Factors associated with work-related injury among hospital employees: a case-control study.

The Central Arkansas Veterans Healthcare System (CAVHS) spends $1 million annually on occupational illnesses and injuries. To address the problem of injuries among hospital employees, a retrospective case-control study was conducted to examine select risk factors for work-related injuries (WRI) among CAVHS employees. Study methods included a review of employee health charts and computer and manual databases from 1997 to 2002 (N = 2,050). The researchers found that WRI increased with age; WRI occurred more often in women than in men; WRI was greater among maintenance and custodial staff compared to direct caregivers, and less among clerical staff; WRI occurred less often in part-time than full-time staff; and WRI increased with increasing body mass index. Developing standards, guidelines, and policies for preplacement screening, preventive measures, training, and education may help to minimize WRI and associated costs.     

Severe adolescent head injury: Implications for transition into adult life

This report describes the outcomes of 28 children who had severe head injuries between 13–18 years of age. All were unconscious at least 24 hours and have been followed at least 2 years after injury. At present, their ages range from 18 to 27 years. Their educational achievements, social activities, marital status, functional independence, and employment at follow-up are described.     

Practical application of comfort theory in the perianesthesia setting.

Comfort management is a priority for patients in all settings. Comfort theory provides a foundational and holistic approach to comfort management. This article reviews comfort theory and presents the application of comfort theory in the perianesthesia setting. OBJECTIVES: -Based on the content of the following article, the reader will be able to (1) define comfort; (2) identify comfort interventions; and (3) discuss the importance of a goal for enhanced comfort in patients.     

Sevoflurane versus Halothane: Postoperative Maladaptive Behavioral Changes: A Randomized, Controlled Trial

Background: The authors conducted a double-blind, randomized, controlled trial to determine whether the use of sevoflurane in children undergoing anesthesia and surgery results in a higher incidence of postoperative maladaptive behavioral changes as compared with halothane.

Methods: Children and their parents (n = 102) were randomly assigned to either a halothane group (n = 50) or a sevoflurane group (n = 52). The intraoperative anesthetic protocol was strictly controlled, and the postoperative analgesic consumption and pain levels were recorded. The effect of the group assignment on emergence status and maladaptive postoperative behavioral changes was assessed both by validated psychological measures and physiologic instruments (actigraphy) on postoperative days 1-7. Anxiety of the parent and child was also assessed, as was the child's postoperative recovery (Recovery Inventory).

Results: There were no group differences in preoperative state anxiety, postoperative analgesic requirements, postoperative pain, or the incidence of emergence delirium (P = not significant). Two-way repeated-measures analysis of variance showed no group differences in the incidence of postoperative maladaptive behaviors (F4,72 = 0.60, P = 0.701) or actigraphic variables such as percent sleep, number of night awakenings, and night awakenings that lasted for more than 5 min (P = not significant).     

Exercise and older adults

The benefits of regular physical activity in older persons are numerous and well established. Regular physical activity in older adults is associated with an overall improvement in health, functional capacity, quality of life, and independence. Many questions arise for healthcare providers regarding an older person’s ability and motivation to be physically active. The healthcare provider has a unique opportunity to assess the older client’s incentives, preferences, and abilities for physical activities, as well as to prescribe a safe, appropriate, and enjoyable exercise plan. The exercise precription can be simple yet thorough enough to ensure benefits in an older person’s health and functional capacity.     

Using Queueing Theory to Increase the Effectiveness of Emergency Department Provider Staffing

Objectives: Significant variation in emergency department (ED) patient arrival rates necessitates the adjustment of staffing patterns to optimize the timely care of patients. This study evaluated the effectiveness of a queueing model in identifying provider staffing patterns to reduce the fraction of patients who leave without being seen. Methods: The authors collected detailed ED arrival data from an urban hospital and used a Lag SIPP queueing analysis to gain insights on how to change provider staffing to decrease the proportion of patients who leave without being seen. The authors then compared this proportion for the same 39‐week period before and after the resulting changes. Results: Despite an increase in arrival volume of 1,078 patients (6.3%), an average increase in provider hours of 12 hours per week (3.1%) resulted in 258 fewer patients who left without being seen. This represents a decrease in the proportion of patients who left without being seen by 22.9%. Restricting attention to a four‐day subset of the week during which there was no increase in total provider hours, a reallocation of providers based on the queueing model resulted in 161 fewer patients who left without being seen (21.7%), despite an additional 548 patients (5.5%) arriving in the second half of the study. Conclusions: Timely access to a provider is a critical dimension of ED quality performance. In an environment in which EDs are often understaffed, analyses of arrival patterns and the use of queueing models can be extremely useful in identifying the most effective allocation of staff.     

Does Supplementary Prenatal Nursing and Home Visitation Support Improve Resource Use in a Universal Health Care System? A Randomized Controlled Trial in Canada

ABSTRACT: Background: The addition of supplementary prenatal support may improve the health and well‐being of high‐risk women and families. The objective of this randomized controlled trial was to examine the impact of supplementary prenatal care on resource use among a community‐based population of pregnant women. Methods: Pregnant women from three urban maternity clinics were randomized (a) to current standard of physician care, (b) to current standard of care plus consultation with a nurse, or (c) to (b) plus consultation with a home visitor. Participants were 1,352 women who received 3 telephone interviews. The primary outcome was resource use (e.g., attended prenatal classes, used nutritional counseling). Results: Overall, those in the nurse intervention group were more likely to attend an “Early Bird” prenatal class and parenting classes, and to use nutrition counseling and agencies that assist with child care. Women provided with extra nursing and home visitation supports were more likely to use a written resource guide, nutrition counseling, and agencies that assist with child care. Among women at higher risk (e.g., language barriers, young maternal age, low income), the nurse intervention significantly increased use of early prenatal classes, whereas the nurse and home visitor intervention significantly increased use of the written resource guide and nutrition counseling. The intervention substantially increased the amount of information received on numerous pregnancy‐related topics but had little impact on resource use for mental health and poverty‐related needs. Among those with added support, resource use among low‐risk women was generally greater than among high‐risk women. Conclusions: Additional support provided by nurses, or nurses and home visitors, can successfully address informational needs and increase the likelihood that women will use existing community‐based resources. This finding was true even for high‐risk women, although this intervention did not reduce the difference in resource use between high‐ and low‐risk women. (BIRTH 33:3 September 2006)