Bakgrund: I Sverige infördes Donation after Circulatory Death (DCD) under år 2020 för att kunna öka antalet organdonationer. Sedan dess har antalet donationer av denna typ succesivt ökat. Internationellt finns forskning i begränsad omfattning kring hur processen erfars av intensivvårds och operationssjuksköterskor. Både intensivvårds- och operationssjuksköterskor har en betydelsefull funktion i DCD-processen. Syfte: Syftet var att beskriva intensivvårds- och operationssjuksköterskors erfarenheter av DCD-processen. Metod: En kvalitativ innehållsanalysmed induktiv ansats användes, där fyra intensivvårdssjuksköterskor och fem operationssjuksköterskors intervjuades. Resultat: Resultaten visade att intensivvårds- och operationssjuksköterskorna upplevde både utmaningar och positiva känslor i samband med DCD processen.De fann trygghet i tydliga rutiner och gemenskap i samarbetet i DCD-teamen. Samtidigt kände de ansvar gentemot både donatorn och mottagarna av organen. Konklusion: Implementering av DCD-team har skapat en ny gemenskap och engagemang hos intensivvårds- och operationssjuksköterskorna. Trots att resultaten indikerar positiva upplevelser av DCD-processen är det viktigt att fortsätta utvärdera implementeringen och undersöka hur närstående och olika yrkesgrupper upplever processen för att få en mer heltäckande bild av dess effekter ochupplevelser. / Background: Donation after Circulatory Death (DCD) was introduced in 2020 to increase the number of organ donations in Sweden. The number of donations of this type has gradually increased. Internationally, there is limited research on how critical care and perioperative nurses perceive this method. Both critical care and perioperative nurses play a significant role in the DCD process. Aim: The aim was to describe critical care and perioperative nurses´ experiences of the DCD process. Method: A qualitative content analysis with an inductive approach where four critical care nurses and five perioperativenurses were interviewed. Results: The results showed that the critical care and perioperative nurses experienced both challenges and positive emotions associated with the DCD process. They found security in distinct routines and companionship incollaboration within DCD teams. At the same time, they felt responsibility towards both the donor and the recipients of the organs. Conclusion: The implementation of DCD teams has created a new sense of community and commitment among intensive care and perioperative nurses. Although the results indicate positive experiences of the DCD process, it is important to continue evaluating the implementation and investigating how family members and medical health professionals perceive the process to gain a more comprehensive understanding of its effects and experiences.

Sleep is an essential component of optimal physiological and psychological functioning in humans. However, numerous studies have identified sleep deficits in patients within the critical care setting. Sleep deprivation has been shown to cause adverse effects including cardiovascular, respiratory, and endocrine variations, and altered psychological functioning such as cognitive dysfunction, decreased concentration, mood variability, and delirium. The critical care environment often contains stimuli that may be a causative factor in sleep alterations such as sleep deprivation, fragmentation or alterations in sleeping patterns. These environmental stimuli include noise, light, pain, discomfort, nursing care activities, medications, psychological stressors and underlying disease and have the capability to severely impact the quantity and quality of sleep in critically ill patients. The integrated research review identifies correlations between environmental stressors and sleep alterations in critically ill patients. Outcomes of interventions including earplugs and eye masks, behavior modification, complementary and alternative medicine and pharmacological considerations are examined. Additionally, implications for nursing education, research and practice are addressed. A current integrated research review incorporating nursing implications and alternative interventions could be significant to the provision of nursing care for the critically ill patient.

The purpose of this literature review is to determine the contributing factors of CLABSI rate increases during the COVID-19 pandemic and identify interventions which restored CLABSI rates to pre-pandemic levels to guide healthcare professionals’ actions during the next pandemic. Background: In the first two decades of the 21st century, CLABSI rates were reduced in United States hospitals by innovating safer patient care practices. However, there was a significant increase in the annual CLABSI rate in 2020 and 2021, increasing the average length of stay, mortality rate, and cost to the U.S. healthcare system. Methods: An extensive search of CINAHL and MEDLINE databases was conducted using key terms “central line-associated bloodstream infection*”, COVID, and coronavirus. After assessment of eligibility, 16 studies were selected for final review. Results: Contributing factors were staffing issues, deviation from central line care standards, patient diagnosis of COVID-19, supply chain issues, and a lack of interdisciplinary collaboration in central line care. Successful interventions were interdisciplinary involvement, nursing education, CLABSI prevention bundle auditing, a new adaptation of a CLABSI prevention toolkit, and IV access point protector cap usage. Discussion: Although the interventions studied were effective, there was a notable misalignment between some contributing factors and interventions. Staffing issues and supply chain issues were two of the most common contributing factors to CLABSI rate increases, yet there is a lack of research surrounding interventions that may alleviate these factors. Further research must be conducted to address these factors to adequately prepare healthcare professionals for a future pandemic.

Background: Bronchopulmonary dysplasia (BPD) is a chronic lung condition that is diagnosed among neonates who are on oxygen therapy for longer than 28 days. BPD causes insufficient gas exchange due to prematurely developed lungs and is the most common condition that causes morbidity of prematurity. Many risk factors contribute to the development of this condition and relate to care from the delivery room to the first few days of life. Purpose: The purpose of this literature review is to examine risk factors related to the development of BPD in neonates from the gestational ages of 24 to 32 weeks. Methods: To examine the risk factors of BPD, a literature review was conducted using CINAHL Plus with Full Text. Ancestry searching was used as another method of extracting articles. The time frame of literature was within the last ten years, 2013-2023. Results: The literature review revealed that common risk factors for BPD include intubations, prolonged time intubated, reintubations, low birth weight, sepsis, low 5- minute APGAR score, delayed caffeine, invasive surfactant administration, antenatal steroid treatment, and less than 32 weeks gestational age. Conclusion: Nurses can recognize risk factors that place their patients at risk for BPD and can mediate the risks or anticipate the care of a patient with a high-risk potential for BPD. Overall, the care provided by the nurse should reflect preventative measures and anticipatory care to ensure positive patient outcomes. Some of these measures include kangaroo care, clustering care, noise reduction, decreased environmental stimulation, respecting sleep, teaching parents about breastfeeding, and advocating for prenatal care. Nurses need education to increase awareness and decrease the incidence of these risk factors.

The purpose of the study was to explore and describe the lived experiences of neophyte professional nurses working in ICU during their first year post graduation with the aim to discover strategies to support the nurse in critical care unit. An explorative, descriptive, interpretative qualitative design was conducted to uncover the nurse’s experiences. A purposive sampling was used which is based on belief that the researcher’s knowledge about the population can be used to hand pick sample elements. Data was collected through in-depth unstructured interviews and written narratives. Collaizi’s method of data analysis was used. The study findings revealed that neophyte professional nurses experienced difficulties and challenges in adjusting to the unit because of lack of mentors emanating from the shortage of staff. Nurses experienced mixed feelings regarding the relationship with colleagues in terms of support received. / Health Studies / M.A. (Health Studies)

In today’s world healthcare all over the world is profoundly challenged by rapid technological advancements, violence, terrorism, diverse cultures, proliferating chronic diseases, and the worst nursing shortage. In addition to these complex and daunting challenges healthcare continue to focus the attention on hospitals to review and modify the way care is delivered to patients. As key role players and consistent members of the multidisciplinary team critical care nurses are uniquely positioned to modify and review the quality of patient care through synergy between the patients’ needs, the nurses’ competencies, and the critical care environment. A collaborative approach towards enhancing synergy in a CCU was undertaken in a CCU in a private hospital in Gauteng. The study was guided by the American Association for Critical Care Nurses Synergy Model for Patient Care and conducted within the critical social theory paradigm. The nature of the research was descriptive, explorative and contextual and both qualitative and quantitative approaches were used. Action research cycles were followed to assess existing synergy between the patients’ needs, the nurses’ competencies and the characteristics of the environment in the CCU. An action plan was formulated and implemented towards enhancing synergy in the CCU. The implemented plan was adjusted based on observations and reflections following each of the five cycles of the project / Health Studies / D. Litt. et Phil. (Health Studies)

Thesis (MMed)--Stellenbosch University, 2014. / ENGLISH ABSTRACT: BACKGROUND Post anesthesia discharge criteria scoring systems have been used successfully to aid discharge from the post anesthetic care unit (PACU) for over 40 years. They do not replace, but rather act in conjunction with good clinical judgment, and provide concise, standardized documentation of a patient’s readiness for discharge. 1,2,3,4,5 In order to improve patient safety, provide clear documentation and to aid future audit, a discharge criteria scoring system was developed for use in our PACU (Addendum A). It is a modification of the Aldrete Scoring System and the modified Post Anesthetic Discharge Scoring System (PADSS) proposed by Chung.1 There is a steadily increasing patient burden on the existing medical infrastructure in South Africa. Tygerberg Academic Hospital is no exception, and because of the high demand on our theatre services, optimal efficiency is essential. We speculated that our discharge criteria scoring system might increase the efficiency of our PACU when compared to the traditional time based system. The more healthy patients, undergoing minor procedures, could potentially spend less time in PACU, allowing the nurses to focus on problem cases. Increasing the speed of transit might also help prevent delays in theatre due to lack of bed space in PACU. Our primary endpoint was to compare the duration of time spent by patients in the PACU at Tygerberg Academic Hospital, from the moment they are admitted, to the time they are discharged to the ward, before and after the introduction of a discharge criteria scoring system. While planning the audit, one of the factors that staff identified as contributing to delayed discharge from PACU, was the time it took for the wards to collect their patients. A secondary objective, therefore, was to assess the amount of time that elapsed between calling the ward to collect the patient, and the patient leaving PACU. METHODS AND MATERIALS Prior to commencing the audit, approval was obtained from the Human Research Ethics Committee of the Faculty of Health Sciences of the University of Stellenbosch and Tygerberg Academic Hospital. The Audit, its purpose and possible benefits, was discussed with representatives of the nurses working in PACU, and written consent was obtained from those who would be involved in the data collection (Addendum B). Audit forms (Addendum C), collection boxes, and posters reminding staff to participate in the audit were prepared. Our first audit was performed over approximately a week in August 2012. During this period, the traditional time-based discharge system was still in operation. Data was captured from 327 patients. Audit forms were placed in a collection box, which was cleared daily by the primary investigator. The discharge criteria scoring system was introduced to the PACU staff in January 2013. The nurses were trained in its use, and a one month period was allowed for all involved to become accustomed to the new system. A second audit was performed in February 2013, again over a week, during which we gathered data from 313 patients. RESULTS The median value of the time spent by patients in the PACU decreased from 1 hour 25 minutes, to 1 hour 15 minutes, after introduction of the discharge criteria scoring system. This was statistically significant (p-value = 0.003). The median time between calling the ward to collect a patient, and the patient leaving recovery, was 15 minutes. CONCLUSION The main finding of the study was that the introduction of a discharge criteria scoring system decreased the median duration of time spent by patients in the post anesthetic care unit at Tygerberg Academic Hospital. / AFRIKAANSE OPSOMMING: AGTERGROND Puntestelsels as ontslag kriteria na narkose, word vir die afgelope 40 jaar suksesvol gebruik as maatstaf om pasiënte uit die herstelkamer te ontslaan. Hierdie kriteria vervang nie goeie kliniese oordeel nie, maar is ’n addisionele hulpmiddel om te bepaal of die pasiënt gereed is vir ontslag en om noukeurige, gestandardiseerde dokumentasie te verseker. 1,2,3,4,5 'n Nuwe puntestelsel vir ontslag is vir die herstelkamer van Tygerberg Akademiese Hospitaal ontwikkel om pasiëntesorg en dokumentasie te verbeter, asook om ouditering in die toekoms te vergemaklik (Addendum A). Hiervoor is die Aldrete Scoring System en die gemodifiseerde PADSS, voorgestel deur Chung, aangepas. 1 Die bestaande mediese infrastruktuur in Suid-Afrika beleef tans ‘n geleidelike toename in die getal pasiënte. Tygerberg Akademiese Hospitaal is geen uitsondering nie en as gevolg van die hoë aanvraag na ons teaterdienste, is uiterste doeltreffendheid noodsaaklik. Ons vermoede was dat hierdie aangepaste puntestelsel doeltreffendheid in die herstelkamer sou verbeter in vergelyking met die meer tradisionele tyd-gebaseerde sisteem. Gesonde pasiënte wat kleiner prosedures ondergaan, sal waarskynlik na ’n korter periode ontslaan kan word wat die verpleegpersoneel in staat sal stel om meer aandag aan probleem gevalle te gee. Bespoediging van die pasiëntvloei behoort onnodige vertragings van teatergevalle weens 'n tekort aan beddens in die herstelkamer, te beperk. Die primêre doel van die studie was om te bepaal of die gebruik van die aangepaste puntestelsel as ontslag kriteria in Tygerberg Akademiese Hospitaal, die tydperk wat die pasiënt in die herstelkamer deurbring, verkort. Die herstelkamer verpleegsters het beweer dat die saal personeel ‘n lang tyd gevat het om hulle pasiente in herstelkamer te kom haal. Vervolgens is 'n sekondêre doelwit ingesluit om die tydperk te bepaal vandat die saalpersoneel in kennis gestel word, totdat die pasiënt die herstelkamer verlaat. METODE Goedkeuring is verkry van die Menslike Navorsing en Etiese Komitee van die Gesondheidswetenskap Fakulteit van die Universiteit van Stellenbosch en Tygerberg Akademiese Hospitaal voor die aanvang van die studie. Die studie, asook die doel en moontlike voordele daarvan is vooraf bepsreek met verteenwoordigers van die herstelkamer verpleegpersoneel en skriftelike toestemming is verkry van al die deelnemers wat betrokke sou wees by die data versameling (Addendum B). Oudit vorms (Addendum C), versamelhouers en inligtingsplakkate vir die betrokke personeel is voorberei. Die aanvanklike oudit is in Augustus 2012 oor 'n periode van ongeveer een week uitgevoer. Tydens hierdie oudit is die tradisionele tydgebaseerde sisteem gebruik. Inligting van 327 pasiёnte is versamel. Die oudit vorms is in die versamelbokse geplaas en is daagliks deur die primêre navorser verwyder. Die aangepaste puntestelsel as ontslag kriteria, is in Januarie 2013 in die herstelkamer geïmplementeer. Die verpleegpersoneel het opleiding ontvang waarna die aangepaste puntestelsel vir een maand gebruik is om te verseker dat die personeel vertroud is daarmee. In Februarie 2013, is ‘n tweede oudit oor ‘n tydperk van een week uitgevoer, waartydens inligting van 313 pasiёnte versamel is. RESULTATE Na die implementering van die aangepaste puntestelsel as ontslag kriteria, het die mediane tyd wat pasiënte in die herstelkamer deurbring afgeneem van 1 uur en 25 minute tot 1 uur en 15 minute. Hierdie afname is statities betekenisvol (p-waarde = 0.003) Die mediane tyd vandat die saal in kennis gestel is totdat die pasiënt die herstelkamer verlaat, was 15 minute. GEVOLGTREKKING Die hoof bevinding van die studie is dat die mediane tydperk wat die pasiënte in die herstelkamer deurbring verminder is deur die implementering van die aangepaste puntestelsel as ontslag kriteria in Tygerberg Akademiese Hospitaal.

Patients in the intensive care unit (ICU) setting are prone to develop muscle weakness and the causes are multi-factorial. Muscle strength in adult, critically ill patients on mechanical ventilation decreases with immobility. The influence of muscle strength on different muscle groups and its influence on progressive mobility in the adult, critically ill patient on mechanical ventilation has not been examined. Identifying muscle strength in this patient population can benefit overall muscle health and minimize muscle deconditioning through a progressive mobility plan. The objective of this dissertation was to describe muscle strength in different muscle groups and to describe the influence of muscle strength on mobility in critically ill adult patients on mechanical ventilation (MV). Fifty ICU patients were enrolled in this descriptive, cross sectional study. Abdominal core, bilateral hand grip and extremity strength was measured using three measurement tools. Mobility was measured using the following scale: 0=lying in bed; 1=sitting on edge of bed; 2=sitting on edge of bed to standing; 3=walking to bedside chair and 4=walking >7 feet from the standing position. Predictors of mobility were examined using stepwise regression. Abdominal core, bilateral hand grip and extremity strength demonstrated statistically significant relationships with all variables. Extremity strength accounted for 82% of the variance in mobility and was the sole predictor (β=0.903; F=212.9; p=0.000). Future research addressing the outcomes of implementing a mobility protocol in this patient population and prioritizing when such a protocol should be implemented would be beneficial to ongoing plans to decrease MV, ICU and hospital days. Muscle strength tests implemented at the bedside are crucial to implementing a progressive mobility plan for critically ill adults while they are on MV therapy.

Background Due to technological and medical advances, increasing numbers of pregnant and post natal women require higher levels of care, including maternity high dependency care (MHDC). Up to 5% of women in the UK will receive MHDC, although there are varying opinions as to the defining features and definition of this care. Furthermore, limited evidence suggests that the size and type of obstetric unit (OU) influences the way MHDC is provided. There is robust evidence indicating that healthcare professionals must be able to recognise when higher levels of care are required and escalate care appropriately. However, there is limited evidence examining the factors that influence a midwife to decide whether MHDC is provided or a woman’s care is escalated away from the OU to a specialist unit. Research Aims 1. To obtain a professional consensus regarding the defining features of and definition for MHDC in OUs remote from tertiary referral units. 2. To examine the factors that influence a midwife to provide MHDC or request the escalation of care (EoC) away from the OU. Methods An exploratory sequential mixed methods design was used: Delphi survey: A three-round modified Delphi survey of 193 obstetricians, anaesthetists, and midwives across seven OUs (annual birth rates 1500-4500) remote from a tertiary referral centre in Southern England. Round 1 (qualitative) involved completion of a self-report questionnaire. Rounds 2/3 (quantitative); respondents rated their level of agreement or disagreement against five point Likert items for a series of statements. First round data were analysed using qualitative description. The level of consensus for the combined percentage of strongly agree / agree statements was set at 80% for the second and third rounds Focus Groups: Focus groups with midwives across three OUs in Southern England (annual birth rates 1700, 4000 and 5000). Three scenarios in the form of video vignettes were used as triggers for the focus groups. Scenario 1; severe pre-eclampsia, physiologically unstable 2; major postpartum haemorrhage requiring invasive monitoring 3; recent admission with chest pain receiving facial oxygen and continuous ECG monitoring. Two focus groups were conducted in each of the OUs with band 6 / 7 midwives. Data were analysed using a qualitative framework approach. Findings Delphi survey: Response rates for the first, second and third rounds were 44% (n=85), 87% (n=74/85) and 90.5% (n= 67/74) respectively. Four themes were identified (conditions, vigilance, interventions, and service delivery). The respondents achieved consensus regarding the defining features of MHDC with the exceptions of post-operative care and post natal epidural anaesthesia. A definition for MHDC was agreed, although it reflected local variations in service delivery. MHDC was equated with level 2 care (ICS, 2009) although respondents from the three smallest OUs agreed it also comprised level 1 care. The smaller OUs were less likely to provide MHDC and had a more liberal policy of transferring women to intensive care. Midwives in the smaller OUs were more likely to escalate care to ICU than doctors. Focus Groups: Factors influencing midwives’ EoC decisions included local service delivery, patient specific / professional factors, and guidelines to a lesser extent. ‘Fixed’ factors the midwives had limited or no opportunity to change included the proximity of the labour ward to the ICU and the availability of specialist equipment. Midwives in the smallest OU did not have access to the facilities / equipment for MHDC provision and could not provide it. Midwives in the larger OUs provided MHDC but identified varying levels of competence and used ‘workarounds’ to facilitate care. A woman’s clinical complexity and potential for physiological deterioration were influential as to whether MHDC was assessed as appropriate. Midwifery staffing levels, skill mix and workload (variable factors) could also be influential. Differences of opinion were noted between midwives working in the same OUs and varying reliance was placed on clinical guidelines. Conclusion Whilst a consensus on the defining features of, and definition for MHDC has been obtained, the research corroborates previous evidence that local variations exist in MHDC provision. Given midwives from the larger OUs had variable opinions as to whether MHDC could be provided, there may be inequitable MHDC provision at a local level. Organisationally robust systems are required to promote safe, equitable MHDC care including MHDC education and training for midwives and precise EoC guidelines (so workarounds are minimised). The latter must take into consideration local service delivery and the ‘variable’ factors that influence midwives’ EoC decisions.

In today’s world healthcare all over the world is profoundly challenged by rapid technological advancements, violence, terrorism, diverse cultures, proliferating chronic diseases, and the worst nursing shortage. In addition to these complex and daunting challenges healthcare continue to focus the attention on hospitals to review and modify the way care is delivered to patients. As key role players and consistent members of the multidisciplinary team critical care nurses are uniquely positioned to modify and review the quality of patient care through synergy between the patients’ needs, the nurses’ competencies, and the critical care environment. A collaborative approach towards enhancing synergy in a CCU was undertaken in a CCU in a private hospital in Gauteng. The study was guided by the American Association for Critical Care Nurses Synergy Model for Patient Care and conducted within the critical social theory paradigm. The nature of the research was descriptive, explorative and contextual and both qualitative and quantitative approaches were used. Action research cycles were followed to assess existing synergy between the patients’ needs, the nurses’ competencies and the characteristics of the environment in the CCU. An action plan was formulated and implemented towards enhancing synergy in the CCU. The implemented plan was adjusted based on observations and reflections following each of the five cycles of the project / Health Studies / D. Litt. et Phil. (Health Studies)