Ethical aspects of children’s perceptions of information-giving in care

The aim of this study was to identify key aspects in the exchange of information and to determine how nurses communicate news to hospitalised children. For this study, we applied the critical incident technique with 30 children aged between 8 and 14 years. Data were collected in paediatric units in a hospital in Alicante (Spain) using participant observation and semi-structured interviews. The analysis yielded three main categories: the children’s reaction to the information, nursing staff behaviour as a key aspect in the exchange of information and communication of news as well as children’s experience. This article emphasises the need to promote children’s consent and participation in nursing interventions. An analysis of these aspects will verify whether children’s rights are being respected and taken into account in order to promote children’s well-being and adaptation to hospitalisation.

Patients' and professionals' views on managing fibromyalgia

BACKGROUND: Managing fibromyalgia is a challenge for both health care systems and the professionals caring for these patients, due, in part, to the fact that the etiology of this disease is unknown, its symptoms are not specific and there is no standardized treatment. OBJECTIVE: The present study examines three aspects of fibromyalgia management, namely diagnostic approach, therapeutic management and the health professional-patient relationship, to explore specific areas of the health care process that professionals and patients may consider unsatisfactory. METHODS: A qualitative study involving semistructured interviews with 12 fibromyalgia patients and nine health professionals was performed. RESULTS: The most commonly recurring theme was the dissatisfaction of both patients and professionals with the management process as a whole. Both groups expressed dissatisfaction with the delay in reaching a diagnosis and obtaining effective treatment. Patients reported the need for greater moral support from professionals, whereas the latter often felt frustrated and of little help to patients. Patients and professionals agreed on one point: the uncertainty surrounding the management of fibromyalgia and, especially, its etiology. CONCLUSION: The present study contributes to a better understanding regarding why current management of fibromyalgia is neither effective nor satisfactory. It also provides insight into how health professionals can support fibromyalgia patients to achieve beneficial results. Health care services should offer greater support for these patients in the form of specific resources such as fibromyalgia clinics and health professionals with increased awareness of the disease.

The regulation of professional advertising practices in Spain, 1988–2013

From the perspective of the sociology of professions, every professional activity should have its own clearly circumscribed and regulated sphere of action. Such an articulation facilitates the regulation of the production of a given profession as well as the way in which it is practiced. The purpose of the research reported here was to provide a comprehensive review and evaluation of the regulatory framework governing the advertising sector in Spain. To this end, the authors analysed external regulatory legislation and self-regulatory codes extracted from the data base of the Asociación para la Autoregulación de la Comunicación Comercial (Autocontrol) that had been enacted or adopted between 1988, the year that Law 11/1998 on General Telecommunications entered into force, and 2003 as well as other relevant documents retrieved from the Boletin Oficial del Estado (BOE) pertaining to the same period. Findings indicate that although there has been a groundswell of legislation governing advertising practices in Spain since 1988, especially at the regional level, lawmakers have focused on the content of advertising messages and shown very little interest in regulating the professions of advertising and public relations. Furthermore, Spanish legislation enacted in 2003 and EU policies appear to have encouraged the adoption of voluntary codes of ethics. Sectors traditionally subject to mandatory advertising regulation, either due to the vulnerability of their target audiences or the potential impact of their commercial messages on public health or the environment, are more likely to develop self-regulatory codes of conduct than others