263,142 research outputs found

    Accurate Hopf points for the Poiseuille flow of a Bingham fluid.

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    Si studiano i punti di biforcazione (di non unicitá) della soluzione del sistema differenziale ottenuto, per modellizzazione, da un flusso piano di Poiseuille per un fluido viscoso alla Bingham

    Instruments evaluating the quality of the clinical learning environment in nursing education: A systematic review of psychometric properties

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    Background The clinical learning environment is fundamental to nursing education paths, capable of affecting learning processes and outcomes. Several instruments have been developed in nursing education, aimed at evaluating the quality of the clinical learning environments; however, no systematic review of the psychometric properties and methodological quality of these studies has been performed to date. Objectives The aims of the study were: 1) to identify validated instruments evaluating the clinical learning environments in nursing education; 2) to evaluate critically the methodological quality of the psychometric property estimation used; and 3) to compare psychometric properties across the instruments available. Design A systematic review of the literature (using the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analysis guidelines) and an evaluation of the methodological quality of psychometric properties (using the COnsensus-based Standards for the selection of health Measurement INstruments guidelines). Data sources The Medline and CINAHL databases were searched. Eligible studies were those that satisfied the following criteria: a) validation studies of instruments evaluating the quality of clinical learning environments; b) in nursing education; c) published in English or Italian; d) before April 2016. Review methods The included studies were evaluated for the methodological quality of the psychometric properties measured and then compared in terms of both the psychometric properties and the methodological quality of the processes used. Results The search strategy yielded a total of 26 studies and eight clinical learning environment evaluation instruments. A variety of psychometric properties have been estimated for each instrument, with differing qualities in the methodology used. Concept and construct validity were poorly assessed in terms of their significance and rarely judged by the target population (nursing students). Some properties were rarely considered (e.g., reliability, measurement error, criterion validity), whereas others were frequently estimated, but using different coefficients and statistical analyses (e.g., internal consistency, structural validity), thus rendering comparison across instruments difficult. Moreover, the methodological quality adopted in the property assessments was poor or fair in most studies, compromising the goodness of the psychometric values estimated. Conclusions Clinical learning placements represent the key strategies in educating the future nursing workforce: instruments evaluating the quality of the settings, as well as their capacity to promote significant learning, are strongly recommended. Studies estimating psychometric properties, using an increased quality of research methodologies are needed in order to support nursing educators in the process of clinical placements accreditation and quality improvement

    First or Second Drop of Blood in Capillary Glucose Monitoring: Findings from a Quantitative Study

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    For clinical nurses, especially those working in emergency departments, it is crucial to measure blood glucose (BG) in an accurate, timely, and safe manner. Many differences in practice exist with regard to use of the first or second drop of blood for testing, and no consistent guidelines are available for capillary BG testing at home or in ED settings. The purpose of this study is to evaluate the BG differences between the first and second drop of capillary blood collected from the same site in patients with type 1 diabetes. Methods A consecutive sample of 195 persons with type 1 diabetes who had washed their hands and were not suspected of having hypoglycemia were included in the study. Descriptive and inferential statistical analysis for non-normal distributed variables was performed. Results A strong correlation emerged between the BG reported in the first and the second drops (Spearman's rho test [rs] 0.979, P < .001; Pearson r 0.978, P < .001). The average BG values obtained from the first and second drops were 184.30 mg/dL (median, 166) and 187.6 mg/dL (median, 172), respectively, and thus the second drop showed higher glucose values compared with the first drop. However, BG values of the second drop were not higher in all occasions: whereas some evaluations reported higher BG values in the second drop capillary sample (n = 123), others reported higher values in the first drop (n = 65), and still others reported identical measurements in the first and second drops (n = 7). Five outliers were present with a BG difference from − 39 to − 53 mg/dL in the first drop compared with the second drop, and 3 outliers were present with a BG difference from + 46 to + 57 mg/dL in the first drop compared with the second drop. However, the differences that emerged were not affected by glucose concentration (P = .221). Discussion Using the first drop of blood in a patient with clean hands allows emergency nurses to perform the test more quickly, resulting in immediate information. Findings indicate that the first drop of blood is adequate for clinical decision making, but the clinician should use judgment if using protocols in which small values (eg, 6 mg/dL) are important, because the first drop is more likely to have a slightly lower value

    Patient isolation during Sars-CoV-2 pandemic: the caregivers' experience in a neuro-rehabilitation unit

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    Introduction. During the Covid-19 pandemic, caregiver visits were suspended in many health care facilities and, even today, limitations remain. These restrictions have impacted not only the patients but also caregivers. Aim. To explore the life experience of caregivers of hospitalized patients, during the pandemic and the impact of visit limitations in a rehabilitation unit. Method. An exploratory qualitative study was conducted, following the COREQ guidelines. Caregivers of inpatients were purposefully sampled and interviewed, until data saturation. A qualitative thematic analysis with an inductive approach was performed. Results. Fifteen caregivers were interviewed. The themes emerged were: 1. perception of the illness as a sudden change; 2. concerns for their loved one (i.e. the loneliness or the suffering); 3. critical (difficult to organize and perceived too short) and positive aspects of the visits; 4. barriers to communication (for example, masks when in presence; or the difficu..

    Going Beyond Counting First Authors in Author Co-citation Analysis

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    The present study examines one of the fundamental aspects of author co-citation analysis (ACA) - the way co-citation counts are defined. Co-citation counting provides the data on which all subsequent statistical analyses and mappings are based, and we compare ACA results based on two different types of co-citation counting - the traditional type that only counts the first one among a cited work's authors on the one hand and a non-traditional type that takes into account the first 5 authors of a cited work on the other hand. Results indicate that the picture produced through this non-traditional author co-citation counting contains more coherent author groups and is therefore considerably clearer. However, this picture represents fewer specialties in the research field being studied than that produced through the traditional first-author co-citation counting when the same number of top-ranked authors is selected and analyzed. Reasons for these effects are discussed

    Framing the time while designing and conducting reviews: A Focused Mapping Review and Synthesis

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    Aims and Objectives: To identify the profile of time restrictions and their justifications as reported on a set of published reviews. Background: There is a body of methodological knowledge addressing how to design and perform reviews in their different designs. However, how the time restrictions should be set and the justifications that should be provided have received limited attention to date. Design: A Focused Mapping Review and Synthesis following three steps (Focus, Mapping and Synthesis) was performed on 2021. The ENTREQ checklist was followed to report methods and findings. Methods: All Journal of Clinical Nursing reviews published in online or printed version on 2020 (n = 85). Time limits imposed in the literature search, and justifications provided were mapped and synthetised with quantitative and a qualitative analysis. Results: Time restrictions in reviews are not always reported and, when available, reflect three different profiles: (a) including all studies, to provide a comprehensive review; (b) selecting a period, to provide reviews for a contemporary practice; and (b) including only recent studies for reviews reflecting current practice. Reasons justifying time restrictions are not always reported; when documented, justifications regard changes in the practice, in the research or in the theory occurred over time, recent or ongoing. Conclusions: In exploring the date restrictions applied in reviews published over the course of a year, it emerged that the time of access to the sources and the justifications are not always indicated. The attributes of the emerging concepts of “comprehensive reviews,” “contemporary practice reviews” and “current practice reviews” might be further developed to support researchers in selecting an appropriate time frame. Relevance to clinical practice: Reviews require improvements regarding the time restrictions and their justifications. Methodological efforts to standardise the approach ensuring transparency in review protocols and in the following review publication are recommended

    Protecting Animals 36: Author Witi Ihimaera

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    In this very special episode of Knowing Animals I am joined by beloved New Zealand author Witi Ihimaera. Witi has written many books featuring nonhuman animals. He offers us a non-colonial lens through which to think about the human/nonhuman relationship

    Author Under Sail The Imagination of Jack London, 1893-1902

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    In Author Under Sail, Jay Williams offers the first complete literary biography of Jack London as a professional writer engaged in the labor of writing. It examines the authorial imagination in London's work, the use of imagination in both his fiction and nonfiction, and the ways he defined imagination in the creative process in his business dealings with his publishers, editors, and agents. In this first volume of a two-volume biography, Williams traverses the years 1893 to 1902, from London's "Story of a Typhoon" to The People of the Abyss. The Jack London who emerges in the pages of Author Under Sail is a writer whose partnership with publishers, most notably his productive alliance with George Brett of Macmillan, was one of the most formative in American literary history. London pioneered many author models during the heyday of realism and naturalism, blurring the boundaries of these popular genres by focusing on absorption and theatricality and the representation of the seen and unseen. London created an impassioned, sincere, and extremely personal realism unlike that of other American writers of the time. Author Under Sail is a literary tour de force that reveals the full range of London as writer, creative citizen, and entrepreneur at the same time it sheds light on the maverick side of machine-age literature.Intro -- Title Page -- Copyright Page -- Dedication -- Contents -- Acknowledgments -- Introduction -- 1. Spirit Truth -- 2. From Absorption to Theatricality and Back Again -- 3. "I Will Build a New Present" -- 4. Sons as Authors -- 5. Fathers as Publishers -- 6. The Daughter as Author -- 7. Lovers as Authors -- 8. At Sea with the Family -- 9. Yellow News, Yellow Stories -- 10. The Return Home -- Notes -- Bibliography -- Index -- About Jay WilliamsIn Author Under Sail, Jay Williams offers the first complete literary biography of Jack London as a professional writer engaged in the labor of writing. It examines the authorial imagination in London's work, the use of imagination in both his fiction and nonfiction, and the ways he defined imagination in the creative process in his business dealings with his publishers, editors, and agents. In this first volume of a two-volume biography, Williams traverses the years 1893 to 1902, from London's "Story of a Typhoon" to The People of the Abyss. The Jack London who emerges in the pages of Author Under Sail is a writer whose partnership with publishers, most notably his productive alliance with George Brett of Macmillan, was one of the most formative in American literary history. London pioneered many author models during the heyday of realism and naturalism, blurring the boundaries of these popular genres by focusing on absorption and theatricality and the representation of the seen and unseen. London created an impassioned, sincere, and extremely personal realism unlike that of other American writers of the time. Author Under Sail is a literary tour de force that reveals the full range of London as writer, creative citizen, and entrepreneur at the same time it sheds light on the maverick side of machine-age literature.Description based on publisher supplied metadata and other sources.Electronic reproduction. Ann Arbor, Michigan : ProQuest Ebook Central, YYYY. Available via World Wide Web. Access may be limited to ProQuest Ebook Central affiliated libraries
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