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Biomedical subjects

C Metcalf

Publications and source records attributed to C Metcalf.

At least 37 records · Page 2Linked to original sources
PubMed1985

Control of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) in an Australian metropolitan teaching hospital complex.

In April 1982, a patient infected with methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) was transferred to the Royal Perth Hospital from the Royal Darwin Hospital. Within three months, 19 patients and four staff members had become infected or colonized with MRSA. The outbreak was terminated only after all colonized inpatients were transferred to a separate isolation unit. After the outbreak, all new patients and new employees who had been in hospitals outside Western Australia in the previous 12 months were screened. From June 1, 1982, to June 30, 1984, 28 of the 649 patients (4.3%) screened on admission to the Royal Perth Hospital were found to be harbouring MRSA. During the same period only one of the 468 persons (0.2%) screened on application for employment at the Hospital was found to be colonized with MRSA. Since the policy of screening new patients and staff from hospitals outside Western Australia was introduced, no serious outbreak of MRSA has occurred.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1977

Double--blind clinical trial of adenine arabinoside and idoxuridine in herpetic corneal ulcers.

The results are reported of a fully controlled randomized double-blind clincial trial of adenine arabinoside and idoxuridine ointment in sixty patients with herpetic ulceration of the cornea. Although both antivirals showed a trend towards superiority over placebo, the therapeutic effect did not reach statistical significance in spite of the known efficacy in laboratory animals. Further studies in rabbits are reported; these indicate that systemic immunity may play a role in combating virus proliferation in recurrent disease, and it is considered this disguises the efficacy of topical antiviral therapy in clinical trials, thus necessitating an estimated requirement for approximately fifty patients per treatment group to obtain significant effects. It is concluded that an antiviral is valuable in the treatment of ulcerative herpetic keratitis, particularly in primary disease and in the presence of systemic and local immunosuppression after the use of topical adrenocorticosteroid. In recurrent disease, where a trigger factor is known, experience has shown that therapy can be profitably administered before the onset of clinical disease.

Adolescent↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Hepatic clearance of arterially infused ferromagnetic particles.

OBJECTIVE: Arterial embolization hyperthermia (AEH) consists of arterially embolizing tumours with ferromagnetic particles that generate hysteretic heating on exposure to an alternating magnetic field. It was the objective of this study to determine if such particles are cleared from the liver. METHOD: A lobe of normal liver in three pigs was arterially embolized with 300 mg of gamma-Fe2O3 particles (150 nm) suspended in lipiodol. The same liver lobe of three other pigs was embolized with 300 mg of ferromagnetic polymer matrix-encapsulated microspheres (32 microm) suspended in 1% tween-water. Samples of liver and blood were obtained before infusion, and at 60 min and 28 days after arterial infusion. At 28 days, samples of lung and other abdominal viscera were also obtained. The tissue samples were chemically analysed for iron content, and submitted to histopathological examination. RESULTS: There was no significant reduction in the hepatic iron concentration in either treatment group 28 days after infusion. Both types of particles illicited an immunogenic response and were extensively phagocytosed in the liver. The particle/lipiodol suspension caused extensive necrosis of liver, while the microsphere/tween-water suspension was well tolerated. Small amounts of both types of ferromagnetic particles embolized in the lungs, but there was no evidence of embolization into other organs. There were no haematological or biochemical changes and all subjects experienced uneventful 28-day survivals. CONCLUSION: This study has shown that, although arterially infused ferromagnetic particles were extensively phagocytosed, there was no significant hepatic clearance 28 days after infusion. It also determined that the suspension of 150 nm ferromagnetic particles in lipiodol was too vaso-occlusive for use in hepatic tissue. However, the suspension of 32 microm microspheres containing ferromagnetic particles in tween-water was safe and well tolerated.

Animals↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Stoma care: exploring the value of effective listening.

This article discusses how nurses can effectively utilize listening skills during interactions with patients. Listening is a core skill for all healthcare professionals with studies demonstrating that nurses perceive themselves to be much less skillful in the use of facilitative interpersonal skills which involve listening than practitioner centred authoritative ones. Listening effectively allows nurses to respond more completely to patients' needs but there are many obstacles which unfortunately can interfere with this process. Stoma care nurses utilize listening skills to ensure that both the physical and psychological needs of their patients are met. The author suggests that listening skills can enhance intuitive nursing practice.

Communication↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Stoma care: empowering patients through teaching practical skills.

Teaching patients practical skills in stoma care is a complex process and although, arguably, at the very heart of stoma care nursing practice, has been largely ignored in the literature. Teaching principles are based upon social learning theory and educationalists provide guidelines on the most effective way to teach a practical skill. These guidelines have been utilized by nurses when teaching patients with newly formed stomas how to change a pouch. The process of adapting to a stoma and its daily management takes time. Psychologically, however, some patients will adapt more easily than others and researchers have attempted to identify factors which may account for this. Studies have demonstrated that patients who are satisfied with the amount of preoperative information they receive are less likely to develop psychological problems. Psychological adjustment may be affected if patients feel that they have developed insufficient pouch changing skills or have problems with leakage from their pouch or sore skin around their stoma. Studies have also demonstrated that cognitive factors, such as patients feeling in control of their illness and stoma, have been found to play a role in psychological adaptation. Clinical nurse specialists in stoma care are in an ideal position to target these cognitive factors using a variety of strategies including effective practical teaching to empower patients, thus facilitating psychological adaptation following stoma surgery.

Adaptation, Psychological↗