To explore the key factors influencing nurses' capability, opportunity and motivation to offer the choice for self-collection for cervical screening within rural primary care services, following a national policy change in Australia.
A qualitative study informed by implementation and behavioural change frameworks.
Primary health nurses working in Victoria were invited to participate in semi-structured interviews via video or telephone between December 2022 and March 2023. Eighteen nurses from 18 clinics participated. Interview data were analysed following a Framework analysis approach, and themes were mapped to the COM-B model.
Nurses were highly motivated to offer the choice for self-collection due to perceived advantages for their patients and potential opportunities for reaching people hesitant to screen. There was variation in how nurses offered this choice, and to whom. Some nurses were concerned about lost opportunities to visualise the vulval area or cervix, or to have broader health and wellbeing conversations with patients. Views were mixed about how self-collection would impact nurse roles, and several external factors were impacting their opportunities as cervical screening providers.
Appropriately trained nurses have the capability and motivation to incorporate the choice for self-collection within their screening practice; however, their opportunity to maximise equity and increase participation is impacted by funding models and structures that limit their autonomy.
People living outside major cities experience greater healthcare inequities. Australia introduced access to the choice for self-collection for all eligible individuals in 2022, in part to achieve greater equity in the national screening program. Nurses can play a key role in program delivery. Understanding how they incorporate self-collection into their practice, and the key factors influencing implementation in rural primary care settings, can inform future program implementation and improve outcomes for patients.
We have adhered to COREQ reporting guidelines.
This study did not include patient or public involvement in its design, conduct or reporting.
Evaluate the effect of IV line labels on nurses' identification of high-alert medications in a simulated scenario of multiple infusions for critically ill patients.
Randomised crossover simulation experimental study.
A study was conducted on 29 nurses working in intensive care for over 6 months. They were given two critical scenarios in a simulated environment, one with labels and the other without labels, involving multiple intravenous infusions. The nurses had to identify the medications infused into the critical patients' intravenous lines and disconnect a specific line. The data were collected and analysed to evaluate the errors made by the nurses in identifying and disconnecting the medications and the time they spent carrying out the tasks. The Wilcoxon test was used to analyse the variation in outcome before and after the intervention.
Approximately one-third of the study participants incorrectly identified the intravenous lines in both scenarios. There was no significant difference in the average number of errors between the scenarios with and without labels. However, the time taken to perform the tasks in the scenario with labels was 1 min less than in the scenario without labels, suggesting a potential efficiency gain.
The labels on the intravenous lines allowed for quick drug identification and disconnection. The professionals performed similarly in correctly recognising the high-alert medication intravenous lines, in the scenarios with or without labels.
The label can be used as a technology to prevent misidentification of high-alert medications administered to critically ill patients through intravenous lines, thereby enhancing medication safety in healthcare institutions.
No Public Contribution.