The Use of Immersive Virtual Reality Training for Developing Nontechnical Skills Among Nursing Students: Multimethods Study.

Background: Immersive virtual reality (IVR) is a niche technology rising in popularity in nursing education. Although there is an abundance of evidence to demonstrate the effect of virtual reality (VR) on desired learning outcomes, this evidence is limited to technical or procedural skills or managing a single patient with clinical problems. Nontechnical skills (NTS), such as communication, decision-making, teamwork, situation awareness, and managerial skills, have not been explored using IVR technology.

Framework Development: Standardizing Definition of Advanced Practice Radiation Therapy Activities for Clinical Workload Quantification.

Purpose: Advanced practice (AP) in radiation therapy (RT) is being implemented around the globe. In an effort to advance the understanding of the similarities and differences in APRT roles in Ontario, Canada, a community of practice (CoP) sought ways to provide quantitative data on the nature of APRT clinical activities and the frequency with which these activities were being executed.

Methods: In 2017, a consensus building project involving 20 APRTs and 14 radiation therapy (RT) department managers in Ontario was completed to establish a mechanism to quantify APRTs' clinical impact.

Effectiveness of group cognitive behavioral therapy for depression in adults: a systematic review and meta-analysis of delivery by different healthcare professionals.

This study addresses the gap in understanding the varied effectiveness of group cognitive behavioral therapy (gCBT) delivered by different professionals. This study aims to address this gap by conducting a systematic review of randomized controlled trials (RCTs) that evaluate gCBT and compare it to inactive controls in adults with a clinical diagnosis of depression. A total of 33 RCTs were included for analysis.

The Effects of Immersive Virtual Reality-Assisted Experiential Learning on Enhancing Empathy in Undergraduate Health Care Students Toward Older Adults With Cognitive Impairment: Multiple-Methods Study.

Background: Immersive virtual reality (IVR)-assisted experiential learning has the potential to foster empathy among undergraduate health care students toward older adults with cognitive impairment by facilitating a sense of embodiment. However, the extent of its effectiveness, including enhancing students' learning experiences and achieving intended learning outcomes, remains underexplored.

Objective: This study aims to evaluate the impacts of IVR-assisted experiential learning on the empathy of undergraduate health care students toward older people with cognitive impairment as the primary outcome (objective 1) and on their learning experience (objective 2) and their attainment of learning outcomes as the secondary outcomes (objective 3).

Instrument adaptation and preliminary validation study of the Laryngeal Hypersensitivity Questionnaire used for assessment of laryngeal symptoms in patients with artificial airways.

Background: The Newcastle Laryngeal Hypersensitivity Questionnaire (LHQ) was developed to measure abnormal laryngeal sensation and was originally validated in a patient sample from otolaryngologic and respiratory outpatient clinics. Modification is needed for patients who are mechanically ventilated via an endotracheal tube or a tracheostomy tube.

Objectives: We sought to adapt and preliminarily validate a modified version of the LHQ appropriate for nurses and other clinicians to administer in acute hospital settings called the LHQ-Acute (LHQ-A).

A two-center experience: The impact of COVID-19 on two brachytherapy programs in Ontario - virtual care, service suspension and radiation therapy workflow.

Introduction: Most brachytherapy (BT) procedures require general anesthesia and are therefore considered aerosol generating medical procedures (AGMPs). The COVID-19 pandemic impacted BT as services were prioritized by balancing the harm associated with COVID-19 infection versus the effect of delay of potentially curative treatment. This article summarizes the impact of the pandemic on BT programs in two cancer centers in a Canadian province.

Development and Validation of the Hospital-to-Home-Health Transition Quality (H3TQ) Index: A Novel Measure to Engage Patients and Home Health Providers in Evaluating Hospital-to-Home Care Transition Quality: A Novel Measure to Engage Patients and Home Health Providers in Evaluating Hospital-to-Home Care Transition Quality.

Background: Patients requiring skilled home health care (HH) after hospitalization are at high risk of adverse events. Human factors engineering (HFE) approaches can be useful for measure development to optimize hospital-to-home transitions.

Objective: To describe the development, initial psychometric validation, and feasibility of the Hospital-to-Home-Health-Transition Quality (H3TQ) Index to identify patient safety risks.

Comparing dosimetry of locally advanced cervical cancer patients treated with 3 versus 4 fractions of MRI-guided brachytherapy.

Purpose: To demonstrate the feasibility of treating cervical cancer patients with MRI-guided brachytherapy (MRgBT) using 24 Gy in 3 fractions (F) versus a standard, more resource-intensive regimen of 28 Gy in 4F, and its ability to meet EMBRACE II planning aims.

Methods And Materials: A retrospective review of 224 patients with FIGO Stage IB-IVA cervical cancer treated with 28 Gy/4F (n = 91) and 24 Gy/3F (n = 133) MRgBT between 2016-2021 was conducted. Multivariable linear regression models were fitted to compare dosimetric parameters between the two groups, adjusting for CTV and T stage.

Preferences for end-of-life care and decision-making among Chinese community-dwelling older adults: A comparative cross-sectional study in Hong Kong and Wuhan in China.

This study aimed to describe and compare end-of-life care and decision-making preferences among Chinese community-dwelling older adults between Wuhan and Hong Kong in China. The study adopted a cross-sectional correlation design and recruited a convenience sample of 259 older adults, aged ≥65 years old from five community centers in Wuhan and Hong Kong. Participants completed a validated structured questionnaire that measured their end-of-life care and decision-making preferences.

Symptom Burden of Children with Cancer and Parental Quality of Life: The Mediating Role of Parental Stress.

Background: The aim of this study was to investigate the association between children's reported symptom burden and their parents' quality of life, and whether parents' perceived stress mediates this relationship.

Method: this was a cross-sectional quantitative research study. Convenience sampling was used to recruit 80 pairs of parents and their children with cancer.

Effectiveness of a brief hope intervention for chronic kidney disease patients on the decisional conflict and quality of life: a pilot randomized controlled trial.

Background: Stage 5 chronic kidney disease (CKD) patients often experience decisional conflict when faced with the selection between the initiation of dialysis and conservative care. The study examined the effects of a brief hope intervention (BHI) on the levels of hope, decisional conflict and the quality of life for stage 5 CKD patients.

Methods: This is a single-blinded, randomized controlled trial (ClinicalTrials.

Elective surgery in ankle and foot disorders-best practices for management of pain: a guideline for clinicians.

Purpose: Complex elective foot and ankle surgeries are often associated with severe pain pre- and postoperatively. When inadequately managed, chronic postsurgical pain and long-term opioid use can result. As no standards currently exist, we aimed to develop best practice pain management guidelines.

Parental Stress as the Mediator Between Symptom Burden and the Quality of Life of Chinese Children With Cancer.

Background: Because of their cancer and treatment adverse effects, most pediatric oncology patients will experience 1 or more symptoms at one time that can seriously affect their quality of life. Because these children are attached to parents, their symptom burden directly influences the parental stress level and parental interpretations of their children's quality of life.

Objective: The aim of this study was to examine the association between child-reported symptom burden and the pediatric quality of life reported by children with cancer and their parents, and whether parental perceived stress mediates these relationships.

Defining a minimum hospital volume threshold for minimally invasive colon cancer resections.

Background: Laparoscopic colectomy is considered the standard of care in colon cancer treatment when appropriate expertise is available. However, guidelines do not delineate what experience is required to implement this approach safely and effectively. This study aimed to establish a data-derived, hospital-level annual volume threshold for laparoscopic colectomy at which patient outcomes are optimized.

Development of the Experiences of Sex Work Stigma Scale Using Item Response Theory: Implications for Research on the Social Determinants of HIV.

While HIV stigma has received significant attention, limited work has been conducted on the measurement of intersecting stigmas. We developed the Experiences of Sex Work Stigma (ESWS) scale in the Dominican Republic (DR) and Tanzania. We conducted in-depth interviews with 20 female sex workers (FSW) per country to identify scale domains followed by cognitive debriefing interviews to assess content validity.

The effects of a brief hope intervention on decision-making in chronic kidney disease patients: A study protocol for a randomized controlled trial.

Aims: This study describes the study protocol of a manualized brief hope intervention that is based on the theoretical proposition - hope theory.

Background: Patients with stage 5 chronic kidney disease often had decisional regret when facing the tension of treatment alternatives between dialysis initiation and palliative care. Hope has been found to account for therapeutic changes in clients with depressive symptoms, heightens positive expectations, and striving to accomplish chosen goals.

Unintended Consequences of Health Care Reform: Impact of Changes in Payor Mix on Patient Safety Indicators.

Objective: To evaluate the impact of the Affordable Care Act's Medicaid expansion on patient safety metrics at the hospital level by expansion status, across varying levels of safety-net burden, and over time.

Summary Background Data: Medicaid expansion has raised concerns over the influx of additional medically and socially complex populations on hospital systems. Whether increases in Medicaid and uninsured payor mix impact hospital performance metrics remains largely unknown.

Radical excision for retroperitoneal soft tissue sarcoma: A national propensity-matched outcomes analysis.

Background: Given the rarity of retroperitoneal soft tissue sarcoma, few studies have assessed if radical excision of retroperitoneal soft tissue sarcoma with adjacent organs improves survival outcomes. This propensity score-matched study aimed to evaluate the impact of radical excision versus resection of tumor alone.

Methods: The National Cancer Database 2004 to 2015 was used to assess short- and long-term outcomes of resection of tumor alone versus radical excision (tumor plus ≥1 adjacent organs) via 1:1 propensity-matched analyses.

E-cigarette and hookah adoption patterns: Is the harm reduction theory just so much smoke?

Aims: This paper explores inter-generational changes in consumers smoking product uptake and use patterns after the introduction of e-cigarettes and hookahs.

Design: Item Response Theory (IRT) is used to analyze the Health Information National Trends Survey sponsored by the Food and Drug Administration (HINTS-FDA). The survey was fielded in 2015.

Variations in Retroperitoneal Soft Tissue Sarcoma Outcomes by Hospital Type: A National Cancer Database Analysis.

Purpose: Surgical resection remains the cornerstone of retroperitoneal soft tissue sarcoma (RPS) treatment. Patient- and sarcoma-related factors are well known to influence survival outcomes. The effect of hospital-related factors on long-term survival, however, are not well understood.

Health Care Disparities in Race-Ethnic Minority Communities and Populations: Does the Availability of Health Care Providers Play a Role?

Objectives: To examine disparities in use and access to different health care providers by community and individual race-ethnicity and to test provider supply as a potential mediator.

Data Sources: National secondary data from 2014 Medical Expenditure Panel Survey, 5-year estimates (2010-2014) from American Community Survey, and 2014 InfoUSA.

Study Design: Multiple logistic regression models examined the association of community and individual race-ethnicity with reported health care visits and access.

Minimally Invasive Surgery for Colorectal Cancer: Hospital Type Drives Utilization and Outcomes.

Introduction: Minimally invasive surgery (MIS) for colorectal cancer (CRC) is increasingly common; however, uptake has differed by hospital type. It is unknown how these trends have evolved for laparoscopic or robotic approaches in different types of hospitals. This study assesses temporal trends for MIS utilization and examines differences in surgical outcomes by hospital type.

Identifying the Minimum Volume Threshold for Retroperitoneal Soft Tissue Sarcoma Resection: Merging National Data with Consensus Expert Opinion.

Background: The complexity of retroperitoneal soft tissue sarcoma (RPS) surgery has prompted international recommendations to regionalize it to high-volume hospitals (HVHs). A minimum procedural volume threshold for RPS is not yet defined, hampering effective referral and regionalization in the US. This multihospital study sought to establish an HVH threshold informed by national data and international expert opinion.