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Biomedical subjects

L N Smith

Publications and source records attributed to L N Smith.

36 records · Page 2Linked to original sources
PubMed1998

Wound management: a literature review.

This paper provides an overview of literature on wound management, including wound assessment and wound care and their relationship to the healing process. No attempt is made to describe individual tools or dressing materials as this literature can be found elsewhere. Patient and economic benefits of accurate wound assessment and choice of dressing material are highlighted. The case for an improved and updated nursing knowledge base regarding all aspects of wound care is made.

Bandages↗
PubMed1997

A descriptive study of multidisciplinary mental health staff moving to the community: the demographic and educational issues.

Mental health care philosophy has moved from the containment of patients within institutions to the integration of clients within the community. 'Caring for People' (a Department of Health report) and the subsequent legislation enshrined the philosophical shift in law. Previous policy reports had indicated that staff required training to move from hospital-based service to a community-based service, but did not propose content, and no systematic study of the needs of mental health staff has been carried out. Therefore, this study aimed to identify the skill and information needs of a group of multidisciplinary staff in preparation for the movement from hospital to community settings. The study design was a descriptive survey sampling of a total multidisciplinary population in Scotland. Data were collected using questionnaires and semistructured interviews with a small volunteer subsample of respondents. This paper presents the first set of study findings related to the demographic and educational issues. Differences between hospital and community staff and between health care assistants and qualified staff are demonstrated for demographic and educational factors. Proposals are made for managers, professionals, educators and researchers.

Community Mental Health Services↗
PubMed1996

Preventing sleep problems in infants: a randomized controlled trial.

In the pre-school years sleep problems are one of the most common subjects on which parents seek advice from health professionals. In the majority of cases a sleepless child causes significant stress within the family, and if parents do not obtain sufficient sleep this can have a detrimental effect on their physical and emotional well-being. In a small number of cases a child who wakes frequently and will not settle back to sleep may be at risk of physical abuse. In recent years it has been suggested that it may be possible to prevent sleep problems developing by providing parents with advice in the post-natal period. Parents have stated that they find this type of intervention helpful, however, there has been no attempt to establish whether a preventive approach is effective. The aim of this research was to evaluate the efficacy of health education in reducing the incidence of sleep problems. Adopting an experimental approach, participants were randomly allocated to a control group or an intervention group. Parental knowledge of sleep and settling behaviour was manipulated when the children in the intervention group were 3 months old. The sleeping behaviour of the infants in both groups was compared 6 months later, when the children were 9 months old. Data was collected from 86 families in the intervention group and 83 families in the control group. A comprehensive analysis of the sleeping behaviour demonstrated that a significantly smaller percentage of babies in the intervention group had settling and night-waking difficulties than in the control group.

Child Behavior Disorders↗
PubMed1996

The role of nurses in management with the National Health Service in Scotland.

The introduction of an internal market in health care in 1991 was the most radical change to the National Health Service (NHS) since its inception. The consequent NHS changes and reforms have had a profound impact on nursing management and inevitably on nurses in management at a personal level. This paper reports on the initial findings of a study of 158 nurses in management within the NHS in Scotland and addresses their demographic features and their management training/education pattern. It was found that the majority of respondents (77.8%) were working in their current position less than 4 years. There was a significant relationship between marital status and gender and current position (P < 0.05). A total of 58.8% of women in senior positions were single, on the other hand there was no single male respondent at a senior manager position. In total, 37 nurses in management (23.4%) had a degree qualification and there was a relationship between having a degree, age and current position. Overall, approximately half of the respondents had a formal management training qualification and only 10.1% (16 subjects) had a degree level management education. However, a large proportion (65.8%) of nurses in management believe that degree level education in management is required to be able to perform their work satisfactorily.

Adult↗
PubMed1995

A critique of 'at risk' pressure sore assessment tools.

This paper critiques pressure sore risk assessment tools. No attempt is made to describe individual tools in detail as this literature is available elsewhere. The economic case for risk assessment is presented along with the criteria for an effective risk assessment instrument. Reliability and validity studies are reviewed in relation to three risk assessment tools: Norton, Waterlow and Braden. Finally a number of issues related to threshold scores, research design and the need to view pressure sores as a clinical problem rather than a nursing problem are discussed.

Humans↗
PubMed1994

An analysis and reflections on the quality of nursing research in 1992.

This paper explores the quality of nursing research in 1992. A meta-analysis of the nursing literature was conducted using the Journal of Advanced Nursing, the International Journal of Nursing Studies and the Journal of Clinical Nursing. For comparative purposes the British Medical Journal was selected. The survey examined a number of research indicators such as sample size, sample selection, research methods, country of origin of author and types of study populations. The analysis indicates that nursing and medicine have some mutual concerns and that both professional groups could learn from each other in order to extend the effectiveness of their research.

Medicine↗
PubMed1994

A review of the Report on mental health nursing in England: working in partnership.

We invited Professor Smith to provide a personal perspective on the context and relevance of the first major review of psychiatric and mental health nursing in England since 1968. The British government published a report of the review in 1994 and the chairman of the steering group summarized the main issues and characterized its findings in this Journal (1, 41-44). In this paper, Professor Smith establishes the provenance of the Review of Mental Health Nursing. Consideration is given to the Report's recommendations in an effort to understand reaction to it. Finally, ideas are suggested to take forward the Report's recommendations, using the Report as a useful tool to progress psychiatric and mental health nursing. We need to be aware that without comment from the profession this Report will cease to be of interest or of relevance.

England↗
PubMed1992

A descriptive study of alcohol-dependent women attending Alcoholics Anonymous, a regional council on alcoholism and an alcohol treatment unit.

A total of 86 women, attending three different agencies, were interviewed on their help-seeking behaviours for problem drinking. Each agency represented a different type of help available in the community. Self-help was represented by Alcoholics Anonymous; the non-statutory sector by a regional council on alcoholism's offices; and the statutory sector by an alcohol treatment unit's out-patient department. Differences between the groups in terms of demography and drinking history are explored in this paper. It was found that the regional council group resembled the female problem drinkers in other alcohol treatment agencies in terms of alcohol dependency, pattern of alcohol consumption and drinking styles, but differed in age and abstinence behaviour.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1980

Animal & computer investigations into the murine erythroid response to chronic hypoxia.

During chronic hypoxia, the number of splenic erythroid progenitor cells in mice, particularly CFU-E, increased dramatically but transiently. Since all three classes of erythroid progenitors in the femoral bone marrow were suppressed, a large part of this increase might be attributed to migration of CFU-E and/or their progenitors from the medullary cavity. The changes in CFU-E were preceded 48-72 hours earlier by an increase in serum erythropoietin (Ep) titers which, in turn, had been preceded by a rapid and marked "shift-to-the-right" in the hemoglobin oxygen dissociation curve. During hypoxia, the mice lost a considerable fraction of their body weight. Computer simulations, using a mathematical model of erythropoietic regulation, suggest that this weight loss, either indirectly by reducing the need for red cells in a smaller-than-control animal or by directly altering the sensitivity of the Ep-producing mechanism, is the major cause of the falling Ep titers despite continuation of the hypoxic stress. Because of high endogenous 59Fe incorporation levels, it was not possible to confirm the thesis that animals with an expanded Erythropoietin Responsive Cell (ERC) compartment would be more sensitive to exogenous erythropoietin than are mice with a normal or reduced ERC population.

Animals↗
PubMed1980

The effect of dehydration on erythroid progenitor cells in mice.

Mice deprived of water for three days showed hemoconcentration due to a reduced plasma volume, suppressed erythropoiesis and reduced food intake. All three classes of erythroid progenitor cells in both the bone marrow and spleen of dehydrated mice were markedly suppressed but recovered rapidly upon rehydration. In addition, during dehydration the spleen cellularity was significantly decreased and was associated with an increase in the percentage of adherent cells. The changes in erythroid progenitor cells during dehydration are compared to previously published data on changes in these cell populations in erythrocytotic mice with similar hematocrits. This comparison indicates that, as we have suggested earlier, the major component producing the erythroid suppression in dehydrated mice is the reduced food intake. Hemoconcentration plays a minor role. The relevance of these changes to the "anemia of spaceflight" is discussed.

Animals↗
PubMedDate not supplied

A study of postoperative wound management in nursing.

Wound management has changed considerably over the past decade. The change from dry to moist healing is the result of new scientific evidence. The number and variety of wound care products available on the market have increased, along with the importance of the acceptability of a particular type of product to individual patients' lifestyles. Annual worldwide expenditure on wound care is estimated to be in the region of $7 billion (US). The implications of efficient and effective wound healing for both the patient and the economy, therefore, are massive. This article presents the results of a study of postoperative wound management. The need for consistent and regular wound assessment is demonstrated and linked with length of hospital stay.

Adolescent↗