Diabetic foot is a prevalent chronic complication of diabetes and increases the risk of lower limb amputation, leading to both an economic and a major societal problem. By detecting the risk of ...developing diabetic foot sufficiently early, it can be prevented or at least postponed. Using artificial intelligence, delayed diagnosis can be prevented, leading to more intensive preventive treatment of patients. Based on a systematic literature review, we analyzed 14 articles that included the use of artificial intelligence to predict the risk of developing diabetic foot. The articles were highly heterogeneous in terms of data use and showed varying degrees of sensitivity, specificity, and accuracy. The most used machine learning techniques were support vector machine (SVM) (n = 6) and K-Nearest Neighbor (KNN) (n = 5). Future research is recommended on larger samples of participants using different techniques to determine the most effective one.
Well-being is one of the most important factors in whether nurses decide to remain in the nursing profession. This study aims to examine well-being and satisfaction among nurses working in Slovenian ...hospitals and to identify the related demographic factors.
This descriptive cross-sectional study uses standardised instruments. The sample included 640 nurses working in Slovenian hospitals. The difference between individual variables were analysed using the Mann-Whitney and Kruskal-Wallis tests.
Nurses self-assessed their satisfaction and well-being as moderate. Forty-seven per cent of nurses were satisfied with their job, 49% assessed their psychological well-being as good, 52% were often exposed to stress at the workplace and 30% were always exposed to stress at the workplace. Levels of job satisfaction (p=0.031), psychological well-being (p=0.029) and subjective well-being (p=0.014) were found to differ significantly according to level of education, while levels of job satisfaction (p=0.005), life satisfaction (p<0.001), psychological well-being (p<0.001) and subjective well-being (p<0.001) were also found to differ according to years of nursing service and from hospital to hospital (p<0.001).
The key finding of the study is that nurses are moderately satisfied with their work and life and that they display moderate levels of psychological and subjective well-being. Hospitals can be successful and achieve the goals of the organisation if their employees are satisfied with work and enjoy good levels of well-being. Hospital management have to recognise the importance of ensuring that nurses and other employees are satisfied and healthy.
Over the last decade, the inadequacy and unsustainability of current healthcare services for managing long-term co-morbid and multi-morbid diseases have become evident.
This study, involving 426 ...adults with at least one non-communicable disease in Slovenia, aimed to explore the link between quality of life, life satisfaction, person-centred care, and non-communicable disease management.
Results indicated generally positive perceptions of quality of life, general health, and life satisfaction of individuals with non-communicable diseases. Participants assessed their physical health as the highest of the four quality of life domains, followed by the environment, social relations, and psychological health. Significant differences occurred in life satisfaction, general health, quality of life, and person-centred care for managing non-communicable diseases. But, there were no significant differences in person-centred care according to the living environment. The study revealed a positive association between person-centred care and effective non-communicable disease management, which is also positively associated with quality of life, general health, and life satisfaction.
Person-centred care is currently the most compassionate and scientific practice conceived, representing a high ethical standard. However, implementing this approach in healthcare systems requires a cohesive national strategy led by capable individuals to foster stakeholder collaboration. Such an approach is crucial to address the deficiencies of existing healthcare services and ensure person-centred care sustainability in non-communicable disease management.
The aim of this study was to investigate the work-life quality and related workplace factors of nursing employees working in hospitals during the COVID-19 restrictions. Employees in nursing carry out ...nursing care at various levels of healthcare. Work-life quality refers to an individual’s feelings concerning work and outcomes and depends on different working characteristics and conditions. Quantitative research based on a cross-sectional study was used. This cross-sectional study included 486 employees in nursing from four Slovenian acute care hospitals. The results showed that most employees in nursing assessed the work-life quality on a moderate level: 76% were satisfied with their work, and 89% assessed their well-being at the workplace as positive. Considering the leaders’ support, the number of patients, adequate information, teamwork, working position, use of days off, and equipment for safe work, we can explain the 53.5% of the total variability of work-life quality. We also found that work-life quality had an essential effect on well-being at the workplace (β = 0.330, p < 0.001) and work satisfaction (β = 0.490, p < 0.001) of employees in nursing. Work-life quality refers to an employees’ feelings about their workplace, and its monitoring is important for higher employees’ well-being and health. For management and policymakers in nursing, it is important to design strategies to ensure an adequate number of competent employees and establish a supportive leadership system. Work-life quality is an important factor in the recruitment and retention of the nursing workforce. Flexible working conditions and policy changes can improve work-life quality and balance. Nursing management must understand the influencing factors of work-life quality to improve nursing employee retention strategies.
The aim was to examine mental health and burnout among frontline and critical care healthcare workers caring for COVID-19 patients. A cohort study was conducted among frontline and critical care ...healthcare workers in hospitals with COVID-19 patients. Burnout of healthcare workers was high, and mental health was median. Differences in emotional exhaustion, personal accomplishment, depersonalization, satisfaction, and mental health were found during the COVID-19 pandemic. A positive correlation between emotional exhaustion with a higher number of patients, higher workload, higher concern for health, and workplace stress was established. At the end of the third wave, the number of healthcare workers with high emotional exhaustion and depersonalization had decreased by one-third. When emotional exhaustion and occupational stress levels are high, psychologically supporting healthcare workers is essential to preserving their health and well-being.
Immunosenescence is the adverse change in the human immune function during aging, leaving older people more prone to an increased risk of infections and morbidity. Acute upper respiratory tract ...infections (URTIs) are very common among older people, often resulting in continued morbidity and mortality. Therefore, approaches, such as consuming probiotics, that shorten the duration or even reduce the incidence of URTIs in older people are being studied. The aim of this study was to determine the effects of a multi-strain probiotic OMNi-BiOTiC
Active, which contains 11 live probiotic strains, on the incidence, duration, and severity of URTIs in older people. In this randomized double-blinded placebo-controlled study, 95 participants, with an average age of 70.9 years in the probiotic group and 69.6 years in the placebo group, were randomly allocated to two groups: 10
cfu per day of the multi-strain probiotic intervention OMNi-BiOTiC
Active (49) or placebo (46). The incidence of URTIs in older people after 12 weeks supplementation with OMNi-BiOTiC
showed no statistically significant difference between the two groups (
= 0.5244). However, the duration of the URTI infections was statistically significantly different between the groups (
= 0.011). The participants that consumed the probiotic had an average duration of illness of 3.1 ± 1.6 days, whilst participants that received the placebo had symptoms for an average of 6.0 ± 3.8 days (
= 0.011). Statistically significant differences in lymphocyte counts in both groups after supplementation (
= 0.035 for the probiotic group and
= 0.029 for the placebo group) and between both groups were found (
= 0.009). Statistically significant differences in eosinophil (
= 0.002) and basophil counts (
= 0.001) in the probiotic groups before and after supplementation with probiotics were also found. Supplementation with the multi-strain probiotic OMNi-BiOTiC
Active may benefit older people with URTIs. Larger randomised controlled clinical trials are warranted. Clinical Trial Registration; identifier NCT05879393.
This study examines the psychological wellbeing and mental health of nursing staff and determines workplace factors that affect them. Wellbeing and sustainable workload are important for the quality ...of work life. A cross-sectional study of employees in nursing was conducted at Slovenian hospitals. The response was 35%. The main findings were that more than half of employees are satisfied or very satisfied with their job and with their leaders’ support, but they are often exposed to stress. Quality of work life, work–life balance, and managing stress at the workplace affect the psychological wellbeing and mental health of nursing staff. Management should identify the importance of monitoring and improving workplace factors that can affect the employees. At the same time, they should also be aware of the importance of sustainable development of nursing employees at the local and national levels to improve the working conditions and quality of work life for better psychological wellbeing and mental health for employees.
Due to the increased prevalence of chronic diseases, behavior changes are integral to self-management. Healthcare and other professionals are expected to support these behavior changes, and ...therefore, undergraduate students should receive up-to-date and evidence-based training in this respect. Our work aims to review the outcomes of digital tools in behavior change support education. A secondary aim was to examine existing instruments to assess the effectiveness of these tools. A PIO (population/problem, intervention, outcome) research question led our literature search. The population was limited to students in nursing, sports sciences, and pharmacy; the interventions were limited to digital teaching tools; and the outcomes consisted of knowledge, motivation, and competencies. A systematic literature review was performed in the PubMed, CINAHL, MEDLINE, Web of Science, SAGE, Scopus, and Cochrane Library databases and by backward citation searching. We used PRISMA guidelines 2020 to depict the search process for relevant literature. Two authors evaluated included studies using the Mixed Methods Appraisal Tool (MMAT) independently. Using inclusion and exclusion criteria, we included 15 studies in the final analysis: six quantitative descriptive studies, two randomized studies, six mixed methods studies, and one qualitative study. According to the MMAT, all studies were suitable for further analysis in terms of quality. The studies resorted to various digital tools to improve students' knowledge of behavior change techniques in individuals with chronic disease, leading to greater self-confidence, better cooperation, and practical experience and skills. The most common limitations that have been perceived for using these tools are time and space constraints.
Hypertension is a serious medical condition, the frequency of which increases significantly with age; has a negative impact on certain health complications; and increases the rate of mortality. Music ...therapy as a nonpharmacological treatment has many positive effects on an individual's body and mind. A randomized controlled trial was used to evaluate the effects of music therapy on blood pressure, heart rate, and anxiety levels in older adults with hypertension living in a nursing home. Sixty older adults were randomly divided into experimental and control groups (
= 30 each). Significant reductions in systolic blood pressure, heart rate, and anxiety levels were found in older adults with hypertension receiving music therapy compared with the control group. The current study confirms music therapy as a safe, noninvasive, nonpharmacological, and cost-effective intervention for reducing blood pressure, heart rate, and anxiety levels in older adults with hypertension.
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