Description:
Objectives: Demographic and socioeconomic changes and the availability of health care resources were collected to examine the impacts on life expectancy in Cambodia, Laos, and Myanmar. Design and Sample: An ecological design collecting 29 years (1980 –2008) data for three Southeast Asian countries. Measures: Life expectancy, demographics, socioeconomic status, and health care resources were collected. Results: The structural equation model indicates that more available health care resources and socioeconomic advantages were more likely to increase life expectancy. By contrast, demographic change was more likely to increase life expectancy by way of health care resources. Conclusions: Results show that factors that had direct impacts on life expectancy in all three countries were socioeconomic status and health care resources. Demographic changes had an indirect influence on life expectancy via health care resources. These findings suggest that policymakers should be focusing on how to remove the barriers that impede access to health care services during economic downturns. In addition, how to increase preventive care for the populations that have less access to health care in communities
Description:
Aim To identify factors that have an impact on nurses’ performance of patients’ conscious level assessment. Background There is a need for nurses to accurately assess a patient’s conscious level to detect neurological changes and initiate prompt action. Methods Nine databases were systematically searched (1990–February 2010) to review experimental, cohort, case control, cross-sectional and descriptive studies that addressed factors which affected nurses’ performance of patient conscious level assessment. Participants in the studies reviewed were nursing staff. The Joanna Briggs Institute Meta Analysis of Statistics Assessment and Review Instrument was used for quality assessment. Results Eleven studies were analysed in this review. Knowledge and experience were found to be the most significant factors in determining nurses’ performance of patient conscious level assessment. Formal training was found to be effective in improving assessment skills and experience greatly affected the accuracy of assessment. Conclusion Knowledge and experience are the most significant factors on nurses’ performance of consciousness level assessment. Implications for nursing management Formal training is needed on a continual basis to maintain skills in consciousness level assessment, and nurses who are more experienced in the use of assessment should mentor those that are less experienced