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Biomedical subjects

S D Horner

Publications and source records attributed to S D Horner.

At least 19 recordsLinked to original sources
PubMed2002

Asthma management efficacy of school nurses in Taiwan.

As the key health care providers in school settings, the school nurses' asthma management efficacy is crucial to children's health and their continued participation in school learning activities. This article describes the psychometric testing of the asthma management efficacy scale (AMES) for use with school nurses. A cross-sectional survey design was used to assess the asthma management efficacy of 60 school nurses in Taipei, Taiwan. Factor analysis resulted in four factor domains including asthma medication administration, asthma pattern identification, school management behaviour, and monitoring peak expiratory flow rate which explained 76.4% of the variance in school nurses' asthma management efficacy. The school nurses' experience in performing school asthma management activities was positively correlated to their asthma management efficacy (r=0.33, p<0.05). School nurses who had experience with the inhaled asthma medicines had significantly higher efficacy scores on the medication administration subscale (t=-2.89, p<0.01) than did the school nurses who lacked this experience. School nurses who had experience in using peak expiratory flow meters had significantly higher efficacy scores on the total AMES (t=-1.90, p<0.05) and on the monitoring peak expiratory flow rate subscale (t=-5.37, p<0.001) than the school nurses who lacked this experience. Given the need to have nurses who are well prepared to provide asthma care in school settings, implications for nursing education, practice, and further research are discussed.

Adult↗
PubMed2001

Correlates of recent suicide attempts in a triethnic group of adolescents.

PURPOSE: To describe recent self-reported suicide attempts in a triethnic group of adolescents, to analyze differences in the correlates of attempts by ethnicity and gender, and to explore theoretical correlates of recent suicide attempts using a resilience framework. METHODS: Quantitative data were collected from 10,059 students in 7th, 9th, and 11th grades in Connecticut in 1996. Secondary analysis was done to compare respondents of African American, Hispanic Latino, and Caucasian ethnicities. Data were analyzed using bivariate and multivariate procedures. Logistic regression was used to identify the best set of explanatory variables for recent suicide attempts. RESULTS: The percentage of suicide attempts was significantly higher among Hispanic Latina girls (19.3%) than in any other ethnic-gender group. Significant relationships were found between recent suicide attempts and (a) family history of suicide attempt, (b) friend's history of suicide attempt, (c) history of sexual abuse, (d) history of physical abuse, and (e) environmental stress. The significant set of explanatory variables for recent suicide attempts for the three ethnic groups combined were stress, internalizing and externalizing behaviors, physical and sexual abuse, family and friend attempted suicide, social connectedness, and religious influence. CONCLUSIONS: Findings support use of a resilience model for suicide attempts among three ethnic groups. The finding of a significantly higher percentage of recent suicide attempts by Hispanic girls compared to girls in other ethnic-gender groups warrants further investigation along with development and testing of culturally sensitive preventive interventions.

Adolescent↗
PubMed2001

Cigarettes: a growing problem for Taiwanese adolescents.

An alarming number of Taiwanese teenagers continue to smoke despite the adverse health consequences of cigarette smoking. This research review describes the prevalence and onset of smoking behavior among Taiwanese adolescents and analyzes the risk factors contributing to smoking initiation. The findings of this review suggest that health educators need to target high-risk groups before they initiate smoking. High-risk groups are those who have poor school achievement, have an external locus of control, have a prosmoking attitude, know others who smoke, and are from low socioeconomic status families. These risk factors support the need for nurses to implement an effective smoking prevention program for adolescents.

Adolescent↗
PubMed2000

Using focus group methods with middle school children.

Focus group methods are an effective way to clarify middle school children's perceptions of health and illness. Children between 11 and 14 years of age, who are undergoing the developmental transition from child to adolescent, tend to be reticent when talking with adult strangers. However, they are more relaxed and willing to share perceptions when discussions are held with a group of peers. Conducting focus groups involves developing an interview guide, arranging the meeting place, supporting group building, and encouraging participation by the group members while discouraging domination by influential members. Data analysis begins during the focus group session as issues emerge in the context of group discussions.

Adolescent↗
PubMed2000

Improving readability of patient education materials.

Functional illiteracy contributes to negative long-term health consequences for patients who must understand and adhere to complex health care instructions and, therefore, is of primary importance to community health nurses. This problem is compounded when English is the patient's second language. A process for improving patient education materials (PEMs) through adaptation or creation of new materials to meet the health needs of diverse groups is presented. The process was applied to a popular health education program used with school-age children and their parents to teach them home management of asthma. Target parents were known to read at a 5th-grade level, and English was a second language for many of them. Therefore, extensive revision of the existing PEMs was required. The steps to successful revision included assessing readability and comprehensibility, editing the materials, and evaluating the new PEMs to determine the effectiveness of the revision measures.

Adult↗
PubMed1999

Creating alternative immunization clinics to maintain and improve community immunization rates.

Immunization campaigns are among the most effective means for improving community health, yet underimmunized groups leave communities at risk for vaccine-preventable diseases. In 1993, the Childhood Immunization Initiative (CII) was implemented to address this risk. The goal of the CII, to achieve immunization coverage 90% or greater among 2-year-old children, was reached nationwide by 1996. However, individual states ranged from 81% to 99% for specific vaccines (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 1997b). The work of the CII is ongoing and was expanded in 1996 to address the immunization needs of adolescents. The purpose of this article is to present a model for providing immunization services in alternative sites, in which the community health nurse takes the service to the people. Building linkages with local communities, preparing the clinic site and supplies, arranging for staffing of an alternative clinic, and evaluation after service provision are key elements to a successful outreach clinic.

Community Health Centers↗
PubMed1998

Catching the asthma: family care for school-aged children with asthma.

The purpose of this study was to explore how families with school-aged children diagnosed with asthma incorporate asthma care into their daily lives. Twelve families with a school-aged child who had asthma participated in this study. Data collection involved a series of three in-depth interviews with family members in which the process of catching the asthma before it gets out of hand was uncovered, clarified, and validated. Learning the ropes, dealing with asthma, and coming to terms with asthma are the tasks engaged in by parents and their children to catch the asthma.

Adaptation, Psychological↗
PubMed1998

Using the Open Airways curriculum to improve self-care for third grade children with asthma.

A 12-week, pilot intervention study was conducted in five elementary schools with third grade children who have asthma to test instruments, feasibility of providing the Open Airways classes in less time, and to identify potential problems in study implementation. The sample consisted of 10 boys and five girls ranging in age from 8-9.5 years. Asthma management knowledge improved significantly (t = -2.30, p = .019). Findings supported the reliability and readability of the instruments and the feasibility of briefer class sessions. The Open Airways curriculum can be modified to facilitate delivery to school-based groups without interfering with academic time.

Asthma↗
PubMed1997

Uncertainty in mothers' care for their ill children.

The purpose of this paper is to present the experience of mothers as they cared for their young children during illness episodes, prior to a diagnosis of asthma in the children. A grounded theory study was conducted with 12 families with asthmatic children, involving three rounds of interviews. In these interviews the mothers revealed that the prediagnosis phase of their children's illness was an overwhelming time for them. Groping in the dark is the core variable that reflects (a) the harrowing experiences of sleepless nights while mothers watched their children struggle to breathe, (b) the wearing toll incurred while helping their children through seemingly unending illnesses, and (c) their increasingly intensified search for answers to resolve their children's health crisis.

Adaptation, Psychological↗
PubMed1995

A family care approach for managing childhood asthma.

Asthma is the most common chronic illness in childhood, affecting more than 2 million children annually. Although families have always been responsible for daily maintenance care, management of acute exacerbations of asthma are now coming within the province of home care management. The comprehensive family care approach discussed in this article incorporates environmental therapy, psychoeducational therapy, and medication therapy in a three-pronged approach to promote successful management of asthma episodes while working to reduce their incidence.

Asthma↗
PubMed1994

Traveling for care: factors influencing health care access for rural dwellers.

This study explored 19 rural dwellers' perceptions of health care issues through semi-structured interviews. Sample selection, data collection, and analysis adhered to the grounded theory method in that an interactive design was maintained. The strategy of traveling for care describes how rural dwellers deal with the problem of varying access to health care. This study uncovers the influencing factors that impact on rural dwellers' decisions when traveling for care. Most rural dwellers choose to wait before seeking health care; those factors that contributed to the decision to wait includes limited financial resources to pay for health care, prior experiences within the system, and the prevalent belief that they can provide self-care effectively. When self-care was not successful they evaluated their resources to assist in their decision making. The last phase of this strategy was choosing the distance they would go to receive health care. Choosing the distance varied greatly among the participants. A few choose to go without health care whereas others would go to any lengths to resolve their health problem.

Data Collection↗
PubMed1993

The Sea of Life: a metaphorical vehicle for theory explication.

Metaphorical expression is viewed as a fundamental way of symbolizing used to develop nursing theory. The Sea of Life poem depicts a metaphor for explicating a theoretical structure derived from principles of the human becoming theory: Transforming occurs in the revealing-concealing of valuing. The Sea of Life, an original poem, sets forth the idea that unique meanings are co-created through human-environment relationships. The concepts of valuing, revealing-concealing, and transforming are linked through the poem to lived experiences. The easily recognizable concrete lived experiences which flow from the poem are re-conceptualized to formulate research questions.

Human Development↗
PubMed1992

Women's perspectives on homelessness.

An increase in the number of individuals who are homeless since the 1980s has made homelessness a major social, economic, and political problem in the United States. The number of homeless in this country is estimated as high as 3 million, with women and children constituting the fastest growing subgroup of this population. A study of eight homeless women using a shelter in a southeastern city was conducted to explore the experience of homelessness from the women's perspectives. A modified ethnographic approach using a semistructured interview provided qualitative data. The constant comparative method of analysis identified themes of heightened awareness, guarding, identification of needs, and strategies for resolution. This study provides a new understanding of how some women experience homelessness, as well as the responses they take to solve this problem.

Adaptation, Psychological↗
PubMed1985

Fluorine-19 NMR spectroscopy and imaging investigations of myocardial perfusion and cardiac function.

Fluorine-19 nuclear magnetic resonance images of rabbit hearts have been obtained with the administration of a fluorinated contrast compound. The use of fluorine-labeled compounds allows differences in tissue perfusion to be demonstrated between hearts with and without coronary artery ligation. In postischemic reperfusion studies, regional hypoperfusion is also demonstrated by 19F imaging. The results of in vivo rabbit studies show that 19F NMR can be used to monitor the rate of blood pool and extravascular space dilution of a single bolus injection of either a water soluble or emulsified fluorine-labeled agent.

Animals↗
PubMed1985

Chemical shift artifact in clinical magnetic resonance images at 0.35 T.

A thin, low-intensity line, which partially surrounds many structures on magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), is an artifact due to the phenomenon of chemical shift and should not be mistaken for a normal or abnormal morphologic structure. This artifact can be recognized by its characteristic appearance perpendicular to the direction of the frequency-encoding gradient at the interface of tissues with different chemical shift properties. Confinement within or extension beyond this thin, low-intensity line cannot be used as a criterion for staging neoplasms. Once recognized, the chemical shift artifact should not impede the use of MRI for clinical imaging at 0.35 T.

Diagnostic Errors↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Edge artifacts in MR images: chemical shift effect.

The boundaries of some organs as seen in clinical magnetic resonance images appear to be asymmetric. This effect is caused by chemical shift differences between the resonant frequencies of the hydrogen nuclei of water and fat. The zeugmatographic technique maps resonant frequencies to unique spatial locations. These differences in resonant frequencies can appear as artifactual misplacement of information as this one-to-one correspondence is lost. Various phantoms are used to demonstrate that the boundary artifact appears only in the direction of the read (frequency-encoding) gradient when media of two different chemical shifts are separated by an interface. When the relative shift is less than the width of the interface, the boundary appears to be asymmetric; when the relative shift is greater than the width of the interface, a bright band is seen along one edge with a dark band along the other. This artifact is more pronounced in low resolution images than in high resolution images, and these effects are seen even when the relative chemical shift is smaller than a pixel bandwidth. These effects are explained both conceptually and analytically. The clinician should be aware of the potential presence of this artifact at boundary interfaces that bear diagnostic significance.

Kidney↗