PURPOSE: The purpose of this study is to identify the influence of job stress and empowerment on nursing performance of clinical nurses working in small and medium hospital. METHODS: The empirical data were collected from a self-administered survey using a structured questionnaire with 404 nurses working in 4 medium-sized hospitals (less than 300 beds), located in I-city. The data were analyzed using stepwise multiple regression with the SPSS/WIN 17.0 program. RESULTS: There were significant differences in nursing performance depending on general characteristics (age, marital status, religion, shift work, education level, position, clinical experience, department, and monthly salary). Empowerment correlated with nursing performance. Factors influencing on nursing performance were empowerment, clinical experience, job stress, and marital status with R2 value of 36.3%. The most influencing factor was empowerment (beta=.47), followed by clinical experience (beta=.24), job stress (beta=.20), and marriage (beta=.12). CONCLUSION: It is needed to implement specific empowerment strategy, control job stress, and reward experienced and married nurses working in medium-sized hospital for improving nursing task performance.
Marital Status ; Marriage ; Power (Psychology) ; Surveys and Questionnaires ; Reward ; Task Performance and Analysis

PURPOSE: This study aimed to understand the degree of clinical nurses' emotional labor that they perceive in the relationships with people related to their work. METHODS: This study was a descriptive research, and its subjects were 167 nurses in five university hospitals located in B and Y city. The degree of emotional labor was measured with Visual Analogue Scale (VAS). Data were collected from April to May in 2015, and analyzed by descriptive statistics, t-test, ANOVA, Scheffé and Games-Howell examination. RESULTS: The score of the emotional labor of health care providers and visitors were higher than non-health care providers. Among health care providers, doctors had the highest emotional scores, and fellow nurse and nurses other departments were followed after that. Among visitors in hospital, patients and their family had the higher emotional labor scores than care givers. There was statistically significant difference in the emotional labor, according to the subjects' educational level, age, wages, job position, and working departments. CONCLUSION: Clinical nurses perceived emotional labor not only from the interaction with patients, but also from the interaction with the various other persons concerned such as health care providers, non-health care providers and visitors.
Caregivers ; Health Personnel ; Hospitals, University ; Humans ; Salaries and Fringe Benefits

PURPOSE: To evaluate the clinical outcomes of ertapenem administered as an outpatient parenteral antibiotic therapy for intractable cystitis caused by extended-spectrum beta-lactamase (ESBL)-producing Escherichia coli. MATERIALS AND METHODS: We retrospectively reviewed a case series of 3 years of therapeutic experience with ertapenem for intractable recurrent cystitis caused by ESBL-producing E. coli. Ertapenem 1 g/d was parenterally administered to the patients on an outpatient basis until the acquisition of symptomatic improvement and negative conversion of urine culture. Demographic and clinical characteristics of patients, antimicrobial resistance, and clinical response data were analyzed from the patients' medical records. RESULTS: During the course of this study, a total of 383 patients were diagnosed with cystitis, and 24 of them showed ESBL-producing E. coli (6.26%). The mean treatment duration of all patients was 8.5 days. The early clinical and microbiological cure rates 0 to 7 days after the end of treatment were 91.7% (22/24) and 90.9% (20/22), respectively. The late clinical and microbiological cure rates 4 to 6 weeks after the end of treatment were 72.2% (13/18) at both time points. CONCLUSIONS: Parenteral ertapenem treatment can be an effective and well-tolerated treatment option for intractable recurrent cystitis by multidrug-resistant ESBL-producing E. coli.
beta-Lactamases ; beta-Lactams ; Cystitis* ; Escherichia coli* ; Escherichia* ; Female* ; Humans ; Medical Records ; Outpatients* ; Retrospective Studies

PURPOSE: To investigate the effects of cataract extraction in chronic angle-closure glaucoma (CACG) patients. METHODS: Sixteen eyes from 14 patients with CACG underwent phacoemulsification with posterior chamber intraocular lens (PCL) implantation (group A), and 19 eyes from 17 patients with CACG underwent cataract surgery and additional trabeculectomy (combined surgery, group B) were evaluated for visual acuity, intraocular pressure (IOP), number of glaucoma medications and surgical complications. All patients had patent peripheral iridotomy holes before cataract surgery, and a minimum 6 month follow-up period was needed. RESULTS: The mean postoperative follow-up period was 15.6 months in group A, and 21.7 months in group B. After surgery, the IOP was significantly reduced in both groups [from 16.1 mmHg to 13.8 mmHg in group A (P=0.013), and from 16.7 mmHg to 13.2 mmHg in group B (P=0.005)], but the amount of IOP reduction was not significantly different between the two groups (P=0.401). The relative decrease in the mean number of postoperative glaucoma medications was 0.9 in group A and 1.8 in group B, but these were not significantly different (P=0.060). CONCLUSIONS: Simple cataract surgery was effective in reducing IOP as much as combined surgery in CACG patients. These results affirm that phacoemusification with PCL implantation may be considered as the first treatment in cataract and CACG patients.
Cataract Extraction* ; Cataract* ; Follow-Up Studies ; Glaucoma ; Glaucoma, Angle-Closure* ; Humans ; Intraocular Pressure ; Lenses, Intraocular ; Phacoemulsification ; Trabeculectomy ; Visual Acuity

PURPOSE: To investigate whether mitomycin C (MMC) results in an improved trabeculectomy outcome in primary open-angle glaucoma patients who preoperatively used prostaglandin (PG) ophthalmic solution. METHODS: The subjects consisted of three groups of primary open-angle glaucoma patients who underwent trabeculectomy. Group A consisted of 17 patients who did not use PG ophthalmic solution preoperatively, while Group B consisted of ten patients who used PG ophthalmic solution for at least three months but were not treated with MMC during the operation, and Group C consisted of 14 patients who used PG ophthalmic solution for at least three months and were treated with MMC during the operation. The operation was considered successful when the intraocular pressure ranged from 6 to 18 mmHg, regardless of application of ocular hypotensive agents. RESULTS: Four years after the operation, differences of the cumulative success rate between Group A and B (p = 0.008) and between Group B and Group C (p = 0.036) were statistically significant, but differences between Group A and C were not (p = 0.813) (Log rank test results). CONCLUSIONS: The cumulative success rate of trabeculectomy in primary open-angle glaucoma patients who used PG ophthalmic solution for at least three months was lower than that of patients who did not use PG ophthalmic solution. However, the intraoperative administration of MMC increased the cumulative success rate of trabeculectomy in patients who did use PG ophthalmic solution for at least three months to a level similar to patients who did not use PG ophthalmic solution.
Glaucoma, Open-Angle ; Humans ; Intraocular Pressure ; Mitomycin ; Trabeculectomy

PURPOSE: To report a case of anterior chamber intraocular lens (ACL) reposition with the haptic protruded into the subconjunctiva in a patient with a previous ACL implantation. CASE SUMMARY: A 64-year-old man visited our clinic because of visual disturbance and discomfort in his right eye. Approximately 8 years earlier, he had cataract surgery and there was no visual improvement but eye discomfort. The haptic of the ACL protruded into the subconjunctiva at 11-1 o'clock. The visual acuity of the right eye was 0.2 and the intraocular pressure of the right eye was 27 mmHg. The ACL was repositioned because of low cell density (1222 cells/mm2). After 6 months, the visual acuity of the right eye was 0.3, best corrected visual acuity was 0.8, intraocular pressure was 12 mmHg and cell density was 838 cells/mm2. There were no inflammation signs or complications. CONCLUSIONS: Reinserting ACL when the haptic is protruding into the subconjunctiva could be a simple and safe method when a decrease in corneal endothelial cell density is present.
Anterior Chamber ; Cataract ; Cell Count ; Endothelial Cells ; Eye ; Humans ; Inflammation ; Intraocular Pressure ; Lenses, Intraocular ; Visual Acuity

PURPOSE: To investigate correlations among the cup-to-disc ratio (CDR), intraocular pressure (IOP), and the occlusion site in branch retinal vein occlusion (BRVO). METHODS: This prospective study involved 62 eyes with a diagnosis of BRVO. Fundus photography, fluorescein angiography, Goldmann applanation tonometry, and optical coherence tomography were performed. Correlations among CDR, IOP, and the occlusion site were analyzed. RESULTS: A negative correlation was found between the occlusion site and IOP (p<0.001, Pearson's correlation analysis) and between the occlusion site and CDR (p<0.001, Pearson's correlation analysis). However, the correlation between IOP and CDR was poor (p=0.092, Pearson's correlation analysis). CONCLUSIONS: BRVOs with an occlusion site near the optic disc are associated with raised IOP and CDR values. This study suggests that the occurrence of BRVO with an occlusion site near the optic disc indicates that the patient should be evaluated for glaucoma.
Deoxycytidine ; Eye ; Fluorescein Angiography ; Glaucoma ; Humans ; Intraocular Pressure ; Manometry ; Photography ; Prospective Studies ; Retinal Vein ; Retinal Vein Occlusion ; Retinaldehyde ; Tomography, Optical Coherence

No abstract available.
Nipples*

In Sprague Dawley (SD) rats, antibodies against strains of Orinentia tsutsugamushi, Kato, Karp and Gilliam, were produced in order to investigate their longevity and cross-reactivities to their corresponding homologous and heterologous antigens. By immunofluorescence assay (IFA) of IgG and IgM, it was shown that the immunity to the homologous strains persisted at a higher level (longevity of at least 34 weeks with higher IFA titers). On the other hand, the immunity to the heterologous strains persisted at a lower level (longevity of 10 to 34 weeks with lower IFA titers). Since infection with one strain of O. tsutsugamushi does not preclude reinfection with other strains, understanding of the antigenic diversity of O. tsutsugamushi and duration of the immunity to both homologous and heterologous strain is very important in diagnosis of scrub typhus.
Animals ; Antibodies* ; Antigenic Variation ; Antigens, Heterophile ; Diagnosis ; Fluorescent Antibody Technique ; Hand ; Immunoglobulin G ; Immunoglobulin M ; Longevity* ; Orientia tsutsugamushi* ; Rats ; Rats, Sprague-Dawley* ; Scrub Typhus

PURPOSE: There is increasing attention to smart-learning as a new education paradigm. The purpose of this study was to identify the level of intention to use smart-based Continuing Nurse Education (CNE) and factors influencing intention to use smart-based CNE. METHODS: Participants were 486 nurses from 14 organizations, including 12 hospitals, a nurses association, and an office of education. Data were collected from November 5 to 18, 2014 using self-report questionnaires. Data were analyzed using descriptive statistics, t-test, ANOVA, Pearson correlation, and stepwise multiple regression. RESULTS: The mean score for intention to use smart-based CNE was 6.34 out of 10. The factors influencing intention to use smart-based CNE were nursing informatics competency, current unit career, and smartphone addiction. These variables explained 10% of variance in intention to use smart-based CNE. CONCLUSION: The findings of this study suggest that efforts to enhance the nursing informatics competency of nurses could increase usage rate of smart-based CNE. The CNE policy makers will find this study very useful and the findings of this study will help to provide insight into the best way to develop smart-based CNE.
Administrative Personnel ; Education* ; Education, Continuing ; Humans ; Intention* ; Nursing Informatics