The Nursee-Nurse Collaboration Behavior Scale:Development and psychometric testing

Objective:To develop and test the reliability and validity of a new instrument,the Nurse eNurse Collaboration Behavior Scale(NNCBS).Background:The importance of cooperation among nurses is widely acknowledged,but is a lack of scientific studies regarding the behaviorial interactions associated with nurse enurse relationships throughout the process of patient-centered care.Therefore,there is a great need to develop a reliable scale to measure nurseenurse collaboration behavior,which is what we have generated in this study.Methods:The 46-item Nursee-Nurse Collaboration Scale was developed using a process of item design,refinement,and testing for both reliability and validity.In 2014,the 202 nurses from the International Department of Services participated in this pilot study.Cronbach's a coefficients and testeretest reliability coefficients were calculated in order to evaluate this new scale's internal consistency and stability.Exploratory factor analysis was calculated using a principal factor method with promax rotation to evaluate the scale's validity.Results:Exploratory factor analysis yielded four factors and 23 items.The overall Cronbach's a coefficient of the scale was 0.929.The item-total correlation values were overall high,ranging from 0.427 to 0.751.For the entire scale,the r values of the testeretest reliability correlations were 0.764.Conclusion:The NNCB Scale developed in this study demonstrates acceptable reliability and validity for measuring the level of NNCB.Its implementration on a broader scale would at the very least guide and promote collaborative relationships between nurses involved in patient care.It should be noted that the scale requires further psychometric testing using a larger sample size of nurses who also represent a wider diversity of backgrounds,as well as researchers who are encouraged to improve the instrument.

Novel computerized psychometric tests as primary screening tools for the diagnosis of minimal hepatic encephalopathy

Minimal hepatic encephalopathy(MHE)is a critical neurocognitive complication of decompensated liver cirrhosis and portosystemic shunting,which results in a wide range of cognitive deficits including impairments in working attention,psychomotor speed,and executive function.Current guidelines have recommended paper-and-pencil psychometric tests for the diagnosis of MHE.Most high-risk cirrhotic patients are required to be examined;however,paperand-pencil psychometric tests are neither convenient nor rapid to perform in the clinic.Recently,novel computerized psychometric tests,including the inhibitory control test,EncephalApp Stroop App,and critical flicker frequency,have been proven to be rapid,effective,and convenient methods for screening MHE in clinical practice and for identifying high-risk cirrhotic patients for further validation using rigid neuropsychometric examinations.However,diagnostic accuracy of these tests is influenced by educational background,age,and cultural differences.This review summarizes clinical evidence of the application of novel computerized psychometric tests for screening MHE.

Reversibility of minimal hepatic encephalopathy following liver transplantation in Egyptian cirrhotic patients

AIMTo evaluate the reversibility of minimal hepatic encephalopathy (MHE) following liver transplantation (LT) in Egyptian cirrhotic patients. METHODSThis prospective study included twenty patients with biopsy-proven liver cirrhosis listed for LT and twenty age- and sex-matched healthy control subjects. All underwent neuro-psychiatric examination, laboratory investigations, radiological studies and psychometric tests including trail making test A (TMT A), TMT B, digit symbol test and serial dotting test. The psychometric hepatic encephalopathy score (PHES) was calculated for patients to diagnose MHE. Psychometric tests were repeated six months following LT in the cirrhotic patient group. RESULTSBefore LT, psychometric tests showed highly significant deficits in cirrhotic patients in comparison to controls (P P P P = 0.005). More patients in whom reversal of MHE was observed had a pre-transplant MELD score CONCLUSIONReversal of MHE in cirrhotic patients could be achieved by LT, especially in those with a MELD score