Knowledge Of Healthcare Professionals Research Articles

Medicinal plant use in primary health care: an integrative review.

Medicinal plant (MP) use supports comprehensiveness of care in Primary Health Care (PHC), enabling appreciation of popular knowledge and self-care. This integrative literature review aims to analyze researches that approach the insertion of using MP in PHC. PICO strategy was used as a guideline in search of evidence, reuniting 18 articles published between January 2015 and August 2020, in the Virtual Health Library and PubMed databases. The variables of analysis were knowledge of PHC healthcare professionals about MP and associated policies, MP use by its users, highlighting their profile, the reasons that lead to the use and lack of security in MP use. The results show insufficient knowledge of healthcare professionals about Integrative and Complementary Practices policies and the medicinal uses of plants. The main users are women, elderly, with low income and education, either in Brazil or other countries. Regarding safety in MP use, frequently there is no correct identification of species, its origin, its preparation and the appropriate dose for each case. Finally, failure to approach these contents during training of healthcare professionals generates less knowledge, less research and more prejudice due to lack of information, impairing incentive and dissemination to the community.

The effects of administered interventions on quality of life of children with cancer in Turkey: A systematic review and meta-analysis.

The present systematic review and meta-analysis aimed to analyse the effects of administered interventions on the quality of life of children with cancer in Turkey. The quantitative studies conducted with paediatric oncology patients, analysing the quality of life of Turkish children, and published papers from 2009 to 2019 were searched. Joanna Briggs Institution MAStARI Experimental and Quasi-Experimental Research Control List and Quality Index were used for methodological assessment. Five studies comprising a total of 264 samples were included. Four studies were nonrandomised controlled trials, and one was a quasi-experimental study. Tests for heterogeneity showed that the studies, which included interventions increasing the quality of life of children with cancer, were heterogeneous. The common effect size of all studies on quality of life was determined as having a strong positive effect. This meta-analysis and systematic review contribute to the knowledge of Turkish health care professionals regarding these interventions by producing results with high levels of evidence on the improvement of the quality of life among children with cancer. The present study also significantly raises awareness and encourages health care professionals to implement interventions for the improvement of quality of life among children with cancer.

Health Care Professional's Knowledge of Pregnancy Complications and Women's Cardiovascular Health: An International Study Utilizing Social Media.

Background: Despite guidelines recommending the evaluation of adverse pregnancy outcomes (APOs) as a part of the atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease (ASCVD) risk assessment in women, there is limited awareness of this issue in health care professionals. We sought to evaluate the extent of this gap in knowledge. Methods: An online study using a standardized questionnaire was advertised through newsletters and websites of professional organizations. After a low response rate, the link to the survey was announced on Twitter and via personal email invitations. Differences between groups of respondents were evaluated with z-tests of proportion. Results: Out of 446 complete responses, there were 315 cardiologists and 112 obstetricians and gynecologists (OBGyns). There was an >90% awareness of association of adverse maternal outcomes with gestational hypertension and gestational diabetes with ASCVD, but only <60% awareness of association of adverse maternal outcomes with preterm birth. There were significant differences in ASCVD risk assessment and awareness of the association of APOs with adverse outcomes between cardiologists and OBGyns, and between female and male cardiologists. A greater proportion of female cardiologists thought that the guidelines recommended annual follow-up for high-risk women. Conversely, a greater proportion of male cardiologists were unsure of the frequency of follow-up of such women in the relevant guidelines. A higher proportion of U.K. respondents thought that women with high-risk pregnancies should never be screened for cardiovascular disease postpartum compared with U.S. respondents. Conclusions: In a self-selected group of health care professionals interested in women's cardiovascular health, there remains a large gap in knowledge and awareness of the association of APOs with ASCVD risk, in particular, a lack of awareness of the association of ASCVD risk with preterm delivery. Specific target groups for improving knowledge regarding these sex-specific risk enhancers include male cardiologists and health care professionals practicing in the United Kingdom.

Why is corneal donation so rare in children's hospices? A survey of multidisciplinary team members attitudes, knowledge, practice, and experience.

Corneal donation is a rare event among pediatric patients dying in children's hospices in Italy. Previous research suggests that lack of knowledge and negative attitude of Health Care Professionals (HCPs) are the most relevant factors for low donation rates in hospice, rather than patient ineligibility or public refusal. We conducted a national survey to explore children's hospice staff's knowledge and attitude toward corneal donation, to survey HCPs confidence in discussing the subject with patients and families, to investigate whether staff members receive specific training about corneal donation and its potential impact on the willingness to raise the topic with patients and families. An anonymous web-based survey with multiple-choice responses was delivered to the team members of seven Italian children's hospices to test their knowledge and attitude about corneal donation. Of the seven children's hospices approached, four agreed to participate with a response rate of 48.5%. Among respondents, 70% declared that they had not received specific training about corneal donation. Results of statistical analysis showed that there were no significant differences in responses between trained and non-trained staff and among the different professionals (nurses, doctors, psychologists, AND social workers) regarding confidence in discussing the subject with patients and families. In our sample of HCPs working in Italian children's hospices, there was no difference in self-reported trust between professionals who reported receiving specific cornea donation training and those who did not. It is remarkable that training on corneal donation was endorsed by a minority of the sample.

The awareness, practical approaches and attitude of health care professionals to drug hypersensitivity reactions in Armenia

Drug hypersensitivity reactions (DHRs) is commonly encountered in clinical practice. This condition requires sufficient knowledge of health care professionals (HCPs) carrying for these patients.To assess the awareness, practices and attitudes to DHRs among HCPs in Armenia and to identify main problems and take appropriate measures.The 23-item questionnaire covering 3 domains - knowledge, practice and attitude - was developed and applied in an anonymous survey. Data were analyzed according to specialty, experience, type of medical facility and regions using Pearson's χ2 and Fisher's exact tests.A total of 381 respondents with response rate of 63.5 % took part in the survey. The gaps in knowledge/awareness about DHRs diagnosis and management, as well as in practical approaches were identified. The differences depending on specialty, duration of HCPs experience, working place both by geographical region and medical facility type were revealed. According to attitude rates the importance of creating a national registry of patients with severe DHRs (>95.0 %) and the need to introduce a clear algorithm for managing these patients (99.5 %) are highlighted.Targeted educational programs are needed for better understanding of DHRs. The implementation of the national guidelines needs improvement. The approach used can be recommended for study of the problems in other areas of healthcare (Tab. 4, Fig. 2, Ref. 15).

Awareness, knowledge, and attitude toward adverse drug reaction (ADR) reporting among healthcare professionals in Ghana.

Background:Spontaneous reporting systems are the commonest means of reporting adverse drug reactions (ADRs) worldwide. Under-reporting remains a challenge particularly in developing countries among healthcare professionals (HCPs) who are considered the primary stakeholders in the reporting of ADRs. The challenge with studies in countries such as Ghana is that the focus has been on a single professional group or health facility. This study examines the rate of reporting as well as awareness, knowledge, and attitudes toward ADR reporting across professional groups (doctors, nurses, and pharmacist) and selected health facilities (ownership types: government, quasi-government, and private; hierarchy: district, regional, and teaching) in Ghana.Method:A cross-sectional survey was conducted to select and interview 424 healthcare professionals (HCPs) from 8 hospitals in the Greater Accra and Eastern regions of Ghana on issues of ADR reporting, awareness, knowledge, and attitudes toward ADR reporting. Valid responses from 378 HCPs were obtained and analyzed using frequencies and percentages.Findings:The results suggest that about 82.8% of the HCPs interviewed have come across an ADR incidence, but only 52.6% of them have reported such incidence, with pharmacist (66.7%) being the most likely to report. The results further suggest that about 85.8% of HCPs are aware of ADR reporting procedures and display positive attitudes toward same. In addition, the knowledge of HCPs on ADR reporting is low with training being a major area of need.Conclusion:There is the need for healthcare managers and the regulator to pay attention to existing gaps in awareness, attitudes, and most importantly knowledge of HCPs on structures and modalities for ADR reporting.Plain Language Summary Awareness, knowledge, and attitude toward adverse drug reaction (ADR) reporting among healthcare professionals in Ghana Reporting of unpleasant reactions related to the use of medicinal products has been very low in less developed countries. Studies conducted in Ghana to examine the reporting of unpleasant reactions associated with the use of medicinal products have focused mainly on one health facility or health care provider group. This article examines the level of awareness, knowledge, and attitudes toward the reporting of unpleasant reactions to the use of medicinal products.The authors used a quantitative method to examine the level of awareness, knowledge, and attitude toward reporting of unpleasant reactions to medicinal products. The study was conducted in eight hospitals in Greater Accra and Eastern regions of Ghana using a structured questionnaire. Only 378 out of 424 healthcare providers returned the completed questionnaire.The findings of the study show that 213 of the healthcare providers have encountered at least one patient with an unpleasant reaction to the use of medicinal products, although only 112 reported the unpleasant reactions. Pharmacists were found to be more likely to report unpleasant reactions as 12 out of 18 pharmacists who responded to the questionnaire indicated that they report the unpleasant reactions seen.In addition, 321 of the healthcare providers knew of the reporting procedures for unpleasant reactions to a medicinal product in Ghana. Only 219 healthcare providers knew of the reporting procedures in the facilities in which they worked, however. Furthermore, the knowledge of healthcare providers on the method of reporting is low.

Level of knowledge among healthcare professionals regarding anaphylaxis.

Anaphylaxis is defined as a severe, life-threatening systemic hypersensitivity reaction. Healthcare professionals must recognize the symptoms, apply correct treatment immediately, and provide epinephrine auto-injectors (EAI) to patients who experience anaphylaxis. In this study, we aimed to investigate the knowledge of healthcare professionals regarding anaphylaxis. This cross-sectional study, which was conducted between February 2022 and March 2022, included healthcare professionals working in various hospitals in Turkey. A survey consisting of 21 questions which concerned with the demographic data, personal experience and level of knowledge about anaphylaxis was applied to healthcare professionals. The study included a total of 301 participants, comprising 160 specialist physicians (53.16%), 86 resident physicians (28.57%), 31 family physicians (10.3%), and 24 allied health personnel (7.97%). Most of the healthcare professionals (93%) chose epinephrine as the first-line treatment for anaphylaxis. Two hundred ten participants (69.77%) knew the correct dose of epinephrine in the treatment of anaphylaxis, and allied healthcare professionals had least knowledge (p = 0.009). The participants who received anaphylaxis training and had experience with anaphylaxis had a higher knowledge about epinephrine dosing (p < 0.001 and p = 0.003, respectively). Only 49.17% of the participants knew the epinephrine doses of EAIs, and only 19% of participants had prescribed an EAI. Our results showed that healthcare professionals' knowledge about epinephrine doses in the treatment of anaphylaxis was not sufficient. Furthermore, the prescribing rate of EAIs was still inadequate. There is a need for national training programs to increase and update the knowledge of healthcare professionals to reduce anaphylaxis mortality.

The Awareness and Knowledge Regarding Sarcopenia among Healthcare Professionals: A Scoping Review.

Sarcopenia is a prevalent and costly disease associated with serious negative health outcomes, and its prevalence will further grow as the percentage of elderly rises. Healthcare professionals play a crucial role in the prevention, identification and management of sarcopenia and in promoting the well-being of elders. Awareness and knowledge are the prerequisite and basis for these actions. The objective of the review was to summarize available publications to identify the healthcare professionals' awareness and knowledge about sarcopenia, and to identify knowledge gaps that interventions could address. The scoping review will be performed based on the Scoping Review guidelines published by JBI in Australia. Six electronic databases, including PubMed, Embase, CINAHL, Web of Science, Cochrane Library and CNKI were searched systematically. Two researchers independently screened the retrieved articles and extracted the information. A total of 6 studies were identified, including 5 quantitative studies and 1 qualitative study. These studies mainly were conducted in Australia, Netherlands and Brazil, and none from Asia. The awareness and knowledge of healthcare professionals about sarcopenia varied in different studies. With exception of one study conducted in oncology clinicians, other studies suggested that awareness and knowledge among healthcare professionals was incomplete and limited. The relatively few studies indicated that healthcare professionals had low awareness and limited knowledge of sarcopenia, which could influence and hinder the diagnosis and treatment of sarcopenia in practice. Future researches should develop a rigorously tested and valid sarcopenia knowledge assessment tool and researches conducted in larger samples are needed.

Knowledge, Attitude, and Practice of Materiovigilance among Nurses at a Tertiary Care Hospital in South India: A Cross-Sectional Study.

Inadequate knowledge and underreporting of medical device-associated adverse events (MDAEs) were observed among health-care professionals (HCPs) in studies carried out in other countries. In India, HCP's knowledge, attitude, and practice (KAP) regarding materiovigilance have not been explored extensively. Hence, the present study was carried out to assess KAP of materiovigilance among nurses working in a tertiary care teaching hospital in South India. This is a descriptive, cross-sectional study conducted among nurses. A self-administered, validated questionnaire was distributed to 420 nurses. Data were analyzed using the Statistical Package for the Social Sciences software version 21.0. Kruskal-Wallis test was used to compare KAP score of materiovigilance among the study participants. A total of 400 (95.2%) responses were received. About 65.7% (n = 263) of nurses were having adequate knowledge about the various aspects of materiovigilance and 80.5% (n = 322) of nurses had a positive attitude toward MDAE reporting. However, only 18 (4.5%) of nurses have reported about MDAEs. Further, factors such as uncertainty on how to report a MDAE and concerns about their legal issues significantly led to underreporting of MDAEs. The transition of adequate knowledge and positive attitude to good practice of MDAE reporting was lacking among the study participants. Hence, with due consideration of these deficits and the various factors influencing MDAE reporting, it is necessary to conduct periodical workshops and training sessions for HCPs to enhance their spontaneous reporting of MDAEs.

Complementary and Alternative Medicine Online Learning Intervention for Oncology Healthcare Providers: A Mixed-Methods Study.

Introduction:With the increased usage of complementary approaches in oncology comes the need for its integration into healthcare professional (HCP) education. The purpose of this single-arm, mixed-methods study was to examine the feasibility and benefits of a brief complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) learning intervention for improving HCP knowledge, attitudes, and practices regarding CAM use in cancer care, and explore the experiences of participating HCPs.Methods:HCPs from the Tom Baker Cancer Centre in Alberta, Canada, were invited to participate in 3 online interactive learning modules that reviewed: (1) basic CAM information, (2) HCP-patient CAM communication, and (3) evidence-based CAM decision support. The study survey consisted of attitude (n = 14), knowledge (n = 31), and practice (n = 31) items, administered at baseline and two-months post-intervention. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with a subset of participants.Results:Approximately 300 HCPs were invited to participate, of which 105 expressed interest in the study (35%), and 83 of them consented to participate (79%). The intervention completion rate was 73% (61/83 HCPs). There was a significant pre-post change in HCPs’ attitudes and, to a lesser extent, knowledge and practices related to CAM (8/14 attitude items changed pre-post compared to 13/31 knowledge items and 5/31 practice items), in which more HCPs reported patients should be assisted in making complementary therapy (CT) decisions, exhibited greater knowledge about CAM, and more often engaged in a CAM-related clinical practice. Qualitative findings supported the beneficial effects of the modules, with HCPs describing themselves as being more likely to ask patients about their CAM use and referring them to credible CAM resources. Nonetheless, the majority did not feel adequately prepared to make recommendations about specific CTs, even after the intervention.Conclusion:The current study suggests that online CAM learning offers a feasible and potentially promising intervention for improving oncology HCP knowledge, attitudes, and practices regarding CAM, warranting further investigation. This study highlights a need for institutional resources to help HCPs fully integrate CT decision support into cancer patient care. A coordinated evidence-based CAM program at cancer centers may help ensure that all patients’ CAM-related needs are properly attended to.

A scoping review of best practices in home enteral tube feeding

To review the experiences of healthcare professionals (HCPs) and service users on the provision and receipt of home enteral nutrition (HEN) in primary care settings, respectively. HEN supports the nutritional needs of service users in primary care settings who are unable to meet their nutritional requirements through oral intake alone. While HEN supports service users to remain in their home, the provision of HEN services can be variable. The prevalence of HEN is increasing as health systems shift delivery of care from acute to primary care settings, and therefore the evolving needs of HCPs and service users in relation to HEN deserve exploration. Quantitative and qualitative studies were included if they described (1) practices that support best outcomes in adults on HEN and residing in their own homes and/or (2) service user and HCP experiences of HEN. Studies on the economics of HEN were included. Databases searched included MEDLINE/PubMed, EMBASE, Web of Science, and CINAHL. Publications up to March 2021 were included. A descriptive analytical approach was used to summarise the findings. Key themes included the importance of initial education to enable service users to adapt to HEN and the need for support from knowledgeable HCPs. Access to support from HCPs in primary care was limited, and some HCPs felt their knowledge of HEN was inadequate. Service users highlighted the significant impact of HEN on daily living and emphasised the need for support from a HEN team. HEN services were also associated with reduced hospital admissions, lengths of stay in hospital, and costs of hospitalisation. A specialist HEN service can manage enteral nutrition-related complications, reduce unnecessary hospital admissions, and improve quality of care and patient satisfaction. Further education of HCPs is needed on the provision of HEN.

The effect of CPR educational package on knowledge and performance of nurses working in intensive care units: A review study.

ABSTRACTBecause nurses are present at the bedside of patients with cardiopulmonary arrest at the earliest opportunity, they should be sufficiently skilled in performing cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR). Since 1980s, several studies have been performed on the skill of CPR. These studies showed the effect of the presence of trained people on the outcome of resuscitation, so the results of one of these studies indicated that the presence of a more skilled person can have a dramatic effect on the outcome of resuscitation. Researchers believe that each training leads to learning, but the depth and stability of learning are different in various teaching methods. Recent Studies have examined the effectiveness of various educational programs in creating sustainable learning. One of the most common methods for teaching CPR is the workshop method, which has been used in nursing since 1941. Considering the importance of the subject and the need to study the effect of training courses on the level of knowledge and CPR performance of health care professionals, especially nurses, the present study aimed to review the effect of training package on knowledge and CPR performance of nurses working in intensive care units (ICU). A review of the literature showed that the level of knowledge and performance of nurses about CPR increased significantly after training compared to before training. However, most nurses perform CPR based on old protocols, it is necessary to express these changes during retraining courses. In addition, due to the decrease in the level of knowledge and skills, it is necessary to repeat these courses overtime.

Knowledge, Attitude and Practices of Health Care Professionals Regarding Rabies, from Peshawar Pakistan

Knowledge, Attitude and Practices of Health Care Professionals Regarding Rabies, from Peshawar Pakistan

A review of current knowledge about the importance of iodine among women of child-bearing age and healthcare professionals.

Iodine is required for thyroid hormone synthesis and fetal neurogenesis. Recent population studies in the United Kingdom (UK) have found iodine deficiency among schoolgirls, women of child-bearing age and pregnant women. This review explores knowledge and awareness of iodine among women of child-bearing age and healthcare professionals (HCPs) in the UK, set within a global context. We aimed to identify gaps in iodine knowledge in the current UK setting of iodine deficiency without iodine fortification and where iodine is not included in antenatal guidelines. The search terms 'iodine knowledge' and 'iodine awareness' were used to identify relevant papers. Iodine knowledge is poor among women of child-bearing age in the UK according to four studies using questionnaires and qualitative methods. They were unsure of dietary sources of iodine and were not consistently provided with relevant information from HCPs during clinical care. Midwives have been recognised as the main providers of dietary information during pregnancy and, although they recognised the importance of their role in providing nutrition advice, they did not feel equipped to do so and lacked confidence in addressing nutritional concerns. Globally, there was a similar lack of knowledge, however, this was somewhat improved by the inclusion of iodine in antenatal care guidelines. Midwives' knowledge of iodine was poor, as was knowledge among women of child-bearing age. Improved HCP knowledge and effective communication of information to pregnant women and women planning to conceive may help to improve iodine status which is of particular concern in pregnancy.

KNOWLEDGE, ATTITUDE, PRACTICE AND ANXIETY OF HEALTH CARE PROFESSIONALS PERTAINING TO THE OUTBREAK OF COVID -19

Background: The COVID -19 pandemic is highly dangerous with its rapid rate of spread and death rate all over the world; it has caused a lot of stress and anxiety in the public as well as in healthcare professionals. Objective: To find out knowledge, attitude, practice and anxiety of different health care professionals towards COVID-19. Methods: A cross sectional Survey was conducted on n=429 healthcare professionals including doctors, nurses, physical therapists and technicians(laboratory technicians, imaging technicians, OT staff )among different hospitals of Rawalpindi during the month of May to December, 2020. Data was collected through non probability convenient sampling. To find the knowledge, attitude, practice and anxiety, a self-structured questionnaire was administered after content validity from two experts. The data was analyzed and interpreted using SPSS ver 21. Results: The mean age of the health care professional was 30.30±8.82 years. The mean score of the knowledge of all health care professionals was 11.13±1.16 showing good knowledge about the disease, its spread and preventive measures. There was negative 7.57±1.83 attitude with significant difference (p=0.001) among the healthcare professionals. The mean score (8.51±0.84) of practice regarding COVID-19 was good and anxiety was high 56.85±9.93, showing higher levels of stress among all health care professionals. There was no significant difference (p≥0.05) among knowledge, practice and anxiety level, but significant difference (p&lt;0.001) was observed among healthcare professional regarding the attitude towards COVID-19. Conclusion: The knowledge and practice regarding COVID19 among different health care providers found to be good. However; there is a difference in attitude of health care professionals that was shown to be negative. Anxiety remained unaffected from change in knowledge, attitude and practice. However knowledge, attitude and practice affect each other. Keywords: Anxiety, Attitude, Corona, COVID-19, Health Care Professionals, KAP, Knowledge

Breastfeeding Knowledge Amongst Healthcare Professionals at AlJalaa Maternity Hospital Tripoli-Libya

Breastfeeding support from healthcare professionals influences a mother’s decision to initiate and maintain exclusive breastfeeding. Objectives: To assess the level of knowledge on exclusive breastfeeding (EBF) among healthcare professionals in Aljalaa maternity hospital in Tripoli –Libya. Materials and methods: Across-sectional study was performed between March to April 2021. Study subjects included health professionals working in the Aljalaa maternity hospital. A questionnaire was used to collect data. SPSS 22 package program was used for statistical analysis. Results: A total of 118 health care professionals participated in this study. The majority of the participants52.5% was nurses and midwives, 86.4% were females, with mean age 37.43±9.37 and 82.2% were resident with more than ten years of experience. Health care professionals had adequate knowledge about BF initiation, duration and complementary feed. However, 78.8%% of the providers didn’t know about the frequency of breastfeeding (BF). The majority of the participants knew about breast milk sustainabilitybut,81.4% didn’t know about cracked nipple management. Health care professionals have good information about BF contraindications, the majority75.4% of the provider's answered diarrhea is an indication to stop breastfeeding, and 65.3% answered small breasts affect breastfeeding. The mean score of the professional’s healthcare knowledge was 54.36 ±13. Conclusion: The level of breastfeeding knowledge of health care professionals was fair with deficits in the important key areas. Immediate training and continuing medical education for health workers will help improve mother and newborn health

Effectiveness of training in increasing awareness about managing pressure injuries in emergency departments

IntroductionEmergency room conditions and the characteristics of the patients followed up pose a risk for pressure injury. AimThis study was conducted as a pilot study to assess the effectiveness of a training program in increasing the awareness of healthcare professionals working in an emergency department about how to manage pressure injuries. MethodsThe study was a prospective, pre-test post-test intervention study without a control group. The study included 595 patients who were hospitalized in the emergency room for more than two hours and voluntarily agreed to participate, as well as 11 physicians and 17 nurses working in the emergency department between 15 April and 19 June 2019 2019. It was carried out in three stages. In the first stage, the 30-day pressure injury incidence rate in the emergency department was evaluated using the “Emergency Department Patients Information and Pressure Injury Assessment Form” and “The Braden Scale for Predicting Pressure Injury Risk”. In the second stage, the healthcare professionals were given training about pressure injuries. The knowledge levels of healthcare professionals before and after the training were evaluated using “The Descriptive Characteristics Form for Emergency Department Personnel (doctors and nurses)” and “The Questionnaire for Identifying and Preventing Pressure Injury”. In the third stage, the 30-day pressure injury incidence rate in the was re-evaluated after the training using the same two scales as before. The SPSS 25 package program was used to evaluate the data in terms of frequency, percentage, mean and standard deviation, and the Mann-Whitney U Test for independent groups, the t-test, the correlated sample t-test, the Wilcoxon Signed Rank test, Pearson Chi-square test, Yates Chi-square test and Fisher’s Exact Chi-square test were also used. ResultsThe mean knowledge test score of the healthcare professionals working in the emergency department was determined as X¯±SD = 53.71 ± 14.70 before the training and X¯±SD = 58.57 ± 11.83 after the training. The average score on the prevention dimension of the Questionnaire for Identifying and Preventing Pressure Injury was found to be statistically significantly higher than before the training (p < 0.05). The pressure injury incidence in the emergency department was 12.5% before the training and 8.8% afterwards. ConclusionIt was observed that the knowledge of healthcare professionals about pressure injury was insufficient and that training given on this topic both increased their knowledge and decreased the incidence of pressure injury. However, the difference was not statistically significant. Training about pressure injuries is important for preventing pressure injury, identifying the injury early, treating the injury appropriately and increasing the awareness of healthcare professionals.

Attitudes, knowledge and practice behaviours of oncology health care professionals towards lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer and intersex (LGBTQI) patients and their carers: A mixed-methods study

ObjectiveThere is growing recognition that health care professionals (HCPs) and policy makers are insufficiently equipped to provide culturally competent care to lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer and intersex (LGBTQI) cancer patients and their families. We examined HCP attitudes, knowledge, and practices regarding LGBTQI cancer care using a mixed-methods research design. MethodSurveys were completed by 357 oncology HCPs in nursing (40%), medical (24%), allied health (19%), and clinical leadership roles (11%); 48 of the surveyed HCPs were interviewed. ResultsMost HCPs reported being comfortable treating LGBTQI patients, but reported low levels of confidence and knowledge and systemic barriers to LGBTQI cancer care. Most wanted more education and training, particularly on trans and gender-diverse people (TGD) and those born with intersex variations. ConclusionEducation of HCPs and health system changes are required to overcome barriers to the provision of culturally competent cancer care for LGBTQI patients. Practice implicationsThese findings reinforce the need for inclusion of LGBTQI content in HCP education and professional training curricula, and institutional support for LGBTQI-inclusive practice behaviours. This includes administrative and visual cues to signal safety of LGBTQI patients within cancer care, facilitating inclusive environments, and the provision of tailored patient-centred care.

The Role of Oxytocin in the Prevention of Postpartum Hemorrhage in Low-Resource Settings

Postpartum hemorrhage remains one of the leading causes of maternal death globally. Oxytocin is the uterotonic agent of choice for the prophylaxis of this complication. However, its use in low-resource settings is associated with clinical, political, economic and cultural constraints. The goal of this article is to describe the use of oxytocin for postpartum hemorrhage prophylaxis in low-resource settings. A literature review on the topic was carried out, and 24 articles were included. The information was organized into seven sections: the evaluation of the efficacy of oxytocin compared to other uterotonics, the use of oxytocin in home births, the training of healthcare professionals, the quality of the available oxytocin, the new formulations, the risks associated with the use of uterotonic and the adopted health policies. Despite the progress achieved widespread access to oxytocin for postpartum hemorrhage prophylaxis in low-resource settings is less than desirable. The main difficulties encountered were the shortage of skilled healthcare professionals for oxytocin administration, deficiencies concerning the quality of the drug and the inadequacy of available clinical guidelines. In order to reduce maternal mortality caused by postpartum hemorrhage in low-resource settings, it is essential to improve the knowledge of healthcare professionals, to implement good practices on the use of uterotonics, to optimize resource management and to overcome cultural barriers that prevent the demand for health services.

The Need for Expanding Pulmonary Rehabilitation Services.

Pulmonary rehabilitation is a strongly recommended and effective treatment for people with chronic lung disease. However, access to pulmonary rehabilitation is poor. Globally, pulmonary rehabilitation is accessed by less than 3% of people with chronic lung disease. Barriers to referral, uptake and completion of pulmonary rehabilitation are well documented and linked with organizational, practitioner and patient-related factors. Enhancing the knowledge of health care professionals, family carers, and people with chronic lung disease about the program and its benefits produces modest increases in referral and uptake rates, but evidence of the sustainability of such approaches is limited. Additionally, initiatives focusing on addressing organizational barriers to access, such as expanding services and implementing alternative models to the conventional center-based setting, are not yet widely used in clinical practice. The COVID-19 pandemic has highlighted the urgent need for health care systems to deliver pulmonary rehabilitation programs remotely, safely, and efficiently. This paper will discuss the pressing need to address the issue of the low accessibility of pulmonary rehabilitation. It will also highlight the distinctive challenges to pulmonary rehabilitation delivery in rural and remote regions, as well as low-income countries.