BACKGROUND: Nurses are often exposed to needlestick and sharp-object injuries (NSIs). This study aimed to investigate the post-exposure reporting rate of NSIs among nurses. METHODS: The subjects were 84 nurses from 4 hospitals (3 hospitals with 300 or more beds and 1 hospital with less than 300 beds) who had experienced at least 1 NSI within a 6-month period. The instrument was a self-administered questionnaire, which was based on the EPINet report form and a questionnaire for NSIs among resident physicians, which was used by Choi et al. Data were collected between April 9 and June 15, 2009, and analyzed using descriptive statistics and the chi-square test, which was performed using SPSS with a significance level of 0.05. RESULTS: Among the 84 nurses who had experienced at least 1 NSI within 6 months, only 14.3% had reported the NSIs, and 58.4% of these subjects reported the NSI immediately after sustaining the injury. The most common reason for not reporting was "the patients were found out to be uninfectious" (81.9%) followed by "too busy" (65.3%). The incidence of post-exposure reporting was negatively related to the number of NSIs (chi-square=13.871, p<0.001) and positively related to assessments of infectivity of the patients (chi-square=4.248, P=0.039) and other persons' recommendations to report NSIs (chi-square=4.092, P=0.043). CONCLUSION: The post-exposure reporting rate was very low. The factors responsible for this low rate should be investigated in a more systematic manner, and more measures should be undertaken to increase the reporting rate among nurses.
Humans ; Incidence ; Needlestick Injuries ; Surveys and Questionnaires

PURPOSE: This study is to assess the quality of life(QOL) of hematic cancer survivors after hematopoietic stem cell transplantation(HSCT) and received chemotherapy(RC) to prepare basic information for nursing interventions in order to improve the patients' QOL. METHOD: The data were collected by self-reporting questionnaire from January to March, 2003 intended for outpatients at the Cancer center of D university hospital in Busan. All 44 of them were diagnosed as hematic cancer and had spent 100 days after getting HSCT and complete remission(CR) throughout RC. The collected data were analyzed with descriptive statistics, t-test. ANOVA using SPSS/WIN 10.0 program. RESULTS: The total mean score of the QOL was moderate. In case of survivors in HSCT, the total mean score of the QOL was 5.81+/-.08, and that of survivors in RC was 5.94+/-.13. The facts above has not been considered statistically as the result of analysis of differences in each domain of the QOL depending on the general characteristics of the objects of this study. CONCLUSION: The total mean score of the QOL was at moderate levels, indicating that the survivors after HSCT and RC were perceiving their QOL as moderate. In the nursing business aspect, the most important thing is to understand the QOL which the 2 groups of the survivors perceive, and the plans of nursing intervention that can be helpful to more qualitative life should be studied constantly.
Busan ; Commerce ; Drug Therapy* ; Hematopoietic Stem Cell Transplantation* ; Hematopoietic Stem Cells* ; Humans ; Nursing ; Outpatients ; Quality of Life* ; Surveys and Questionnaires ; Survivors*

The purpose of this study was to investigate effects of nutrition education program and pamphlet for the lower grades elementary students focused on individual daily needed food exchange units using Food Exchange System. Program consisted of four lessons (40 min/lesson), "5 major nutrients & function", "6 food group and sources", "daily needed food exchange units for normal body weight", and "smart snack choice and exercise". Pamphlet as activity book was developed for the program. The subjects were 3rd grade elementary students (educated group, 31 vs. non-educated group, 31). Educated group were lessoned as group and/or individual. We examined the differences in nutrition knowledge, dietary attitudes, dietary intakes and satisfaction of the program and pamphlet. In educated group, there were positive improvements on nutrition knowledge score "function and foods of 5 nutrients" and on dietary attitudes "type of breakfast and snacks". In the evaluation of dietary intakes according to KDRI, there were positive improvements on intakes level of riboflavin, vit. C, folate, Ca, P, Fe and Zn in educated group. In satisfaction with the program and pamphlet, contents, font size, visual, figure, difficulty and program curriculum were over 2.90/3.0. It showed that the developed nutrition education program and pamphlet focused on individual daily needed food exchange units using Food Exchange System improved nutrition knowledge, dietary attitudes and nutrients intake level in the lower grades elementary students.
Breakfast ; Curriculum ; Folic Acid ; Humans ; Pamphlets ; Riboflavin ; Snacks

PURPOSE: The purpose of this study was to compare the difference of change in oxygen saturation, vital signs and suction time taken for the suctioning during endotracheal suctioning performed with closed suction system and with opened suction system. METHODS: Data were collected from 31 adult patients with ventilator treatment who were admitted to a university hospital in Seoul and the collection period was from July 1 to November 15, 2005. Oxygen saturation, heart rate, respiration rate and mean arterial pressure were collected immediately prior to the suctioning intervention, during and 1 and 5 minutes after the suctioning from opened suction system and closed suction system. RESULTS: 1) The difference in oxygen saturation was statistically significant in recovery time for oxygen saturation to return to baseline values after suctioning was significantly rapid on closed suction system (p < .05). 2) The difference in heart rate, respiration rate and mean arterial pressure was statistically insignificant. 3) The suction time was shorter in closed suction system. CONCLUSION: Closed suction system is more efficient, as compared with the open suction system in the ventilator treatment.
Adult ; Arterial Pressure ; Heart Rate ; Humans ; Oxygen ; Respiratory Rate ; Suction ; Ventilators, Mechanical ; Vital Signs

PURPOSE: This study was conducted to identify comprehensive predictors of fatigue in cancer patients. METHODS: One hundred ten cancer patients visiting in-patient or out-patient clinics of a university hospital located in Incheon participated in this study. RESULTS: The hematologic indicators (WBC and Hemoglobin) were significant for explaining fatigue. The psychological factors of fatigue were statistically significant. Both anxiety and depression, included as psychological factors, were significant in explaining fatigue in cancer patients. The influence of physical factors on fatigue was also statistically significant. Among the variables included as physical factors, pain, nausea/vomiting/anorexia, and sleep disturbance were significant whereas, dyspnea was not significant. The influence of the daily activity factor on fatigue was statistically significant. Among the variables included as daily activity factors, regular exercise or not and the usual activity level were significant in explaining fatigue of cancer patients, while the level of rest was not statistically significant. CONCLUSIONS: From the study results fatigue of cancer patients appeared to be influenced by multidimensional factors, such as physiological, physical, psychological, and activity related factors.
Activities of Daily Living ; Adaptation, Physiological ; Adult ; Aged ; Fatigue/etiology/*nursing ; Female ; Health Status ; Humans ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Models, Nursing ; Multivariate Analysis ; Neoplasms/complications/*nursing ; Sick Role ; Sickness Impact Profile

PURPOSE: This study carried out a preliminary analysis of available literature and used the ecological approach to define a research hypothesis with focus on individual, family, and school variables related to early adolescents' urge to run away. This study also aimed to examine the influence of each of these variables in order to build a forecast model showing which variables have more influential on early adolescents' urge to run away. METHODS: Materials were collected from 433 male and female fifth- and sixth-grade students at two schools in Gyeonggi Province. Analysis was carried out using SPSS/WIN 18.0. Frequency analysis, chi2-test, t-test, correlation analysis and logistic regression analysis were conducted. RESULTS: The results indicate that personal factors related to runaway impulse are gender and previous runaway attempts, family-related factor family functionality, and school-related factor the area of stress from study. CONCLUSION: Based on the study results as above, individual, family, and school interventions need to be developed.
Adolescent ; Child ; Female ; Homeless Youth ; Humans ; Logistic Models ; Male

A clinical observation was performed on the 80 cases of neonates born from diabetic mothers among the total of 34,936 neonates delivered at II Sin Christian Hospital from January 1985 to December 1989. The results were as follows: 1) The incidence of infants of diabetic mothers was 0.23%, among whom gestational diabetic mothers were 63 cases (78.7%) and overt diabetic mothers were 17 cases (21.3%). 2) Among the complications of pregnancy and delivery, preeclampsia was most frequent as 33.8%, following by urinary tract infection (13.8%), polyhydramnios (1.3%), diabetic ketoacidosis (1.3%). 3) According to the gestational age, prematurity was 11.3%, full term 78.7% and post term 10%. And according to the growth state, small for date infants were 11.3%, appropriate for date infants 53.7% and large for date infants 35%. 4) The incidnece of giant babies (over 4,000 gm) was 30.0% and sex ratio of male to female was 1.1:1 in infants of diabetic mothers. 5) The most frequent clinical manifestation was tachypnea (45.3%), following by poor feeding (20.0%), cyanosis (18.7%). 6) According to the laboratory findings, 53.7% showed hypoglycemia, 36.3% hyperbilirubinemia, 25% hypocalcemia, 15% polycythemia. 7) On the chest X-ray, there were pulmonary infiltration and hyaline membrane disease in 3.2% each other and pulmonary congestion and wet lung in 1.6% each other. 8) The incidence of congenital anomaly was 13.8% in 80 cases of infants of diabetic mothers, and congenital heart disease was most frequent as 3 cases.
Cyanosis ; Diabetic Ketoacidosis ; Estrogens, Conjugated (USP) ; Female ; Gestational Age ; Heart Defects, Congenital ; Humans ; Hyaline Membrane Disease ; Hyperbilirubinemia ; Hypocalcemia ; Hypoglycemia ; Incidence ; Infant* ; Infant, Newborn ; Male ; Mothers* ; Polycythemia ; Polyhydramnios ; Pre-Eclampsia ; Pregnancy ; Pulmonary Edema ; Sex Ratio ; Tachypnea ; Thorax ; Urinary Tract Infections

BACKGROUND: Direct wet mount examination of vaginal secretion, widely applied for the diagnosis of Trichomonas vaginalis infection in woman patients, is rapid and economical. However, the sensitivity of this technique is not so high. In this study enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay(ELISA) was employed for the detection of serum anti-T. vaginalis IgG antibodies from vaginal trichomoniasis patients. METHODS: Eighty sera from trichomonoasis patients who visited a Dr. Yoon Kyong's Obstetric & Gynecologic Clinic in Songnam and 30 non-infected healthy men were tested for detection of anti-T. vaginalis IgG antibody. Soluble lysate and excretory-secretory antigen prepared by mixing of six isolates of T. vaginalis, and lysate from one isolate(KT4) were used as antigen for ELISA. RESULTS: The sensitivity of ELISA using lysate of six isolates was 95.0%, and the sensitivity of the lysate from KT4 and mixed excretory-secretory antigen from 6 isolates were 86.4% and 76.3%, respectively. Specificities of ELISA by three 93.3%, 96.3% and 92.0%, respectively. CONCLUSION: It is suggested that ELISA using mixed lysate of T. vaginalis six isolates could be useful tools for the diagnosis of trichomoniasis.
Antibodies ; Diagnosis ; Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay ; Female ; Gyeonggi-do ; Humans ; Immunoglobulin G* ; Male ; Trichomonas vaginalis ; Trichomonas*

Objective: We aimed to explore how nursing students’ adherence to physical distancing, sense of belonging, or resilience may be associated with viral anxiety during the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) era in South Korea. Methods: We conducted an online survey among nursing students from December 8–10, 2021. The survey gathered participants’ age, sex, grades, living area, and responses to questions on COVID-19. In addition, responses to Stress and Anxiety to Viral Epidemics-6 items (SAVE-6), adherence to physical distancing, Sense of Belonging Instrument, Calling and Vocation Questionnaire, Patient Health Questionnaire-9 items (PHQ-9), and Connor-Davidson Resilience Scale-2 (CD-RISC2) items were gathered. Results: The SAVE-6 score was significantly correlated with adherence to physical distancing (r=0.29), PHQ-9 (r=0.26), and CD-RISC2 (r=-0.34, all p<0.01) similar to partial correlation analysis adjusting participants’ group (freshmen and sophomores vs. juniors and seniors). A linear regression analysis revealed that viral anxiety of nursing students was predicted by sex (female, β=0.20, p=0.001), adherence to physical distancing (β=0.25, p<0.001), sense of belonging (β=0.16, p=0.014), and CD-RISC2 score (β=-0.32, p<0.001) (adjusted R2=0.24, F=10.01, p<0.001). Conclusion We observed that adherence to physical distancing, sense of belonging, and their resilience influenced nursing student’s viral anxiety. An appropriate support system to manage viral anxiety is needed for nursing students during the COVID-19 pandemic.

PURPOSE: A purpose of this study was to identify the effects of cold water gargling on thirst, oral cavity condition and sore throat in orthopedics surgery patients who underwent general anesthesia. METHODS: Pretest-posttest non-synchronized design with a nonequivalent control group was used. A total of 52 participants were conveniently selected and assigned to each group. The experimental group gargled hourly with cold water for 8 hours after operation. The control group received wet gauze as needed. We compared the thirst, oral cavity condition and sore throat at 0, 2, 4 and 8 hours after operation. RESULTS: The score of thirst and oral cavity condition was lower in the experimental group than in the control group. However, there was no significant differences in the levels of sore throat between the experimental and control group. CONCLUSION: These findings suggest that cold water gargling can be a useful nursing intervention for alleviating thirst and improving oral condition for patients with orthopedic surgery after general anesthesia.
Anesthesia, General ; Cold Temperature ; Humans ; Mouth ; Oral Hygiene ; Orthopedic Procedures ; Orthopedics ; Pharyngitis ; Thirst ; Water