Managing interdisciplinary health research--theoretical and practical aspects

Interdisciplinary health research can offer valuable evidence for health care managers. However, there are specific challenges regarding the management of such projects. Based on 7 years of experience from a project in western Kenya, the authors point to the need for a sufficient time horizon, a high level of communication, equity between the disciplines and the identification of appropriate evaluation criteria as issues to be considered. The theoretical framework of Rosenfield was modified to comply with the complexities of field management.     

Structural aspects of Plasmodium relevant to vaccination against malaria

The extracellular stages of Plasmodium which can be inactivated with antibodies include the sporozoites, merozoites and microgametes. The surfaces of sporozoites and merozoites are known to bind antibodies which render them unable to invade host cells. Intraerythrocytic merozoites, trophozoites and schizonts release antigens which are conveyed to the surface of the host cell, although they do not appear to be attacked by antibodies directly. The significance of these observations is discussed.     

An overview of research designs relevant to nursing: Part 3: mixed and multiple methods

This third article of the series "An Overview of Research Designs Relevant to Nursing" presents the use of mixed or multiple methods in nursing research. The use of mixed or multiple methods is a growing trend that offers another option for researchers in addressing the complex health problems faced in nursing today. Understanding of all methods and all combinations of methods facilitate the conduction and dissemination of research to serve nursing practice.     

An overview of research designs relevant to nursing: Part 1: Quantitative research designs

This three part series of articles provides a brief overview of relevant research designs in nursing. The first article in the series presents the most frequently used quantitative research designs. Strategies for non-experimental and experimental research designs used to generate and refine nursing knowledge are described. In addition, the importance of quantitative designs and the role they play in developing evidence-based practice are discussed. Nursing care needs to be determined by the results of sound research rather than by clinical preferences or tradition.     

Rapporteur Report: ICNIRP international workshop on EMF dosimetry and biophysical aspects relevant to setting exposure guidelines

The International Commission on Non-Ionizing Radiation Protection has commenced the revision of its EMF guidelines in the frequency range up to 300 GHz. The ICNIRP International EMF Dosimetry Workshop has brought together a range of scientists to discuss the basis of the existing guidelines and to highlight those areas where attention needs to be given. This report is an attempt to extract the key messages from each of the presentations. A tabulation of the important issues discussed in the summary and conclusion session is provided at the end of this report.     

Mental health as interdisciplinary topic in the nursing curriculum

Our aim in this study was to check if the contents of the mental health subject area may permeate the courses forming the Undergraduate program in nursing, by describing the experience developed in a public university and by getting to know what the academics' perception of that practice was. Twenty-seven students took part in the research. A questionnaire was used. Concerning the introduction of the mental health subject area in other disciplines, 18.5% of the respondents claimed it was great, 70.5% said it was good, and 11% considered it as regular. As to its applicability, 7.5% got to use what they had learned, 81.5% used it sometimes, but they believe it is of use, and 11% of the respondents didn't get to use it, but believe it can be used. The application of the mental health subject area contents to several courses in the nursing program is perceived by students as a basis for a global health care to be supplied to customers, family, and community.     

The process of nursing work in collective health and interdisciplinary studies

This study aims at discussing and stimulating reflections on the need of an interdisciplinary dialogue when the object of work is the health-illness-care process. The authors discuss the definition of Nursing by considering its essence, care, its history and practice. Following, considerations about inter- and trans-disciplinary studies on collective health are presented and the authors conclude with a proposal of basing care on the theory of communicative action developed by Jürgen Habermas.     

产后抑郁的发病因素与社区护理干预

产后抑郁严重影响产妇身心健康和婴儿生长发育，其发病因素可分为生理和心理社会两大类。社区护理干预是减低产后抑郁发病率的重要手段，具体内容包括：宣传和培养自理意识，加强产前保健，完善产褥期家庭访视，将产后保健与婴儿计划免疫相结合，建立完善的产后支持系统。     

International Association of Gerontology and Geriatrics: a global agenda for clinical research and quality of care in nursing homes

A workshop charged with identifying the main clinical concerns and quality of care issues within nursing homes was convened by the International Association of Gerontology and Geriatrics, with input from the World Health Organization. The workshop met in Toulouse, France, during June 2010. Drawing on the latest evidence and mindful of the international development agenda and specific regional challenges, consensus was sought on priority actions and future research. The impetus for this work was the known variation in the quality of nursing home care experiences of older people around the world. The resulting Task Force recommendations include instigation of sustainable strategies designed to enhance confidence among older people and their relatives that the care provided within nursing homes is safe, mindful of their preferences, clinically appropriate, and delivered with respect and compassion by appropriately prepared expert doctors, registered nurses, administrators, and other staff. The proposals extend across 4 domains (Reputational Enhancement and Leadership, Clinical Essentials and Care Quality Indicators, Practitioner Education, and Research) that, in concert, will enhance the reputation and status of nursing home careers among practitioners, promote effective evidence-informed quality improvements, and develop practice leadership and research capabilities.     

新生儿呕吐原因分析及护理对策

呕吐是新生儿期一种常见的症状，它可因新生儿的生理解剖特点及喂养不当引起，同时也是许多疾病及先天性消化道畸形的主要症状。如果呕吐护理和处理不当，呕吐物易呛入气道而引起窒息和／或吸入性肺炎。因此在新生儿临床工作中，对患儿的呕吐应认真分析原因，并予以适当处理。本文总结了北京市朝阳区妇幼保健院2004年10月至2006年6月产科母婴同室新生儿发生呕吐的原因并提出了护理对策。     

The interdisciplinary curriculum: from social medicine to postmodernism

Academic specialisation has often been criticised, because it brings about a narrow and partial orientation to research and teaching. Hence interdisciplinarity often appears to be a positive and alternative framework for the progressive reorganisation of higher education curricula. This paper examines various aspects of the development of interdisciplinarity in relation to the medical curriculum, locating these changes in the social context of the development of scientific medicine. These interdisciplinary perspectives are illustrated by an examination of four cases (social medicine, sociology of health and illness, the interdisciplinary research centre, and the postmodern melange) which necessarily imply some critical appraisal of the medical profession and its status in society, because they implicitly or explicitly suggest new approaches to the medical curriculum. However, these four examples indicate that the notion of ‘interdisciplinarity’ covers a variety of very different perspectives on curriculum reform in higher education. Social medicine and the sociology of health and illness have been typically critical evaluations of monodisciplinary assumptions about medical intervention and medical training. By contrast, the research centre orientation, which followed the Rothschild Report, has been primarily a response to financial constraints. The development of postmodernism in social theory has also involved a challenge to the unitary assumptions of monodisciplinarity, but there may be a convergence between the commercialisation of medicine and the emergence of postmodernistic criticism of the conventional medical curriculum, in which case interdisciplinarity will produce a fragmentary pastiche of disciplines rather than intellectual integration.     

Our VOICE: an interdisciplinary approach to shared governance

The authors' purpose was to make public to other healthcare executives the demonstrated success of an interdisciplinary shared governance process benefiting any healthcare organization. Main components of a successful model include a conducive work environment free of distractions, available resources in order to gather information to complete a project, and committees chosen focused on high priority for patient and staff satisfaction, quality, and safety. An essential piece of the puzzle is that grassroots staff needs to own the process. The authors share the current model and discuss outcomes, success, and lessons learned throughout their decade-long journey.