Prevalence and incidence of domestic violence during pregnancy and associated risk factors: a longitudinal cohort study in the south of Sweden.

Background: Domestic violence during pregnancy is not only a severe public health issue that jeopardizes maternal and foetal health but also violates human rights. The aim was to explore the prevalence and incidence of domestic violence among pregnant women, in the southwestern region of Scania in Sweden, and their experience of a history of violence. In addition, to explore the association between domestic violence during pregnancy and possible risk factors.

Modifying a generic postoperative recovery profile instrument to an instrument specifically targeting coronary artery bypass grafting.

Patients may suffer from a wide range of postoperative symptoms after coronary artery bypass grafting. In-depth knowledge of the recovery process is a prerequisite for nursing interventions. However, we found no specific instrument covering the entire range and duration of postoperative symptoms related to this procedure.

How do patients with peripheral arterial disease communicate their knowledge about their illness and treatments? A qualitative descriptive study.

Background: Peripheral arterial disease is a chronic illness, and patients with peripheral arterial disease should receive advice about lifestyle changes and medical therapies to reduce further atherosclerotic complications. Previous research has indicated that patients with peripheral arterial disease lack information about their disease and secondary prevention measures. The aim was to elucidate how patients with peripheral arterial disease communicate their knowledge about their illness and treatments.

General health and state anxiety in patients recovering from colorectal cancer surgery.

Aim: To describe and compare general health and state anxiety before surgery and up to 6 months after surgery in patients with colorectal cancer undergoing elective rectal resection, abdominoperineal resection or colonic resection in an enhanced recovery context.

Background: Little is known about patient-reported health and anxiety after colorectal cancer surgery in an enhanced recovery context.

Design: A prospective cohort study.

Patients' experiences of living with varicose veins and management of the disease in daily life.

Aims And Objectives: The aim was to describe the experience of living with varicose veins classified according CEAP (clinical class, aetiology, anatomy, pathophysiology) as C4 (eczema or thrombophlebitis) and management of the disease in daily life.

Background: Primary chronic venous insufficiencies with varicose veins are a relatively common condition among both men and women. Several studies have shown that quality of life improved after treatment of varicose veins compared to before treatment.

Prevalence, Long-term Development, and Predictors of Psychosocial Consequences of False-Positive Mammography among Women Attending Population-Based Screening.

Background: Cancer screening aims to detect cancer at an asymptomatic stage, although side effects from screening also occur. We investigated the prevalence, longitudinal development, and predictors of psychosocial consequences of false-positive breast cancer screening.

Methods: Three hundred ninety-nine women with false-positive screening mammography responded to the Consequences of Screening-Breast Cancer (COS-BC) questionnaire immediately after a negative diagnosis (free from breast cancer) following recall examination(s) (baseline), and 6 and 12 months later.

Handling a challenging context: experiences of facilitating evidence-based elderly care.

Aim: To explore improvement facilitators' experiences of handling their commission to implement evidence-based practice in elderly care for frail older persons.

Background: Improvement facilitators were put in place across Sweden in a time-limited project by the government, with one part of the project being to evaluate the model before establishing this facilitation of evidence-based practice in elderly care.

Method: Two focus groups were interviewed twice.

Sleep quality, use of hypnotics and sleeping habits in different age-groups among older people.

Background: Sleep disturbances are common among older people (>65 years). Further, long-term use of sedative hypnoticsin older people is associated with morbidity and mortality. However, older people represent a large span of life years, and few studies have included the oldest-old above 85 years.

Struggling to survive for the sake of the unborn baby: a grounded theory model of exposure to intimate partner violence during pregnancy.

Background: Intimate partner violence (IPV) during pregnancy is a serious matter which threatens maternal and fetal health. The aim of this study was to develop a grounded theoretical model of women's experience of IPV during pregnancy and how they handle their situation.

Method: Ten interviews with women who had experience of being exposed to IPV during pregnancy were analyzed using the grounded theory approach.

Patient-reported recovery after enhanced colorectal cancer surgery: a longitudinal six-month follow-up study.

Purpose: The concept of enhanced recovery after surgery (ERAS) is a modern regime of care, and numerous studies have proved its beneficial impact on recovery after colorectal surgery. However, little is known about patients' continuing recovery after discharge. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to describe patient-reported recovery after colorectal cancer surgery in the context of ERAS from the day of discharge until 1 and 6 months after surgery.

Prevalence of domestic violence during pregnancy and related risk factors: a cross-sectional study in southern Sweden.

Background: Domestic violence during pregnancy is a serious public health issue which threatens maternal and foetal health outcomes. The aim of the study was to explore prevalence of domestic violence among pregnant women in southern Sweden (Scania) and to explore associations with background factors, as symptoms of depression and sense of coherence.

Methods: This study has a cross-sectional design and is the first part of a longitudinal, cohort study.

Psychometric properties of a Swedish version of the Consequences of Screening--Breast Cancer questionnaire.

Aim: To evaluate the psychometric properties of a questionnaire addressing psychosocial consequences of false-positive mammographic screening.

Background: The Consequences of Screening--Breast Cancer and Lung Cancer questionnaires target psychosocial consequences of false-positive cancer screening. The Consequences of Screening--Breast Cancer questionnaire and ten items not considered lung cancer specific from the Lung Cancer questionnaire have been adapted for use in mammographic screening in Sweden, but remain psychometrically untested.

Vascular Quality of Life Questionnaire-6 facilitates health-related quality of life assessment in peripheral arterial disease.

Background: Most commonly used outcome measures in peripheral arterial disease (PAD) provide scarce information about achieved patient benefit. Therefore, patient-reported outcome measures have become increasingly important as complementary outcome measures. The abundance of items in most health-related quality of life instruments makes everyday clinical use difficult.

A roller coaster of emotions and sense--coping with the perceived psychosocial consequences of a false-positive screening mammography.

Aims And Objectives: To explore coping with the perceived psychosocial consequences of a false-positive screening mammography.

Background: Mammographic screening has been found effective to decrease breast cancer (BC) mortality, yet there are adverse effects. Psychosocial consequences of false-positive mammographic screening have mainly been investigated from a population-based perspective.

Vacuum-assisted wound closure versus alginate for the treatment of deep perivascular wound infections in the groin after vascular surgery.

Background: Vacuum-assisted wound closure (VAC) therapy may heal wounds faster than conventional dressings after surgical debridement of perivascular groin infections after vascular surgery.

Methods: Patients with deep infected wounds (Szilagyi grade III) were surgically revised and left open for secondary healing, then randomized to either VAC or alginate (Sorbalgon) therapy, between February 2007 and November 2011. To test the hypothesis, it was calculated that 42 patients needed to be included (90% power, 5% level of significance).

The importance of socioeconomic factors for compliance and outcome at screening for abdominal aortic aneurysm in 65-year-old men.

Objective: To evaluate compliance with screening and prevalence of abdominal aortic aneurysm (AAA) in relation to background data regarding area-based socioeconomic status.

Methods: Our department annually invites 4300 65-year-old men from the city of Malmö and 15 neighboring municipalities to ultrasound AAA screening. In a cross-sectional cohort study, compliance and AAA prevalence among 8269 men were related to background socioeconomic data such as mean income, proportion of immigrants, percentage of subjects on welfare, smoking habits, and unemployment rate in the different municipalities.

Nurses' perceptions of working according to standardized care plans: a questionnaire study.

Aims: The aim of this study was to investigate nurses' perceptions of working according to standardized care plans (SCPs), regarding usability, documentation, quality of care and the implementation process.

Background: Administrative work is an extensive part of nursing practice which leads to decreased time for the near patient-related care. In addition, the number of very sick patients with short hospital stays has increased.

Adaptation to Swedish and further development of the 'Consequences of Screening - Breast Cancer' questionnaire: a multimethod study.

Rationale: Experiencing a false-positive screening mammography can cause considerable psychosocial distress. The Consequences of Screening - Breast Cancer questionnaire (COS-BC parts 1 and 2), recently developed in Denmark, is the only condition-specific questionnaire for measuring short- and long-term psychosocial consequences of false-positive mammographic screening. Additional studies are needed to further test the COS-BC before use across cultures.

Development and implementation of a standardized care plan for carotid endarterectomy.

Carotid endarterectomy (CEA) is a standardized surgical procedure and is the third most common vascular surgical procedure in Sweden. To improve the quality of pre- and postoperative care for patients undergoing elective CEA, a standardized care plan (SCP) was developed and implemented during Spring of 2007 at a vascular clinic in Sweden. In order to spread light on obstacles and possibilities in the implementation-process of this procedure, the aim was to evaluate the development and implementation process of the standardized care plan for CEA.

Psychometric properties of the disease-specific health-related quality of life instrument VascuQoL in a Swedish setting.

Background: Traditional outcome measures in peripheral arterial disease (PAD) provide insufficient information regarding patient benefit. It has therefore been suggested to add patient-reported outcome measures. The main aim of this study was to validate the Swedish Vascular Quality of Life questionnaire (VascuQoL) version, a patient-reported PAD-specific health-related quality of life (HRQoL) instrument.

Stress of Conscience among psychiatric nursing staff in relation to environmental and individual factors.

The present study aimed at investigating the relationship between environmental and individual factors and Stress of Conscience among nursing staff in psychiatric in-patient care. A questionnaire involving six different instruments measuring Stress of Conscience, the ward atmosphere, the psychosocial work environment, Perceived Stress, Moral Sensitivity, and Mastery was answered by 93 nursing staff at 12 psychiatric in-patient wards in Sweden. The findings showed that Sense of Moral Burden, Mastery, Control at Work and Angry and Aggressive Behavior were related to Stress of Conscience.

Perceived stress among nursing staff in psychiatric inpatient care: the influence of perceptions of the ward atmosphere and the psychosocial work environment.

The aims of this study were to investigate (1) perceived stress as felt by the nursing staff working in psychiatric inpatient care, (2) possible differences between nurses and nurse assistants, and (3) associations among individual characteristics, the ward atmosphere, the psychosocial work environment, and perceived stress. Ninety-three members of the nursing staff completed three instruments--one each measuring perceived stress, the ward atmosphere, and the psychosocial work environment. There were no differences among the staff groups concerning perceived stress.

The ward atmosphere important for the psychosocial work environment of nursing staff in psychiatric in-patient care.

Background: The nursing staff working in psychiatric care have a demanding work situation, which may be reflected in how they view their psychosocial work environment and the ward atmosphere. The aims of the present study were to investigate in what way different aspects of the ward atmosphere were related to the psychosocial work environment, as perceived by nursing staff working in psychiatric in-patient care, and possible differences between nurses and nurse assistants.

Methods: 93 nursing staff working at 12 general psychiatric in-patient wards in Sweden completed two questionnaires, the Ward Atmosphere Scale and the QPSNordic 34+.

The team builder: the role of nurses facilitating interprofessional student teams at a Swedish clinical training ward.

Interprofessional education (IPE) is an educational strategy attracting increased interest as a method to train future health care professionals. One example of IPE is the clinical training ward, where students from different health care professions practice together. At these wards the students work in teams with the support of facilitators.

Searching for evidence regarding using preoperative disinfection showers to prevent surgical site infections: a systematic review.

Background: Postoperative surgical site infections (SSI) are the third most common health care associated infection. Even though several studies have pointed out the benefits of disinfection showers prior to surgery in order to reduce SSI, it remains unclear how to optimize this disinfection procedure.

Aim: To find evidence for how many times preoperative disinfection showers should be performed in order to reduce bacterial colonies and minimize the risk of SSI.