The quasi-experimental study reported in the present article is aimed at increasing the understanding of the effects of long-term contract employees participating in wellness programs. The reported study examines the effect (if any) that a wellness program has on workplace stress, absenteeism, and presenteeism for long-term contract employees…

New graduate nurses (NGNs) at bedside are faced with numerous challenges, which prompt them to leave jobs in their first year. The transition from being a student to competent nurse requires a NGN to have the necessary skills and experience. Subsequently, hospitals continue to face shortages of staff because of high turnover and low retention…

Appropriately designed educational programmes would help medical students gain confidence and mitigate fears of internship. The aim of this pilot study is to compare the preparedness of interns for hospital practice before and after attending a two-day "Interns Orientation Programme." A small batch of interns in a tertiary care teaching…

Youth with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) are psychiatrically hospitalized at high rates. Though specialized psychiatric units are effective, few specialized units exist. The ASD Care Pathway (ASD-CP) was developed as a scalable approach to improving care in general psychiatric units through staff training and a package of autism-specific…

Background: Previous studies of urban school-based health centers (SBHCs) have shown that SBHCs decrease emergency department (ED) utilization. This study seeks to evaluate the effect of SBHCs on ED utilization in a rural setting. Methods: This retrospective, controlled, quasi-experimental study used an ED patient data set from the Bassett…

Background: As pregnant mothers increasingly engage in shared decision making regarding prenatal decisions, such as induction of labor, the patient's level of activation may influence pregnancy outcomes. One potential tool to increase patient activation in the clinical setting is mobile applications. However, research is limited in comparing…

Relationship-based interventions are an effective means for reducing postpartum depression (PPD), but few cost-effective tools that can be administered efficiently in medical and home settings are available or well-studied. This study examines the efficacy of the Newborn Behavioral Observations (NBO), an infant-centered relationship-based…

Objective: Given the lack of maintenance interventions for eating disorders, a program delivered via the short message service (SMS) and text messaging was developed to support patients after their discharge from inpatient treatment. Method: The efficacy of the intervention was studied in a randomized controlled trial. Additionally, its impact on…

The prevailing model of care for psychiatric patients in the emergency room (ER) is evaluation and disposition, with little or no treatment provided. This article describes the results of a pilot study of a family-based crisis intervention (FBCI) for suicidal adolescents and their families in a large, urban pediatric ER. FBCI is an intervention…

Currently, outside forces create blocks that affect the quality and quantity of clinical experiences for pre-licensure nursing students. These limitations create an environment in which entry-level nursing students enter the workforce without a solid foundation in nursing concepts or in exposure to situations that they might encounter. To counter…

Testicular cancer (TC) is the most common malignancy among men aged 15-35 years. Testicular self-examination (TSE) is an important tool for preventing late-stage TC diagnoses. This study aimed to assess health beliefs and knowledge related to TC and TSE and the effectiveness of TC and TSE training for patient care staff in a hospital. This was a…

This study used a nonequivalent group design to evaluate the impact of an emergent literacy intervention on preschool children identified with early reading difficulties. Thirty-five children were compared with 39 typically developing classroom peers on various reading measures in a community-based project--"Mission I'm Possible" (MIP),…

Internet access has grown in Saudi Arabia between 2000 and 2005 by more than 1000% and many governmental organizations are starting to provide part of their services using the internet. In addition, the Ministry of Higher Education has provided funding to all governmental universities to start developing strategies and guidelines for online…

Nurses require ongoing opportunities to expand knowledge and skills; this expansion of knowledge and skills is one aspect of continued competence. One method that may be used to maintain and refine knowledge and skills is participation in continuing education activities. However, there has been little inquiry into creative strategies used in…

Propensity score methods allow investigators to estimate causal treatment effects using observational or nonrandomized data. In this article we provide a practical illustration of the appropriate steps in conducting propensity score analyses. For illustrative purposes, we use a sample of current smokers who were discharged alive after being…