Providing person-centred care.

I was working on an orthopaedic ward in my first year of training when I helped to care for an older patient, who I will call Jean.

Stressors, Appraisal of Stressors, Experienced Stress and Cardiac Response: A Real-Time, Real-Life Investigation of Work Stress in Nurses.

Background: Stress in health care professionals may reflect both the work and appraisal of work and impacts on the individuals, their patients, colleagues and managers.

Purpose: The purpose of the present study is to examine physiological and psychological effects of stressors (tasks) and theory-based perceptions of work stressors within and between nurses in real time.

Methods: During two work shifts, 100 nurses rated experienced stress, affect, fatigue, theory-based measures of work stress and nursing tasks on electronic diaries every 90 min, whereas heart rate and activity were measured continuously.

Assessment of the MyWellness Key accelerometer in people with type 2 diabetes.

Accelerometers are designed to measure physical activity (PA) objectively. The MyWellness Key (MWK) accelerometer has been validated primarily in younger, normal-weight populations. The aims of this study were to examine the accuracy of the MWK against directly measured lab-based exercise and free-living PA in people with type 2 diabetes, many of whom are older and overweight or obese.

Effectiveness of different postactivation potentiation protocols with and without whole body vibration on jumping performance in college athletes.

This study examined the acute effects of different parallel squat postactivation potentiation protocols with and without whole body vibration on jumping performance in college athletes. Fifteen men (20.3 ± 1.

Why do people drink at home?

Background: The past 30 years have seen a shift in the culture concerning the consumption of alcohol in the UK. One of these is the increasing trend for adults to consume alcohol "at home". To date this is a development that has received little research attention.

Controlled release from directly compressible theophylline buccal tablets.

The aim of the current study was the development of theophylline buccal adhesive tablets using direct compression. Buccal adhesive formulations were developed using a water soluble resin with various combinations of mucoadhesive polymers. The prepared theophylline tablets were evaluated for tensile strength, swelling capacity and ex vivo mucoadhesion performance.

Development and release mechanism of diltiazem HCl prolonged release matrix tablets.

A coated matrix tablet formulation has been used to develop controlled release diltiazem HCl (DIL) tablets. The developed drug delivery system provided prolonged drug release rates over a defined period of time. DIL tablets prepared using dry mixing and direct compression and the core consisted of hydrophilic and hydrophobic polymers such as hydroxypropylmethylcellulose (HPMC), Eudragits RLPO/RSPO, microcrystalline cellulose, and lactose.

Community matrons improve health: patients' perspectives.

Community matrons are integral to the government's plans to reduce hospital bed-use by people with long-term conditions. Community matrons have been given the role of case managing the very high intensity users in an attempt to reduce emergency bed days through preventing admissions and early discharge and through working closely with their patients to develop personalized plans of care and to support and encourage patients to take more control of their condition. To date there has been little research from the patients' perspective into whether community matrons are achieving their aim.

An evaluation of a community matron service from the patients' perspective.

Community matrons are a relatively new government initiative aimed at case managing people with long-term conditions to reduce the number of emergency bed days used in hospitals. Although there have been extensive evaluations of similar case management projects, to date there has been little evaluation of the community matron's role and the perceptions patients have of this new service. One of the main Government agendas for care is to deliver a high quality service driven by the needs of the service users (DH, 2000).

Achieving clinical excellence through evidence-based practice: report of an educational initiative.

We live in a political and professional climate which requires us to define, maintain and seek to improve the quality of all aspects of health care practice, not least via underpinning decisions and actions with robust evidence. In order to meet this challenge, staff must be clinically competent, reflective about their practice, committed to delivering a 'First Class Service' and able to work in a truly multidisciplinary way (as opposed to the unidisciplinary model frequently seen in operation). In addition, they need to be research 'literate' and able to contribute positively to the management and sustainment of planned change.

Prevention of hypercalcaemic nephropathy and tissue calcification by glucagon during phosphate infusion.

Patients with serum calcium above 4.5 mmol/litre risk sudden death. Rehydration and frusemide may decrease calcium levels by 0.

Private provision of 'outreach' clinics to fundholding general practices in England.

Objectives: To establish the contribution of the private sector in providing outpatient 'outreach' clinics in general practitioner fundholding practices.

Method: Postal survey of all 13 first-wave fundholders and four of the 13 second-wave fundholders in the former South East Thames Region of the National Health Service in 1995.

Results: Fourteen practices responded.