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Biomedical subjects

J Norris

Publications and source records attributed to J Norris.

15 recordsLinked to original sources
PubMed1992

Striving for safety: experiences of nurses in a hospital under siege.

The hospital in which this study took place served as a centre for emergencies, critically ill patients and maternity cases during a nurses' strike in 98 hospitals in Alberta, Canada. Nurses at this hospital were not members of the striking union; they belonged to their own independent union and they worked throughout the 19-day siege. Thirty-two nurses at the hospital responded to posters seeking volunteers for telephone interviews. The objective of the research was to discover the perceptions and experiences of nurses coping with extraordinarily heavy workloads arising out of a labour dispute. Interview data were gathered and analysed according to the conventions of grounded theory. Nurses voiced many concerns about the care patients received and they coped as best they could in a process described as 'striving for safety'. Fearing they would make mistakes that would harm their patients, they engaged in two subordinate processes of 'assessing competence' and 'preserving integrity'. Several organizational factors were identified that, if present, contributed to nurses' ability to continue or 'hang in' but if absent, contributed to despair or 'feeling demoralized'. The study was exploratory in nature and thus limited, but several implications for supporting nurses and managing such crises were discussed.

Adaptation, Psychological↗
PubMed1992

Fire safety in the operating room.

1. To understand why and how a fire occurs, one needs to look at what is ignited, how it was ignited, and any other factors that may have changed either of these concepts. The three most common ignition sources are lasers, electric cautery equipment, and high intensity light cords. 2. There are four human reactions to fire: disbelief; do nothing; reconsideration of the existence of fire; and taking some action. 3. The best method of fighting a fire is to avoid having one. Emphasis should be placed on prevention. Every OR education program should include elements of a prefire plan that is consistent with the prefire plan for the institution.

Fires↗
PubMed1991

Structure of the membrane-bound protein photosynthetic reaction center from Rhodobacter sphaeroides.

The structure of the photosynthetic reaction center (RC) from Rhodobacter sphaeroides was determined at 3.1-A resolution by the molecular replacement method, using the Rhodopseudomonas viridis RC as the search structure. Atomic coordinates were refined with the difference Fourier method and restrained least-squares refinement techniques to a current R factor of 22%. The tertiary structure of the RC complex is stabilized by hydrophobic interactions between the L and M chains, by interactions of the pigments with each other and with the L and M chains, by residues from the L and M chains that coordinate to the Fe2+, by salt bridges that are formed between the L and M chains and the H chain, and possibly by electrostatic forces between the ends of helices. The conserved residues at the N-termini of the L and M chains were identified as recognition sites for the H chain.

Amino Acids↗
PubMed1991

Comparison of reaction centers from Rhodobacter sphaeroides and Rhodopseudomonas viridis: overall architecture and protein-pigment interactions.

Photosynthetic reaction centers (RCs) from the photosynthetic bacteria Rhodobacter sphaeroides and Rhodopseudomonas viridis are protein complexes closely related in both structure and function. The structure of the Rps. viridis RC was used to determine the structure of the RC from Rb. sphaeroides. Small but meaningful differences between the positions of the helices and the cofactors in the two complexes were identified. The distances between helices AL and AM, between BL and BM, and between bacteriopheophytins BPL and BPM are significantly shorter in Rps. viridis than they are in Rb. sphaeroides RCs. There are a number of differences in the amino acid residues that surround the cofactors; some of these residues form hydrogen bonds with the cofactors. Differences in chemical properties and location of these residues account in some manner for the different spectral properties of the two RCs. In several instances, the hydrogen bonds, as well as the apparent distances between the histidine ligands and the Mg atoms of the bacteriochlorophylls, were found to significantly differ from the Rb. sphaeroides RC structure previously described by Yeates et al. [(1988) Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A. 85, 7993-7997] and Allen et al. [(1988) Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A. 85, 8487-8491].

Amino Acids↗
PubMed1991

Interaction between advancing ice fronts and erythrocytes. Mechanism of erythrocyte destruction upon freezing and influence of cryoprotective agents.

It can be shown theoretically and experimentally that in purely aqueous suspension, cells (as well as microsolutes) are excluded by advancing freezing fronts. This puts the cells under considerable osmotic stress and may be considered to be the major source of cell destruction upon freezing. It is also shown theoretically and experimentally that in aqueous suspensions, admixed with appropriate concentrations of a cryoprotectant (e.g., glycerol), cells are engulfed by advancing freezing fronts: Under such conditions, cells do not undergo any osmotic stress and remain undamaged when frozen. The influence of various common cryoprotectants is discussed, as is the reason why penetrating as well as nonpenetrating agents can be equally effective cryoprotective agents. The reason why leukocytes require lower cryoprotectant concentrations than erythrocytes is also elucidated.

Cell Communication↗
PubMed1990

Nursing education application of a computerized nursing expert system.

Nurse educators are required to be knowledgeable about a wide variety of complex health care problems in order to provide quality education. At the same time, they are given a multitude of other responsibilities such as participating in scholarly activity, advising students, maintaining an active role in nursing practice, and performing community service. These educators must find innovative ways to present current lectures while at the same time meeting their other obligations. The use of Creighton Online Multiple Modular Expert System (COMMES), a computerized decision support consultant, was evaluated as a technique for faculty use in developing and organizing new lecture content. The study found that COMMES was beneficial as a systematic prompt for lecture content, as a tool for organizing content, and as a means to verify completeness of lecture material.

Curriculum↗
PubMed1989

Structure of spheroidene in the photosynthetic reaction center from Y Rhodobacter sphaeroides.

The structure of the reaction center of Y Rhodobacter sphaeroides has been solved at 3 A resolution, using the atomic coordinates of the reaction center from the carotenoidless mutant R26 Rhodobacter sphaeroides. The structure has been refined by a stimulated annealing with the computer program X-PLOR, leading to a crystallographic R factor of 0.22 using reflections between 8 and 3 A. The spheroidene molecule which is bound to the Y reaction center has been fitted in the electron density map as a 15-cis isomer with a highly asymmetric structure. The cis-bond is located at proximity from ring 1 of the accessory bacteriochlorophyll on the inactive M side. The nature of the cis-bond was confirmed by resonance Raman spectra obtained from Y reaction center crystals. The structure of spheroidene in Y reaction center is compared to that proposed for 1,2-dihydroneurosporene in Rhodopseudomonas viridis reaction center crystals.

Bacterial Proteins↗
PubMed1977

Sex differences in Necturus urinary bladders.

We describe morphological sex differences in urinary bladders of the urodele amphibian Necturus maculosus. The mucosal epithelial cells of bladders from males were tall and contained considerable PAS-positive material. In scanning electron micrographs of the mucosal surface, epithelial cells from male bladders were well demarcated and were capped with microplicae or with long cilia. The mucosal epithelial cells of bladders from females were low and contained only a small amount of PAS-positive material; in scanning electron micrographs cell boundaries could not be distinguished and no cilia or microplicae were present. Bladders from males had higher transepithelial potential difference and lower water content than bladders from females. Urine analyses were not significantly different in the two sexes. It is suggested that response to androgens in the male accounts for the observed differences.

Animals↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Nursing intervention for self-esteem disturbances.

In 1988, the broad diagnosis of self-esteem disturbance was refined into three distinct problems: defensive coping, situational low self-esteem, and chronic low self-esteem. The rationale for this refinement is discussed, and distinct nursing interventions are proposed that differ by type of self-esteem problem and nursing expertise.

Adaptation, Psychological↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Decision support and outcomes of nurses' care planning.

One hundred forty-three nurses served as their own controls in planning care for hypothetical patients under three different manipulated conditions of decision support: (A) use of traditional resources; (B) use of a printout of a computerized protocol for care planning (NPC); and (C) use of an NPC protocol and a self study guide. A series of 3 x 5 repeated measures analyses of variance (ANOVAs) were used to evaluate the main effects and interactions of the experimental treatment conditions and the two nurse attribute variables of education and experience (each with five levels). The case problems and conditions were counterbalanced to control for extraneous variables. The repeated measures ANOVA demonstrated significantly higher mean ratings of quality for care planned under both computerized decision support conditions than the traditional condition on all three patient problem situations F(2, 270) = 7.9, p less than .01. Time on task was also significant F(2, 272) = 5.8, p less than .01 with use of the decision support consultants tending to increase time in planning.

Decision Making, Computer-Assisted↗