Clinical utility of PCR compared to conventional culture and sensitivity testing for management of complicated urinary tract infections in adults: Part II.Evaluation of diagnostic concordance, discordant results, and antimicrobial selection efficacy.

Purpose: Complicated urinary tract infections (cUTIs) are difficult to manage due to their polymicrobial nature and resistance to standard therapies. In current clinical practice, the management of a cUTI often starts with broad-spectrum antimicrobials until culture and sensitivity (C&S) results are available, but these diagnostic delays further hinder treatment efficacy. Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR) offers a faster alternative.

Clinical utility of PCR compared to conventional culture and sensitivity testing for the management of complicated urinary tract infections in adults: Part I. Assessment of clinical outcomes, investigator satisfaction scores, and turnaround times.

Purpose: Managing complicated urinary tract infections (cUTIs) poses significant challenges, often resulting in the overprescription of empiric antibiotics. This approach exposes patients to multiple antimicrobials and raises the risk of inadequate treatment efficacy. The purpose of this study is to assess and compare the clinical utility of molecular testing (PCR) versus conventional culture and sensitivity (C&S) in managing cUTI, to identify optimal management strategies for cUTI patients.

Older people's Contributions During the COVID-19 Pandemic Response.

During the COVID-19 pandemic, older people were identified as requiring additional support and protection. This multi-method qualitative study shifts this narrative by asking: how did older people contribute to the COVID-19 public health response? We conducted a reflexive thematic analysis of responses from 870 letter-writers and 44 interviewees who were older people living in Aotearoa, New Zealand during the COVID-19 pandemic. Older people made substantial contributions during the COVID-19 pandemic through: 1) volunteering; 2) nurturing; and 3) advocacy/activism.

The work of palliative care from the perspectives of district nurses: A qualitative study.

Aim: To explore the work of palliative care from the perspectives of district nurses with a focus on the strategies they use to achieve positive outcomes for patients.

Design: An exploratory descriptive qualitative study.

Methods: A combination of group and individual interviews using semi-structured interviewing were used to explore district nurses' views of providing palliative care across two large urban community nursing services.