Birsel Canan Demirbağ

Knowledge of Turkish Mothers with Children in the 0-13 Age Group about Cancer Symptoms

BACKGROUNDnThere have been few studies in Turkey on the incidence of childhood cancers. A mothers knowledge about signs and symptoms of cancer is important for early diagnosis, effective treatment, and improvement of life expectancy. This study was conducted with a group of mothers of children, aged 0-13, at a Family Health Center (FHC) in Turkeys Eastern Black Sea Region, to analyze their knowledge about cancer symptoms in childhood.nnnMATERIALS AND METHODSnThe study group of this descriptive/cross-sectional research comprised 2,061 mothers, ages 19-49, at an FHC in the Eastern Black Sea Region in February 1, 2011 - June 1, 2011. Before the study, permission was obtained from the local ethics board and the institutions concerned. A value of p<0.05 was accepted as statistically significant.nnnRESULTSnOf the mothers, 34.9% were between the ages of 40-47, 40.5% had three children, 73.8% had no experience with children with cancer, 45.9% said they learned about cancer on television, 39.7% stated that the primary reason for childhood cancer was the mothers smoking during pregnancy, 68.8% said that early diagnosis would save a child, and 98% wanted to learn about childhood cancer.nnnCONCLUSIONnIt was determined that the mothers knowledge of cancer was deficient.

Perception of learning needs and preferred learning methods about AIDS/HIV among registered nurses working in the community in Texas.

It is important for nurses and other healthcare workers to recognize that patients who present themselves for health care could already be infected with human immunodeficiency virus (HIV). Therefore, appropriate and sensible infection control precautions should be taken at all times. An assessment of nurses knowledge of acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS)/HIV provides information to guide further continuing education efforts. This study describes the learning needs and preferred learning methods regarding AIDS/HIV among registered nurses working in a community in Texas. Respondents confirmed the need for important content areas regarding primary, secondary, and tertiary prevention such as universal precautions, protection from infectious diseases, and occupational hazards for healthcare providers. Several teaching methodologies were included. Self-paced instruction was the least preferred teaching-learning method; hands-on methodology was most preferred for the topics of clinical manifestations, long-term care, testing, and counseling.

Breastfeeding After a Cesarean Delivery

Sema Kuguoglu1, Hatice Yildiz2, Meltem Kurtuncu Tanir3 and Birsel Canan Demirbag4 1Gazikent University, College of Health Sciences, Division of Nursing, Pediatric Nursing Department,Gaziantep 2Marmara University Health Science Faculty, Division of Nursing, Obstetric and Gynecological Nursing Department 3Zonguldak Kara Elmas University Health School, Division of Nursing, Head of Pediatric Nursing Department 4Karadeniz Technical University, School of Nursing, Division of Nursing, Public Health Nursing Department Turkey

Impact of Home Education on Levels of Perceived Social Support for Caregivers of Cancer Patients

BACKGROUNDnThe healthcare needs of cancer patients are complex and persons involved in their caregiving process are faced with many issues that need to be addressed. The entire family and particularly the person taking on responsibility for patient care develop expectations from healthcare professionals, especially nurses.nnnOBJECTIVEnThe study was conducted to evaluate the impact of a home education program provided to caregivers of cancer patients on the level of their perceived social support and problems in caregiving. INTERVENTIONS/ METHODS: The caregivers of thirty seven cancer patients of 2,400 registered people in a family center were given an educational program in this descriptive and cross-sectional study twice a week for a month during the period of March 2011 - April 2011.nnnRESULTSnOf all caregivers, 56.8% were between the ages 36-40, 94.5% were female, 91.9% had received no education on caregiving, 81.0% stated that they mostly felt physically and mentally inadequate in their caregiving. Perceived Social Support from the family indicated a significant difference at 8.05 ± 4.38 before and 11.7 ± 4.97 after the education. A comparison of the mean scores of caregivers on emotional issues before and after the education revealed the following: spiritual distress scores were 2.54 ± 0.69 before and 2.44 ± 0.43 after the education; hopelessness scores, 2.24 ± 0.59 before and 2.23 ± 0.38 after the education; ineffective individual coping was 3.89 ± 1.42 before and 2.45 ± 0.59 after the education; competing needs in decision-making were 3.54 ± 0.69 before and 2.10 ± 1.24 after the education; depressive feeling were 3.01±1.53 before and 2.02 ± 0.99 after the education (p<0.05).nnnCONCLUSIONSnPositive effects of home education on levels of perceived social support and caregiving problems of caregivers of cancer patients were observed. Home educational programs for caregivers of cancer patients are important for both better understanding of the requirements of their patients and themselves.

Implementation in Children 10-14 Age Group of Problem Solving Inventory -

AIM: This study was conducted with elementary school students, 10-14 years of age, for the purpose of determining their problem-solving skills. nMETHOD: The study was carried out at an elementary school located in the provincial center of Zonguldak with a group of pupils, ages 10-14. The research was designed as a descriptive study; data was collected over the period April-May 2011. A group of 312 children were included in the study, all of them being in attendance at the elementary school where the study took place on the days on which data was collected. nRESULTS: Significant differences were seen between the students avoidance scores according to their gender, between their self-control scores according to the grade they were in, between their self-control and avoidance scores according to their fathers vocation, between their avoidance scores according to their fathers education, between their self-control scores according to how they spent their leisure time, between their avoidance scores according to their participation in school clubs, between problem-solving skills according to the person they confided in about their problems, and between problem-solving skills, self-control and avoidance scores according to the people the students felt understood them (p

Genitourinary infection prevalence among women who used an intrauterine device or oral contraceptives

PurposeThe study aimed at investigating genitourinary infection prevalence among women who used an intrauterine device (IUD) and oral contraceptives (OC) in relation with their socio-demographic characteristics.MethodsThe study was conducted at the Mother and Child Health and Family Planning center between October 2011 and February 2012 and included 81 women who used IUD, 84 who used OC, and 84 who did not use artificial contraceptive methods (coitus interraptus).ResultsIt was found that there was a difference between the three groups in terms of urinary system infection (X2xa0=xa09.85, pxa0=xa00.000) and genital infection (X2xa0=xa08.29, pxa0=xa00.001). It was also observed that urinary infection was more common in the OC group, whereas genital infection was more common in the IUD group. In urinary culture, it was seen that Enterobacter species was the most common microorganism among the group who used an IUD, while Escherichia coli was the most common microorganism in the group who used OC and the control. In vaginal cultures, Candida albicans was determined to be the first isolated microorganism among the group who used OC, IUD, and the control.ConclusionIt is believed that the most significant reason for genitourinary infections among women was inadequate hygiene practices rather than use of different contraception methods.