Levels of empathy in undergraduate nursing students.

Empathy and absence of prejudice and stigma are instrumental in facilitating effective nurse-patient relations. This study assessed empathy levels and regard for specific medical conditions in undergraduate nursing students. A cross-sectional study was undertaken using paper-based versions of the Jefferson Scale of Physician Empathy (JSPE) and Medical Condition Regard Scale (MCRS), along with a brief set of demographic questions.

Psychometric properties of the Listening Styles Profile (LSP-16): a replication study.

The Listening Style Profile (LSP-16) measures people's self-reported preferences for four listening styles that we habitually use when we listen. Research in this area is important for health care education since listening is a fundamental skill in all the health care professions. The aim of this study was to investigate the factor structure of the LSP-16's subscales when completed by a group of respondents from a large Australian university.

Mathematical and drug calculation abilities of paramedic students.

Aim: The objective of this study was to determine if undergraduate paramedics could accurately perform common drug calculations and basic mathematical computations normally required in the workplace.

Method: A descriptive paper-based questionnaire collecting demographical data, student attitudes regarding their drug calculation performance, and answers to a series of basic mathematical and drug calculation questions was administered to undergraduate paramedic students.

Results: The mean score was 39.

Should an alternative to the Glasgow Coma Scale be taught to paramedic students?

Background: The accurate assessment of a patient's conscious state using the Glasgow Coma Scale (GCS) is an important skill for paramedics as it may determine the patient's initial and ongoing management. The objective of this study was to determine if undergraduate paramedic students from a large Australian University were able to accurately interpret a variety of conscious states.

Methods: A prospective double-blinded observational pilot study requiring students to interpret the conscious state of four adult patients using the GCS by viewing a simulation DVD package.

Construct validation of the readiness for interprofessional learning scale: a Rasch and factor analysis.

In order to improve efficiency and collaboration in healthcare service provision, it is recommended that students engage in interprofessional education; that is, learning with, from and about professions other than one's own profession. Such endeavors are often impeded by pre-existing attitudes; therefore, self-reporting scales such as the Readiness for Interprofessional Learning Scale (RIPLS) have often been used in studies to gauge perspectives. The original 19-item version of the RIPLS was completed by 418 undergraduate healthcare students from a large Australian University.

The clinical teaching preference questionnaire (CTPQ): an exploratory factor analysis.

Background: Peer assisted learning is growing internationally as a beneficial pedagogical strategy in health care and tertiary education. Therefore having instruments such as the Clinical Teaching Preference Questionnaire (CTPQ) with strong measurement properties to use in educational research is vital.

Objectives: To investigate the factor structure of the CTPQ when completed by a group of respondents from a large Australian university.

Do mannequin chests provide an accurate representation of a human chest for simulated decompression of tension pneumothoraxes?

Background: Tension pneumothorax (TPX) is an uncommon but life-threatening condition. It is important that this uncommon presentation, managed by needle decompression, is practised by paramedics using a range of educationally sound and realistic mannequins. The objective of this study is to identify if the chest wall thickness (CWT) of training mannequins used for chest decompression is an anatomically accurate representation of a human chest.

Undergraduate paramedic students cannot do drug calculations.

Background: Previous investigation of drug calculation skills of qualified paramedics has highlighted poor mathematical ability with no published studies having been undertaken on undergraduate paramedics. There are three major error classifications. Conceptual errors involve an inability to formulate an equation from information given, arithmetical errors involve an inability to operate a given equation, and finally computation errors are simple errors of addition, subtraction, division and multiplication.

Cardiopulmonary resuscitation before defibrillation in the out-of-hospital setting: a literature review.

Background: Many studies over the past decade have investigated delaying initial defibrillation to perform cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR), as it has been associated with increased rates of restoration of spontaneous circulation and/or survival. Since 2006, a number of studies have investigated these procedures. The objective of this study was to undertake a literature review examining the commencement of CPR before defibrillation in the out-of-hospital setting.

Predictors of empathy in health science students.

Unlabelled: The significance of both empathy and effective communication as key components in the provision of health care services is widely acknowledged. It is important, therefore, to promote those communication styles which facilitate an empathetic understanding among health science students.

Objective: To explores whether listening and communication styles are predictive of empathy among health science students.

Tipping the balance: Sclerotinia sclerotiorum secreted oxalic acid suppresses host defenses by manipulating the host redox environment.

Sclerotinia sclerotiorum is a necrotrophic ascomycete fungus with an extremely broad host range. This pathogen produces the non-specific phytotoxin and key pathogenicity factor, oxalic acid (OA). Our recent work indicated that this fungus and more specifically OA, can induce apoptotic-like programmed cell death (PCD) in plant hosts, this induction of PCD and disease requires generation of reactive oxygen species (ROS) in the host, a process triggered by fungal secreted OA.

A Rasch and factor analysis of a Paramedic Graduate Attribute scale.

This study examined the construct validity of the Paramedic Graduate Attribute scale (PGAS) using factor analysis and Rasch Analysis. A convenience sample was used in the study involving paramedics from all states and territories in Australia. Participants were asked to rate the importance of 47 graduate attribute items.

Levels of empathy in undergraduate midwifery students: an Australian cross-sectional study.

Objective: This exploratory study investigated empathy and attitudes towards specific medical conditions, two important aspects of the midwife-woman relationship, amongst undergraduate midwifery students at one university.

Method: Fifty-two Bachelor of Midwifery students across three years of the course completed questionnaires, the Jefferson Scale of Physician Empathy-Health Professional (JSPE-HP) version and the Medical Condition Regard Scale (MCRS). Both the JSPE-HP and the MCRS are standardised, self-report questionnaires with established reliability and validity.

Numeracy skills of nursing students.

Research has highlighted poor mathematical ability amongst qualified and student nurses. Three major classifications of errors: i)conceptual, ii)arithmetical and iii)computational have been identified. These errors involve being unable to formulate an equation from information given, unable to operate a given equation, or simple arithmetical errors respectively.

Practice education learning environments: the mismatch between perceived and preferred expectations of undergraduate health science students.

Background: Practical hands-on learning opportunities are viewed as a vital component of the education of health science students, but there is a critical shortage of fieldwork placement experiences. It is therefore important that these clinical learning environments are well suited to students' perceptions and expectations.

Purpose: To investigate how undergraduate students enrolled in health-related education programs view their clinical learning environments and specifically to compare students' perception of their 'actual' clinical learning environment to that of their 'preferred/ideal' clinical learning environment.

Attitudes of undergraduate health science students towards patients with intellectual disability, substance abuse, and acute mental illness: a cross-sectional study.

Background: There is a long history of certain medical conditions being associated with stigma, stereotypes, and negative attitudes. Research has shown that such attitudes can have a detrimental effect on patients presenting with stigmatised medical conditions and can even flow on to impact their family. The objective of this study was to measure the attitudes of undergraduate students enrolled in six different health-related courses at Monash University toward patients with intellectual disability, substance abuse, and acute mental illness.

Paramedics and the effects of shift work on sleep: a literature review.

Introduction: This paper investigates the literature regarding the impact of shift work on prehospital emergency providers. While the issue of shift work has been thoroughly investigated in other health disciplines, this is not the case for the paramedic discipline, particularly in the Australian context.

Objective: To identify the literature available on prehospital providers regarding the effects of shift work on sleep.

Pre-hospital provider recognition of intimate partner violence.

The leading risk factor of morbidity and mortality in Victorian women aged between 15 and 45 years is intimate partner violence (IPV) (approximately 8 times than that of smoking). Paramedics are frequently the first point of contact for victims of IPV. Due to this unique viewpoint, paramedics have the advantage of potentially identifying and reporting IPV, which can then result in early intervention.

Australian paramedic graduate attributes: a pilot study using exploratory factor analysis.

Background: The Australian healthcare system at all levels is under increasing pressure. The Australian paramedic discipline has seen a remarkable change in a number of areas including education, training, healthcare identity and clinical practice, particularly over the past three decades. Preparing future healthcare graduates for these expected changes therefore requires careful alignment of graduate attributes to core curriculum.

Communication styles of undergraduate health students.

Background: Few empirical studies have been undertaken on the communication styles of specific health-related disciplines. The objective of this study is to identify the communication styles of undergraduate health students at an Australian university.

Methods: A cross-sectional study using a paper-based version of the Communicator Style Measure (CSM) was administered to a cohort of students enrolled in eight different undergraduate health-related courses.

Levels of empathy in undergraduate occupational therapy students.

Empathy is an important attribute for occupational therapists in establishing rapport and in better understanding their clients. However, empathy can be compromised by high workloads, personal stressors and pressures to demonstrate efficacy. Occupational therapists also work with patients from a variety of diagnostic groups.

Learning style preferences of Australian health science students.

Objectives: It has been identified that health science student groups may have distinctive learning needs. By university educators' and professional fieldwork supervisors' being aware of the unique learning style preferences of health science students, they have the capacity to adjust their teaching approaches to best fit with their students' learning preferences. The purpose of this study was to investigate the learning style preferences of a group of Australian health science students enrolled in 10 different disciplines.

Can undergraduate paramedic and nursing students accurately estimate patient age and weight?

Introduction: Accurate estimation of a patient's age and weight are skills expected of all healthcare clinicians, including paramedics and nurses. It is necessary because patients may be unable to communicate such information due to unconsciousness or an altered state of conscious. Age and weight estimation influence calculation for medication dosages, defibrillation, equipment sizing, and other invasive procedures such as intubation.