Background The present study was conducted with the aim of investigating the prevalence of potentially beneficial and harmful drug-drug interactions (DDIs) in intensive care units (ICUs). Methods The present cross-sectional prospective study was conducted in two ICUs in Shahr-e Kord city, Iran. The study sample was consisted of 300 patients. The Drug Interaction Facts reference text book [Tatro DS. Drug interaction facts. St Louis, MO: Walters Kluwer Health, 2010.] was used to determine the type and the frequency of the DDIs. Results The participants consisted of 189 patients men and 111 women. The mean age of patients was 44.2 ± 24.6 years. Totally, 60.5% of patients had at least one drug-drug interaction in their profile. The total number of DDIs found was 663 (the mean of the total number of drug-drug interactions was 2.4 interactions per patient). Of all the 663 interactions, 574 were harmful and others were beneficial. In terms of starting time, 98 of the potential interactions were rapid and 565 of them were delayed. In terms of severity, 511 of the potential interactions were moderate. Some of the drugs in the patients’ medical records including phenytoin, dopamine, ranitidine, corticosteroid, dopamine, heparin, midazolam, aspirin, magnesium, calcium gluconate, and antibiotics, the type of ventilation, the type of nutrition and the duration of hospital stay were among the factors that were associated with high risk of potential DDIs (p < 0.05). Conclusions The prevalence of potentially beneficial and harmful DDIs, especially harmful drug-drug interactions, is high in ICUs and it is necessary to reduce these interactions by implementing appropriate programs and interventions.

Introduction Inflammation of the oral mucosa is one of the conventional side effects of chemotherapy, affecting the patient's acceptance and treatment process. Hence, the knowledge regarding the complication and the methods to prevent them helps improve the course of treatment, prevent frequent hospitalizations, and survive these patients. The current study aims to implement the family-centered empowerment model based on mucositis management on the quality of life of children with cancer undergoing chemotherapy. Method A randomized study is presented in this paper that is conducted on 60 parents of children with cancer undergoing chemotherapy. These children were referred to Shahrekord Kashani Hospital in 2019–2020. The authors received informed consent from the parents who also participated in the tests. The parents were selected using the available sampling method and divided into two intervention and control groups through random allocation. In the intervention group, based on the empowerment model of the Al-Hani family, the intervention's content was consolidated in person and virtual space. Whereas in the control group, routine training was provided by nurses. To collect data from the demographic information questionnaire, the children's quality of life questionnaire was considered based on the parents' point of view. Ped QL Cancer Modules were used, which were electronically provided to the control and intervention groups in the three stages before, immediately after, and three months after the end of the intervention. Besides, who oral mucositis grading scale was employed for measuring mucositis. The collected data were analyzed using descriptive, analytical, and statistical tests (frequency and percentage, mean and standard deviation, and Fisher's exact test) and using SPSS23 software. Findings The obtained results revealed that the children's quality of life in the two groups immediately and three months after the intervention had a significant difference (p < 0.001). Accordingly, the quality of life of the children in the intervention group (35.12 ± 66.30) represented a significant rise (p < 0.001) compared to the control group (-4.6 ± 7.6). Conclusion The results indicated that the empowerment program could help parents discover the reality and increase awareness, ability, skill, and critical thinking. Therefore, the obtained results can prevent complicating the inflammation of the oral mucosa in children undergoing chemotherapy. Reducing hospitalization due to chemotherapy complications will improve children's quality of life.

Aim:Quality of life (QOL) can be considered as a quality indicator of health care systems and nurses can play an important role to improve QOL in patients with congestive heart failure (CHF). The aim of this study was to determine the effects of education provided by nurses on the QOL in patients with CHF in home-visit care compared to usual care.Method:In a single-blind randomized controlled trial conducted from September 2011 to June 2012, 110 patients with CHF were randomly assigned into two groups. While patients in group I were received usual education at the time of hospital discharge, patients in Group II, in addition to usual education, were received special education regards to their illness by nurses who visited patients in their homes. The 36-item short-form (SF-36) questionnaire was used to evaluate the patient’s QOL at the time of discharge and also six months after hospital discharge.Results:At the time of hospital discharge, mean score of all 8 sub-score of SF-36 questionnaire was 63.4±7.8 in patients of group II and 61.1±6.4 in patients of group I, respectively (P> 0.05). QOL was decreased in group I and increased in group II compared to the time of hospital discharge. After six months, mean score of QOL was higher in group II than in group I.Conclusions:QOL of patients with CHF were decreased after hospital discharge. Education provided by nurses in home-visit care could improve the QOL in patients with CHF, based on the findings of this study.

Background Open-heart surgery in persons with cardiovascular disease is associated with high levels of anxiety. Objective The goal of this study was to determine the effect of digital storytelling on anxiety in patients who were candidates for open-heart surgery. Methods In this quasi-experimental study, 80 patients were randomly allocated into 2 groups. The intervention group received routine training and digital storytelling. In each group, anxiety was measured by the State-Trait Anxiety Inventory anxiety scale before surgery and 5 days after surgery. The collected data were analyzed using SPSS software V18. Results There was no significant difference in the anxiety of both groups during the 2 days before the surgery (P = .40). After the surgery, the mean of anxiety scores in the intervention group was lower than that of the control group (P < .001). Conclusions Digital storytelling is an effective method to reduce anxiety in patients who are candidates for open-heart surgery.