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Purpose: The study was conducted to examine the level of alarm fatigue of intensive care nurses and the affecting factors. Method: The study had a cross-sectional design and was conducted with nurses working in the intensive care units of a state university between January and March 2022, after the necessary permissions were obtained. The data of the study were collected with Questionnaire and Alarm Fatigue Scale. A minimum of 0 and a maximum of 36 points can be obtained from the Alarm Fatigue Scale. As the score obtained from the scale increases, so does the level of alarm fatigue. The data were evaluated with the Student t, One-Way ANOVA, Kruskal Wallis, and p<0.05 was considered statistically significant. Results: The level of alarm fatigue of intensive care nurses was found to be 24.18±4.60. It was also found that alarm fatigue was associated with age, marital status, working time in nursing and intensive care, and using technological devices (p<0.05). A total of 62.0% of the intensive care nurses considered that the use of medical technology devices affected care and 61.2% had difficulties in using medical technological devices. Conclusion and Suggestions: It was found that the level of alarm fatigue of the nurses was "moderate", and the duration of work in the profession and the intensive care unit affected alarm fatigue. It was also determined that the nurses had difficulties in the use of technological devices in the intensive care unit. In this direction, it is recommended to evaluate the alarm fatigue level of intensive care nurses and to provide training to nurses on the use of technological devices in intensive care. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: This study was conducted to examine the views of second and fourth-year nursing students, studying in a Faculty of Health Sciences in Turkey, about ageism. Methodology: While the population of this descriptive and cross-sectional study consisted of 340 second and fourth-year students in the spring term of the 2019-2020 academic year, the sample consisted of 209 students who agreed to participate in the study. A "Questionnaire", prepared by the researchers, and "Positive and Negative Ageism Scale" were employed to collect data. The data were analysed using descriptive statistics, the Mann- Whitney U test, and the Kruskal-Wallis test. Results: 96.2% of the students were in the age range of 20 and 24 years, 71.3% were female, and 55% were the second-year students. The positive ageism mean score of the students was 45.67±6.97, the negative ageism mean score was 23.21± 6.44, and the positive and negative ageism total mean score was 68.88 ±8.05. While the grade of the students and their willingness to care for an elderly patient in the clinic are correlated with positive ageism score, gender and their willingness to care for an elderly patient in the clinic were correlated with negative ageism score (p<.05). Conclusions: As a consequence, it was found that the majority of nursing students had high scores from positive ageism. Therefore, it is recommended to raise awareness by including elective courses on the elderly to the nursing undergraduate curriculum in order to eliminate negative attitudes toward the elderly. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background and Aim: As in all chronic diseases, the health promoting behaviors are the basis in maintaining health in diabetes, as well. Accordingly, this study was conducted to determine the healthy lifestyle behaviors of the patients diagnosed with type 2 diabetes. Method: This descriptive study was conducted with the patients who applied to the internal medicine and endocrinology outpatient clinics of two hospitals between August 2019 and January 2020. The sample of the study was composed of 174 patients diagnosed with diabetes. Before starting the study, approval from the ethical committee, permission from relevant institutions, and consent from the patients were obtained. The data of the study were collected using questionnaire and Healthy Promoting Lifestyle Profile (HPLP) II. The total score of this scale varies between 52 and 208 and high score indicates positive HPLP. Descriptive statistics, Student t, One Way Anova, Mann Whitney U Test, and Kruskal Wallis tests were used for data analysis. Results: It was determined that 37.8% of the patients were diagnosed with diabetes for 1-5 years, 59.8% did not obey their diet, 60.9% did not do exercise regularly, 56.9% had sleep problems, 12.6% of them did not have medication adherence, diabetic neuropathy developed in 36.9% of them and 54.6% did not receive any training on diabetes. It was determined that HPLP II total mean score was 122.3±17.1 and HPLP II total mean score had a significant correlation with gender, educational status, receiving diabetes training, doing regular exercise, and dietary compliance (p<0.05). Conclusion: It was determined that the HPLP II score of the patients with diabetes was at medium level and this score was affected by some of the parameters related to the disease and their socio-demographic characteristics. Accordingly, it may be recommended for the diabetes training nurses not to ignore the characteristics of the patients affecting HPLP. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: A patient handover is a critical process in health care services in which nurses are typically engaged several times in each working day. Aim: The purpose of this study was to determine the approaches and attitudes of nurses regarding clinical handover in Turkey. Method: This study, planned as descriptive and cross sectional, was conducted between April and July 2013 in seven institutions located in a city of Turkey. The sample group consisted of a total of 480 nurses. A personal information form and a questionnaire on clinical handover were used in this study. Results: In this study, the positive aspects of clinical handover mostly indicated by the nurses were as follows; “Simplifies the follow-up of patient information”, “Simplifies the acquisition of information about the patient and the disease” and “Gives an opportunity to get information that I did not know or did not understand” (respectively 80.2%, 74.2%, 67.7%). The negative aspects of clinical handover mostly specified by the nurses were as follows; “Clinical handover takes too much time” (24.4%) and “increases work load” (14.4%). Conclusions: It was determined that nurses indicated that while clinical handover had advantages such as the acquisition of information about the patient and the disease and the follow-up of patient information, it had disadvantages such as taking too much time and increasing the work load. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The aim of this study was to assess the effect of acupressure, applied at P6 (Neiguan) acupuncture point, on chemotherapy-induced nausea and vomiting in patients with acute myeloblastic leukemia. This was a randomized controlled trial conducted on patients with myeloblastic leukemia. A total of 90 patients, who received the same chemotherapy regimen and antiemetic therapy, were included in the study as 30 patients in the control group, 30 patients in the band group, and 30 patients in the pressure group. Although acupressure was applied by placing wristbands at P6 acupuncture point of both wrists in patients of the band group for totally 4 days, acupressure was applied with the use of finger pressure in patients of the pressure group for totally 4 days. No intervention was made in patients of the control group other than the routine antiemetic therapy. The data of the study were collected by using a questionnaire and nausea-vomiting chart. Severity of nausea-vomiting was assessed by using the visual analog scale on this chart. It was determined that the acupressure band applied to the patients included in the study reduced number and severity of nausea-vomiting (P < .05); however, the acupressure applied with pressure did not affect number and severity of nausea-vomiting (P > .05). It was found that the acupressure band was effective for reducing the chemotherapy-induced nausea and vomiting. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: The purpose of this research was to determine the frequency and severity of low back pain and influencing factors in nurses working in intensive care units. Methods: This research was conducted as a cross-sectional study with 114 nurses working in the intensive care units in the province of Gaziantep, Turkey. Study data were collected using a questionnaire form and visual analogue scale. Results: It was found that 84.2% of the nurses experienced low back pain, and 66.7% of the nurses evaluated this pain as "a pain with moderate severity". It was determined that nurses who had not received any education on low back pain, who remained standing for long periods of time, who performed interventions that required bending forward, who lifted and repositioned patients, and who did not use any aiding equipment during interventions, experienced more pain and had higher average pain scores. In addition, average pain scores were higher among nurses with master's and doctorate degrees, and those working in internal medicine and pediatric intensive care units and working in shifts. Conclusion: It was observed that many of the nurses working in intensive care units experienced low back pain, and especially those working in internal medicine and pediatric intensive care units and working in shifts had higher average pain scores. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: This study was conducted thinking that it was extremely important in terms of the disease and treatment to assess the symptoms that may be encountered before and after a stem cell transplantation and quality of life. Methodology: A prospective longitudinal design was used. The study was completed in two years on 82 patients who underwent transplantation at the bone marrow transplantation unit. Data were collected using a questionnaire, the Edmonton Symptom Assessment Scale, and the Short Form-36 quality of life scale. Results: It was observed that the patients had low mean scores of physical and mental quality of life both before and after transplantation; there was an increase in the mean scores of all the symptoms and primarily of fatigue after the stem cell transplantation as compared to before it; and the mean scores of physical and mental quality of life further declined (p < 0.05). Conclusion: Quality of life of patients who underwent stem cell transplantation is adversely affected in the periods immediately before and after transplantation. Patients' quality of life worsens as the severity of symptoms experienced by patients increases. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Context • Although a number of studies have shown that lavender administered via inhalation can decrease the invasive pain and anxiety experienced by hemodialysis (HD) patients during cannulation, the evaluation has mostly been on the short-term effectiveness of lavender oil. Also, no study has evaluated the effects of lavender on comfort level. Objective • The study aimed to investigate the long-term effectiveness of lavender oil, when administered via an inhaler during HD sessions, on a patient’s experience of invasive pain, anxiety, and comfort during access to the fistula. Design • The research team designed a prospective, single-blind, randomized, controlled clinical trial. Setting • The study took place in an HD unit of a public hospital in Kirklareli, Turkey. Participants • Participants were 24 patients receiving HD in the unit between January and March 2021. Intervention • Participants were randomly assigned to the intervention or control group. Pure lavender essence was diluted with sweet almond oil at a ratio of 1:10. Before the cannulation procedure at 12 HD sessions, three drops of a 1:10 mixture were placed on sterile gauze and held at a distance of about 10 cm from the participant’s nose to ensure its inhalation before the fistula puncture with the needle. No extra procedure was performed for the control group. Outcome Measures • Participants completed a visual analogue scale (VAS) right after puncture of the fistula during each HD session. The STAI and HD Comfort Scale were scored at baseline prior to the first HD session and postintervention at the twelfth HD session. Results • The VAS (P < .001) and state anxiety scores (P = .027) were significantly lower in the intervention group than in the control group at all time points, except at baseline. The comfort scale in the intervention group was significantly higher than that in the control group (P < .05) Conclusions • Lavender aromatherapy could be a good option for reducing the pain, anxiety, and discomfort level of HD patients. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: To evaluate the effect of different solutions administered to patients undergoing stem cell transplantation on oral mucositis., Methods: The non-randomised controlled trial was conducted at a Istanbul Medipol Mega university hospital in Turkey between May 2014 and June 2016, and comprised patients undergoing stem cell transplantation. They were divided into three groups. Group 1 had patients using chlorhexidine gluconate and benzydamine hydrochloride solution. Group 2 had those using calcium and phosphate solution. Group 3 patients were using black mulberry syrup. Data was collected using a structured questionnaire and the World Health Organisation mucositis assessment scale. Assessment was done on days 7, 14 and 21. Clinical significance of oral solutions was statistically determined., Results: Of the 83 patients, 30(36%) were in group 1, 28(34%) in group 2, and 25(30%) in group 3. On day 7, there was no significant difference in terms of grades among the groups (p>0.05). On day 14, grade 2 mucositis was seen in 2(8%) patents in group 3, 5(17.9%) in group 2 and 5(16.7%) in group 1; Grade 3 mucositis was seen in 2(6.7%) patients in group 1, but none in the other two groups. On day 21, grade 3 mucositis was present in 2(8.0%) in group 3, 2(7.1%) in group 2, and 4(13.3%) in group 1., Conclusions: The use of black mulberry and calcium-phosphate solutions was found to be beneficial in preventing and treating oral mucositis.

Objective: To evaluate the effect of motivational interviewing on diabetics related to perceived self-management and metabolic variables., Methods: The randomised controlled and experimental study was conducted at a public hospital located in the city of Gaziantep in Turkey and comprised diabetes patients attending the outpatient clinic of endocrinology and metabolic diseases from April to July 2015. The subjects were randomised into two equal intervention and control groups. Four motivational interviewing sessions, each of which took about 15-20 minutes, were conducted by a nurse to the intervention group. Data was collected using a questionnaire and the Perceived Diabetes Self-Management Scale., Results: Of the 60 subjects, there were 30 (50%) in ach of the two groups. The perceived self-management perception mean score of the intervention group was 17.1 } 5.6 at baseline and increased to 35.0 } 4.1 postintervention (p<0.05). Mean scores of body mass index, fasting and postprandial blood glucose, glycated haemoglobin, cholesterol, triglyceride, low density lipoprotein cholesterol and systolic and diastolic blood pressures of subjects in the intervention group decreased after the intervention, and their high density lipoprotein cholesterol mean scores increased (p<0.05)., Conclusions: Motivational interviewing technique positively affected the metabolic control indicators of the diabetes patients and increased their perceived self-management.

This research was designed to determine whether nurses are bullied by other staff members and the effects of such behaviors on the nurse victims. This study reports on nurses' interpersonal workplace relationships in a culturally unique environment. The study was conducted with 260 nurses working in three public hospitals. Data were collected using a questionnaire. The majority of nurses were female with bachelor's degrees and reported being assigned duties outside their usual responsibilities, held responsible for coworkers' mistakes, and criticized for job performance although they thought they had done their work properly. Most of the nurses who were bullied experienced health and sleep problems,did not want to go to work, and had communication problems with other staff members. Nearly all of the study nurses received psychological support to solve their problems and believed that the best way to prevent bullying was education.

The primary objective of this study was to assess the effect of aromatherapy and classic massage administered in various ways to breast cancer patients on their symptoms and quality of life. The sampling consisted of 280 patients. Quality of life and symptoms of the patients were evaluated once at baseline and then at week 6 and week 10 following the intervention. After intervention, the control group was observed to have lower total quality of life score and subdomain scores, whereas fragrance, massage and aromatherapy massage groups had higher scores, and the increase was more obvious particularly in the patients in the aromatherapy massage group. Similarly, whereas psychological and physical symptoms were experienced more intensely in the control group, the severity of all the symptoms experienced by the other patients decreased at week 6 and week 10 as compared with baseline especially in the group that was administered massage with aromatherapy., (© 2013 Wiley Publishing Asia Pty Ltd.)

This descriptive study was conducted to evaluate the quality of life of cancer caregivers. One hundred and seventy-eight caregivers of patients who were diagnosed with cancer in Gaziantep oncology hospital participated in the study. Data were collected by using a questionnaire and quality of life scale. The scale was scored between 0 and 10, where '10' indicated the best and '0' indicated the worst level. It was determined that the majority of caregivers were young and female, the overall total score average of quality of life was 4.5 ± 1.1, and the subdomain with the lowest value was the psychological subdomain. All quality of life subdomain score averages and the overall total score averages were observed to be low in women, as well as in those who provided care for their own children, who lived in the same house with the patient and who gave care for 19-24 h daily., (© 2013 Wiley Publishing Asia Pty Ltd.)

The research was conducted to evaluate the effect of foot reflexology on fatigue, pain and cramps in haemodialysis patients. The sample consisted of 80 patients in total, 40 intervention and 40 control patients, receiving treatment in the haemodialysis units of two institutions. Data were collected by using a questionnaire, Piper Fatigue Scale and visual analogue scale for measuring the severity of cramp and pain. The intervention group received reflexology treatment for 1 week in three sessions following haemodialysis, each session lasting approximately 30 min. Parametric and non-parametric tests were used in data analysis. It was determined that reflexology reduced the fatigue subscale scores and total scale scores as well as pain and cramp mean scores in the intervention group. The research results revealed that the severity of fatigue, pain and cramp decreased in patients receiving reflexology., (© 2013 Wiley Publishing Asia Pty Ltd.)

Background/aims: Diagnostic tests such as endoscopy are anxiety-provoking. The best intervention to reduce anxiety is to inform the patient about the procedure. Our study was conducted as a randomized controlled trial to determine the effect of providing information on the patient's perception of endoscopy, compliance with the procedure and their anxiety level associated with the procedure., Methods: This study included 300 patients allocated to three groups (controls, and provision of written versus verbal information). Data were collected with identification form, perception form, State/Trait Anxiety Inventory, and the Visual Analogue Scale completed by the patients and the physician regarding patient compliance. Chi-square test, paired sample t-test and one-way ANOVA tests were used for statistical evaluation of the data, and Tukey's HSD test was used for further analysis., Results: According to the results of the study, it was noted that the patients in the verbal information group responded more accurately to the questions related to the procedure. These patients experienced less pain, breathing difficulties and regret. Furthermore, they felt better during the procedure, were more satisfied, and evaluated the procedure as less difficult (p<0.05). The mean anxiety score of the patients in the verbal information group was significantly lower than of patients in the other groups (p<0.05). Compliance with the procedure was better in these patients than in the other groups, and the difference was statistically significant (p<0.05)., Conclusions: In light of our findings, we suggest that providing verbal information to patients is recommended due to its positive effects on the patient's perception, compliance and anxiety level associated with the procedure.