Synnytyksen ponnistusvaiheen hoidon käytännöt. Yhteys ensisynnyttäjän välilihan kuntoon synnytyksen jälkeen, synnytyskokemukseen, kipuun ja seksuaaliterveyteen

Hyvän syntymän hoidon tavoitteena on turvata synnyttäjän paras mahdollinen terveys, vähentää tarpeetonta puuttumista synnytyksen kulkuun ja mahdollistaa voimaannuttava synnytyskokemus perheelle. Hyvä syntymän hoito ja siihen liittyvä kätilöiden kliinisen hoitotyön osaaminen ei voi kehittyä, ellei hoitotyön käytäntöjä tutkita. Suomalaista hoitotieteellistä syntymän hoitoon liittyvää tutkimusta on vähän. Tämän tutkimuksen tarkoituksena oli kuvata synnytyksen ponnistusvaiheen hoidon käytäntöjä Suomen synnytyssairaaloissa. Lisäksi seurantatutkimuksen avulla selvitettiin, miten ensisynnyttäjät kokivat synnytyksen ponnistusvaiheen, sen aikana saamansa hoidon, ensisynnyttäjien synnytyskokemusta, kivun kokemista, vointia kolmena päivänä synnytyksen jälkeen sekä heidän seksuaaliterveyttään ensimmäisen vuoden aikana synnytyksen jälkeen. Tutkimuksen tavoitteena oli tuottaa tietoa, jonka avulla voidaan kehittää synnytyksen ponnistusvaiheen hoitoa ja lisätä tietoa synnyttäneiden naisten voinnista ja seksuaaliterveydestä. Tutkimuksen ensimmäinen osio toteutettiin poikkileikkaustutkimuksena (2009), johon osallistui Suomen synnytyssairaaloiden synnytysosastoilla työskentelevät kätilöt (N = 662). Tutkimuksen toinen osio toteutettiin seurantatutkimuksena (2009−2011), jossa oli neljä mittausajankohtaa: kolmantena päivänä synnytyksestä sekä kolmen, kuuden ja kahdentoista kuukauden kuluttua synnytyksestä. Tähän osioon osallistui spontaanisti alateitse yhden elävän lapsen (pää tarjoutuvana) synnyttäneet ensisynnyttäjät (N = 453) ja sikiön perätilan vuoksi suunnitellusti keisarileikatut ensisynnyttäjät (N = 84). Aineisto analysoitiin tilastollisin menetelmin. Tutkimustulosten mukaan osa kätilöiden käyttämistä synnytyksen ponnistusvaiheen hoitokäytännöistä ei ole näyttöön perustuvia. Synnytyssairaalan synnytyksen hoidon kulttuuri näyttää siirtyvän mallioppimisen kautta. Ensisynnyttäjät kokivat synnytyksen ponnistusvaiheen hoidon pääsääntöisesti myönteisenä. Alateitse synnyttäneillä ensisynnyttäjillä oli myönteisempi synnytyskokemus ja vähemmän kipua heti synnytyksen jälkeen ja kolmena synnytyksen jälkeisenä päivänä verrattuna keisarileikkauksella synnyttäneisiin ensisynnyttäjiin. Alateitse synnyttäneillä ensisynnyttäjillä kipu ja ompeleet eivät vaikuttaneet haitallisesti vastasyntyneen hoitoon tai imetykseen niin paljon kuin keisarileikkauksella synnyttäneillä ensisynnyttäjillä. Välilihan leikkaus-, repeämä- tai keisarileikkaushaavat olivat täysin parantuneet suurimmalla osalla naisista kolmen kuukauden kuluttua synnytyksestä. Yleisimpiä naisten kokemia oireita ensimmäisen vuoden aikana synnytyksestä olivat emättimen kostumisen vaikeus, yhdyntäkivut, peräpukamat sekä arpikudoksen kipu ja kiristys. Sukupuolinen halukkuus ja tyytyväisyys seksielämään olivat huonompaa ensimmäisen vuoden aikana synnytyksestä verrattuna aikaan ennen raskautta ja synnytystä. Synnytyksen aikaisella hoitotyöllä ja näyttöön perustuvalla synnytyksen ponnistusvaiheen hoidolla on suuri merkitys naisen synnytyskokemukseen, synnytyksen jälkeiseen vointiin ja seksuaaliterveyteen.

Usability Centered Implementation of a Web Based Value Added Module

Customer specific functionalities are a challenging part of procurement and invoice automation environments. In Basware Enterprise Purchase to Payment product family the customer specific reports are supported only in a basic level without any seamless interface between all EPP products. Also other customer specific functionalities are not supported as there is no customizable interface between the applications and only the most common features are implemented to the products themselves. In this thesis foundations are created for a new web based value added module where it is possible to create seamless customer specific functionalities throughout the whole EPP product family. The work is implemented in a Proof of Concept type of piloting. The system is created in user centered way where the users are able to explain their requests and determine their needs. The result is an excellent foundation for a module that can be developed further.

An Infant with Food Allergy and Eczema in the Family – The Mental and Economic Burden of Caring

Allergic diseases including food allergy and eczema in an infant in combination with the everyday activities of caring for a family will pose challenges to parents. Only fragments of these challenges are revealed to health care professionals. Families have varying mental, social and economic resources to help them care for an allergic infant, and all such resources are important in determining how families succeed in meeting these challenges and the quality of the infant’s care. This study evaluated the whole burden to the family caused by an infant's allergic disease during the first 24 months of life. As the primary caregiver during this period is usually the mother, her perspective was considered important. Ecocultural theory, which considers families as capable of modifying the positive and negative forces facing them, was taken as the frame of reference. Data were collected as part of an ongoing prospective mother-infant study, and the methods included severity scoring of atopic dermatitis, dietary records, health-related quality of life measurements and assessments of the use of health care services and medications for treating the infant’s eczema, food allergy and asthma. Interviews with mothers were analysed by deductive content analysis on the basis of ecocultural theory and the family empowerment model. The theme “Living an ordinary family life” guided the organization of family activities essential for treating the infant's food allergy and eczema. These activities were sources of both strain and support for the mothers, the allergy-related supporting factors being the mother’s own knowledge of the allergy, hopes for an improvement in the infant’s condition, social support and work. An infant’s food allergy at the age of one year caused considerable strain for the mother in cases where the introduction of new foods into the child’s diet was delayed. This delay was still causing the mother additional strain when the child was 24 months of age. The infants waking at night at the ages of 12 and 24 months because of itching related to eczema caused strain for the mothers. The infants’ health-related quality of life was impaired at ages of 6 and 12 months compared with healthy infants. The principal reasons for impairments were itching, scratching and sleep disturbances at 6 and 12 months and treatment difficulties at 6 months. Problems with getting to sleep were reported at all stages irrespective of eczema and were also present in healthy infants. The economic impact of the treatment of allergic diseases on families during the first 24 months was 131 EUR (2006 value) in cases of eczema and 525 EUR in cases of food allergy. From the societal perspective, the costs of food allergy were a median of 3183 EUR (range 628–11 560 EUR) and of eczema a median of 275 EUR (range 94–1306 EUR). These large variations in costs in food allergy and eczema indicate that disease varies greatly . In conclusion, food allergy and eczema cause extra activities and costs to families which arrange these disease-related activities in such a way that they support the leading family theme “Living an ordinary family life”. Health care professionals should consider this thematic character of family life and disease-related activities in order to ensure that new treatments are sustainable, meaningful and tailored to daily activities. In addition, those mothers who are experiencing difficulties with food allergic infants or infants with eczema should be recognized early and provided with individual encouragement and support from health clinics. In the light of the present results, early detection of symptoms and effective parental guidance can contribute to the well-being and health-related quality of life of the child and family.

Coercion, Perceived Care and Quality of Life Among Patients in Psychiatric Hospitals

The goals of the study were to describe patients’ perceptions of care after experiencing seclusion/restraint and their quality of life. The goal was moreover to identify methodological challenges related to studies from the perspective of coerced patients. The study was conducted in three phases between September 2008 and April 2012. In the first phase, the instrument Secluded/ Restrained Patients’ Perception of their Treatment (SR-PPT) was developed and validated in Japan in cooperation with a Finnish research group (n = 56). Additional data were collected over one year from secluded/restrained patients using the instrument (n = 90). In the second phase, data were collected during the discharge process (n = 264). In the third phase, data were collected from electronic databases. Methodological and ethical issues were reviewed (n = 32) using systematic review method. Patients perceived that co-operation with the staff was poor; patients’ opinions were not taken into account, treatment targets collated and treatment methods were seen in different ways. Patients also felt that their concerns were not well enough understood. However, patients received getting nurses’ time. In particular, seclusion/restraint was considered unnecessary. The patients felt that they benefited from the isolation in treating their problems more than they needed it, even if the benefit was seen to be minor. Patients treated on forensic wards rated their treatment and care significantly lower than in general units. During hospitalization secluded/restrained patients evaluated their quality of life, however, better than did non-secluded/restrained patients. However, no conclusion is drawn to the effect that the better quality of life assessment is attributable to the seclusion/restraint because patients’ treatment period after the isolation was long and because of many other factors, as rehabilitation, medication, diagnostic differences, and adaptation. According to the systematic mixed studies review variation between study designs was found to be a methodological challenge. This makes comparison of the results more difficult. A research ethical weakness is conceded as regards descriptions of the ethical review process (44 %) and informed consent (32 %). It can be concluded that patients in psychiatric hospital care and having a voice as an equal expert require special attention to clinical nursing, decision-making and service planning. Patients and their family members will be consulted in plans of preventive and alternative methods for seclusion and restraint. The study supports the theory that in ethical decision-making situations account should be taken of medical indications, in addition to the patients’ preferences, the effect of treatment on quality of life, and this depends on other factors. The connection between treatment decisions and a patient’s quality of life should be evaluated more structurally in practice. Changing treatment culture towards patients’ involvement will support daily life in nursing and service planning taking into account improvements in patients’ quality of life.

Evaluation of novel programs in health counseling – their effectiveness in the oral health of young children, and their acceptance by parents and professionals in public dental service.

Aim and design: To evaluate family-based health counseling for young children, and to study the significance of adding parental self-care or the training of professionals to the programs. The effectiveness and acceptability of the programs were evaluated by comparing two new programs with an earlier one. Subjects and methods: The study was carried out in Vantaa, which was divided into three study areas. The subjects consisted of children born in 2008, particularly fi rstborn children, while children born in 2006 formed the historical control. The fi rst of the new programs emphasized oral hygiene and use of fl uoride, and the second program focused on proper diet and use of xylitol. The main outcome measure was mutansstreptococci (MS) in the dental biofi lm of two-year-olds, and the opinions of parents and dental professionals were evaluated using questionnaires. Results: The programs found wide acceptance among dental professionals. There were no group-related differences found in the MS scores of the two-year-olds. However, all groups combined, father’s advanced level of education and child’s proper use of xylitol were associated with negative MS scores. In the opinion of parents, the oral healthcare guidance at least somewhat met their expectations. Conclusions: The present fi ndings suggest that providing training and support for professionals in health education is important. The addition of parental self-care to supplement programs aimed at young children does not improve the program, although it may improve parental readiness to change their own health habits. Counseling for families might be best carried out through a routine patient-centered program.

The role of emotions in value creation for families in pediatric health care

The purpose of this study was to analyze emotions related to a child’s critical illness from the perspective of the family and discuss the link those emotions might form with value creation. High quality service is of paramount importance in hospital care, especially when a child is diagnosed with critical illness. Through the analysis of patient family emotions and their triggers, the study was aiming to deepen the understanding of value creation for customer. Therefore, the research sought to find answers to the following three sub-questions: 1. What are the emotions experienced? 2. What triggers them? 3. How are the emotions linked to amelioration or aggravation of value for patient and family? The theoretical background of this research is built on two core concepts: emotions and value creation. As both concepts are wide and multifaceted, the research concentrates on viewing emotions from the applicable cognitive angle, identifying and categorizing emotions in a general level. Value creation is studied from the service perspective, discussing the possible relations between emotions and value creation. Moreover, the suitability of views regarding customer value co-creation to health care encounters is analyzed. Qualitative approach was selected as the most appropriate methodology for conducting the empirical research. The empirical data was collected from public blogs, for which a total of 18 blogs were reviewed. Five blogs were selected for the analysis, which had the intent of identifying the emotions experienced by patient families and deepening the knowledge of their role in value creation during health care service encounters. The empirical study of this research discovered a wide range of positive and negative emotions, which denotes that a severe life situation does not prevent the feeling of positive emotions. Furthermore, by combining the empirical findings to the theoretical background, this study concludes that recognizing and treating the patient family as a partner and value creator is essential. The high quality technical aspect of care is vital, but it is not the sole attribute for service quality, as the interpersonal communication plays a large role in the customer’s overall assessment of the health care performance. The patients and their families largely evaluate the service encounter based on their perceptions, thus emotions play a significant role. Depending on the service experience, value maybe created or destructed. Hence, this study posits emotion at the core of the service encounter, indicating towards the importance of active assessment of customer perceptions and the recognition of the emotional states