Registered Nurses' views on their professional role

Aim The aim is to study Registered Nurses’ opinions and reflections about their work tasks, competence and organization in acute hospital care. Background The definition of the role of nurses has changed over time and it is often discussed whether Registered Nurses have a professional status or not. Method A qualitative research design was used. Data were derived from written reflections on diaries and from focus group interviews. Results All respondents had difficulties in identifying the essence of their work. It can be argued that being ‘a spider in the web’ is an important aspect of the nursing profession. Conclusion Registered Nurses tend to regard their professional role as vague. Managers must be considered key persons in defining the professional role of Registered Nurses. Implications for nursing management This study contributes to an understanding of the managers’ and the importance of nursing education in Registered Nurses professional development.     

QUANTITATIVE AUTORADIOGRAPHIC DETERMINATION OF BINDING SITES FOR A PERIPHERAL BENZODIAZEPINE LIGAND ([3H]PK 11195) IN HUMAN IRIS

Specific binding sites of peripheral-type benzodiazepines were investigated in human iris/ciliary body (8 eyes). Examination of color-coded prints and densitometric quantification of autoradiograms were performed on slides (20 micron) labelled with [3H]PK 11195 (1 nM) at 25 degrees C. Nonspecific binding was determined with PK 11211 (5 microM) or Ro 5-4864 (5 microM). Binding sites were present on all the slides, with equivalent density in the 3 regions of the preparation (ciliary body, iris, and pupil margin). The numbers of binding sites in ciliary body, iris, and pupil margin, respectively, were: 42.7 +/- 0.2, 30.1 +/- 0.5, and 37.4 +/- 0.4 femtomol/mg protein. Labelling on the pupil margin seemed to coincide with the iris sphincter muscle. The presence of peripheral benzodiazepine binding sites in iris muscular tissue, and particularly in the pupil margin, suggests that the iris preparation may be a valuable tool to detect putative physiological effects of peripheral benzodiazepines on muscular motility.