Background: Empirical evidence supports the contention that implementing caring nurse behaviors results in improved patient experience; however, previous studies find differences between patient and nurse perceptions of caring. Significance: Good patient experience is positively related to desired clinical and financial outcomes. Nurse caring is a critical component in the patient experience. Objective: The purposes of this project were to evaluate the congruency between nurse and patient perceptions of nurse caring in a long-term acute care hospital and to determine how much patient perception of nurse caring changes over time. Method: The study employed mixed methods using a triangulation strategy in which quantitative data from patients and qualitative data from nurses were collected simultaneously and compared for interpretation. Results: Time affected patient perception of caring significantly. Patients and nurses disagreed about the extent to which nurses ask patients what they know about their illnesses, help them deal with bad feelings, and make them feel comfortable. Conclusion: Patients and nurses do not always agree about the quality of caring behaviors, but exposure to nurses over time positively affects patient perception of nurse caring.

Purpose: To determine whether mothers of newborns understand basic facts about newborn screening (NBS), and how they feel about state retention of dried bloodspots (DBS) for research use. Design: This study was a cross-sectional survey administered to 548 mothers of newborns in postpartum units in five different hospitals in north Texas after Institutional Review Board approval. Each participating site delivered and collected surveys using systems that were convenient for them. The survey instrument used in this study is the Maternal Attitudes and Knowledge about Newborn Screening Survey. The survey was developed by the investigators. Summary statistics were provided for each participating site and surveys were combined for final data analysis. Multiple regression analysis was used to quantify associations between responses and demographic variables. Results: Overall, knowledge about details of NBS and DBS retention was inadequate. The most frequent source of information about NBS was the postpartum nurse. Mothers tended to believe that using newborn bloodspots for research was a good thing, but Medicaid recipients and minorities were more reluctant than others to share dried bloodspots for research. Clinical Implications: Mothers are not fully informed about NBS or the use of infant bloodspots for research. Bloodspot storage in Texas could shrink under new opt-in policies, constraining a resource needed for genetic and other research. Further research to design and test educational interventions that are sensitive to the concerns of parents about DBS storage and that can be efficiently implemented antenatally is needed.

Objectives: The objective of this study was to determine if there was a significant difference between the sleep quality of patients who inhaled placebo and those who inhaled an aroma comprising a mixture of Lavandula x intermedia (Lavandin Super), Citrus bergamia (bergamot), and Cananga odorata (ylang ylang). Design: This was a randomized, double-blind crossover study, which compared a treatment with placebo. Settings/location: The study was conducted in an outpatient cardiac rehabilitation unit located in an urban, private nonprofit hospital in north Texas. Subjects: Participants included 42 adult patients referred to the rehabilitation service following hospitalizations by local cardiologists. Interventions: Cotton balls infused with a combination of lavender, bergamot, and ylang ylang or placebo were placed at subjects' bedsides for five nights. After a washout period, subjects crossed over to the other condition for five nights. Outcome measures: Participants completed the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI) after treatment and placebo periods. Lower PSQI scores indicate better sleep quality. Results: The mean PSQI global score was statistically significantly lower when receiving the intervention oil (mean = 4.9) than the mean PSQI global score when receiving placebo (mean = 8). Duration of sleep and the time it took to fall asleep were no different between treatment groups, but patient-reported sleep quality was significantly better when participants were exposed to essential oils (χ² = 4.5, p = 0.03) than when exposed to placebo. Although sleep efficiency (time asleep while lying in bed) was perceived as the same under both conditions, participants reported that they had to get up to use the bathroom significantly less often when exposed to the treatment than when exposed to placebo (t = −2.04, p = 0.05; Wilcoxon p = 0.05). Participants also reported that they had trouble sleeping because they felt too cold, which occurred significantly less often when exposed to the treatment than when exposed to placebo (t = −2.03, p = 0.05; Wilcoxon p = 0.05). Conclusions: Sleep quality of participants receiving intervention oils was significantly better than the sleep quality of participants receiving the placebo oil. Low-cost, nontraditional aromatherapy treatment is potentially effective for improving sleep quality among cardiac rehabilitation patients.

Patient-Centered Innovations, Education and Technology for Cancer Care and Cancer Research