FACTORES ESTRESANTES Y ESTRATEGIAS DE COPING UTILIZADAS POR LOS ENFERMEROS QUE ACTÚAN EN ONCOLOGÍA FATORES ESTRESSANTES E ESTRATÉGIAS DE COPING DOS ENFERMEIROS ATUANTES EM ONCOLOGIA

A pesquisa, de natureza qualitativa, teve como núcleo de interesse investigativo as representações e as significações que um grupo de Agentes Comunitários de Saúde (ACSs) possui acerca das vulnerabilidades para o sofrimento no trabalho a que estão expostos, assim como as próprias manifestações deste sofrimento ao desempenharem suas ações relativas ao Programa de Saúde da Família (PSF).A entrevista semi-estruturada com um grupo de ACSs, explorou o significado de ser ACS e a percepção da organização do trabalho; a análise foi embasada no referencial teórico-metodológico da hermenêutica e nas teorias relacionadas à psicodinâmica do trabalho. Os achados mostram a existência de uma importante vulnerabilidade ao sofrimento, gerada principalmente pela ideação idealizada da própria prática e pela escassa perspectiva de rearranjo dos ingredientes constitutivos da organização do trabalho, já que este profissional depende de fatores alheios ao seu espectro de alcance, que inclui as limitações do modelo assistencial proposto pelo PSF.

Objective: to investigate the use of religious/spiritual coping among people with cancer undergoing chemotherapy. Methods: a quantitative, descriptive and cross-sectional study of 101 patients undergoing intravenous chemotherapy in an oncology outpatients center in a public hospital in Minas Gerais, made in the first semester of 2011. For data collection, an interview was held, using a questionnaire for characterizing the sample and the Brief Spiritual/Religious Coping Scale.Results: all subjects made use of religious/spiritual coping (mean=3.67; sd=0.37); the younger individuals, those with no religion and those who consider spiritual support unimportant tend to use coping negatively; individuals who would like to receive spiritual support and who participate in support groups for cancer patients, on the other hand, use coping positively. Conclusions: the study reinforces that religious/spiritual coping is an important strategy for coping with cancer, and contributes to an understanding of the same as a useful tool for spiritual care.

An inverted U-shape function between cortisol levels and memory performance has been reported in studies on both young animals and humans. Yet little is known about this relationship in normal aging or in older subjects with cognitive impairment. This issue is particularly significant since increased levels of cortisol have been reported in Alzheimer's disease (AD). The present study examined the association between cortisol levels and visual memory performance in healthy subjects as well as in individuals presenting mild cognitive impairment (MCI) or AD. Salivary cortisol was measured in 40 healthy elderly subjects, 31 individuals with amnestic MCI, and 40 subjects with mild probable AD. Memory performance was evaluated using the Brief Cognitive Screening Battery. Higher cortisol levels were associated with better memory performance in healthy elderly (p=0.005), while higher cortisol levels were correlated with poorer memory performance in MCI subjects (p=0.011). No correlation between cortisol and memory was found in the AD group (p > 0.05). These results suggest that the relationship between cortisol levels and memory performance in the aging process could vary according to the presence or absence of cognitive impairment.

Objectives:to evaluate the evidence from the literature regarding the effects of cupping therapy on chronic back pain in adults, the most used outcomes to evaluate this condition, the protocol used to apply the intervention and to investigate the effectiveness of cupping therapy on the intensity of chronic back pain. Method:systematic review and meta-analysis carried out by two independent researchers in national and international databases. Reference lists of systematic reviews were also explored. The quality of evidence was assessed according to the Jadad scale. Results:611 studies were identified, of which 16 were included in the qualitative analysis and 10 in the quantitative analysis. Cupping therapy has shown positive results on chronic back pain. There is no standardization in the treatment protocol. The main assessed outcomes were pain intensity, physical incapacity, quality of life and nociceptive threshold before the mechanical stimulus. There was a significant reduction in the pain intensity score through the use of cupping therapy (p = 0.001). Conclusion:cupping therapy is a promising method for the treatment of chronic back pain in adults. There is the need to establish standardized application protocols for this intervention.

O estudo tem como objetivo investigar o uso do coping religioso/espiritual em pacientes com doença renal crônica em hemodiálise. A investigação ocorreu em uma clínica de hemodiálise, por meio de entrevista utilizando um questionário sociodemográfico e a escala de coping religioso/espiritual. Para análise dos dados, foram empregados a estatística descritiva e o teste coeficiente de correlação de Sperman, a análise de variância e o modelo de regressão linear múltipla. Foram entrevistados 123 indivíduos, dos quais 79,6% apresentaram escore alto para o coping religioso/espiritual e nenhum deles apresentou os escores baixos e irrisórios. As variáveis que influenciaram no comportamento do coping religioso/espiritual foram: sexo, faixa etária, tempo de tratamento, renda familiar e prática religiosa. Conclui-se que os pacientes em estudo utilizam de modo positivo o coping religioso/espiritual como estratégia de enfrentamento da doença, destacando-se as mulheres, com renda familiar maior e que frequentam semanalmente a igreja.

Objective: To evaluate the effect of prayer on anxiety in cancer patients undergoing chemotherapy. Method: Quasi-experimental study, with pre and post-intervention. Twenty patients admitted to treatment of continuous intravenous chemotherapy were recruited. The volunteers were evaluated through interviews using a questionnaire of sociodemographic, clinical and spiritual characteristics, the Index of Religiosity Duke University and the State-Trait Anxiety Inventory. Vital signs were measured and collected salivary cortisol. The intervention was applied prayer and data collection occurred in three phases: first collection (baseline), pre and post-intervention. Results: The data found between the pre and post-intervention samples showed different statistically significant for state anxiety (p= <0.00), blood pressure (systolic, p=0.00, diastolic, p=<0.00) and respiratory rate (p=0.04). Conclusion: Prayer, therefore, proved to be an effective strategy in reducing the anxiety of the patient undergoing chemotherapy.

This study aimed to identify and validate the defining characteristics of the nursing diagnosis Impaired spirituality. The methodological framework proposed by Fehring for the clinical validation of nursing diagnosis was used. The investigation was carried out in a dialysis clinic and had as participants 120 patients with chronic renal disease. Data were collected by two expert nurses, through interviews. The prevalence of the nursing diagnosis Impaired spirituality in the sample was 27.5%. It was found that the most frequent defining characteristics were Expresses behavioral changes: rage, Inability to express creativity, Questions suffering and Expresses alienation. The clinical validation of Impaired spirituality contributed to refine this diagnosis. Its identification in patients with chronic renal disease undergoing dialysis treatment can offer alternatives for a safer and more effective intervention, aiming at the satisfaction of the spiritual needs of these patients.