Béatrice Perrenoud

Background: Due to the increasing care needs of older adults, family caregivers are more and more solicited. This can have a negative impact on their quality of life related to a lack of preparedness for caregiving and feelings of burden. Objectives: To measure perceptions of burden and preparedness for caregiving among the family caregivers of hospitalised older adults, and to explore their possible associations. Methods: A cross-sectional study conducted in two university hospital geriatrics wards in Switzerland. Principal family caregivers of hospitalised older adults were invited to complete sociodemographic, the Zarit Burden Interview, and the Preparedness for Caregiving Scale questionnaires. Descriptive and correlational data analyses were performed. Results: Of the 38 responding caregivers, 80% provided informal care to their spouse or parent; 45% reported a lack of preparedness to provide care and 61% reported substantial levels of burden. There was no statistically signific...

Three ethical models and multiple theoretical references are linked to accompaniment practice. Two social service vocational teachers talk of their accompaniment. Their talks are used to question the relationship between knowledge and ethical reflection. Some singular positions are revealed in regard to their relationship to knowledge, which is designed as a dialectic between knowledge and ethics. From these examples, some research perspectives on the dialectics between knowledge and ethics are suggested.

Western Europe has been swept in the last three decades by ongoing reforms within the nurse education systems. Within the Western European region, Switzerland is one of the last countries initiating the integration of nursing programs into higher education institutions. This article examines the nurse education reforms recently enacted in Switzerland. The specific aims of the analysis were to: (a) examine modes of reform implementation and the current status of the Swiss nurse education system; (b) compare between two new Swiss nurse education models developed in the various linguistic regions. A documentary search for policy documents, reports and studies related to the implementation processes of reforms was conducted through websites of various legal institutions and the Swiss university library system. The analysis indicated that although a fit between environmental pressures and the reform agenda exists, the implementation of the nursing reform varied considerably between the v...

ABSTRACT A urology nursing team examined its perioperative practices in the light of scientific data and implemented updated care practices adapted to this context. This experience favours the development of skills essential for inter-disciplinary collaboration drawing on the resources of each profession, to work towards a common goal for the benefit of the patient. Copyright © 2012 Elsevier Masson SAS. All rights reserved.

ABSTRACT The nurse preceptor holds a specific role in the healthcare staff linked with both educational and nursing cultures. This article presents the analysis of the training program developed at the CHUV (Switzerland). The analysis indicates tra- how the training model centered on thefields of nursing and education, improves the development of a bi cultural identity, and the implementation of the preceptorship role. This training model effectively enables nurse preceptors to support students learning in a care perspective and allow them to cope with the potential conflicts between educational and nursing approaches. An evaluation of the training experience and some potential directions for the program are discussed.

Chronic wounds are a major health problem, which nurses are dealing with daily. However, weak agreement exists with the dressing technique on chronic wounds. The practices described are often imprecise and even controversial. At least four procedures are depicted for this practice in Switzerland. This search of evidence is conduct on the dressing technique on chronic wounds in hospital care units. The debate on this issue is depicted and the terms of sterile and non sterile bandage are defined. The scientific and professional literature analyzed to determine the level of proof of the existing data does not state that one of both techniques--sterile versus non sterile--is more adequate than the other, for the chronic wounds management in hospital environment. The principles formulated on the basis of this literature review are therefore based on the experts' opinion.