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Biomedical subjects

S Lauri

Publications and source records attributed to S Lauri.

At least 37 records · Page 2Linked to original sources
PubMed1998

Cancer patients' reported experiences of suffering.

This study describes the nature and content of experiences of suffering by patients with incurable cancer. The main body of data was collected in interviews. A structured questionnaire was administered for additional information. Three different dimensions were identified in patient experiences of suffering: physical, psychologic, and social. Suffering has a physical foundation, which was divided into two categories: that caused by the illness itself and that caused by treatment of the illness. The primary sources of physical suffering were fatigue, pain, and the side effects of chemotherapy. The causes of psychologic suffering lie in the physiologic changes associated with the disease and in the imminence of death. Psychologic suffering was most typically manifested in depression, which most of the patients suffered during the initial stages of the disease, when the disease metastasized, and when they were in a particularly poor condition. General deterioration and fear of infections very much restrict the social life of cancer patients, causing them to withdraw into their home or the hospital.

Adult↗
PubMed1998

Ethical dilemmas in the care of patients with incurable cancer.

This article aims to identify and describe the ethical dilemmas that are involved in the care of patients with incurable cancer. The data were collected in semistructured focused interviews with 32 patients, 13 nurses and 13 doctors from two central hospitals and four community health centres. The interviews were tape-recorded and transcribed verbatim. Interpretation was based on the method of content analysis. Ethical dilemmas occurred at the time of diagnosis, in connection with telling the truth, in providing information, in the treatment of pain, and in decision-making situations concerning active treatment. Dilemmas of active treatment concerned chemotherapy, intravenous infusions, blood transfusions and antibiotics. There were also problems in relationships between nursing staff and next of kin, as well as a lack of co-operation between nurses and doctors.

Adult↗
PubMed1997

The beta 1,6-GlcNAc transferase activity present in hog gastric mucosal microsomes catalyses site-specific branch formation on a long polylactosamine backbone.

We find that the beta 1,6-GlcNAc transferase activity present in hog gastric mucosal microsomes converts the linear pentasaccharide GlcNAc beta 1-3Gal beta 1-4GlcNAc beta 1-3Gal beta 1-4GlcNAc (1) in a site-specific way to the branch-bearing hexasaccharide GlcNAc beta 1-3(GlcNAc beta 1-6)Gal beta 1-4GlcNAc beta 1-3Gal beta 1-4GlcNAc (2). The product is a positional isomer of GlcNAc beta 1-3Gal beta 1-4GlcNAc beta 1-3(GlcNAc beta 1-6)Gal beta 1-4GlcNAc (3), reportedly formed from 1 by another polylactosamine beta 1,6-GlcNAc transferase activity present in human serum (Leppänen et al., Biochemistry, 30 (1991) 9287). Combined use of the two kinds of activities gave in the present experiments the heptasaccharide GlcNAc beta 1-3(GlcNAc beta 1-6)Gal beta 1-4GlcNAc beta 1-3(GlcNAc beta 1-6)Gal beta 1-4GlcNAc (4), in which one of the branches occupies the position of the branch in 2 and the other the position of the branch in 3.

Amino Sugars↗
PubMed1997

Patients' needs in hospital: nurses' and patients' views.

This study set out to identify the most important needs of hospital patients on surgical and medical wards and to assess the ability of nurses to identify these needs. The population consisted of 92 Finnish patients and 69 Finnish nurses. The study was carried out using a questionnaire designed on the basis of the need theory presented by Yura and Walsh. The results of the statistical analyses were presented in the form of frequencies, cross-tabulations and chi-square tests. The patients' most common needs were related to vital functions (44%), followed by those related to functional health status (38%) and environmental needs (36%). The last item on the list of expressed needs concerned reactions to functional health status (31%). Over 70% of the surgical patients suffered from problems related to sleep and rest. Less than 60% of them suffered from acute pain. Medical patients, in turn, had more frequent needs related to vital functions than did surgical patients. Three out of four medical patients suffered from acute pain. Sleep and rest disturbances, stress, bad mood and listlessness were also common problems. The nurses underestimated all patient needs, apart from environmental needs, which they regarded as the main concern of patients. There was a statistically significant difference between patients' and nurses' assessments for 38% of all needs. Moreover, there were differences in assessments between the surgical and medical wards included in the study.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1997

Public health nurses' decision making in Canada, Finland, Norway, and the United States.

The purpose of this study was to describe the decision-making processes of 369 public health nurses in Canada, Finland, Norway, and the United States, and to discuss any differences observed among these countries. The results indicate that public health nurses used different decision-making models on the job and that these models varied considerably. Five different decision-making models were identified, each exhibiting features of different decision-making theories. The differences between decision making of public health nurses in different countries were statistically significant. The differences in decision making appear to be due to differences in health care systems in the 4 countries and the nature of the nursing task and context.

Canada↗
PubMed1996

Developing an instrument for the observation of touching.

This article describes the development of an instrument for the observation of nonnecessary touching and its purposes in interaction between nursing staff and elderly patients in long-term care. The work took place on three wards of a nursing home. The instrument is based on three main concepts: verbal communication, touch as a form of nonverbal communication, and nursing care situation. In its finalized form, the instrument consists of a single sheet of paper with the human body pictured from the front and from the back.

Aged↗
PubMed1996

Cultural perceptions of childbirth: a cross-cultural comparison of childbearing women.

The purpose of this comparative cross-cultural study was to describe the cultural/religious perception of the childbirth experiences of selected childbearing women. Finnish Lutheran women's beliefs and perceptions of childbirth were compared with those of Canadian Orthodox Jewish and American Mormon women. Methodological triangulation was achieved through semistructured, open-ended interviews and use of the Utah Test for the childbearing Year (UTCY). Canadian Orthodox Jewish women showed a significantly higher level of reliance on authority figures to ensure positive outcomes and significantly less active participation in childbirth care decisions. The Finnish Lutheran women showed less valuing of childbearing and childrearing, which may be related to a less active religious belief system and the view by Finnish women that motherhood is only one of a multiplicity of roles viewed as important. There is a need to understand and appreciate the cultural beliefs and values of childbearing women to facilitate more culturally sensitive and holistic nursing care.

Adult↗
PubMed1995

Decision-making models of Finnish nurses and public health nurses.

This study described nursing decision-making models and variables related to these models. For this purpose a 56-item Likert-type questionnaire was constructed according to the Dreyfus model of skill acquisition as applied to nursing by Benner and information processing theory. The target group consisted of 100 registered nurses working in inpatient clinics and 100 public health nurses working in preventive health care. The decision-making variables explored were nurses' experience, education and knowledge as well as the nature of the nursing task and context. The results revealed four different types of decision-making: (a) unquestioning/questioning decision-making, (b) creative-diversive decision-making, (c) patient/nurse-oriented decision-making, and (d) rule- and situation-based decision-making. The most important factors related to decision-making were experience and the nature of the nursing task and context.

Analysis of Variance↗
PubMed1994

Health promotion in child and family health care: the role of Finnish public health nurses.

Starting from a theoretical model for the work of public health nurses, we explored the knowledge, skills, and decision making of Finnish public health nurses in the context of their efforts to maintain and promote child and family welfare. The results indicate that the nurses' knowledge basis and skills cover the concepts included in the theoretical model. The nurses tackle existing situations in the lives of children and their family, attempt to solve the current problems, and together with parents, make collaborative decisions. No attempts are made to produce long-term health care plans. The model seemed to work fairly well in promoting children's welfare, but less so in the case of families. Finnish public health nurses follow the official guidelines governing the work of child welfare clinics, but they set fewer individual goals for children and families.

Child↗
PubMed1994

Ethical reasoning concerning the feeding of severely demented patients: an international perspective.

Structured interviews were held with 149 registered nurses in seven countries in America, Asia, Australia and Europe concerning the feeding of severely demented patients who do not accept food. The most common reasons for nurses being willing to change their decision to feed or not to feed were an order from the medical head, a request from the patient's husband and/or the staff meeting. There was a connection between the willingness to feed and the ranking of ethical principles. Nurses who were most prone to feed the patient most often gave a high rank to the ethical principle of sanctity of life, while those who primarily chose not to feed the patient gave a high rank to the ethical principle of autonomy. All nurses stressed the ethical principle of beneficence.

Adult↗
PubMed1993

A novel beta-N-acetylglucosaminidase activity in hog gastric mucosal microsomes: preferential hydrolysis of terminal GlcNAc beta 1-3 linkages in GlcNAc beta 1-3(GlcNAc beta 1-6)Gal beta 1-4GlcNAc, but GlcNAc beta 1-6 linkages in GlcNAc beta 1-3(GlcNAc beta 1-6)Gal.

Hog gastric mucosal microsomes contain beta-N-acetylglucosaminidase activity which cleaves GlcNAc beta 1-3(GlcNAc beta 1-6)Gal beta 1-4GlcNAc at the terminal GlcNAc beta 1-3Gal linkage faster than at the GlcNAc beta 1-6Gal bond, producing mainly GlcNAc beta 1-6Gal beta 1-4GlcNAc. In a marked contrast, GlcNAc beta 1-3(GlcNAc beta 1-6)Gal is cleaved primarily at the GlcNAc beta 1-6Gal bond, while partial hydrolysis of GlcNAc beta 1-3(GlcNAc beta 1-6)Gal beta 1-4Glc reveals similar rates of cleavage for the (1-3) and (1-6) linkages. Our data support the notion that the terminal beta 1,6-linked GlcNAc unit of GlcNAc beta 1-3(GlcNAc beta 1-6)Gal beta 1-4GlcNAc may interact with the reducing end GlcNAc unit intramolecularly in water solution.

Acetylglucosaminidase↗
PubMed1993

An international perspective of active euthanasia: attitudes of nurses in seven countries.

This exploratory study examines the ethical justification that cancer care and dementia care nurses gave for active voluntary euthanasia. A convenient sample of 319 nurses working in seven countries was interviewed using a structured interview guide. The great majority of the nurses could not ethically justify active voluntary euthanasia. Even if the law changed, only 96 of the total sample viewed active voluntary euthanasia as ethical. For those nurses who could ethically justify active voluntary euthanasia, the majority did so because of the patients' suffering.

Adult↗
PubMed1991

[Ethical decision making of nurses associated with the feeding of demented patients and terminally ill elderly cancer patients in 7 countries].

This article clarify the results of the international study, carried out in seven countries. The purpose of the study was to clarify the ethical decision making of the nurses working with demented patients and with elderly cancer patients in terminal state, who refused to eat. In the structured interview a different kind of case study was presented to the nurses (N = 300) working with demented patients and to the nurses working with cancer patients. Nurses were asked to make a decision to feed or not to feed the patient. Justifications to the decision were also demanded. The subjects were also asked under what conditions they would change their decision. The most part of the nurses working with cancer patients made a decision not to feed the patient. Nurses from China and quite many from Israel chose however to feed the patient. The half of the nurses working with demented patients made a decision to feed the patient and an other half prefer not to feed the patient. Nurses from China, Israel, Finland and Kalifornia did prefer feeding and nurses from Australian, Sweden and Canada chose mostly not to feed the patient. The majority who chose not to feed the patient used the principle of autonomy as justification. Nurses who made a decision to feed the patient stressed mostly the principle of sanctity of life. Nurses changed their decision mostly when a doctor, nursing staff or patient's husband had different kind of opinion of the strategy to nurse the patient. Nurses from Sweden and China changed mostly their attitude because of the order of the doctor. The opinion of the staff was most important to australian nurses and the opinion of the husband had most influence to finnish nurses.

Aged↗
PubMed1990

Ethical reasoning associated with the feeding of terminally ill elderly cancer patients. An international perspective.

An international nursing research study examined the ethical decision-making of "good and experienced" registered nurses in eight countries. The subjects were asked about their decision to feed or not to feed a hypothetical terminally ill, mentally alert, elderly cancer patient who refuses to eat. Cultural variations were demonstrated in the decisions as well as differences in ethical justification. The majority of nurses who would not feed appeared to use the principle of autonomy, whereas nurses who would feed the patient used beneficence as justification. Conditions under which nurses would change their decision to either feed or not feed the patient against her will included doctor's orders and lack of peer support for the decision. The majority of nurses clearly experienced a dilemma.

Adult↗
PubMed1989

[Ethical problems concerning the feeding of aged patients and of patients in the terminal stage].

The purpose of this study was to explain the nurses' and the special nurses' decision making and the facts with it in connection to eating problems with the old, seriously demented patients and with the old cancer patients in terminal stage. The study was carried out by interviewing 40 nurses and special nurses. Twenty of them was working with dementia patients in the wards of two health centers and twenty nurses had experience by caring cancer patients in terminal stage in one central hospital. The structural interview schedule was used and the interviews were recorded. It was found in the study, that the most nurses in cancer care didn't want to feed a patient against his will. In dementia care most of the nurses were ready to feed a patient. The opinion of relatives, order given by a physician, the attitudes of the other medical staff and the suffering caused by feeding the patient were the facts, which effected to the decision making of the nurses, especially in dementia care.

Aged↗