[Cultivating nursing core competencies in college students].

Departments of nursing in Taiwan junior colleges teach a comprehensive range of core competency skills; provide the healthcare system with entry level nursing professionals able to deliver complete care services; and help students prepare for and earn their nursing licenses. Framed by current junior college nursing department curricula and considerations of professional core competency, this paper examines the role of core nursing competencies in college education goals as they influence college curriculum design and clinical practicum programs. The achieved result should be a professional curriculum that incorporates general education, basic medical, and professional nursing elements that is capable of nurturing professional nursing school graduates able to execute their professional duties and earn the respect of patients, their families and society.

[A project to reduce rejection of newborn screening blood specimens for congenital metabolic diseases].

Defective blood specimens used to screen congenital metabolic diseases in newborns cause specimens to be rejected and necessitate that a heel stick be performed again. Such results in delayed diagnoses and family complaints. The purpose of this project was to reduce the incidence of blood specimen rejection.

[Aromatherapy in nursing practice].

Aromatherapy is the use of essential oils which are distilled from aromatic plants to obtain holistic effects on the mind, body, and spirit. Among nurses, aromatherapy is the second most commonly used complementary therapy. The chemical components of essential oils, such as ketones, aldehydes, and esters, determine the specific effects of the essential oils.

[Health behaviors of middle-aged adults].

Middle age is the term used to describe the transition between early and late adulthood. Declining physical functions and increased stress resulting from family and work obligations create important health challenges among middle-aged adults, therefore maintaining good health behaviors is particularly important for members of this population. Work responsibilities make it particularly hard for many middle-aged adults to participate in health-related activities.

Exercise motivation and processes of change in community-dwelling older persons.

Although exercise is important for the health of older persons, many older persons fail to participate in exercise. Knowledge and skills about changing exercise behavior is needed for health professionals to develop appropriate interventions to engage older persons in exercise. The purpose of this study was to determine how exercise processes of change were used by community-dwelling older persons to engage in exercise.