Climate risk analysis of low-altitude tea gardens in central Taiwan using a Bayesian network.

Tea is a vital agricultural product in Taiwan. Due to global warming, the increasing extreme weather events have disrupted tea garden conditions and caused economic losses in agriculture. To address these challenges, a comprehensive tea garden risk assessment model, a Bayesian network (BN), was developed by considering various factors, including meteorological data, disaster events, tea garden environment (location, altitude, tea tree age, and soil characteristics), farming practices, and farmer interviews, and constructed risk assessment indicators for tea gardens based on the climate change risk analysis concept from the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change Fifth Assessment Report (IPCC AR5).

Physical activity patterns, sleep quality, and stress levels among rotating-shift nurses during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Aim: To examine the associations between physical activity patterns, sleep quality, and stress levels among rotating-shift nurses during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Background: Stress adversely impacts hospital nurses, particularly those on rotating shifts. The effects of physical activity patterns and sleep quality on the stress levels of these nurses during the COVID-19 pandemic warrant investigation.

Determinants of nurses' readiness for disaster response: A cross-sectional study.

Reducing the impacts of disasters is imperative in these times when disasters continually threaten people's lives. Given that the readiness for disaster response of nurses are essential in mitigating damage, however, studies on the determinants of nurses' readiness for disaster response remain inconclusive and require further research, especially with various populations. This study therefore aimed to investigate factors associated with readiness for disaster response among Taiwanese hospital nurses.

Perception of the factors contributing to family happiness among caregivers of stroke survivors in a suburban community in Thailand: A qualitative study.

Introduction: Caring for stroke survivors in primary care settings substantially impacts family life and health. Caregivers of stroke survivors have different challenging experiences in providing care in relation to family happiness. This study aimed to explore family happiness and its contributing factors among family members caring for stroke survivors in suburban Thailand.

Effectiveness of eAsthmaCare on Symptoms, Childhood Asthma Control Test, and Lung Function among Asthmatic Children.

A web-based self-health management system-eAsthmaCare, was developed as an intervention for asthmatic children. A randomized controlled trial was performed. Consent was obtained for 98 children with asthma to participate in the study and the pre- and post-test data collection process.

Impact of Rotating Shifts on Lifestyle Patterns and Perceived Stress among Nurses: A Cross-Sectional Study.

Although rotating shifts have a negative health impact, their association with hospital nurses’ health risks remains controversial due to incomplete adjustment in lifestyle patterns and heterogeneity of work schedules. However, whether work schedule characteristics are associated with lifestyle patterns and perceived stress remains undetermined. We assessed the correlations of work schedule characteristics, lifestyle patterns, and perceived stress among hospital nurses.

Applicability of modified SWAT model (SWAT-Twn) on simulation of watershed sediment yields under different land use/cover scenarios in Taiwan.

Climate change leads to increasing intensity and frequency of extreme rainfalls, especially in Taiwan with steep slopes and rapid currents. Heavy rainfalls trigger serious erosion and landslides on hillslopes, which increase sand concentration in rivers, and thus affect the water quality of reservoirs and the ecohydrological functions of rivers. We take the Zhuoshui River basin as an example and applied the modified Soil Water Assessment Tool (SWAT) model, SWAT-Twn, to simulate sediment in the basin.

Effects of Individualized Aerobic Exercise Training on Physical Activity and Health-Related Physical Fitness among Middle-Aged and Older Adults with Multimorbidity: A Randomized Controlled Trial.

The presence of multimorbidity in middle-aged and older adults, which reduces their physical activity and quality of life, is a global health challenge. Exercise is one of the most important health behaviors that individuals can engage in. Previous studies have revealed that aerobic exercise training is beneficial for healthy middle-aged and older adults and those with various chronic diseases, but few studies have designed individualized aerobic exercise training for individuals with multimorbidity.

Active Physical Activity Patterns Are Associated With Improved Quality of Life and Depression Status in Taiwanese Women With Metabolic Syndrome.

Background: Metabolic syndrome (MetS), health-related quality of life (HRQL), and depression status are independently associated with cardiac health. Therefore, understanding the associations between MetS, HRQL, and depression status and determining factors related to improved HRQL and depression status in people with MetS may help in cardiovascular disease prevention.

Objective: The aim of this study was to examine whether there are differences in HRQL and depression status between Taiwanese women with and without MetS and whether physical activity patterns are associated with HRQL and depression status in this population.

Spatiotemporal Variation of Sediment Export from Multiple Taiwan Watersheds.

Soil erosion and landslide triggered by heavy rainfall are serious problems that have threatened water resources in Taiwan watersheds. This study investigated the relationship among streamflow, sediment load, sediment concentration and typhoon characteristics (path and rainfall amount) during 2000-2017 for nine gauging stations in five basins (Tamshui River basin, Zhuoshui River basin, Zengwen River basin, Gaoping River basin, and Hualien River basin) representing the diverse geomorphologic conditions in Taiwan. The results showed that streamflow and sediment load were positively correlated, and the correlation was improved when the sediment load data were grouped by sediment concentration.

Motivational Counseling to Reduce Sedentary Behaviors and Depressive Symptoms and Improve Health-Related Quality of Life Among Women With Metabolic Syndrome.

Background: Motivational interviewing, as a counseling approach, could promote not only behavioral changes but also individuals' psychological adaptation. Previous studies provide evidence that motivational interviewing focused on increasing physical activity decreases the risk of metabolic syndrome in women. Its effects on sedentary behaviors, depressive symptoms, and health-related quality of life (HRQL) remain unknown.

Integrating Landscape Metrics and Hydrologic Modeling to Assess the Impact of Natural Disturbances on Ecohydrological Processes in the Chenyulan Watershed, Taiwan.

The Chenyulan watershed, located in the central mountain area of Taiwan, has been suffering from earthquakes, typhoons, and heavy rainfalls in recent decades. These sequential natural disturbances have a cumulative impact on the watershed, leading to more fragile and fragmented land cover and loss of capacity of soil water conservation. In this study, the Soil and Water Assessment Tool (SWAT) and a landscape metrics tool (FRAGSTATS) were used to assess the direct impact (e.

Development of the Chinese-version of the exercise self-regulatory efficacy scale for patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease.

Background: A valid and reliable instrument for assessing exercise self-regulatory efficacy (Ex-SRE) is lacking in Taiwan.

Objective: To develop and validate a Chinese-version of the Ex-SRE scale (Ex-SRES-Chinese).

Methods: Published guidelines were followed for cross-cultural adaptation of Ex-SRES-Chinese.

Academic and Demographic Predictors of NCLEX-RN Pass Rates in First- and Second-Degree Accelerated BSN Programs.

Relatively few studies have addressed predictors of first-attempt outcomes (pass-fail) on the National Council Licensure Examination-Registered Nurses (NCLEX-RN) for accelerated BSN programs. The purpose of this study was to compare potential predictors of NCLEX outcomes in graduates of first-degree accelerated (FDA; n=62) and second-degree accelerated (SDA; n=173) BSN programs sharing a common nursing curriculum. In this retrospective study, bivariate analyses and multiple logistic regression assessed significance of selected demographic and academic characteristics as predictors of NCLEX-RN outcomes.

[Development and Testing of the Taiwanese Hospital Nurses' Job Satisfaction Scale].

Background: In the context of professional nursing, the concept of job satisfaction includes the degree to which a nurse is satisfied with the nursing profession, his/her personal adaptation to this profession, and his/her current working environment. No validated scale that addresses the job satisfaction of nurses working in hospitals currently exists in Taiwan.

Purpose: To develop a reliable and validated scale for measuring the job satisfaction of hospital nurses in Taiwan.

[Transformative Care Rooted in Evidence-Based Nursing].

As clinical scientists on the interdisciplinary healthcare team, nurses use the art and science of current nursing knowledge to provide evidence-based healthcare to each patient and his/her family. Nurses not only comprise the largest contingent of medical personnel and provide 24-hour patient care but are also professional scientists that develop unique nursing knowledge through reflective practice. Five strategies for expanding the body of current evidence-based nursing scientific knowledge include: (1) reflecting empirically on the practice-service domain, (2) developing nursing knowledge using rigorous methodology, (3) emancipating nursing knowledge using innovative transformation, (4) using collaborative interdisciplinary healthcare that is based in patient-centered care, and (5) initiating innovative transformation in nursing education.

[Precision Nursing: Individual-Based Knowledge Translation].

U.S. President Obama announced a new era of precision medicine in the Precision Medicine Initiative (PMI).

Readiness of hospital nurses for disaster responses in Taiwan: A cross-sectional study.

Background: Because patients in disaster areas require the most critical care, mobilising hospital nurses has become a pivotal strategy. Given the importance of disaster nursing training programmes, understanding how well prepared hospital nurses are to provide disaster care is vital.

Objectives: This paper analyses the perceived readiness of hospital nurses for a disaster response and the factors influencing their report for work outside the hospital environment.

Evaluating the effectiveness of a family empowerment program on family function and pulmonary function of children with asthma: A randomized control trial.

Background: Empowerment can be an effective strategy for changing an individual's health behaviours. However, how to empower whole families to manage their children's asthma is a challenge that requires innovative nursing intervention based on family-centred care.

Aims: To evaluate the effectiveness of a family empowerment program on family function and pulmonary function of children with asthma compared to those receiving traditional self-management only.

Effects of telephone-based motivational interviewing in lifestyle modification program on reducing metabolic risks in middle-aged and older women with metabolic syndrome: A randomized controlled trial.

Background: Lifestyle modification is often difficult for middle-aged and older women living in the community who are at high risk of physical inactivity and metabolic syndrome.

Objectives: To examine the effects of telephone-based motivational interviewing in a 12-week lifestyle modification program on physical activity, MetS, metabolic risks (fasting plasma glucose, blood pressure, triglyceride, high-density lipoprotein, and central obesity), and the number of metabolic risks in community-living middle-aged and older women diagnosed with metabolic syndrome.

Research Design And Method: A randomized controlled trial was conducted.

Influence of Socioeconomic Status and Perceived Barriers on Physical Activity Among Taiwanese Middle-Aged and Older Women.

Background: Physical activity (PA) is associated with cardiovascular health in general populations, particularly in women. Middle-aged and older women are at high risk of less engagement in PA for unknown and complicated reasons.

Objectives: The aim of this study was to investigate whether PA was positively associated with socioeconomic status and psychosocial correlates of PA (self-efficacy and perceived benefits) but inversely correlated with perceived barriers in women (age >40 years).

Assessing the construct validity of the Chinese-Version Schizotypal Personality Questionnaire-Brief on male and female undergraduate students.

Background: Screening for the schizotypal personality trait is one strategy to identify people who may be susceptible to early psychosis or be at high risk for prodromal psychosis. The Schizotypal Personality Questionnaire-Brief (SPQ-B) has been widely used to assess the schizotypal personality and has been translated into Chinese. However, the psychometric properties of the Chinese-version scale have yet to be evaluated.

Gender differences? Internet use and parent-child communication about sex toward sexual attitudes among early adolescents in Taiwan.

Background: With the progress of information technology, early adolescents are able to access sex-related information through the Internet easily. This information has been shown to have a significant influence on the sexual health of this population. In addition, parent-child communications about sex affect the sexual health of adolescents.

Evaluation of uraemic pruritus in long-term dialysis patients using a modified Chinese scale.

Aim: To examine the reliability and validity of a modified Chinese version of the uraemic pruritus scale for measurement of different degrees of itching, as well as to identify the predictors for the severity of uraemic pruritus among long-term dialysis patients.

Methods: Long-term dialysis patients (n = 110) were recruited for a cross-sectional study from a medical centre in Taiwan. A modified Chinese version of the uraemic pruritus scale was used to evaluate sleep disturbance and the severity, frequency and distribution of itching.