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Background/Objectives: Empathy and emotional regulation (susceptibility and resistance) play an important role in a nurse's well-being and the provision of high-quality care. This phenomenon has not yet been studied in the context of nurses working in neuroscience. This study aimed to explore the perceptions related to empathy among nurses working in neuroscience contexts. Methods: Employing a mixed-methods approach, we conducted an online quantitative survey with 211 nurses working in various neuroscience settings using the Balanced Emotional Empathy Scale (BEES) and 15 online semistructured qualitative interviews to delve deeper into empathetic experiences. The mean and measures of dispersion, such as standard deviation, were used to analyze the quantitative data. Thematic analysis investigated qualitative data, and data triangulation was performed. Results: The quantitative findings revealed no significant differences in empathy or emotional regulation across the different neuroscience settings but highlighted an increase in susceptibility related to young age (under 29) and years of service (first 5 years). The interviews brought to light the challenges nurses face in highly emotional situations and the strategies they employ to manage empathy and maintain professional detachment, such as self-care strategies, awareness development, and team support. One hindering factor is managers. Conclusions: The findings of this study underscore the essential role of empathetic capability in nursing care in neuroscience. The experience of younger nurses and the first 5 years of employment are elements to be considered by managers for burnout risk. Nurses demonstrate susceptibility and resistance and maintain a balance in dealing with high-emotional-stress situations. The implications of these findings are significant and should guide future research and practice in the field of neuroscience nursing. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This research analyzed the effect of professional, organizational and care-unit identifications on both healthcare professionals' quality of professional life and mental health. This research was done in a local hospital in a region of northern Italy which was one of the first regions to be impacted by the first wave of the pandemic. Using a cross-sectional research, a web-based questionnaire was sent to the healthcare professionals. Professional quality of life, professional identifications as well as emotional maladjustment in terms of stress, anxiety and depression were measured. Results indicated that professional and care unit identification were positively linked to increased compassion satisfaction and reduced burnout. Professional identification was negatively associated with secondary traumatic stress as well, while care unit identification was positively associated with vicarious trauma. The negative dimension of the professional quality of life had positive relations with emotional maladjustment. Professional and care unit identifications appeared to have an indirect effect via professional quality of life on maladjustment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This meta-analysis investigated differences between nurses and physicians in interprofessional collaboration (IPC) ratings. Fifty-one surveys, representing a total of 18 782 professionals and students (13 132 nurses and nursing students, and 5650 physicians and medical students), were meta-analyzed, considering several moderating variables. Overall, nurses scored higher on IPC than physicians. Sensitivity analysis revealed that while physicians perceived more existing collaboration than nurses, nurses had a more positive attitude toward collaboration than physicians. Moreover, IPC ratings of nursing and medical students did not differ from those of practitioners. Finally, it appeared that interprofessional education interventions were able to reduce the difference in IPC between nurses and physicians. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background and Aim: The Nursing undergraduate degree educational program represents an intensive and complex course, and includes a number of professionalizing practical internships, and for these reasons it requires an action to support and improve. Coaching is based on the premise that people have personal strengths and abilities which, through a interview, can be directed to solving their problems. Several studies demonstrate the efficacy of Health Coaching in different University, but never have been measured benefits regard skills improving. The objective of the study is to assess the impact of a health coaching program on the nursing students., Method: A pre-post quasi-experimental study was conducted, involving the activation of a Health Coaching Program for 25 nursing students selected through convenience sampling, based on their fulfillment of the inclusion criteria. The Health Coaching Program was administered by the Health Coaching Academy., Result: This study also evaluated parameters such as: level of concentration in study, motivation, problem solving and reorganization skills, study organization skills, psycho-physical-emotional state comprehension, decision-making skills and self-esteem, noting a statistically significant increase post-HC program. A statistically significant improvement was also found in the students' perception of their own stress management skills after the course., Conclusion: This study strengthens the hypothesis that HC programs contribute to improving performance of nursing students. Those conclusions need to be corroborated by future studies on the topic to further support the hypothesis that programs of HC within the learning nursing contexts can lead to a tangible benefit for students of the health professions.

Introduction: Missed Nursing care (MNC) is defined as planned care in the patients care process that is omitted or delayed. Despite their importance in Italy, there are just few studies that measure MNC's prevalence and causes. We are not aware of studies published in literature that have related MNC with the presence or absence of support staff., Objectives: This study's objective, was to measure nurse's perception and reasons for missed care in surgical wards with or without Health Care Assistants (HCA), and, to assess whether there is a significant difference between the two groups of nurses., Methodology: A Cross-sectional observational study was conducted through the administration of the "Missed Nursing Care Survey" in the Italian Version to nurses of the wards surveyed., Results: Results have confirmed that the most frequent MNC are hygiene and mobilisation activities as reported in other Italian and foreign studies, with higher frequency in wards without HCAs. Also, the study confirmed other Italian and foreign study results recognising the most significant motivation for MNC's as the lack of staff and unexpected events., Conclusions: Without wishing to attribute a cause/effect relation, it is interesting to assess the results, which seem to show that the presence of HCAs contributes to reduce the prevalence of missed activities. The lack of staff has revealed higher average of MNC for both groups, which seems to direct our attention not only towards the presence of HCAs but in regards to their inclusion in care activities. It may be necessary to reflect on the priority that nurses give to certain activities.

Background and aim In health care, competencies evolving with clinical and professional practice increasingly need to be defined. Identifying professional competencies in a general sense is no longer enough; it is necessary to define what competencies the professional must possess to ensure the appropriateness and effectiveness of their work. This pilot study aims to outline an initial competency framework specifically for vascular access nurses Methods: A cross-sectional observational study was conducted through structured interviews with professionals of a competency framework (108) to assess content validity and ensure relevance, comprehensibility, and completeness Results: The research involved 14 expert professionals who reported no significant language barriers or comprehensibility difficulties. The expert review showed that the content was valid for all proposed items (CVR .571 to 1.0). Conclusions: The framework identified could be a good starting point for a more in-depth assessment of expert nursing skills in venous access (www.actabiomedica.it).

Background and Aim: Perceived COVID-19-related stigmatizations have a strong impact on healthcare workers' wellbeing and quality of professional life, decreasing satisfaction and increasing fatigue. This work aims to investigate the role of professional identification in moderating the impact of COVID-19-related stigma on quality of professional life in a sample of healthcare professionals working in hospital., Methods: A cross-sectional design in which a web-based questionnaire was sent to professionals was used to collect answers from 174 participants, most of whom women and nurses., Results: Perceived stigma was negatively related with compassion satisfaction and positively related with an increase in both burnout and secondary traumatic stress. Professional identification had a positive correlation with satisfaction and a negative correlation with burnout, but this was not directly related with secondary traumatic stress. Importantly, stigma and identification interacted so that stigma decreased compassion satisfaction only when identification was low, and increased secondary traumatic stress only when identification was high. No interaction effect appeared with respect to burnout., Conclusions: Experience of stigmatization has the potential to decrease the quality of professional life of healthcare professionals. Professional identification seems to help professional to maintain higher level of compassion satisfaction and reduced burnout. However, professional identification seems also be associated with vicarious trauma experienced following stigma. (www.actabiomedica.it).

Background and Aim: Healthcare organizations, in order to reduce errors and extend the number of safe practices, are looking for possible solutions to enhance the clients' health quality care and trying to spread the culture of safety healthcare. Although in the literature the field of research "patient safety" is very debated, there are few empirical studies that investigate about the strategies undertaken by nursing students for the patients identification process during their care pathway. The aim of this study is to investigate the knowledge of the Ministerial Recommendation No. 3/2008 among nursing students, a specific Italian directive that aims to guarantee the safety of cares., Methods: A four-weeks single-center observational study was conducted, involving a convenient sample of 112 students of the 2nd and 3rd  year of the Nursing Course Degree of the University of Parma. The survey was conducted using an ad-hoc questionnaire., Results: The use of the identification wristband is considered one of the most important strategy to make sure the patient identification; unfortunately it is in practice used just in few occasions and only when performed specific procedures; it is furthermore noted that patients are not enough informed about the use and finalities of the identification wristband., Conclusions: Considering the importance of the patient identification process to guarantee the  safety of cares, the results produced, suggest that this investigation field deserves further insights in order to collect more substantial data and expand knowledge on the specific subject, so as to fill  knowledge gaps and sensitize nursing students to the correct use of the identification wristband.

Background and Aim: The nursing uniform represents a non-verbal mean of communication which in the case of children can arouse positive or negative emotions. The first study conducted on a sample of 107 children, aimed to define their preferences on different models of decorated nursing uniforms; the second one conducted on 101 nurses to understand the preferences, the meanings attributed to the uniform and their availability to adapt it according to the preferences expressed by the children., Methods: We conducted an observational study with a qualitative approach. For the first objective with the children, a visual stimulus was used, showing 6 models of uniform: the traditional plus 5 models of different colors and themes (cartoons characters and videogames). For the second objective with the nurses, in addition to reproducing the same visual stimulus, a semi-structured questionnaire was used., Results: Children and nurses seem to be in perfect accord, because in both groups, color models were the most chosen. Nurses defined their uniform with terms of particular moral, intellectual and professional value and declared themselves available to align with the preferences of the children., Conclusions: This study leaves little doubt about preferences; it also represents the true originality of the study because almost never in the literature have been compared the point of views of children and professionals, generally favoring the comparison between children and care givers. Our findings could represent a further landmark for guiding the choices of health organizations on currencies to be adopted in the pediatric field. (www.actabiomedica.it).

Background and Aim: The Integrated Narrative Nursing Model (INNM) is an approach that integrates the qualitative methodology typical of the human sciences, with the quantitative methodology more often associated with the natural sciences. This complex model, which combines a focus on narrative with quantitative measures, has recently been effectively applied to the assessment of chronic patients. In this study, the model is applied to the planning phase of education (Integrated Narrative Nursing Education, INNE), and proves to be a valid instrument for the promotion of the current educational paradigm that is centered on the engagement of both the patient and the caregiver in their own path of care. The aim of this study is therefore to describe the nurse's strategy in the planning of an educational intervention by using the INNE model., Methods: The case of a 70-year-old woman with pulmonary neoplasm is described at her first admission to Hospice. Each step conducted by the reference nurse, who uses INNE to record the nurse-patient narrative and collect subsequent questionnaires in order to create a shared educational plan, is also described., Results: The information collected was submitted, starting from a grounded methodology to the following four levels of analysis: I. Needs Assessment, II. Narrative Diagnosis, III. Quantitative Outcome, IV. Integrated Outcome. Step IV, which is derived from the integration of all levels of analysis, allows a nurse to define, even graphically, the conceptual map of a patient's needs, resources and perspectives, in a completely tailored manner., Conclusion: The INNE model offers a valid methodological support for the professional who intends to educate the patient through an inter-subjective and engaged pathway, between the professional, their patient and the socio-relational context. It is a matter of adopting a complex vision that combines processes and methods that require a steady scientific basis and advanced methodological expertise with active listening and empathy - skills which require emotional intelligence.

Background and Aim: There has recently been a growing interest towards patients' affective and emotional needs, especially in relational therapies, which are considered vital as to increase the understanding of those needs and patients' well-being. In particular, we paid attention to those patients who are forced to spend the last phase of their existence in residential facilities, namely elderly people in nursing homes, who often feel marginalized, useless, depressed, unstimulated or unable to communicate. The aim of this study is to verify the effectiveness of pet therapy in improving well-being in the elderly living in a nursing home., Methods: This is a longitudinal study with before and after intervention variables measurement in two groups of patients of a nursing home for elderly people. One group followed an AAI intervention (experimental group) the other one did not (control group). As to perform an assessment of well-being we measured the following dimensions in patients: anxiety (HAM-A), depression (GDS), apathy (AES), loneliness (UCLA), and quality of life (QUALID). Both groups filled the questionnaires as to measure the target variables (time 0). Once finished the scheduled meetings (time 1), all the participants, including the control group, filled the same questionnaires., Results: In accordance with scientific evidence the results confirmed a significant reduction of the measured variables. Especially for the quality of life, which showed a greater reduction than the other., Conclusions: The implementation and success of the Pet Therapy could have a great emotional and social impact, bringing relief to patients and their family members, but also to health professionals.

The areas that we wanted to investigate include: tasks performed, tools used, formalization of the assignment, workload, empowerment and satisfaction of the function performed, and training. The results clearly show that the processes of tutoring are different for physicians and non-physician healthcare professionals. The first interesting difference is the method of assignment of mentoring. While among medical professions the function is assigned by others, tutors are often non-medical volunteers. This evidence leads to two unanswered questions: what are the criteria by which they are chosen as tutors? Do volunteers really possess the skills and ability to carry out this role? Future research should be directed towards clearly defining the profile of the "tutor" among both doctors and non-medical professionals. Another difference is the way the work of the mentor is formalized. If they are doctors, the task is assigned to them; this is not the case for non-medical professions. Despite this difference, a high percentage of both medical professionals and doctors said they did not feel valued for their role of tutor. However, differences emerge: physicians see their role as a paid tutor and / or recognized in their curriculum vitae. For non-medical professions, however, the only reward is a recognition of ECM (Educazione Continua in Medicina)credits. A common feature among professionals is that for both physicians and non-physician healthcare tutors, a system of evaluation is rarely reported. Another common feature is the skills that professionals would like to see improved. Both groups of professionals, in fact, would like to see improved teaching methods, communication strategies and reporting and evaluation systems. Finally, non-physician tutors report the same level of satisfaction, although the non-physician professionals are more satisfied in their relationship with colleagues. The degree of empowerment reveals perceived differences and similarities among the professionals. In fact, both professional groups reported the same levels of competence and impact, but differ in meaning and self-determination. More specifically, the non-medical professionals show high scores, while doctors get a higher score for self-determination. These results suggest that for increased attention to the system of evaluation and enhancement of the function tutorial we need not only to increase the satisfaction of those who act as tutors, but also to improve the tutorial process itself. Furthermore, the results suggest the carrying out of training projects for teaching and assessment methods that represent the issues that are most in demand by tutors. The training should include the use of tools for the governance process that project tutorial and apprenticeships. The responses indicate that these tools are already in use, although not as widespread and continuous.

Unlabelled: PROBLEM/BACKGROUND: Pain management is a major worldwide health problem. It manifests itself in a variety of forms involving in turn a multiplicity of responses and therapeutic strategies. Following from this, the training of health personnel must deal with this situation and must not only offer technical assistance, but must also deal with the psychological and social aspects of the problem. In recent years various guidelines and protocols have become popular for pain management. The aim of this paper is to present a literature review of the major international databases. Type of research: Systematic review., Objective: To identify relevant studies in the literature on pain management and identify the guidelines recognized by the scientific community., Materials and Methods: A literature search was conducted using the keywords "pain management" and "nurse" published since 2000 in English and Italian in the following databases: PubMed, CINAHL, Med Line. Excluding items which did not meet the inclusion criteria, 49 articles were included in the review., Results: Despite a growing availability of evidence-based guidelines, drugs for pain control and the enactment of legislation to promote the use of opioid analgesics in pain therapy, a substantial proportion of the European population continues to have pain. Estimates of the prevalence of pain symptoms in the literature show that between 40% and 63% of hospitalized patients reported pain, peaking at 82.3% in cancer patients in advanced stages of the disease or terminally ill (in hospital or at home). Several studies published in recent years have agreed on a definition of some key points in the management of pain. Studies agree that pain should be recognized as the 5th vital sign, hence the need for validated scales whether single or multi-dimensional, quantitative or qualitative. The approach to the management of pain must be multi-professional, and the use of pharmacology must be in accordance with the WHO three-step approach. Several studies have demonstrated that communication and training of operators, associated with accurate information to patients, are effective elements to improve health care delivered to patients. These studies have led to the publication of guidelines by various scientific societies, indicating timely strategies for effective pain management both in hospital and in the territory. A possible development of this research could be to conduct a retrospective study in accordance with the AUDIT methodology so that we can check the implementation of guidelines and propose corrective actions to meet the defined standards.

Background and Aim of the Work: Nurse-physician stereotypes have been proposed as a factor hindering interprofessional collaboration among practitioners and interprofessional learning among nursing and medical students. Using socio-psychological theories about ambivalent stereotypes, the present work aimed to analyse: a) the content of nurse and physician stereotypes held by nursing and medical students and b) the role of auto-stereotype on students' attitude toward interprofessional education (IPE).  Methods. A cross-sectional on-line survey was adopted and a questionnaire was emailed to 205 nursing students and 151 medical students attending an Italian university., Results: Nursing and medical students shared the stereotypical belief that nurses are warmer but less competent than physicians. Nurses and physicians were basically depicted with ambivalent stereotypes: nurses were seen as communal, socially competent and caring but less competent, not agentic and less autonomous, while physicians were seen as agentic, competent and autonomous, but less communal, less collectivist and less socially competent. Moreover, a professional stereotypical image impacted the students' attitude toward IPE. More precisely, when nurses and physicians were seen with classic ambivalent stereotypes, both nursing and medical students were less favourable towards interprofessional education programmes., Conclusions: The content of professional stereotypes of healthcare students was still linked to classical views of nurses as caring and physicians as curing. This seemed to limit students' attitude and intention to be engaged in IPE.