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Effectiveness of Resistance Band Use in Conjunction With Tai Chi Among Older Adults With Prefrailty to Improve Functional Fitness, Quality of Life, and Heart Rate Variability
No full text[[abstract]]Purpose: The current randomized controlled trial aimed to bolster the physical fitness of prefrail older adults, potentially delaying their need for admission to care facilities and enhancing their overall well-being.
Method: The experimental group received a physical fitness intervention comprising resistance band use and tai chi three times per week for 12 weeks, whereas the control group received frailty-related health education. Thirty-four male participants completed the study.
Results: A total of seven items had statistically significant differences at 12- and 16-week posttest, respectively: frailty index (p = 0.03; p = 0.03); Instrumental Activities of Daily Living Scale (p < 0.001; p < 0.001); and physical fitness, back (p < 0.001; p < 0.001); physical fitness, arm curl (p = 0.02; p < 0.001); physical activity (p < 0.001; p = 0.009); quality of life, physiological (p = 0.04; p < 0.001); and heart rate variability (p < 0.001; p < 0.001).
Conclusion: Results revealed substantial improvements in physical fitness, frailty conditions, self-care abilities, and quality of life, but not balance or lower limb flexibility, for the experimental group. Therefore, exercise interventions may effectively improve prefrail older adults' quality of life. [Journal of Gerontological Nursing, 50(5), 19-26.]
Using a Mobile Application Disease Self-management Program to Promote Blood Pressure Control and Quality of Life in Patients With Hypertension
No full text[[abstract]]The study aims to assess the effectiveness of a mobile application disease self-management program regarding blood pressure control and quality of life for patients with hypertension. A single-blind randomized controlled trial. Participants in the control group (n = 51) received routine care, whereas those in the experimental group (n = 51) participated in a home-based intervention. They accessed the program on a mobile device, watching disease self-management content at least once every other day. Posttests were conducted upon return visit to the clinic after 3 months. The measuring outcomes included demographics, disease characteristics, and quality of life. After the intervention, significant results were observed in the experimental group regarding the control of systolic blood pressure and diastolic blood pressure. Furthermore, significant effects were observed in the overall improvement, as well as the physical and mental component summary of quality of life, compared with the control group. The primary outcomes can help control blood pressure and mitigate complications in patients with hypertension. Secondary outcomes include promoting overall quality of life and its physical and mental component summary while providing nursing staff with an alternative method of health education other than conventional methods
Effects of a Board Game on Tic Management and Psychosocial Functioning in Adolescents With Tourette Syndrome: Randomized Controlled Trial
No full text[[abstract]]Background: Tics and comorbidities significantly impact the social interactions and mental health of adolescents with Tourette syndrome (TS). Psychoeducation is an initial intervention for TS. Gamification is a common psychoeducational intervention for youths with chronic conditions. However, the effectiveness of board games in improving tic severity and mental health in adolescents with TS remains underexplored.
Objective: We developed a serious board game to investigate its effects on tic severity, mental health, social adjustment, and depression in adolescents with TS.
Methods: A single-blinded, 2-arm, parallel randomized controlled study was conducted. From September 2022 to July 2024, participants were recruited from a medical center in northern Taiwan. Seventy-nine adolescents with TS aged 12 to 18 years were randomly assigned to either a control group (n=39) or an intervention group (n=40). Both groups received care as usual (daily pyridoxine [50 mg] and psychoeducation), while the intervention group additionally participated in a weekly 60-minute board game session over a 4-week period. Outcome measures included the Yale Global Tic Severity Scale, Positive Mental Health Scale, Social Adjustment Scale for Adolescents with TS, and Beck Youth Inventory II - Depression scale.
Results: Generalized estimation equation results showed that, compared to the control group, the intervention group demonstrated significant improvements in positive mental health at the postintervention (?=5.19, 95% CI 0.36 to 10.02, P=.04) and follow-up (?=7.14, 95% CI 2.15 to 12.14, P=.005), with time-dependent effects. The intervention group also showed significant improvements in social adjustment (?=4.24, 95% CI 1.79 to 6.69, P<.001) and depression (?=-3.06, 95% CI -6.04 to -0.11, P=.04) at follow-up. No significant differences were observed between the 2 groups in tic severity.
Conclusions: The serious board game developed in this study significantly enhanced psychosocial functioning in adolescents with TS. As an alternative to verbal and written health communication, the board game serves as an innovative psychoeducational instrument for health care professionals to help adolescents with TS in tic management and mental health promotion. Future studies can develop and validate the feasibility of a digital version of the board game
"Warrior who transcends adversity": A qualitative examination of resilience among mothers caring for adolescents with congenital heart disease
No full text[[abstract]]Purpose: Parenting resilience is essential for the well-being and development of children with chronic illnesses. Given the importance of parenting resilience in this context, this study explored the nature of parenting resilience among mothers caring for adolescents with congenital heart disease (CHD).
Design and methods: We adopted Husserl's phenomenological approach and conducted semistructured in-depth interviews. In addition, we conducted purposive sampling at the pediatric cardiology outpatient departments of 2 medical centers in Taiwan to recruit 11 mothers of adolescents with CHD; all of these adolescents had received open-heart surgery. Furthermore, we analyzed data by using Colaizzi's approach, and we adhered to the COnsolidated criteria for REporting Qualitative research checklist.
Results: Mothers caring for adolescents with CHD was a dynamic process involving problem solving. The 11 mothers in this study employed resilience to remain strong, provided a sense of normalcy for their children, and approached challenges calmly and bravely. We uncovered three major themes among these mothers: "providing support for the child, "facing challenges with equanimity," and "overcoming adversity through positivity and gratitude."
Conclusions: The present results provide a deeper understanding of how mothers caring for adolescents with CHD can cultivate resilience.
Practice implications: The study's findings can inform transitional programs for adolescents with CHD and their families, with nursing professionals supporting mothers' resilience
Characteristics, utilization of reproductive health services and AI prediction among Taiwanese adolescent mothers during the COVID-19 pandemic
No full text[[abstract]]Background: Although adolescent birth rates have declined globally, the sexual and reproductive health of adolescent mothers remains an area of specific concern, and these were impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic. This study investigates characteristics, utilization of reproductive health services (RHS) and artificial intelligence (AI) prediction during the pandemic.
Methods: We conducted an exploratory study using data for 2020-2022 from the Taipei City Government Health Bureau. Adolescent mothers under the age of 20 received post-birth telephone-based RHS, covering contraception, abortion, postpartum care, and social welfare support. The data analysis included descriptive statistics, and various machine learning techniques were employed, including random forest, SVM, KNN, logistic regression, and Bayesian network analysis.
Results: Of 112 participants, most were aged 17 to 19 (80.4%) and married (58.0%). The majority had full-term deliveries (86.6%) with healthy infants. A high percentage had not used contraception before conception (60.7%), and some had had earlier abortion or termination experiences (13.4%). In the examination of eight influential factors, the machine learning models, specifically the random forest and Bayesian network analyses, exhibited the highest accuracy, achieving 90.91% and 89%, respectively, in predicting service acceptance. The key determinants identified were abortion experience and marital status, directly influencing the acceptance of services.
Conclusion: The COVID-19 pandemic reduced hospital visits for adolescent mothers, but the RHS provided timely guidance. Telemedicine consultations and internet-based psychological consultations may play a crucial role in facilitating such services in the future
Measurement Invariance of the Hospice Quality of Life Index-14 in Lung Cancer and Nonlung Cancer Patients Admitted to Hospice
No full text[[abstract]]Background and Purpose: Establishing measurement invariance (MI) is important in the questionnaire validation process. This study examined the MI of the Hospice Quality of Life Index-14 (HQLI-14) when comparing hospice patients with lung cancer and those with nonlung cancers. Methods: The HQLI-14 contains 14 items to measure multidimensional concepts of quality of life. A series of confirmatory factor analyses were performed to test configural, metric, and scalar invariance. Results: The MI of the HQLI-14 was supported by increasing equality constraints on item parameters between groups. Although the configural and metric invariances were both supported, one item regarding breathlessness was noninvariant between the groups with lung and nonlung cancers. Conclusions: The HQLI-14 shows early evidence of meeting the requirements for configural, metric, and partial scalar invariance. It may be used to make meaningful comparisons between patients with lung cancer and nonlung cancers
The experiences of public health nurses during the COVID-19 in Taiwan: A qualitative study
No full text[[abstract]]Aim: The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic has had a substantial effect on frontline health care workers and caused public health nurses (PHNs) to come under various forms of pressure. PHNs face high-risk challenges in their work environment, and their professional commitment and adaptability are key concerns. The aim of this qualitative study was to describe the experiences of PHNs during the COVID-19 outbreak.
Methods/design: Twenty PHNs who worked during the COVID-19 outbreak were recruited from seven public health centres through posters. Data were collected through in-depth interviews that comprised semi-structured and open-ended questions; subsequently, the data were analysed through content analysis.
Results: Three themes emerged from the study findings, namely (1) the disorderliness of COVID-19 pandemic prevention work, (2) managing stress and fear, and (3) the establishment of a new normal. Because of the severity of the pandemic, the workload and stress associated with epidemic prevention policies continue to increase. PHNs may infect their family members and experience a sense of alienation and distance. They must also deal with irrationality and reactions in the people within their community.
Conclusion: Health department directors and policymakers should provide the necessary support and assistance to frontline pandemic prevention workers to increase the efficiency of pandemic prevention efforts.
Patient or public contribution: The participants agreed to participate in the qualitative study during the study period
A Narrative Review of Impact of Incentive Spirometer Respiratory Training in Long COVID
No full text[[abstract]]Long COVID refers to symptoms that appear 3 months after initial infection with severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), the causative virus of Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), and last for at least 2 months, not attributable to other diagnoses. This health issue significantly burdens patients' quality of life, the economy, and society. Improving the af-termath of COVID-19 is a crucial global health issue in the post-pandemic era. According to current results, it is evident that developing a simple, low-cost respiratory training method that can be easily used at home by themselves with long Coronavirus disease 2019 symptoms (long COVID) is an important and urgent issue. The incentive spirometer is widely used in physical, speech, and respiratory therapy, as well as in preventing postoperative pulmonary infections and improving sputum clearance. However, to date, the role of incentive spirometer respiratory training in long COVID symptoms is still limited. In this literature review is presented to explore the effectiveness of incentive spirometer respiratory training in alleviating symptoms among individuals recovering from long COVID. We also compile non-invasive assessment methods, with the aim to enable individuals to undergo training and assessments conveniently at home or in the community. In this review, a literature review approach was utilized to explore the effectiveness of incentive spirometer intervention in alleviating long-term COVID symptoms. This study is to synthesize the findings of articles published during January 2019 and December 2023 retrieved from PubMed/CINAHL/MEDLINE/ Google Scholar without re-strictions on study type. We ultimately identified seven articles and have summarized similar past studies. This review could contribute to improving symptoms related to long COVID by incentive spirometer respiratory training and serve as practical reference material for clinical medical staff and provide insights for healthcare policymakers in de-veloping guidelines for future research directions, clinical guidance, and educational strategies in the context of nursing care
Effects of a Mobile Health Intervention on Weight Control and Pregnancy Outcomes in Overweight Pregnant Women: A Randomized Controlled Trial
No full textThe Relationship Between Voluntary Participation Status and Health Promotion Lifestyle Among Middle-Aged and Older Adults in the Community
No full text[[abstract]]The purpose of this study was to understand the relationship between the characteristics, health status, and health-promoting lifestyles of volunteer workers who participate in the community among middle-aged and older adults. A cross-sectional study was conducted to collect data from 173 middle-aged and older adults volunteers from 2 communities in North Taiwan. Data were collected using a structured questionnaire that included Demographic Characteristics Form, Self-Rated Health Status Scale, and Health Promotion Lifestyle Scale. Most of the volunteers were female, with an average age of 60.41 (±9.30) years. The average item score for the health promotion lifestyle was 74.07 ( SD = 19.27). Participants scored highest on the social support subscales and lowest on the exercise subscales, followed by health responsibility subscales. Multiple regression analysis revealed that an average of 6 to 8 hours of volunteer services per week, diversity of volunteer services, and self-rated health status were each significantly associated with a greater health promotion lifestyle. Community health care workers should strengthen community volunteer support networks and motivate volunteers to attend health-related classes. Various community activities can remind each volunteer of their health responsibilities and awareness of a healthy promotion lifestyle