quality nursing practice. However, there is no Interprofessional Collaboration Practice Competency Scale (IPCPCS) for clinical nurses in Taiwan. Therefore, the purposes of this study were to develop an IPCPCS and to verify its reliability and validity. This was a psychometric study with a cross-sectional survey using convenience sampling to recruit nurses from the seven hospitals of a medical foundation. A self-designed structured IPCPCS was rolled out via a Google survey. The data were analyzed using descriptive statistics, principal-axis factoring (PAF) with Promax rotation, Pearson correlation, reliability analysis, and one-way ANOVA. PAF analysis found that three factors could explain 77.76% of cumulative variance. These were collaborative leadership and interprofessional conflict resolution, interprofessional communication and team functioning, and role clarification and client-centered care. The internal consistency of the three factors (Cronbach's α) was between 0.970 to 0.978, and the Pearson correlation coefficients were between 0.814 to 0.883. Significant differences were presented in the IPCPCS score by age, education level, total years of work experience, position on the nursing clinical ladder, and participation in interprofessional education. In conclusion, the three factors used in the IPCPCS have good reliability and construct validity. This scale can be used as an evaluation tool of in-service interprofessional education courses for clinical nurses. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Hemodialysis patients undergo hemodialysis two to three times a week and must live together with the dialysis machine. The patient's self-participation is to combine the patient's own experience and professional knowledge to influence the care. A successful self-participation experience empowers patients to adapt to living with hemodialysis. However, few studies have been conducted regarding the subjective experiences of such patient participation. There is a lack of a self-participation dialysis life scale for hemodialysis patients. Therefore, this study aims to develop and evaluate a self-participation dialysis life scale for hemodialysis patients. The items for the self-participation dialysis life scale were confirmed through qualitative interviews based on grounded theory. After expert content validity evaluation, 435 hemodialysis patients were purposively sampled from hemodialysis centers in two regional teaching hospitals in Taiwan. Descriptive statistics, principal axis factoring, reliability analysis, Pearson's correlation, and one-way ANOVA were used for data analysis. The results show that the item- and scale-content validity indices are 0.96 and 0.73, respectively. This scale is divided into two scales. The first part is "Scale of Perceptions of Hemodialysis", including two factors. The overall can explain 66.34% of the cumulative variances. The second part is the "Scale of Self-Participation in Hemodialysis", including four factors. The overall can explain 58.91% of the cumulative variances. The Cronbach's α is 0.812 for "Perceptions of Hemodialysis" and 0.959 for "Self-Participation in Hemodialysis", respectively. The self-participation dialysis life scale has good reliability and validity and can be used to evaluate the implementation of a patient's self-participation in their hemodialysis life. Discussing or consulting with patients based on their characteristics, life priorities, and their desired life on dialysis is essential for a high-quality of clinical care among hemodialysis patients. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Aim and objectives: To explore factors associated with nurses' willingness and competency to provide anticipatory grief counselling for the family caregivers of patients with terminal cancer. Background: Family caregivers often experience anticipatory grief due to the imminence of a loved one's death. However, few studies have identified factors associated with nurses' willingness or competency to provide anticipatory grief counselling for the family caregivers of patients with terminal cancer. Methods: This descriptive correlational study recruited a convenience sample of nurses from cancer‐related wards at a regional teaching hospital in Taiwan. The Anticipatory Grief Counseling Willingness Scale and Anticipatory Grief Counseling Competency Scale were employed. This cross‐sectional study followed the STROBE checklist. Results: The nurses' average scores for willingness and competency to provide anticipatory grief counselling for the family caregivers of patients with terminal cancer were 44.28 ± 8.36 and 171.84 ± 30.83, respectively. Multivariate linear regression revealed that interest in participating in anticipatory grief counselling for the family caregivers of patients with terminal cancer was significantly associated with the nurses' willingness to provide such counselling. Similarly, their willingness to provide such counselling was significantly associated with their counselling competency. Conclusions: Nurses' willingness and competency to provide anticipatory grief counselling for the family caregivers of patients with terminal cancer can be enhanced through in‐service education programmes, including bedside teaching and scenario simulation. Relevance to clinical practice: To improve nurses' competency in anticipatory grief counselling for the family caregivers of patients with terminal cancer, factors related to nurses' willingness to provide such grief counselling must be addressed. Diverse strategies of in‐service education can be adopted to promote nurses' competency in anticipatory grief counselling. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Aim: It is important that nurses possess adequate clinical skills so that the patient receives safe and competent care. Smart phone applications (apps) can promote active learning and the long‐term retention of knowledge of undergraduate students. Therefore, the aim of this study was to explore the thoughts and experiences of nursing students who received a smart phone, app‐based physical assessment educational intervention. Methods: A qualitative descriptive approach with in‐depth interviews was considered as suitable to obtain a comprehensive understanding of students' experiences of a smart phone‐enabled physical assessment course. Results: Based on interviews with 16 nursing students following the intervention, five themes were derived from the analysis of the interview transcripts: "the APP's physical assessment scenarios are very close to real‐life clinical situations," "watching physical assessment videos over the APP is a quick way to learn what to do," "the APP is a new way of learning that enhances thinking and reflection," "some nursing students felt that it was out of their depth to analyze the scenarios in the APP," and "the APP needs enhancements in stability and interactivity." Conclusion: The findings of this study showed the mobile app as an effective learning aid that promoted transferability of the nursing students' knowledge and past experience. With the help of the APP, the teachers could offer timely guidance to the students. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Many nursing home residents lack autonomous decision-making capacity and rely on family members to make do-not-resuscitate (DNR) decisions. Making DNR decisions can be difficult and complicated for surrogates. However, surrogates' psychological experience in making these decisions for older relatives is not well studied. Aim: To understand the surrogates' psychological experience of making DNR decisions for older relatives in a nursing home. Methods: The study subjects of this qualitative study were family surrogates of older residents in a nursing home of Taiwan. A self-constructed, semistructured interview guided in-depth interviews, which were recorded. Content analysis was used to discover themes from verbatim record. Results: Four themes were revealed: lack of psychological preparation, considering issues when making a decision, ambivalent emotional responses and impact of cultural factors. Fifteen subthemes were also found. Conclusions: Surrogates who must decide whether to make a DNR decision for older relatives experience great emotional conflict. Understanding surrogates' struggles may assist nursing and care staff in managing this difficult situation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Journal of Nursing is the property of Taiwan Nurses Association and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Copyright of Journal of Nursing is the property of Taiwan Nurses Association and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Copyright of Journal of Nursing is the property of Taiwan Nurses Association and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Background: Emergency medical technicians (EMTs) must be able to assess patient needs for emergency medical services in order to ensure patient safety and optimal prognosis. However, Taiwan currently has no relevant core competency indices or required courses in place for EMTs. The relative inaccessibility of training may seriously compromise the performance of EMTs., Purpose: This study investigated self-assessed emergency management competency and related demographic factors in a sample of EMTs., Methods: This cross-sectional survey used a convenience sample of EMTs working at a fire station in eastern Taiwan. Data were collected using a questionnaire including a new emergency management competency self-assessment scale. A total of 272 of the 295 distributed questionnaires were returned (92.2%)., Results: The mean score for emergency management competency was 3.58 points. The highest-scored item was "I know how to use an automated external defibrillator correctly" and the lowest-scored item was "I know how to handle postpartum hemorrhaging (PPT)." The factors that were found to significantly influence self-assessed emergency management competencies included the age, education, EMT qualification, EMT instructor / assistant qualification, and years as an EMT of the respondent and the number of emergency medical tasks handled by their unit per month, average monthly personal workload, and having attended additional emergency medical courses in the previous year., Conclusions: Future training for EMTs should focus on improving competencies related to pediatric emergencies, obstetric emergencies, and other low-scoring items using proper instructional materials, strategies, and learning-outcome-assessment mechanisms. This training may be expected to improve the quality and appropriateness of future emergency medical treatment through greater EMT confidence and competence.

Background: Stroke was the third leading cause of death in Taiwan in 2014. A study found that 53.61% of stroke patients suffered from dysphagia disorder during the rehabilitation phase, which may result in lung aspiration and death. The determinants of dysphagia among nationally hospitalized-rehabilitation stroke patients have not been explored comprehensively., Purpose: To explore the incidence of dysphagia among hospitalized-rehabilitation stroke patients and the related determinants of dysphagia., Methods: This descriptive and correlational research design employed a convenience sample of 130 hospitalized stroke patients from rehabilitation wards at a northern regional hospital in Taiwan. A questionnaire and functional assessment were used to collect data. Instruments used included personal and clinical characteristics data questionnaire, the National Institute of Health Stroke Scale (NIHSS), Barthel Index, Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE), Geriatric Depression Scale (GDS), Standardization Swallowing Assessment (SSA), and Acute Stroke Dysphagia Screening (ASDS). Data analyses contained descriptive statistics and logistic regression., Results: The incidence of stroke dysphagia was 63.8% (SSA) and 64.6% (ASDS), respectively. Age, marital status, stroke site, stroke severity (NIHSS), and cognitive status (MMSE) were identified as significant determinants of dysphagia in bivariate logistic regression, whereas stroke severity and cognitive status were identified as significant independent determinants of dysphagia in multivariate logistic regression., Conclusions / Implications for Practice: Two-thirds of the participant sample were affected by dysphagia, for which NIHSS and cognitive status were identified as significant determinants. Thus, nurses may conduct early screening for high risk populations based on patients' clinical characteristics in order to reduce aspiration pneumonia problems and to improve the quality of clinical care for dysphagia patients.

Background: The multiple levels of knowledge related to the neurological system deter many students from pursuing studies on this topic. Thus, in facing complicated and uncertain medical circumstances, nursing students have diffi-culty adjusting and using basic neurological-nursing knowledge and skills. Scenario-based concept-mapping teaching has been shown to promote the integration of complicated data, clarify related concepts, and increase the effectiveness of cognitive learning., Purpose: To investigate the effect on the neurological-nursing cognition and learning attitude of nursing students of a scenario-based concept-mapping strategy that was integrated into the neurological nursing unit of a medical and surgical nursing course., Methods: This quasi-experimental study used experimental and control groups and a pre-test / post-test design. Sopho-more (2nd year) students in a four-year program at a university of science and technology in Taiwan were convenience sampled using cluster randomization that was run under SPSS 17.0. Concept-mapping lessons were used as the intervention for the experimental group. The control group followed traditional lesson plans only. The cognitive learning outcome was measured using the neurological nursing-learning examination., Results: Both concept-mapping and traditional lessons significantly improved post-test neurological nursing learning scores (p < .001), with no significant difference between the two groups (p = .51). The post-test feedback from the control group mentioned that too much content was taught and that difficulties were experienced in understanding mechanisms and in absorbing knowledge. In contrast, the experimental group held a significantly more positive perspective and learning attitude with regard to the teaching material. Furthermore, a significant number in the experimental group expressed the desire to add more lessons on anatomy, physiology, and pathology. These results indicate that this intervention strategy may help change the widespread fear and refusal of nursing students with regard to neurological lessons and may facilitate interest and positively affect learning in this important subject area., Conclusion: Integrating the concept-mapping strategy and traditional clinical-case lessons into neurological nursing lessons holds the potential to increase post-test scores significantly. Concept mapping helped those in the experimental group adopt views and attitudes toward learning the teaching material that were more positive than those held by their control-group peers. In addition, while 59% of the experimental group and 49% of the control group submitted opinions related to learning attitude in the open-ended questions, positive feedback was greater in the experimental group than in the control group.