The objective of this cross-sectional study was to analyze therapeutic communication techniques used by health workers with patients under care for diabetes mellitus. Data were collected in 2010 in a public facility in the interior of Ceará, Brazil using video camera equipment and direct observation. Results showed that the most frequently used techniques within the "expression" group were: asking questions, voicing interest, and using descriptive phrases. The most frequently used technique within the "clarification" group was: asking the patient to specify the agent of action. Finally, in regard to the "validation" group, only the technique "summarizing content of the interaction" was employed. The conclusion is that despite the use of communication techniques on the part of professionals, there is still an alarming gap concerning communication skills. Such skills should be allied with technical expertise to enable the delivery of qualified care to individuals with diabetes mellitus.

This descriptive and quantitative study aimed to characterize the production of nursing care in primary health care services in a region of the city of Ribeirão Preto, state of São Paulo, Brazil. The study sample comprised care actions delivered by nurses and registered in the HygiaWeb Information System, from 2006 to 2009. Statistical analysis was performed. Results showed that nursing care delivered by nurses accounted for 9.5 to 14.6% of total professional care provided by professionals. Eventual care actions were the most frequent. The concentration of programmatic care was higher for children, women, pregnant and postpartum women. In conclusion, the predominance of eventual care demonstrated that the health system has been focused on acute conditions. Little of nursing work has been directed at the achievement of comprehensiveness, considering the inexpressive share of longitudinal follow up in total care delivery. The expansion of nursing staff represents potential for care delivery to the population, but further qualification of nursing actions is needed.

OBJECTIVE: The present study aimed to characterize the processes of ethical and professional nursing transacted at the Regional Nursing Council of Santa Catarina (Coren/SC), considering their factual elements (events/offenses, causes and outcomes). METHOD: This descriptive, exploratory and documentary research with a quantitative approach was developed at Coren/SC. Data was collected from 128 professional ethical processes in nursing, between 1999 and 2007, analyzed descriptively with regard to the origin of the complaints and ethical processes, the denouncers, the accused, the subject of the complaint and the outcome of the process. RESULTS: Considering the topics, out of the eight categories described, iatrogenesis was highlighted, as well as illegal professional practice, conflicting inter-professional relationships and professional responsibility of the nurse. CONCLUSION: The results show the need for discussion and intervention in concrete practical and arouse reflections about the process of professional training and continuous education in the institutional spaces of health, in order to reduce ethical occurrences in professional practice.

This study aimed to analyze the incidence of tuberculosis (TB), AIDS and tuberculosis-AIDS co-infection in the municipality of Campinas, in the state of São Paulo, Brazil, in the period 2001 - 2009. A historical trend study, it uses secondary data from the Tuberculosis Surveillance Database of the University of Campinas (UNICAMP) and the São Paulo State STD-AIDS Center of Excellence and Training. It included new cases of TB, AIDS, and of tuberculosis-AIDS reported in the municipality of Campinas. A decrease in cases of TB until 2007 was observed, with an increase in 2008 and 2009. There was a general reduction in AIDS from 2007, but with an increase among men aged 60 or over, in the years 2007 to 2009. For tuberculosis-AIDS co-infection, the tendency was to reduce. The proportion of HIV tests not undertaken, among patients with tuberculosis, was high (27.5%). This scenario shows the need for integration of the databanks into the planning and control activities.

This study aimed to present the results of the construction and content validation of the Scale of Predisposition for the Occurrence of Adverse Events (EPEA). A descriptive research with a qualitative approach was carried out. To study the quality of nursing care and design the scale, we performed a literature review that resulted in a preliminary instrument, composed of 90 items, divided into two dimensions to assess the quality of health care (structure and process). Expert analysis and semantic analysis were applied as techniques to study the content validity of the instrument. The findings indicate that the operational version of the EPEA was composed of 64 items, grouped into two dimensions: structure (18 items) and process (46 items). The EPEA is the first Brazilian measure constructed to assess the nurses' attitudes towards the factors that may predispose to the occurrence of adverse events in ICU.

The direction of care delivery goes from the action to the being; a process built from professional experience, which gains special characteristics when the service is delivered by telephone. The goal of this research was to understand the interaction between professionals and users in a remote care service; to do so, a research is presented, using Grounded Theory and Symbolic Interactionism as theoretical references. Data were collected through eight interviews with professionals who deliver care by telephone. The theoretical understanding permitted the creation of the theoretical model of the Imaginative Construction of Care, which shows the interaction processes the professional experiences when delivering care by telephone. In this model, individual and social facts are added, showing the link between the concepts, with special emphasis on uncertainty, sensitivity and professional responsibility, as essential components of this experience.

The monitoring of absenteeism-illness has revealed its high prevalence, and a strong relationship with work. This study aimed to analyze the factors associated with absenteeism-illness among the rural workers in a timber company in Minas Gerais, Brazil. It is an analytical cross-sectional study, carried out among 883 workers. The medical certificates issued in the company over one year were surveyed. For the analysis, use was made of descriptive statistics and bi- and multivariable analyses. The strength of association was measured by the odds ratio (OR) with help from logistic regression (p<0.05). A prevalence of 54% of medical certificates was found in the population. Bivariate analysis revealed an association between job (forestry assistant (OR=13.1), carpenter (OR=15) and chainsaw operator (OR=39.6)), length of service in the company, departments and length of schooling with absenteeism-illness. In the multi-variate analysis, the association between length of schooling and being a carpenter disappeared, while the other associations remained. It is concluded that there is important evidence about the occupational and demographic factors and absenteeism-illness among forestry workers.

This study aimed to evaluate the effect of microcurrent electrical stimulation on pain and area of venous ulcers. In a pilot study for a single-blind controlled clinical trial, carried out at an outpatient clinic during four weeks, 14 subjects with venous ulcers (mean age 62±9 years) were divided in two groups: microcurrent (n=8) and control group (n=6). Pain (by Visual Analogue Scale) and the ulcer area were measured by planimetry. There was a significant difference between the two groups with respect to pain (microcurrent group from 8.5 (6.5-9.75) to 3.5 (1-4.75) and control group from 7.5 (5.75-10) to 8.5 (5.5-10), p<0.01). Non-significant changes were found with respect to ulcer area (planimetry by graph paper, p=0.41 and by Image J®, p=0.41). In conclusion, the application of microcurrent improves the pain of patients with venous ulcers (ClinicalTrials.gov: NCT01372020).

The aim of this study was to know and understand the representations and use of medicinal plants by elderly men assisted in the Family Health Strategies of Dourados, MS. Participated in this study, 18 elderly men aged over 60 years, using four or more medications. The research was conducted with qualitative approach. The results showed that there is still the consumption of medicinal plants among the elderly, especially in the treatment of minor harm. The representations about the plants seem anchored in the concept of safety; they are natural and few side effects. Its use is made concurrently with the manufactured medicines without regard to risk of interactions. Older men use medicinal plants, without however reporting to health professionals. Therefore, it is necessary continuing education focused on phytotherapy health team and nursing, contributing to safe and effective use of medicinal plants.

This is an integrative literature review with the aim of summarizing the prevention measures and treatment of thrombotic obstruction of long-term semi-implanted central venous catheters, in patients undergoing hematopoietic stem cell transplantation. The sample consisted of seven studies, being two randomized controlled clinical trials, three cohort studies and two case series. Regarding the prevention measures, one single study demonstrated effectiveness, which was a cohort study on the oral use of warfarin. In relation to the treatment measures, three studies evidenced effectiveness, one highlighted the efficacy of streptokinase or urokinase, one demonstrated the benefit of using low-molecular-weight heparin and the other treated the obstruction with heparin or urokinase. Catheter patency research shows a restricted evolution that does not follow the evolution of transplantations, mainly regarding nursing care.

Well-being at work is based on Positive Psychology, and is defined as a psychological state with positive affective links towards work and also towards the organisation. The purpose of this study was to look at the degree of well-being at work among nursing professionals who work at a University hospital and also identify differences between occupational categories and types of work contracts. The sample was made up of 340 professionals who answered valid scales of the following constructs: Work Satisfaction, Involvement with Work and Affective Organisational Commitment. For the analysis of the data we used SPSS, version 12, for descriptive statistics, and also for testing differences between means. The results showed an average level of well-being in the workplace and also differences between professional categories and work regime, when it comes to satisfaction with salaries and promotions, which can have a reflection in the quality of service provided to the patients of this University hospital.