The Slovenian Version of the Thirst Distress Scale for Patients with Heart Failure: Translation and Psychometric Evaluation.

Unlabelled: Thirst is a common symptom in patients with heart failure (HF), which can cause a high degree of distress. Increased fluid intake due to thirst can lead to clinical deterioration because of shifts in volume status. The thirst assessment should be included in routine patient follow-up; however, only a limited set of validated instruments are available.

Cross-cultural adaptation and psychometric evaluation of the Slovenian version of the nurse professional competence scale.

Background: The competency-based approach to the assessment of nursing practice has been adopted as a key policy in the developed world. The continual self-assessment of competence gives nurses the opportunity to reflect on their competencies and has a significant impact on the quality of nursing practice and patient safety. The study was designed to describe the process of cross-cultural adaptation and to assess the psychometric properties of the Slovenian version of a short form of the Nurse Professional Competence scale (NPC-SF) and to evaluate the efficacy of this instrument in a sample of registered nurses.

Knowledge of health principles among professionals in Slovenian kindergartens.

Objectives: Preschool children have significant health issues. From the relevant legislation and regulations, it can be seen that kindergarten teachers (KTs) and kindergarten teacher assistants (KTAs) are expected to be familiarwith the basic hygienic measures and steps for preventing injuries and illnesses, to recognize infectious diseases, and to know how to give the first aid. To gain these skills, a continuous life-long learning is necessary, because the characteristics of diseases are changing.

Sources of workplace violence against nurses.

Background: Health care employees, especially nurses, are often victims of workplace violence.

Objective: The objective of this research is to study the frequency and degree of violence against nurses and to analyze correlations between various sources and types of violence.

Methods: A survey was carried out using a representative sample of nurses in Slovenia.

The Use of Competency Models to Assess Leadership in Nursing.

Background: The efficiency of the health care system is significantly dependent on the appropriate leadership and guidance of employees. One of the most frequently used new approaches in human resources management is the study of competencies and competency models. The aim of this research is to develop a competency model for leaders in nursing, and to compare it with the leadership competency model for state administration.

Continuing education and self-assessment of knowledge of nurse leaders.

Background: The rapid increase in the scope and quality of knowledge in the health care field requires continuing education for nurses, especially nurse leaders.

Methods: A survey was conducted among 296 nurse leaders from 15 hospitals, accounting for 87% of all hospital nurses in Slovenia.

Results: The survey showed that participation in continuing education was lowest among younger nurse leaders, those with lower leadership positions, and those employed at medium-sized general hospitals and specialized (nonpsychiatric) hospitals.