Facing registration: the expectations and the unexpected

This paper reports on newly qualified nurses' experiences of the transition from being a nursing student to becoming a registered nurse. The aim of the study was to ascertain how newly qualified nurses perceived their role transition in an Irish general hospital. Data were gathered using in-depth interviews with 12 nurses who were within one year of qualification. A grounded theory approach was used to generate, analyse and synthesise the data. The findings revealed that newly qualified nurses have specific needs, many of which are unrealised. The vast and increased workload, which involved less patient-contact and more non-nursing duties, came as a surprise to participants in this study. The expectation of in-depth knowledge, coupled with feelings of increased responsibility and compounded by relatively little experience did little to ease the transition to becoming a newly qualified nurse. There is a need to contextualise the transition to registration so that expectations of newly qualified nurses are realistic. Management and staff must remain cognisant of the fact that many newly registered nurses have relatively limited clinical experience at the time of registration.     

Minimal Residual Disease Negativity Does Not Overcome Poor Prognosis in High-Risk Multiple Myeloma: A Single-Center Retrospective Study

BackgroundMinimal residual disease (MRD) is a standard measurement for response assessment in multiple myeloma (MM). Despite new treatments, high-risk MM patients continue to have poor prognosis. We evaluated the effect of MRD negativity in high-risk versus standard-risk patients.Patients and MethodsWe retrospectively evaluated all consecutive MM patients who underwent routine MRD testing by 1-tube 8-color advanced flow cytometry with 2,000,000 events and sensitivity level 10⁻⁵ at our center from 2015 to 2018 after initial therapy. Kaplan-Meier and log-rank test were used to assess survival estimates and differences between study groups.ResultsOne hundred thirty-six patients with MRD testing after initial therapy or autologous stem-cell transplantation were identified. At a median follow-up of 14 months (range, 1-36 months), progression-free survival and overall survival were significantly worse in high-risk versus standard-risk patients. During the study period, 50% of high-risk group had experienced disease progression (relapse and/or death) versus 20% in the standard-risk group (P = .0006). No patients with standard-risk died, but 4 (14%) in the high-risk group did (P = .0007). Regardless of MRD status, high-risk patients had statistically significant worse progression-free survival than standard-risk patients. At median follow-up, those with disease 10% standard-risk/MRD negative; 20% standard-risk/MRD positive; 40% high-risk/MRD negative; and 45% high-risk/MRD positive had either experienced relapse or died (P = .0041). MRD status did not significantly affect overall survival in either group (P = .0914); however, longer follow-up is needed to assess survival.ConclusionGenetic abnormalities remain a powerful prognostic indicator for MM, regardless of MRD status. For newly diagnosed MM patients treated with novel triple-drug initial therapy and frontline autologous stem-cell transplantation, MRD-negative status did not mitigate the poor-prognosis outcomes of high-risk MM patients.     

新药时代硼替佐米在初治多发性骨髓瘤中的一线诱导治疗地位会受到挑战吗?

对于初治多发性骨髓瘤(MM)患者,以硼替佐米为基础的化疗方案获得了较高的完全缓解率、较长的无进展生存及总生存,其在可移植及非可移植患者中均具有一线诱导治疗地位.近年来,新型药物(如蛋白酶体抑制剂、免疫调节剂、单克隆抗体及细胞免疫疗法等)由于具有较好的疗效和安全性,对硼替佐米的一线治疗地位提出了挑战.口服蛋白酶体抑制剂联合免疫调节剂和地塞米松、单克隆抗体联合免疫调节剂和地塞米松未来有望成为初治MM患者的一线诱导治疗方案.在更远的将来,嵌合抗原受体T细胞免疫疗法(CAR-T)也可能成为一线治疗的一部分,尤其是用于高危患者的诱导或清除微小残余病变的巩固治疗.     

硼替佐米联合VAD方案治疗初治多发性骨髓瘤的临床观察

目的:观察硼替佐米联合VAD方案治疗初治多发性骨髓瘤(MM)的初期疗效和安全性。方法:15例初治MM患者给予硼替佐米1.3mg.m-2,第1、4、8、11天静脉注射,每28天为1个疗程;每个疗程联合VAD方案化疗,每例患者至少接受2～8个疗程治疗。采用欧洲骨髓移植协作组(EBMT)标准评价其初步疗效,按美国国家癌症研究所不良事件常用名标准(NCI-CTCAE,version3.0)判断其毒副反应。结果:15例MM患者经过不同疗程的治疗,3例完全缓解,5例接近完全缓解,5例部分缓解,2例轻微缓解,总有效率达86.7%。最常见的毒副反应为胃肠道反应,有11例出现不同程度的胃肠道反应,其次为周围神经病变4例、乏力4例、肝功能损伤1例、带状疱疹1例,毒副反应分别经对症治疗后均获得一定程度的缓解。结论:硼替佐米联合VAD方案治疗初治MM疗效确切,患者可耐受。     

Newly qualified midwives' transition to qualified status and role: Assimilating the ‘habitus’ or reshaping it?

Aim

to ascribe meaning to the everyday experiences of midwives during their first year of practice as they interact with their social environment.

Design

a qualitative, ethnographic study.

Setting

a major maternity department located in the West Country, UK.

Participants

seven newly qualified midwives working in the chosen setting.

Measurements

as befits an ethnographic approach, observant participation and interviews in the field were the selected data collection tools. Reflexivity was at the hub of the research process. A field diary was kept in order to ensure that the researcher took into account both her own perceptions and the interactions with participants and significant others. This paper draws on data that illustrates some of the predispositions that may constitute the midwifery habitus.

Findings

the main themes that emerged from the data were in relation to the culture of midwifery, fitting into the culture and determining what type of midwife the neophytes wanted to be (‘what is a midwife?’). To enhance transparency, the latter theme is focused upon in this paper using a model that is a synthesis of some of the findings and Bourdieu's notion of habitus.

Key conclusions and implications for practice

this research provides insight into the professional and cultural experiences of newly qualified midwives, especially how cultural interactions, education and expectations may shape the midwifery habitus. It would seem that midwives who take a critical and reflective approach to practice are key players in the cultural re-creation of midwifery. Accordingly, to enable the aforementioned approach to practice, it is important that reflective and reflexive practices are an integral part of midwifery education. Nevertheless, the implications for practice are not merely one-dimensional. Observations in the field suggest the importance of making the quality of midwives' working lives a priority by facilitating a more supportive working environment. Moreover, midwives should not be marginalised for preferring to work in the community, the birth centre or the high-risk environment. Future planning of the maternity services needs to consider how a ‘being with the woman’ approach can be facilitated for all women, balancing the virtues of both the medical and midwifery models of care.     

初诊与缓解期AML患者家属心理状况调查比较

目的:比较初诊急性白血病患者家属与缓解期急性白血病患者家属抑郁、焦虑心理状况。方法:对20例初诊急性白血病患者家属进行焦虑自评量表(SAS)、抑郁自评量表(SDS)分析评定;随机选取20例住院的缓解期急性白血病患者家属进行SAS、SDS评定,并行比较两组的结果。结果:白血病患者家属多伴有抑郁情绪,少部分患者家属伴焦虑情绪;初诊急性白血病患者家属全部表现轻中度抑郁,缓解期急性白血病患者家属表现为轻度抑郁,两者差别有统计学意义(P<0.01);初诊急性白血病患者家属少数(15%)有轻度焦虑,而缓解期急性白血病患者家属有25%表现为轻度焦虑,两者差别无统计学意义(P>0.05)。结论:对急性白血病患者家属进行适当心理支持是必要的。     

上海市嘉定区初治阳性肺结核诊断延误及其影响因素

目的了解上海市嘉定区初治阳性肺结核诊断延误情况,分析诊断延误发生的影响因素。方法采用调查表对2008年2月20日~2010年12月31日在嘉定区中心医院结核病专科门诊确诊的244例初治阳性肺结核患者的社会状况、临床症状和就诊经历进行调查。问卷调查64名内科医生,了解其肺结核相关知识及肺结核病例处理情况。结果 244例患者中107人（43.9%）发生就诊延误,有咳嗽症状的人相对于没有出现咳嗽症状的人更容易发生就诊延误。44人（20.8%）确诊延误,其中29人被误诊,首次就医选择不同医疗机构确诊延误发生率差异有统计学意义（P〈0.05）。64名内科医生11人（17.2%）认为咳嗽、咳痰超过1个月可能感染肺结核。结论初治阳性肺结核诊断延误率高,其中就诊延误是诊断延误发生的主要环节,应加大对公众肺结核相关知识宣传力度,降低就诊延误率。同时,要加强医务人员肺结核相关知识培训,减少误诊、诊断延误的发生。     

Serum uric acid level in newly diagnosed essential hypertension in a Nepalese population: A hospital based cross sectional study

Objective

To develop the missing link between hyperuricemia and hypertension.

Methods

The study was conducted in Department of Biochemistry in collaboration with Nephrology Unit of Internal Medicine Department. Hypertension was defined according to blood pressure readings by definitions of the Seventh Report of the Joint National Committee. Totally 205 newly diagnosed and untreated essential hypertensive cases and age-sex matched normotensive controls were enrolled in the study. The potential confounding factors of hyperuricemia and hypertension in both cases and controls were controlled. Uric acid levels in all participants were analyzed.

Results

Renal function between newly diagnosed hypertensive cases and normotensive healthy controls were adjusted. The mean serum uric acid observed in newly diagnosed hypertensive cases and in normotensive healthy controls were (290.05±87.05) µmol/L and (245.24±99.38) µmol/L respectively. A total of 59 (28.8%) participants of cases and 28 (13.7%) participants of controls had hyperuricemia (odds ratio 2.555 (95% CI: 1.549-4.213), P<0.001).

Conclusions

The mean serum uric acid levels and number of hyperuricemic subjects were found to be significantly higher in cases when compared to controls.