Post-Operative Pain and Comfort in Children After Heart Surgery: A Comparison of Nurses and Families Pre-operative Expectations.

Purpose: Parents' and nurses' expectations about pain control and comfort in children after heart surgery were explored to contribute to evidence-based family-centered interventions.

Design And Methods: 20 nurses and 23 parents from a tertiary pediatric center in the Pacific Northwest, were interviewed about their expectations of children's pain control and comfort experience in the hospital after heart surgery. In this descriptive study, data were collected from semi-structured recall interviews and analyzed using content analysis.

CE: Military Sexual Trauma in Male Service Members.

: The experience of military sexual trauma (MST), which can result from assault, battery, or harassment of a sexual nature, may jeopardize the mental health of service members as well as that of their family members, colleagues, and community members. Although a greater proportion of female than male service members are subjected to MST, the Department of Defense estimates that the absolute numbers of affected men and women, across all ranks and branches of military service, are nearly equal because roughly 85% of military members are men. Little research has explored the effects of MST on men.

Experiences of mothers of infants with congenital heart disease before, during, and after complex cardiac surgery.

Objective: Experiences of mothers of infants undergoing complex heart surgery were explored to build evidence-based family-centered interventions.

Background: Congenital heart disease is the most frequent birth defect in the United States and is common worldwide.

Methods: Eight mothers recalled through journal entries their experiences of the days before, during, and after their infant's surgery and shared advice for other mothers.

Women with substance abuse concerns.

Nurses in a wide variety of settings can assist women with substance abuse concerns. This article briefly reviews prevalence, gender differences, mental health comorbidities and painful life events, screening tools, brief interventions, substance abuse treatment, and three specific populations of women--those that are pregnant, incarcerated, or older. Suggestions for general nursing interventions are included.