Merry Armstrong

Effect of Self-Efficacy on Turkish Children's Perceptions of the Advantages/Disadvantages of Smoking

OBJECTIVE This descriptive, cross sectional study was conducted to examine the effect of levels of self-efficacy on childrens perceptions of pros and cons of smoking. METHODOLOGY The sample was 233 fifth-grade students. Data were collected in September 2010 using the Socio-Demographic Data Collection Form, Self Efficacy Scale Child Form and Child Decision Balance Scale and analyzed via percentage calculations and t test with the SPSS 11.00 statistical package program. RESULTS Average age of the students participating in the research was 11.1±0.41, 49.8% (n: 116) being female and 50.2% (n:117) male. The difference between the score averages of the pros of smoking perceptions of children with a high self-efficacy level and of those with a low self efficacy level (t=2.117, p=.042) and the difference between the score averages of the cons of smoking perceptions of children with a high self-efficacy level and of those with a low self-efficacy level (t=2.206, p=.035) were found to be statistically significant. CONCLUSIONS Childrens positive perceptions of smoking were low and negative perceptions high when their self efficacy levels were high. Conversely, childrens positive perceptions of smoking were high when their self efficacy levels were low.

Frequency of Nurse Practitioner Screening for Substance Use Disorders

&NA; A quality improvement project was undertaken at an academic nursing center to increase screening rates for substance use disorders among adult clients. Project staff used 20 minutes to introduce the topic to family practitioners during a faculty/staff meeting and presented a tool that was chosen for use during this project. Administration and scoring of the tool was discussed, questions were answered, and practitioners were provided a laminated copy of the tool for their reference. Practitioners voiced agreement and interest in the project. Charts were monitored for one month following the inservice. Practitioners were asked to record the score in the progress notes. Practitioners participated in standardized screening less than 7% of the time. Practitioners recorded that they questioned clients about their substance use, but did not use the tool 26% of the time. Implications for practice and research are discussed.

Job satisfaction and burnout among paediatric nurses

PURPOSE This study aims to determine factors of job satisfaction and burnout levels of paediatric nurses. METHODS A total of 165 nurses working in paediatric clinics completed the Minnesota job satisfaction scale and the Maslach burnout scale. FINDINGS Average scores of the emotional exhaustion and depersonalisation score were low, while personal accomplishment scores were high. A high level of job satisfaction, being married, increased age and a decreased number of assigned patients were significantly associated with a low level of burnout. CONCLUSIONS Paediatric nurses experience burnout at significant levels. The most important variable that affected job satisfaction was income. IMPLICATIONS FOR NURSING PRACTICE The results of the study could guide development of strategies that might prevent or alleviate burnout of paediatric nurses.

Malingering Psychosis: Guidelines for Assessment and Management

PURPOSE The purposes of this paper are to (a) identify theoretical underpinnings of malingering, (b) to discuss interview and intervention techniques based on pertinent literature, and (c) to offer an organized mnemonic to help clinicians easily identify possible malingered psychosis presentations. CONCLUSION Detecting the malingering of psychotic symptoms is a challenging task for Advanced Practice Psychiatric Nurses. Diagnosing a patient of malingering requires caution on the clinicians part. PRACTICE IMPLICATIONS A thorough understanding of potential signs of malingering vs. genuine psychosis is needed as well as knowledge of legal ramifications.

Foundations for a Gender Based Treatment Model for Women in Recovery from Chemical Dependency

Since the first treatment program specific to women was opened in 1975, numerous demographic and outcome descriptive studies have been done to measure efficacy of substance abuse treatment for women. Randomized studies are rare, as are empirically based outcome or judgment based care models. Difficulties in comparing studies are noted, and recent literature germane to treatment of women for substance use disorders is reviewed. The Relational Cultural Model is described and suggested as a framework for nursing research. Theoretical advances in the psychology of women are included in suggestions for intervention, treatment, and ongoing care.

Concepts and Meanings of Cigarette Smoking Among Children Aged 10-16 Years

&NA; This pilot study explored the adaptation of the Physical Causes of Illness Categories (PCI) to reasoning about smoking among 16 children aged 10 to 16 years. After obtaining appropriate consents and assents, two nurse researchers conducted 45-minute audio-taped interviews that were transcribed verbatim and analyzed for applicability of responses to the PCI. Differences in reasoning about smoking can be identified between older children and adolescents. Differences are consistent with progression of reasoning based on Piagets theory embedded in the PCI. Findings of this pilot support further inquiry into the reasoning of children about smoking and addictive behaviors

Hookah use: going down in smoke.

This article provides a review of tobacco smoking using a hookah, an emerging threat to public health, especially among young adults. Knowledge deficits persist in regards to this form of smoking, because many perceive it as less harmful than cigarette smoking and little research is available. Knowledge about hookah smoking can be instrumental in guiding health professionals to address this practice with their clients and in their communities. A failure to address all tobacco products as unique, individual entities undermines any success in public policy efforts to control tobacco use.

Validity and Reliability Study of the Turkish Version of the Decisional Balance Scale for Adults

This study was conducted for the purpose of adapting the Decisional Balance Scale (DBS) for Turkish and testing its validity and reliability to be able to measure adults’ perceptions of the benefits and negative consequences of cigarette smoking. The tool was administered to a sample of 486 participants chosen using a random sampling method, and the test-retest analysis was conducted with 365 individuals from the original sample. After the scale was reviewed several times by experts in English and Turkish, data were analysed by factor analysis, Student t-test, Kendall W and dependent t-test. The DBS pros subscales Cronbach alpha value was found to be 0.85 and the cons subscale was 0.81. The item to total score correlation coefficient was 0.37–0.77 for the pros subscale and 0.50–0.71 for the cons subscale. The scales factor load was 0.39–0.79. In the confirmatory factor analysis results it was determined that the scale was appropriate and that the scale had a two-factor construct (GFI 0.90 and CFI 0.93)....

Factors Associated with Alcohol Consumption in Schoolgirls in a School in Lima, Peru

&NA; Researchers conducted a descriptive study using a convenience sample to determine rates of and risk factors for alcohol consumption among 470 girls enrolled in a girls‐only high school in a high‐risk district of Lima, Peru. A survey was distributed to the students and returned after parental consent and student assents were obtained. Results analyzed by chi square and logistic regression indicated that 5.96% of the students drank alcoholic beverages. Risk factors for drinking were self‐described aggressiveness (6.6 times more likely to drink), unhappiness with behavior or family life (3.4 and 4.1), and attending parties (3.7). Protective factors that contributed to a 66–67% less likelihood of drinking were self‐descriptions of being kind and responsible. Directions for future research and development of prevention programs are discussed.

Two steps forward...

A solution to get the problem off, have you found it? Really? What kind of solution do you resolve the problem? From what sources? Well, there are so many questions that we utter every day. No matter how you will get the solution, it will mean better. You can take the reference from some books. And the two steps forward is one book that we really recommend you to read, to get more solutions in solving this problem.