Nurses' working environment, together with their patient relationships, can elicit emotions which they will need to manage in order to perform successfully in their daily work activities. It is for this reason that it is crucial that sound emotional intelligence measures should be developed which hospitals can utilise to identify emotionally intelligent individuals for emotionally laden jobs or even to identify their developmental needs within the area of emotional intelligence. The objective of this study was to investigate the psychometric properties of the Emotional Intelligence Scale (EIS) developed by Schutte and colleagues in 1998 within a nursing environment. A convenience random sample of 5 11 nurses was taken from hospitals located in the areas of Klerksdorp, Potchefstroom, Krugersdorp, Johannesburg and Pretoria. The EIS was used as a measuring instrument. Cronbach alpha coefficients, Pearson-product correlation coefficients and MANOVAS were used to analyse the data. The results showed a 5-factor solution for the EIS, which explained 50,04% of the total variance. All of the five dimensions had adequate internal consistencies, except for the Negative Emotions dimension. Lastly, group differences were identified between personnel area and emotional intelligence, as well as between race and emotional intelligence levels. Recommendations were made for future research. / Thesis (M.Com. (Industrial Psychology))--North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2006.

Nurses' working environment, together with their patient relationships, can elicit emotions which they will need to manage in order to perform successfully in their daily work activities. It is for this reason that it is crucial that sound emotional intelligence measures should be developed which hospitals can utilise to identify emotionally intelligent individuals for emotionally laden jobs or even to identify their developmental needs within the area of emotional intelligence. The objective of this study was to investigate the psychometric properties of the Emotional Intelligence Scale (EIS) developed by Schutte and colleagues in 1998 within a nursing environment. A convenience random sample of 5 11 nurses was taken from hospitals located in the areas of Klerksdorp, Potchefstroom, Krugersdorp, Johannesburg and Pretoria. The EIS was used as a measuring instrument. Cronbach alpha coefficients, Pearson-product correlation coefficients and MANOVAS were used to analyse the data. The results showed a 5-factor solution for the EIS, which explained 50,04% of the total variance. All of the five dimensions had adequate internal consistencies, except for the Negative Emotions dimension. Lastly, group differences were identified between personnel area and emotional intelligence, as well as between race and emotional intelligence levels. Recommendations were made for future research. / Thesis (M.Com. (Industrial Psychology))--North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2006.

BAKGRUND: Det finns idag ungefär 148 000 personer med demenssjukdom i Sverige. Under sjukdomsförloppet drabbas nio av tio någon gång av någon form av beteendemässiga eller psykiska symtom (BPSD). Dessa symtom skapar ett stort lidande för personen med demens och dess närstående och är ofta en bidragande orsak till flytt till särskilt boende. På det särskilda boendet är det viktigt att personalen har kunskap och intresse för att kunna hantera krävande situationer som kan uppstå vid BPSD SYFTE: Studiens syfte var att belysa hur vårdmiljön kan påverka förekomsten av beteendemässiga och psykiska symtom vid demenssjukdom hos personer som bor på särskilt boende. METOD: En allmän litteraturstudie baserad på 20 vetenskapliga artiklar genomfördes. RESULTAT: Resultatet av denna litteraturstudie visar att utformningen av vårdmiljön har betydelse vid förekomst av BPSD. Personer med demens har behov av hemlik miljö och anpassad inredning för att kunna fungera i sin vardag. Genom meningsfull aktivitet kan känslan av självständighet och välbefinnande bevaras. Musik och beröring kan vara en väg till kommunikation då den verbala kommunikationen sviktar. Att ha kunskap om, och planera omvårdnaden för personer med demens påverkar förekomst av BPSD. DISKUSSION: En god vårdmiljö bör erbjuda en balans mellan krav och kompetens och en vardag som är meningsfull och begriplig. Förutsättningen för denna vårdmiljö är att personalen ser till varje individs resurser och behov för att kunna ge en personcentrerad omvårdnad. SLUTSATS: Resultatet i denna studie visar att små förändringar i vårdmiljön kan göra stor skillnad vid BPSD. Med en balanserad vårdmiljö tillsammans med en personcentrerad omvårdnad kan BPSD minska och i bästa fall förebyggas.

Bakgrund: Allt fler människor kommer att drabbas av någon form av demenssjukdom vilket bland annat leder till förlust av kognitiva förmågor. Detta innebär ökat behov av vård- och omsorgsboende för de personer som drabbats. Det centrala för personer med demenssjukdom är att vården är personcentrerad samt att den fysiska vårdmiljön är anpassad efter deras behov. Syfte: Att beskriva den fysiska vårdmiljöns betydelse för omvårdnad av personer med demens på vård- och omsorgsboende. Metod: En litteraturöversikt som grundades i kvalitativa (n=12), kvantitativa (n=1) samt mixade (n=2) studier. Studierna hade fokus på den fysiska vårdmiljöns betydelse för omvårdnaden av personer med demenssjukdom. Artiklarna kvalitetsgranskades, analyserades och indelades fyra huvudkategorier med sju underkategorier. Resultat: Resultatet visade att den fysiska vårdmiljön påverkade personer med demenssjukdom. Genom anpassning av måltidsmiljö, utomhusmiljö och inomhusmiljö främjades livskvalitén för personer med demenssjukdom. Att vårdmiljön utformades hemlik med välbekanta föremål gjorde det lättare för personer med demenssjukdom att göra sig hemmastadda och trivas på sitt nya boende. Detta påverkade självbestämmande och självständighet likväl som livskvalité och trygghet. Slutsats: Personer som diagnostiseras med demenssjukdom drabbas olika då det finns många varierande symtom och begräsningar. Forskning indikerar att det rör sig om kognitiv nedsättning vilket kan påverka personens integritet, självbestämmande och autonomi. Resultatet visar på att anpassning av den fysiska vårdmiljön kan minska konsekvenserna av kognitiv nedsättning för personer med demenssjukdom, samt ge en känsla av att vara hemma och frihet. Detta kan bidra till lugn, trygghet och autonomi för de som bor på vård- och omsorgsboendet. / Background: An increasing number of people will become suffering from dementia which means loss of cognitive abilities. Aging populations means an increased need for residential care. The most important thing for people with dementia is that the care is person-centered and the environment adapted to their needs. Purpose: To describe the importance of the physical care environment for caring of people with dementia in nursing homes. Methods: A literature review based on qualitative (n = 12), quantitative (n = 1) and mixed (n = 2) studies. The studies focused on the meaning of the physical care environment for the care of people with dementia. The articles were quality checked, analyzed and divided into four main categories with seven sub-categories. Results: Persons who are diagnosed with dementia are affected differently because there are many varying symptoms and limitations. By adapting the meal environment, the outdoor environment and the indoor environment the quality of life for people with dementia was promoted. When the care environment was designed home-like with familiar objects it made it easier for people with dementia to feel like home and enjoy their new home. This was shown to affect selfdetermination and independence as well as quality of life and security. Conclusions: People who suffer from dementia are not affected in the same way, there are many different symptoms and limitations. Research indicates that in all cases it is a cognitive impairment which affects the person's capability of integrity, self-determination and autonomy. The results show that adapting the physical care environment can promote cognitive decline for persons with dementia, and also give a feeling of being at home and freedom. This can contribute to tranquility, security and autonomy for those living at the nursing home

Bakgrund: Florence Nightingale (1820 - 1910) förespråkade vikten av vårdmiljön kring patienten för ett optimalt återhämtande. Den moderna vårdmiljön består av fysisk och psykosocial del där båda dessa delar är avgörande för patientens välmående. Postoperativ smärta som följer ett operativt ingrepp upplevs individuellt. Det är sjuksköterskans ansvarsområde i postoperativ omvårdnad att sörja för en god smärtlindring; omvårdnadsmässigt, genom manipulation av vårdmiljön och farmakologisk smärthantering.Syfte: Syftet är att beskriva vårdmiljöns betydelse för att lindra nyopererade patienters postoperativa smärtaMetod: En litteraturöversikt med kvalitativ ansats. Studiens resultat baseras på 15 vetenskapliga artiklar som är kvalitetsgranskade. De vetenskapliga artiklarna söktes på CINAHL, PubMed, Web of Science samt via manuell sökning.Resultat: I litteraturöversikten identifierades kategorierna fysisk vårdmiljö med underkategorierna patientrummet och kontakt med extern miljö. I kategorin psykosocial vårdmiljö framträdde underkategorierna; känsla av kontroll, relationer och musik som distraktion som smärtlindrande alternativ.Slutsats: Den fysiska och psykosociala vårdmiljön har en distraherande effekt och/eller har en lindrande effekt på postoperativ smärta. / Background: Florence Nightingale (1820 - 1910) was a major advocate for the importance of environment for optimal patient recovery. The modern healthcare environment typically consists of two components, one physical and one psychosocial, where both parts are considered crucial for the patient’s return to health. This is particularly important to bear in mind in the postoperative context and with the experience of postoperative pain, which varies from patient to patient. Nurses are responsible for providing postoperative pain relief, chiefly by nursing, utilizing the health care environment and administering pharmacological painkillers.Aim: The purpose of the study is to describe the importance of the health care environment in relieving newly operated patients postoperative pain.Method: A literature review with qualitative design. The results of the study are based on 15 scientific articles that have been quality reviewed. The scientific articles were searched on CINAHL, PubMed, Web of Science and via manual search.Results: The literature review identified physical care environment with subcategories; patient room and contact with the external environment. In the category psychosocial care environment subcategories; sense of control, relationships and music as distraction as pain-relieving alternatives.Conclusion: The physical and psychosocial health care environment act as a distractive element on the patient and/or have a relieving effect on the postoperative pain.

Rising health care costs place increased burden on patients, health care personnel, administrators and policymakers. Decisions in health care are influenced by data which can be transferred into valuable information and knowledge. Data sets that facilitate data collection, information management and knowledge building are needed by nurse managers to support administrative decision- making. The Nursing Management Minimum Data Set (NMMDS,,¦) offers a standardized method to capture core data that can be collected in information systems, shared and reused for multiple purposes to support safe and cost-effective care. The purpose of this descriptive study was to adapt to Iceland and clinically test the NMMDS-ICE in all adult inpatient care units in the country of Iceland (excluding psychiatry). The aims of the study were to 1) translate the NMMDS from source language (English) to target language (Icelandic); 2) to validate the translated instrument; and 3) to describe the environment, nursing care resources, and financial resources across acute adult inpatient care units in Iceland. Instrument development consisted of translation, expert validation, and psychometric testing. The target population was all adult acute care units in hospitals in Iceland, and the nurse managers (n=38) representing these units. Data collection included a mailed survey. The sample equaled the population. Furthermore, 134 staff nurses on these units (excluding staff nurses at Landspitali) completed a job satisfaction survey. Return rate was 74% for nurse managers and 71% for staff nurses. Semantic and content equivalence of the NMMDS-ICE was established. Five of seven subscales of the instrument received Cronbach¡¦s alpha score of 0.70 or higher. Results indicated that it was feasible to collect the NMMDS-ICE in hospitals in Iceland, albeit, there was an issue with time commitment to do so. The specialty services that best described the patient population were medical-, surgical services, birthing, and geriatrics. Furthermore, nurse managers seem to perceive good control on their units, and both nurse managers and staff nurses are satisfied with their job. A positive correlation was found between autonomy and satisfaction with nursing management, nursing administration, and own level of autonomy. Statistical differences were identified in environmental and staffing resources between hospitals.

Bakgrund: Att vårdas på sjukhus kan vara en traumatisk upplevelse där inte enbart sjukdom orsakar lidande utan även den främmande fysiska vårdmiljön. När ett barn drabbas av sjukdom drabbas hela familjen vilket gör att föräldrarnas hälsa och upplevelser spelar stor roll för barnets återhämtning. Barn som själva varit patienter upplever att tillgång till familjen är en viktig faktor som stärker den egna hälsan. Det är därför viktigt att skapa en fysisk vårdmiljö som främjar en familjecentrerad vård, där föräldrarollen kan upprätthållas och föräldrarna kan bli en del av vårdteamet.  Syfte: Att belysa upplevelsen av den fysiska vårdmiljön hos familjer med sjuka barn som vårdas under långvarig sjukhusvård. Metod: Litteraturöversiktens resultat bygger på 15 vetenskapliga artiklar. Sökningen av artiklar utfördes systematiskt genom att använda specifikt utformade sökord i databaserna PubMed samt Cinahl. Utvalda artiklar analyserades sedan i en artikelmatris och innehållet kondenserades ner till teman där likheter och skillnader identifierades.  Resultat: I analysprocessen växte ett huvudtema fram; en främmande miljö. Detta huvudtema fick i sin tur fem underteman; medicinsk apparatur på gott och ont, avsaknad av avskildhet, tillfällig frihet från sjukhusmiljön, ljud, belysning och temperatur samt bekvämlighet. Slutsats: Familjers upplevelser av den fysiska vårdmiljön har en direkt påverkan på såväl familjers hälsa som den familjecentrerande vården. Vidare kan anpassningar i den fysiska vårdmiljön både minska vårdlidande och främja föräldrars delaktighet. Sjuksköterskan har även en viktig uppgift i att informera och instruera föräldrar om den fysiska vårdmiljön för främja den familjecentrerade vården. / Background: Being treated at a hospital can be a traumatic experience in which not only sickness causes care suffering but also the foreign physical health care environment. When a child suffers from illness, the whole family is affected, which means that the parents' health and experiences play a major role in the child's recovery. Children who have been patients themselves feel that access to their family is an important factor that strengthens both the child's health and the experience of being cared for in hospitals. It is therefore important to maintain a family-centered care that enables an environment in which the parental role can be maintained and where parents become part of the care team. Aim: To illustrate families of hospitalized children experiences of the physical health care environment.  Method: The results of the literature review are based on 15 research articles. The search for articles was carried out systematically using specifically designed search words in the PubMed and Cinahl databases. Selected articles were then analyzed in an article matrix and the content condensed to themes where similarities and differences were identified and presented.  Results: In the analysis process, a main theme emerged: a foreign environment. Which consisted of five sub-themes medical equipment for good and bad, lack of privacy, temporary freedom from the hospital environment, sound, lighting and temperature and uncomfortable interior. Conclusion: Families 'experiences of the physical health care environment have a direct impact on families' health as well as on family-centered care. The nursing profession needs more knowledge about how care suffering can be alleviated through adaptation of the physical care environment. Registered nurses have an important task to inform and instruct parents with hospitalized children about the physical health care environment.

Bakgrund: Transpersoner lider i högre utsträckning av psykisk ohälsa i jämförelse med övrig befolkning. I enlighet med lagar och konventioner har alla människor rätt till jämlik och adekvat vård. Sjuksköterskor behöver bred kompetens för att kunna ge hälsofrämjande och likvärdig vård. Trots det upplevs svårigheter att behandla transpersoner på grund av otillräcklig utbildning och kunskap. Syfte: Syftet var att beskriva transpersoners upplevelser av mötet med vårdpersonal. Metod: En litteraturöversikt baserad på tolv kvalitativa vetenskapliga originalartiklar. Litteratursökningarna genomfördes i databaserna Cinahl Complete och PubMed. Resultat: I resultatet framkom fyra kategorier; att bli felkönad, människa inte vara transperson, betydelsen av kunskap eller okunskap hos vårdpersonal och vårdmiljöns betydelse. Transpersoner upplevde att deras könsidentitet var dominerande i mötet med vårdpersonal oavsett sökorsak. Upplevelsen av att inte få adekvat vård eller bemötande på grund av kompetensbrist var också tydlig. Sammanfattning: Bemötande har stor betydelse för hur transpersoner upplever sin vård. Positiva upplevelser av mötet med vårdpersonal var trygghetsingivande och stärkande medan negativa upplevelser var diskriminerande och icke hälsofrämjande. En ytterligare påverkande faktor var vårdmiljön. / Background: Transgender people suffer to a greater extent from mental illness in comparison to the rest of the population. In accordance with laws and conventions, everyone has the right to equal and adequate care. Nurses need broad competence to be able to provide health-promting and equivalent care. Despite that, difficulties are experienced in treating transgender people due to insufficient education and knowledge. Aim: The aim was to describe transgender persons experiences of healthcare encounters. Method: A litterature review based on twelve original qualitative scientific articles. The litterature search was carried out in the databases Cinahl Complete and PubMed. Results: Four categories emerged in the results; to be misgendered, human not just a transgender person, the importance of knowledge or lack of knowledge of healthcare staff and the importance of the healtcare environment. Transgender people felt that their gender identity was dominant in the encounter with healthcare professionals, regardless of the reason for seeking health care. The experience of not receiving adequate care or treatment due to lack of knowledge was also clear. Summary: The healthcare encounter has a great significance for how transgender people experience their care. Positive experiences of the encounter with healthcare personnel were reassuring and empowering, while negative experiences were discriminatory and did not promote transgender persons health. An additional factor that influenced the impression was the health care enviroment.

Drygt 25 procent av alla barn som vårdas inom slutenvård i Sverige vårdas på vuxenavdelning. Orsakerna till detta varierar och kan bero på distans, platsbrist eller behov av specifik kompetens och vård. Likande anledningar kan ses i USA där över 70 % barn vårdas på en vuxenavdelning när de är i behov av sjukhusvård. Barnets delaktighet i sin egen behandling är en viktig aspekt vid vård på sjukhus. Barnets utvecklingsfaser bör tas i beaktning och deras åsikter respekteras för att kunna bedriva en trygg och patientsäker vård. Vårdnadshavarens närvaro ökar även trygghetskänslan för barnet. Syftet med denna integrativa litteraturöversikt var att granska tidigare forskning kring barns erfarenheter av att vårdas på en vuxenavdelning. Sökning i fem databaser genererade sju artiklar som har analyserats systematiskt utifrån en induktiv metod med innehållsanalys enligt Elo och Kyngäs. I resultatet framkom två huvudkategorier som visade sig vara problematiska: Betydelsen av delaktighet i vården och Den vårdande miljöns betydelse. För att främja hållbar utveckling för barn krävs att personalen som vårdar dem har rätt kunskap och kompetens. En väl anpassad och trygg vårdmiljö med adekvat information utifrån barnets kunskapsnivå kan generera en känsla av säkrare vård och en förståelse av sin omgivning. Det finns ännu ingen forskning i Sverige om hur barn upplever vård på en vuxenavdelning, vilket kan driva vården framåt för en sannolikt bättre vårdupplevelse utifrån barnperspektivet. / Just over 25 percent of children receiving inpatient care in Sweden end up in units for adults. Some of the reasons are due to lack of space on children’s units, distance and the need for specific competencies and care. Similar reasons can be seen in the USA where over 70% of children are cared for in an adult ward when they need hospital care. A child’s active participation in their own care is an important aspect of care at hospital. Children’s developmental stages should be considered, and their opinions respected in order to provide a safe environment and care. The parents’ and guardians’ presence will also increase the child’s feeling of safety. The purpose of this integrative literature review is to examine previous research studies on children’s experiences when receiving care at an adult unit. The search of five databases generated seven articles that were systematically analyzed based on the inductive method with content analysis according to Elo and Kyngäs. The results brought about two main categories that were identified as problematic: The importance of participation in care and The importance of the caring environment. To promote sustainable developmental care for children it is required that hospital personnel have age-appropriate knowledge and competence of treatment. A well-adapted and safe treatment environment with adequate knowledge based on the child’s level of knowledge could generate a safer feeling and understanding of the current situation. Children should not receive treatment at an adult unit but when unavoidable, research must be the driving force behind child centered care. In Sweden there is still no research based on children’s experiences receiving treatment at an adult medical unit. Further research is necessary for better care and understanding a child’s perspective.

The South African health care environment is a two-tier health care delivery system consisting of the public sector and the private sector. The focus of this study is on the private health care sector. Private health care is funded by medical schemes through employer and employee contributions. The private sector is also the most profitable sector for multinational pharmaceutical organisations to market and sell their products within the South African health care environment. The major cost saving initiative by employers and medical schemes in the private health care sector has also been the introduction of managed health care initiatives. The goal of managed health care is to establish a system which delivers value by giving people access to quality and cost-effective healthcare. The new reality of managed health care initiatives are changing the boundaries of the South African pharmaceutical industry. The managed health care wake is overturning the business processes which made the pharmaceutical industry so successful and are rendering obsolete the industry's conventional models of corporate strategy and management systems. In the context of these turbulent changes, pharmaceutical companies are being forced simultaneously to develop new strategic approaches for the future, design new business processes which will link them more firmly to their new customers, and implement the cultural changes neccessary to accomplish the transformation from yesterday's successful pharmaceutical company to tomorrow's customer-led, integrated health care supplier. The way forward lies in three organising concepts. The first is cutomer alignment. The effort of transformation must start with an understanding of how the customer defines the value of the services and/or products offered by the organisation. Everything that follows involves aligning internal processes with external contingencies. The second is sequencing. It is vital to understand not just what needs to happen first in the transformation process, but also what the subsequent steps is and in what order the steps need to be undertaken. The third organising concept is learning. The sequence of interventions that lead to organisational transformation must occur in such a way as to maximize the ability of the organisation to learn: from customers and the marketplace, and from itself. / Business Management / D.B.L.