Tobacco, nicotine, and cannabis use and exposure in an Australian Indigenous population during pregnancy: A protocol to measure parental and foetal exposure and outcomes.

Background: The Australian National Perinatal Data Collection collates all live and stillbirths from States and Territories in Australia. In that database, maternal cigarette smoking is noted twice (smoking <20 weeks gestation; smoking >20 weeks gestation). Cannabis use and other forms of nicotine use, for example vaping and nicotine replacement therapy, are nor reported.

Evaluation of the clinical outcomes and patient satisfaction related to the use of internal eye shields for electron external beam radiation therapy.

Introduction: Cancers around the eye are often treated using orthovoltage machines or by plastic surgery, neither of which are widely available in regional Australia. External beam radiation therapy (EBRT) using electrons and an internal eye shield is an alternative, relatively underreported technique which can provide similar cosmetic and functional outcomes. This report aimed to describe the process for the use of internal eye shields at GenesisCare Fraser Coast Radiation Oncology (GCFCRO) and the associated clinical outcomes and patient perceptions of the delivery and results of this procedure.

Measuring changes in nursing students' workplace performance following feedback encounters: A quasi-experimental study.

Background: Work-integrated learning and performance is intimately linked with assessment and feedback; however, empirical evidence concerning the impact of feedback on student performance in workplace settings is limited. A novel practice-based feedback intervention-the REMARK (nuRse fEedback iMplementAtion frameworRK) program-was developed and implemented. Sustainable feedback processes that involve both learners and learning partners can ultimately maximise learning outcomes, optimise self-regulation, and impact performance.

Higher blood nicotine concentrations following smokeless tobacco (pituri) and cigarette use linked to adverse pregnancy outcomes for Central Australian Aboriginal pregnancies.

Background: In central Australia, Aboriginal women use wild tobacco plants, Nicotiana spp. (locally known as pituri) as a chewed smokeless tobacco, with this use continuing throughout pregnancy and lactation. Our aim was to describe the biological concentrations of nicotine and metabolites in samples from mothers and neonates and examine the relationships between maternal self-reported tobacco use and maternal and neonatal outcomes.

Towards the idea of 'clinical capital': A longitudinal study exploring nurses' dispositions and workplace manifestations in an Australian intensive care unit.

Objective: To explore the concept of 'capital' through the study of successive interventions and outcomes (patient and staff) in a quaternity intensive care unit (ICU) across a 5-year time frame.

Design: A longitudinal intrinsic single site, a survey study was designed. The concept of 'capital' was explored through an adopted interpretive approach that involved understanding meanings from different sources, for example, discussions at compassion cafés, follow-up from staff-initiated activities, informal responses to organizational imperatives external to the unit (i.

Prognostic models to predict survival in patients with pancreatic cancer: a systematic review.

Background: Pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC) has poor survival. Current treatments offer little likelihood of cure or long-term survival. This systematic review evaluates prognostic models predicting overall survival in patients diagnosed with PDAC.

The association between quality care and outcomes for a real-world population of Australian patients diagnosed with pancreatic cancer.

Background: This study: (i) assessed compliance with a consensus set of quality indicators (QIs) in pancreatic cancer (PC); and (ii) evaluated the association between compliance with these QIs and survival.

Methods: Four years of data were collected for patients diagnosed with PC. Cox proportional hazards models were used to estimate hazard ratios (HRs) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs).

Central Australian Aboriginal women's placental and neonatal outcomes following maternal smokeless tobacco, cigarette or no tobacco use.

Objective: To describe the placental characteristics and neonatal outcomes of Central Australian Aboriginal women based on maternal self-report of tobacco use.

Methods: Placental and neonatal variables were collected from a prospective maternal cohort of 19 smokeless tobacco chewers, 23 smokers and 31 no-tobacco users.

Results: Chewers had the lowest placental weight (460 g) while the no-tobacco group had the heaviest placental weight (565 g).

Determining the CA19-9 concentration that best predicts the presence of CT-occult unresectable features in patients with pancreatic cancer: A population-based analysis.

Background: Serum CA19-9 concentration may be useful in triaging patients with pancreatic cancer for more intensive staging investigations. Our aim was to identify the CA19-9 cut-point with the greatest accuracy for detecting unresectable features not identified by CT scan, and to examine the performance of this and other cut-points in predicting the outcome of staging laparoscopy (SL).

Methods: Patients with pancreatic cancer were drawn from two state-wide cancer registries between 2009 and 2011.

Comparison of Opioid-Free Anesthesia Versus Opioid-Containing Anesthesia for Elective Laparoscopic Surgery (COFA: LAP): A Protocol Measuring Recovery Outcomes.

The administration of opioids is a central element in contemporary anesthetic techniques in Australia; however, opioids have a range of side effects. As an alternative, opioid-free anesthesia (OFA) is an emerging mode of anesthesia intended to avoid these side effects. This study is the first to publish the use of OFA in Australia and is conducted in a regional Queensland Health Service.

The association of missed nursing care and determinants of satisfaction with current position for direct-care nurses-An international study.

Aim: To describe the association of missed nursing care and to identify the determinants of satisfaction with current position for direct-care nurses.

Background: Missed nursing care and job satisfaction are important issues regarding quality patient care and safety in health care, globally.

Method: This was a cross-sectional quantitative study using MISSCARE Survey data.

Protocol-directed sedation versus non-protocol-directed sedation in mechanically ventilated intensive care adults and children.

Background: The sedation needs of critically ill patients have been recognized as a core component of critical care that is vital to assist recovery and ensure humane treatment. Evidence suggests that sedation requirements are not always optimally managed. Suboptimal sedation, both under- and over-sedation, have been linked to short-term (e.

Are Postoperative Clinical Outcomes Influenced by Length of Stay in the Postanesthesia Care Unit?

Purpose: To compare clinical outcomes of patients who required a prolonged length of stay in the postanesthesia care unit (PACU) with a control group.

Design: A single-center purposive-sampled retrospective medical record and database audit.

Methods: Patients with prolonged PACU stays were compared to a group of patients whose stay was less than median for outcome measures: rapid response team (RRT) activation, cardiac arrest, unanticipated intensive care unit admissions, and survival to discharge.

Determinants of nurse absenteeism and intent to leave: An international study.

Aim: To determine factors associated with nurses' intent to leave their positions and absenteeism.

Background: There is a recognized global shortage of nurses but limited data describing and determining factors associated with nurse absenteeism and intent to leave.

Methods: This study involved a secondary analysis of the results from direct-care registered nurses' responses to the MISSCARE Survey, with data from seven countries included.

Chemotherapy in patients with unresected pancreatic cancer in Australia: A population-based study of uptake and survival.

Aim: Palliative chemotherapy improves symptom control and prolongs survival in patients with unresectable pancreatic cancer, but there is a paucity of data describing its use and effectiveness in everyday practice. We explored patterns of chemotherapy use in patients with unresected pancreatic cancer in Australia and the impact of use on survival.

Methods: We reviewed the medical records of residents of New South Wales or Queensland, Australia, diagnosed with unresectable pancreatic adenocarcinoma between July 2009 and June 2011.

Biliary Stenting in Patients With Pancreatic Cancer: Results From a Population-Based Cohort Study.

Objective: We aimed to describe management of biliary obstruction (BO) in the context of pancreatic cancer within a population-based cohort.

Methods: We examined management of BO in 1863 patients diagnosed as having pancreatic cancer in 2010/2011. We used descriptive statistics and logistic regression to describe patterns of biliary stent usage, complications and duration of patency, associations between preoperative stenting and surgical outcomes, and between patient factors and management of jaundice.

Association between pancreatic cancer patients' perception of their care coordination and patient-reported and survival outcomes.

Objective: People with pancreatic cancer have poor survival, and management is challenging. Pancreatic cancer patients' perceptions of their care coordination and its association with their outcomes have not been well-studied. Our objective was to determine if perception of care coordination is associated with patient-reported outcomes or survival.

Factors associated with quality of care for patients with pancreatic cancer in Australia.

Objectives: To develop a composite score for the quality of care for patients with pancreatic cancer in Australia; to determine whether it was affected by patient and health service-related factors; to assess whether the score and survival were correlated.

Design, Participants And Setting: We reviewed medical records of patients diagnosed with pancreatic cancer during July 2009 - June 2011 and notified to the Queensland and New South Wales cancer registries.

Design And Main Outcome Measures: Participants were allocated proportional quality of care scores based on indicators derived from a Delphi process, ranging from 0 (lowest) to 1 (highest quality care).

Reducing avoidable admissions in rural community palliative care: a pilot study of care coordination by General Practice registrars.

Objective: To investigate the feasibility of using a General Practice registrar (GPR) to coordinate rural palliative care services.

Design: A quasi-experimental design was used. Intervention group participants received the GPR service, which involved liaison among the patient, family, General Practitioner, specialist palliative care team and community nurses.

Determinants of Outcomes Following Resection for Pancreatic Cancer-a Population-Based Study.

Background: Patient and health system determinants of outcomes following pancreatic cancer resection, particularly the relative importance of hospital and surgeon volume, are unclear. Our objective was to identify patient, tumour and health service factors related to mortality and survival amongst a cohort of patients who underwent completed resection for pancreatic cancer.

Methods: Eligible patients were diagnosed with pancreatic adenocarcinoma between July 2009 and June 2011 and had a completed resection performed in Queensland or New South Wales, Australia, with either tumour-free (R0) or microscopically involved margins (R1) (n = 270).

A Pilot Randomized Controlled Trial Using Prophylactic Dressings to Minimize Sacral Pressure Injuries in High-Risk Hospitalized Patients.

This pilot randomized controlled trial examined the effect of prophylactic dressings to minimize sacral pressure injuries (PIs) in high-risk hospitalized patients and assessed feasibility criteria to inform a larger study. Eighty patients were recruited at admission points (the emergency department and surgical care unit) or directly from participating wards in the general medical-surgical setting following the assessment of high risk of sacral PI. Participants were randomized into either the routine care or routine care and silicone foam border dressing group.

Using a Delphi process to determine optimal care for patients with pancreatic cancer.

Aim: Overall 5-year survival for pancreatic cancer is ∼5%. Optimizing the care that pancreatic cancer patients receive may be one way of improving outcomes. The objective of this study was to establish components of care which Australian health professionals believe important to optimally manage patients with pancreatic cancer.

Sedation protocols to reduce duration of mechanical ventilation in the ICU: a Cochrane Systematic Review.

Aims: Assess the effects of protocol-directed sedation management on the duration of mechanical ventilation and other relevant patient outcomes in mechanically ventilated intensive care unit patients.

Background: Sedation is a core component of critical care. Sub-optimal sedation management incorporates both under- and over-sedation and has been linked to poorer patient outcomes.