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Biomedical subjects

Meei-Ling Gau

Publications and source records attributed to Meei-Ling Gau.

15 recordsLinked to original sources
PubMed2006

The lived experience of first-time expectant fathers whose spouses are tocolyzed in hospital.

The purpose of this study is to explore the experiences of first-time expectant fathers whose spouses undergo tocolysis in the hospital. The study was conducted by the descriptive phenomenological method. On the basis of the qualitative method, the data were subjected to Colaizzi's content analysis by means of the constant comparison method. Data were collected through one-on-one interviews with six expectant fathers. The findings revealed that the experiences of the fathers could be summarized under the following five themes: being confused and absent-minded in an awkward situation, facing difficulty and attempting to identify solutions, breaking through the dilemma, looking forward to being a father, and looking back with complicated feelings. The findings of this study should provide nursing staff in charge of family- centered maternity care with information about how tocolysis influences the families of first-born babies. They should also contribute to improvements in nursing quality.

Adaptation, Psychological↗
PubMed2006

Death and help expected from nurses when dying.

This project was undertaken to ascertain the perceptions of a group of Taiwan's fourth-year bachelor of science in nursing (BSN) students regarding death and help expected from nurses during the dying process. Within the Chinese culture, death is one of the most important life issues. However, in many Chinese societies it is difficult for people to reveal their deepest feelings to their significant others or loved ones. It was in this context that this project was developed because little is known about how Taiwan's nursing students perceive death and the dying process. Using an open-ended, self-report questionnaire, 110 senior BSN students recorded their thoughts on: (1) their fears before physical death; (2) afterlife destinations; and (3) the help they would expect from nurses when dying. The data were analyzed using a three-layer qualitative thematic analysis. The students' reported needs during the dying process were directed towards three main goals: (1) help in reaching the 'triple targets of individual life'; (2) help in facilitating in-depth support so that both the dying person and significant others can experience a blessed farewell; and (3) help in reaching a destination in the afterlife. The results support the belief of dying as a transition occurring when life weans itself from the mortal world and prepares for an afterlife.

Adult↗
PubMed2006

[Experiences applying a birth ball to help a parturient woman in labor].

This paper is designed to describe the nursing experiences of applying a birth ball to help a parturient woman in labor, who had experienced labor pains and was accompanied by her husband. On the basis of family-centered nursing, on October 8, 2005, the authors taught, this couple various positions to be adopted using the birth ball to help the woman deliver her baby with minimum pain and to help the husband to accompany his mate in a strong and positive way. In this way, eventually, the woman delivered her baby, safely and smoothly, experiencing the whole process satisfactorily.

Adult↗
PubMed2005

Health Needs Instrument for hospitalized single-living Taiwanese elders with heart disease: triangulation research design.

AIM: The aims of this study were (a) to explore the health needs of hospitalized Taiwanese older people with heart disease who live alone in the community; (b) to develop an instrument to assess their health needs and (c) to examine relationships among their health needs. DESIGN: Three phases were involved in this between-method triangulation design. METHODS: The first phase explored the contextual content of the health needs from the perspectives of a purposive sampling of 34 subjects by the use of an explorative qualitative method. The second phase developed the Health Needs Instrument (HNI) and established its reliability and validity. The last phase implemented the instrument in a cohort and examined their appraisals of each type of health need as well as the relationships among different types of health needs. RESULTS: The HNI encompasses the following five types of health needs: help in managing tangible things, psychological support, medical support, obtaining health information and participation in decision-making. In the last phase, a purposive sample of 54 subjects (48 men and 6 women) with an average age of 75.3 years was obtained. Subjects' health needs were ranked as obtaining health information (100%), participation in decision-making (96%), managing tangible issues (87%), medical support (86%) and psychological support (67%). Detailed items for each type of health need were revealed. By examining the relationship between their health needs, the psychological needs in confronting the subjects' physical discomfort had a significant correlation with medical support (r = 0.469, P < 0.01), with tangible needs after surgery or an invasive examination (r = 0.460, P < 0.01), with informational needs (r = 0.393, P = 0.034) and with tangible needs of maintaining daily living activities during the hospitalization period (r = 0.290, P = 0.034). The need for tangible help in maintaining daily living activities during the hospitalization period was significantly correlated with the need for medical support (r = 0.341, P = 0.012), with help in managing admissions and discharge procedures (r = 0.374, P = 0.05) and with help after an invasive examination or in the postsurgery period (r = 0.334, P = 0.013). CONCLUSION: Finally, a conceptual framework was developed to depict this phenomenon. With the help of this HNI, both Eastern and Western health care providers can be empowered to detect the complex health needs of this particular population earlier and more accurately in order to promote their well-being as well as their health-related quality of life. RELEVANCE TO CLINICAL PRACTICE: Empowering nurse clinicians to assess health needs of hospitalized single-living Taiwanese elders with heart disease.

Aged↗
PubMed2005

[Constructing a breastfeeding-friendly workplace: demonstration from hospital].

To breastfeed is a right of women and infants. However, breastfeeding is viewed as a " Private domain" rather than as a "public domain" issue. Many people therefore think that it is unnecessary to use public policy to solve problems associated with breastfeeding. Nurses, due to heavy work loads and responsibilities, and shift rotation, have to face many difficulties when they combine breastfeeding and work. Since the question of whether nurses may successfully breastfeed their offspring in the workplace is one of particular significance, this article considers the importance of breastfeeding in the workplace and nurses experiences thereof, and the international criteria for a friendly breastfeeding workplace for women, in order to discuss ways in which Taiwan's health care institutions should create breastfeeding-friendly environment.

Breast Feeding↗
PubMed2004

Evaluation of a lactation intervention program to encourage breastfeeding: a longitudinal study.

The purpose of this study was to evaluate the implementation of a change to the breastfeeding policy in seven hospitals in accordance with the 'Ten Steps to Successful Breastfeeding' issued by the World Health Organization and the United Nations Children's Fund and to assess the impact of hospital practices on breastfeeding. A 3-year quasi-experimental pre-post test design was conducted in 12 hospitals. The subjects were composed of 4614 lactating women in both experimental and control groups. The research instruments included the Baby-Friendly hospital Initiative training programs and questionnaires on breastfeeding duration, knowledge, attitude, and demographic data. Breastfeeding rates (including exclusive breastfeeding, mixed breastfeeding, and overall breastfeeding rates) of the experimental and control groups were measured and compared at four different times, during the hospital stay and at 2 weeks, 1 and 2 months postpartum. The results indicated that the exclusive and overall breastfeeding rates of the experimental group were higher than those of the control group (p < 0.001); moreover, the breastfeeding rates generally exhibited an increasing trend year by year ((p < 0.001). The results also showed that the experimental group scored higher in breastfeeding knowledge than the control group as did positive attitudes toward breastfeeding (t > 1.96, p < 0.05) with scores increasing year by year. The results also showed that higher scores reflected better knowledge in breastfeeding, and, in turn, a longer duration of breastfeeding.

Adolescent↗
PubMed2004

A comparative study of expectant parents ' childbirth expectations.

The purpose of this study was to understand childbirth expectations and differences in childbirth expectations among expectant parents. For convenience sampling, 200 couples willing to participate in this study were chosen from two hospitals in central Taiwan. Inclusion criteria were at least 36 weeks of gestation, aged 18 and above, no prenatal complications, and willing to consent to participate in this study. Instruments used to collect data included basic demographic data and the Childbirth Expectations Questionnaire. Findings of the study revealed that (1) five factors were identified by expectant parents regarding childbirth expectations including the caregiving environment, expectation of labor pain, spousal support, control and participation, and medical and nursing support; (2) no general differences were identified in the childbirth expectations between expectant fathers and expectant mothers; and (3) expectant fathers with a higher socioeconomic status and who had received prenatal (childbirth) education had higher childbirth expectations, whereas mothers displayed no differences in demographic characteristics. The study results may help clinical healthcare providers better understand differences in expectations during labor and birth and childbirth expectations by expectant parents in order to improve the medical and nursing system and promote positive childbirth experiences and satisfaction for expectant parents.

Adult↗
PubMed2004

Professional career development for male nurses.

AIM: The aim of this paper is to report a study to: (a) explore Taiwanese male nurses' motivations for becoming a nurse; (b) reveal their professional developmental process in nursing; (c) understand the difficulties hindering their professional development from both professional and gender aspects; and (d) identify the strategies they use to cope with these difficulties. BACKGROUND: Hindered by historical, cultural, economic and warfare factors, the proportion of male nurses in Taiwan remains low. Taiwanese male nurses' career development process has not been well investigated yet. METHODS: A descriptive qualitative research design was used, with a convenience sample of 15 male nurses (mean age 30.8 years) with a Bachelor's degree in Nursing Science. Data were collected by semi-structured interviews and analysed by content analysis. RESULTS: Taiwanese male nurses' entrance into the nursing profession involved three phases: pre-study, study and employment. The difficulties encountered during career development were related to the gender expectations of patients and the general public. The nurses received support more from superiors than from colleagues. The strategies they used included (a) improving their professional knowledge and skills to obtain higher levels of satisfaction and better opportunities for promotion; (b) thinking aggressively about job promotion; (c) choosing specialist departments as appropriate environments for graduate study and personal growth; and (d) changing their professional track for personal growth. CONCLUSIONS: Based on the nature of nursing work and clinical experiences, Taiwanese male nurses believed that nursing was a profession suitable for both men and women. Their preparation for career development started at the pre-study phase. The major strategies they used were related to a strong desire for personal growth and professional promotion. Finally, a conceptual framework was developed to depict this complex phenomenon.

Adaptation, Psychological↗
PubMed2003

Analysis of the outcomes at baby-friendly hospitals: appraisal in Taiwan.

This study examined the effect of the Baby-Friendly Hospital Initiative (BFHI) on the breastfeeding rate in Taiwan and analyzed factors related to BFHI qualification. The assessments included 56 hospitals enlisted for appraisal and 7,563 mothers in the maternity wards of these hospitals. Among the 56 hospitals appraised, 38 (67.9%) passed appraisal. Geographically, 88.5% (23/38) of hospitals are located in northern Taiwan, and only one hospital is situated in eastern Taiwan. All 13 medical centers enlisted for appraisal were qualified as BFHI. Only one private clinic passed the appraisal. We found close correlation between the location of the hospital and passing the appraisal (chi2 = 12.71, p < 0.01), and between the grade of a hospital and BFHI qualification (chi2 = 9.17, p < 0.05). Of the 10 steps to successful breastfeeding practiced in these hospitals, we found that step 10 got the highest scores, with a gain point rate of 94.64%; nonetheless, step 1 had significant power of discrimination regarding appraisal. Statistically, steps 7, 1, and 2 were more significant than any of the other steps. Mothers in qualified baby-friendly hospitals had higher breastfeeding rates than those in non-qualified hospitals, whether they were surveyed while in maternity wards after delivery (88.1% vs 78.1%) or in their first postnatal month (67.6% vs 59.4%). In conclusion, our study indicates that health policy intervention has a significant impact on increasing the breastfeeding rate in Taiwan.

Breast Feeding↗
PubMed2003

Common problems of clinical performance examination in breastfeeding instruction for nursing baccalaureate students.

The purpose of this study was to investigate the problems commonly seen in the clinical breastfeeding practice of undergraduate nursing students. The criterion for clinical performance examination was the instructional ability index for breastfeeding determined from the competency-based clinical performance examination in maternity nursing, a model developed by Chung et al. (2001). Simple random sampling was used to access 60 participants from the 213 baccalaureate students from the second year of a nursing department who had completed obstetric nursing education. The average age of the subjects was 20.73 years. Most subjects did not have experience either in breastfeeding or in instructing others about breastfeeding. The pass rate in the clinical examination was 26.67 % (n=16), and the difference was only in obstetrics nursing practicum scores and days of practice between pass and fail, with no significant difference in demographic data. The most common mistakes found during breastfeeding instruction by students included distinguishing the infant consciousness state fit for feeding, knowing when to stop feeding, identifying when the baby is hungry or satisfactied via behavioral cues, maternal posture (cradle and football holds, and side-lying), latching on techniques, assisting mother to correctly remove infant from the breast, and overriding test categories such as sepsis, interpersonal relationship, health teaching, physical jeopardy, and bonding. The results of this study can be used by instructors to improve their teaching design in breastfeeding education, as well as by undergraduate students of nursing departments to advance their ability to instruct others about breastfeeding.

Adult↗
PubMed2003

Construct validity of the prenatal attachment inventory: a confirmatory factor analysis approach.

The purpose of this study was to test the construct validity of the Prenatal Attachment Inventory (PAI) by using Confirmatory Factor Analysis (CFA). The PAI was developed by Muller (1989, 1993), and consists of 21 Likert-type items arranged on a 4-point response set ranging from " almost always " to " almost never. " A sample of 349 pregnant women in their third trimester was recruited from obstetrical outpatient and inpatient centers, including high-risk and low-risk pregnancy units, and childbirth education classes. Confirmatory factor analysis of the instrument yielded the result that all items have a significant factor loading. There were no negative error variances, no factor correlations greater than one, and no extremely large error variance. The indicator reliabilities ranged from.2 to.5. Moreover, the correlation matrix indicated that all PAI items were significantly related to one another at p <.01. These 21 items explained 79 % of variance in maternal fetal attachment (MFA). The overall measurement model fit indices showed that the hypothesized model fit the data well after two modifications ( 2/df = 2.12, standardized root mean square residual =.05, goodness-of-fit index =.90, critical N = 204.5). The findings indicate that Muller's PAI is a valid instrument for research with pregnant women. Researchers can use this instrument for future research studies in the health care of pregnant women. Nursing educators and clinicians can use this instrument to assess expectant mothers' level of MFA.

Adolescent↗
PubMed2002

The impact of the 9-21 earthquake experiences of Taiwanese nurses as rescuers.

The powerful earthquake of September 21, 1999 wrought incalculable havoc on lives and properties in Taiwan. Although the scars of the earthquake can never be erased, the calamity can lead to a more full understanding of the experiences, perceptions and reflections of nurses involved directly in post-rescue situations. The purpose of this study was to compare the impacts of rescue experiences on Taiwanese female and male nurses who worked as rescuers following the earthquake of 21 September. A purposive sample of 46 nurses (40 women, 6 men) (mean age 26) who worked in a renowned hospital with a reputation for high quality of emergency care in Northern Taiwan was obtained. Data were collected by in-depth semi-structured interviews and analyzed by a unique mode of between-method triangulation. The majority of the subjects (38 female, 6 male) reported various impacts from their rescue experiences. They are: (a) recognition of the impermanence of life and wishing to lead a more significant life (32 female, 3 male); (b) more caring relationships with others and for their homeland (19 female, 5 male); (c) a clearer concept of disaster care (19 female, 4 male); (d) a better appreciation of the value of nursing and their own self-worth (11 female, 3 male); (e) enhanced knowledge of the survivors' needs (3 female); and (f) enhanced ability to identify the factors hindering rescue operations (1 female, 2 male). However, one female nurse complained of having been bothered by feelings of fear of earthquake disasters resulting from her rescue experience. Rescue experiences help to strengthen most Taiwanese nurses' professional competency, reinforce their commitment to nursing, and lead them to have positive life goals. The relative weight of the impacts for male and female nurses were somewhat different. The vulnerability of nurses, which was manifested in the post-rescue stage, requires attention and long-term follow-up. A comprehensive and organized pre-rescue training program which recognizes the need to care for both acute and chronic post-disaster conditions, along with spiritual care for the survivors, as well as a "disaster reduction" course for health professionals are suggested.

Adult↗
PubMed2002

A survey of obstetricians willingness to practice collaboratively with midwives in Taiwan.

This study was designed to investigate obstetricians willingness to practice collaboratively with midwives in Taiwan. Systematic random sampling was used to access the 500 participants from the 2,256 registered members of the Association of Obstetrics and Gynecology of the Republic of China. A questionnaire and four open-ended questions were designed to examine obstetricians willingness to work collaboratively with midwives and other related factors. A total of 78 physicians returned the questionnaires, providing a response rate of 15.6%. Thirty-six (46.2%) of subjects worked as private obstetricians, with a mean age of 47.1 years. About 79.5% (n = 62) had over 10 years of experiences in their role. Fifty percent (n = 39) worked in areas with birth rats less than 50 infants per month. The findings of the current study demonstrate, regarding the seven midwifery practice items on the questionnaire, that all 78 obstetricians were unwilling to work collaboratively with midwives. However, results showed that if midwifery education were to be advanced to college level, the degree of willingness to work collaboratively with midwives improved significantly (t > 1.96, p <.05). Furthermore, 56.4% (n = 44) obstetricians would then agree to work collaboratively with midwives. However, 43.6% (n = 34) were unwilling to accept midwives as independent practitioners. Reasons included: unwillingness to share risks, worry about the incapability of midwives, worry that it would impair the professional image of physicians, and unwillingness to share interests. The authors conclude that advancing and enhancing midwifery education in Taiwan should be the first step to negotiate in order to raise the profile of midwives specifically and the midwifery profession generally. Ultimately, such a strategy would improve the quality of care provided to women and their infants and consequently improve the health and social well-being of present and future generations.

Adult↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Assessing risk of falling in older adults.

Falls by older people present serious problems in every society. The purpose of this study was to investigate the role of a checklist in estimation and reduction of the risk for falls for older adults in Taiwan. Following literature review, a purposive sample was used in a cross-sectional design to assess risk factors using a checklist. Older adults (N = 103) were recruited from three sheltered housing projects (elderly apartments in Taipei County); 52 individuals had fallen within the past year. A set of significant risk factors was identified, including physiological, psychological, environmental, and social dimensions. Members of the fall group had shorter Functional Reach and took more time to complete the Get-up and Go test than the control group. Some illnesses and drugs were associated with an increased risk of fall.

Accidental Falls↗