Assessor or mentor? Role confusion in professional education.

This paper reports on research conducted as part of a multi-professional study involving nursing, medicine and midwifery, which aimed to investigate both mentee and mentor perceptions of the mentorship role and the context within which it is conducted. It is well recognised that mentorship plays a vital part in the support and training of healthcare professionals. Documentation published by regulatory bodies regarding the mentorship role and changes in it's implementation in practice has resulted in confusion among practitioners.

Preparing children and young people for stoma surgery.

There is little published literature regarding children and young people with stomas and their preoperative care. Research in adults reveals negative psychosocial consequences, but the perceptions of children and young people may be different, depending on the reason for the stoma formation and the degree of involvement in decisions. Post-operative problems and later negativity can be minimised with informed decision making and partnership from the outset between the healthcare team, parents and child.

Users' perceptions of the risks and effects of taking ecstasy (MDMA): a questionnaire study.

This self-report questionnaire study examined ecstasy users' perceptions of the risks associated with their use of ecstasy, their precautions against such risks, and its perceived effects on their lives. Gender differences in these areas were also explored. The sample comprised 328 ecstasy users (139 female, 187 male, one transsexual) with a mean age of 22.

Nursing management of paediatric urethral catheterisation.

This article outlines evidence-based approaches to paediatric catheterisation in acute care settings. The reasons for catheterisation, anatomy and physiology of the urinary system and the procedure and potential complications are discussed.

Does alexithymia differentiate between patients with nonepileptic seizures, patients with epilepsy, and nonpatient controls?

Considering the evidence of an association between alexithymia and somatization, this study aimed to discover whether alexithymia could distinguish patients with psychogenic nonepileptic seizures (NES) from those with epilepsy (ES) and nonpatient controls (C). Toronto Alexithymia Scale (TAS-20) scores were obtained from 21 matched participants from each of these groups, together with measures of anxiety and depression. Overall TAS-20 scores did not differentiate the three groups after controlling for anxiety and depression, but scores on certain subscales of the TAS-20 differed significantly between the patient groups and the controls.

Nurses' perceptions of continuing professional development.

Aim: To investigate NHS and private sector nurses' perceptions of the value of continuing professional development (CPD), and to analyse the factors that influence these perceptions and any potential barriers to successful CPD.

Method: Questionnaires were sent to 200 staff working in two NHS trusts and 13 nursing homes. Following analysis of the questionnaires, interviews took place with eight self-selecting respondents to explore certain issues further.

Visuo-spatial working memory deficits in current and former users of MDMA ('ecstasy').

Verbal working memory and executive deficits have been observed in ecstasy users. The present study sought to establish whether these also extended to visuo-spatial working memory. Thirty-six current ecstasy users, 12 former users (abstinent for at least 6 months) and 31 individuals that had never used ecstasy were tested on a maintenance plus type visuo-spatial working memory task.

Principles of post-operative patient care.

Surgery causes physiological stress on the body and carries inherent risks such as shock and haemorrhage. This article discusses cardiogenic and hypovolaemic shock and outlines the principles of safe and effective post-operative care, including recognising hypovolaemia, maintaining fluid balance and administering pain control.

All for one, one for all: collaboration between NHS and Higher Education in establishing provision of a multi-disciplinary, hospital-based library and information services.

Developing multi-disciplinary library and information services is high on the agenda for many NHS trusts and this brings with it a climate of change for both those who manage and work in services today. The development of such new services needs to be carefully managed and developed, and this presents a challenge for librarians and service managers. In the UK during 1999 and 2000, Aintree Hospital Trust, in conjunction with Edge Hill College of Higher Education, established a truly multi-disciplinary service based at its hospital site and managed by Edge Hill.

Verbal working memory deficits in current and previous users of MDMA.

Previous research suggests that MDMA users are impaired in various aspects of cognitive functioning, however, it remains unclear whether they might experience deficits in established measures of verbal working memory functioning. In the present study current and previous MDMA users were compared with non-users on verbal working memory measures including reading and computation span. Both user groups were found to be impaired on the computation span measure while current users also exhibited impairment in reading span.

The anatomical exhibition of real human bodies.

It is impossible not to be stunned, and dwarfed, and inspired, and horrified, and amazed by the sight of the horse, complete with human rider, rearing high above your head. It is not so much the size of the model--more that both horse and man are real.

Partial to holistic care.

This article evaluates how clients with severe and enduring mental illness in the USA and Eire are managed within the philosophy of 'partial hospitalisation', a total care package that is delivered part of the time in a mental health unit, instead of a traditional inpatient mental health service. The author visited McLean Hospital, Boston, which is a centre of excellence for the partial hospitalisation philosophy (Sederer, 1992), and Harvard Medical School, Massachusetts. This is compared with a visit to St Joseph's Hospital, County Limerick, and Newcastle Hospital, County Wicklow, which evolved from institutional care philosophies and sustained the highest bed population in the world for patients with mental illness (Commission of Inquiry, 1996).

Changes in coordination during the first 8 months of independent walking.

This study assessed the development of coordination during the first 8 months of independent walking and identified potential hypotheses that may be tested by further research. The walking gait of a normal child was recorded on video at the onset of independent walking, and thereafter at monthly intervals over a period of 8 months. Video images were digitized and 3-dimensional coordinates obtained.

Measuring development of a child's early walking: implications for clinical assessment of gait.

This study examined the three-dimensional kinematics and motor development patterns in early walking gait longitudinally over 8 mo. and presents an example of walking development of one normal child which might be used for comparative purposes in the clinical assessment of gait.

Working memory deficits in current and previous users of MDMA ('ecstasy').

Current and previous users of the drug MDMA ('ecstasy') were tested on measures of central executive functioning, information processing speed, and on self-report measures of arousal and anxiety. The results were compared with those for a control group who did not use MDMA. Relative to the control group, both user groups were found to be impaired in some aspects of central executive functioning.

Dilemmas in the ethics of health-care research.

Evidence-based practice is now widely accepted as the most appropriate basis of patient care. Humans should only be used as research subjects with their full consent and in their best interests. Ethics committees play a pivotal role in maintaining the balance between scientific advances and ethical research.

Media enquiries and nurses.

In this article, the legal and professional implications surrounding 'confidentiality' and in particular confidentiality with regards to dealing with media enquiries are considered; and professional and legal responsibilities and problem areas for nurses are outlined. The use of specific policies which give instruction on dealing with media enquiries is also discussed.

The nurse's role in neuroleptic medications.

1. A questionnaire study of schizophrenia sufferers' (N = 132) views on medication, contrary to expectations, revealed generally favorable attitudes. Clients seemed to understand the fine balance between costs and benefits better than many health-care professionals imagine.