Short Educational Program Research Articles

D110 職域における糖尿病管理 : 週末短期教育入院の試み

D110 職域における糖尿病管理 : 週末短期教育入院の試み

Efecto de una intervención educativa en la calidad de vida del paciente hipertenso

To evaluate the effect of an educational program on the quality of life of the hypertensive patient. A randomized clinical trial was performed on 150 adult hypertensive patients who were divided into 2 groups. The experimental group received a short educational program on hypertension and the effects on the patients life style, specifically concerning their control of the disease. The control group did not receive the educational program. Quality of life of both groups was determined by an analogous visual scale, before and 6 months after the educational program. Data were analyzed by the paired t- and Wilcoxon tests. The degree of improvement with respect to physical strength and emotional condition differed between groups (p < 0.05). In the areas of thought capacity, social participation, perceived quality of life and sexual function only the experimental group showed changes (p < 0.05). An educational program is effective to modify the quality of life of the hypertensive patient.

Health visitor support for patients with breast cancer--1.

In the first two articles, the author reports on research exploring the attitudes towards, and knowledge and experience of, caring for patients with breast cancer of health visitors (HVs) acting as resource personnel for colleagues. The study also examined how they used their knowledge and what difference it made to patients' coping ability at various stages of the disease. The HVs underwent a short education programme to increase their ability to help patients in several key ares. All the HVs described the support of patients with treated breast cancer in the community as important. While they felt that their support to patients was mainly psychological, they also described giving medical information and assisting with a number of social problems. HVs were constrained by their existing caseloads in the time they could give to patients with breast cancer. However, the research showed that only a minority of patients required more intensive support, most being satisfied with one visit and the opportunity of further contact should this be necessary. The second article will appear in two weeks.

Parental perceptions of a short conductive education programme.

Parental perceptions of a short conductive education programme.

Nursing stress and stress reduction in palliative care

Nurses in palliative care face particular challenges related to their work with terminally ill patients and their families. Several studies have suggested that workplace stress is a health risk to staff in this specific nursing situation. This study reports the results of a short educational programme for nurses in palliative care designed to identify and modify levels of perceived stress. The findings support the view that hospice nursing does create specific problems for staff which can be identified. Furthermore, if a training programme for nurses is introduced to address these problems the resultant stress can be reduced.

Short educational programs to give a theoretical base

In summary, to achieve excellence in critical care nursing, education must be directed at the individual, both personally and professionally. Through supporting and encouraging self directedness, self actualization will be achieved. This can in part be achieved by offering educational opportunities that meet the needs of nurses at every stage of their development. As a humanistic theory advocate, I would like to conclude with a quote from Carl Rogers (4). “The only person who is educated is the person who has learned how to adapt and change; the person who has realised tht no knowledge is secure, that only the process of seeking knowledge gives a basis for security. Changingness, a reliance on process rather than on state knowledge, is the only thing that makes any sense as a goal for education in the modern world.” Short educational programs can provide a state of the art update as they are highly flexible in responding to recent research results and changes to practice.

Community management of schizophrenia. A two-year follow-up of a behavioural intervention with families.

The relapse and readmission rates of schizophrenic patients who participated in a controlled trial of a nine-month behavioural family intervention trial based on the EE status of their relatives are presented at two years. The patients who received the behavioural family intervention had lower rates of relapse and readmission than patients from high-EE homes who had received a short educational programme or routine treatment. The relapse rate of the behavioural family intervention group (33%) was the same as that of the low-EE group (33%), and significantly lower than that of the non-intervention high-EE group (59%).

Changing young people's perceptions of mentally handicapped adults.

A representative sample of 420, 15- and 16-year old students, participated in a short educational programme about mental handicap; the main feature of which was a well-structured contact session with a group of mentally handicapped adults. This lasted 40 min and took place in the students' school. Various control procedures ascertained that the programme was effective at increasing their confidence in meeting mentally handicapped people and in their knowledge of the causes of mental handicap. Moreover the majority of students voluntarily visited a local mental handicap centre and a proportion maintained regular contact. These findings were replicated in a second study involving a further 368 students but this time the programme was presented by teachers and/or personnel from a local mental handicap service. The salient features of the contact sessions are discussed and directions for future research noted, particularly explicit guidance for adolescents on interacting with atypical peers.