Background: Workplace violence in the health care sector has become a growing global problem. Research has shown that although caregivers comprise a high-risk group exposed to workplace violence, most of them lacked the skills and countermeasures against workplace violence. Therefore, through a quasi-experimental design, this study aimed to investigate the effectiveness of situational simulation training on the nursing staffs’ concept and self-confidence in coping with workplace violence. Methods: Workplace violence simulation trainings were applied based on the systematic literature review and the conclusions from focus group interviews with nursing staff. Data were obtained from structured questionnaires including: (1) baseline characteristics; (2) perception of aggression scale (POAS); and (3) confidence in coping with patient aggression. Results: The results revealed that training course intervention significantly improved the nursing staffs’ self-perception and confidence against workplace violence (p < 0.001). Conclusions: The “simulation education on workplace violence training” as the intervention significantly improved the workplace violence perception and confidence among nursing staffs in coping with aggression events.

In view of the total absence of side-effects in acupressure, its application is worthy of use. This study confirmed the effectiveness of acupressure in preventing post-operative nausea and vomiting.

Background: As outbreak of COVID-19 infection, on April 3, 2020, it is stipulated that the number of inpatient companions is limited to one in Taiwan. All companions are required to register their real personal data with 14 days of travel history, occupation, contact history, and cluster history. We would like to evaluate the impact of the new regulations to the accompanying and visiting culture in Taiwan, via analyzing the appearance and characteristics of inpatient companions in this period. Methods: Using intelligent technology, we designed a novel system in managing the inpatient companions (InPatients Companions Management System [IPCMS]), and the IPCMS was used to collect data about characteristics of inpatients and companions between April 27 and May 3, 2020. The database is built using MySQL software. Microsoft Excel 2016 and SPSS version 20.0 statistical software were used for data analysis, including the basic data of the companions, differential analysis of companions’ gender, person-days and cumulative time, differential analysis of accompaniment-patient relationship, and frequency of accompaniment and cumulative hours. Results: During study period, daily inpatient admissions ranged from 2242 to 2514, the number of companions per day ranged from 2048 to 2293, and the number of companions for one inpatient is 1 to 9 per day, with an average of 1.20 to 1.26. The companions were mostly family members, and most of them were the inpatients’ children (32.9%), and spouse (26.13%). More females than males were noted in all categories of companionship with statistical significance. Conclusion: The data obtained in this study could be an important basis for the transformation and reform of the companions culture in Taiwan’s hospitals and will also provide a glimpse into the attitudes and culture of companions who have long been ignorant and neglected. The experience gained in our IPCMS could also serve as a reference for other hospitals in Taiwan and worldwide.

Background: Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a respiratory infection caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) that causes infectious symptoms including fever, cough, respiratory and gastrointestinal symptoms, and even loss of smell/taste and to date had caused 489 000 people to be infected with 32 000 deaths. This article aims to develop some strategies in dealing with the COVID-19 epidemic to prevent nosocomial infection and ensure the safety of healthcare workforce and employees. Methods: This is a prospectively registered and retrospective descriptive study investigating the clinical characteristics, results of diagnostic tests, and patients’ disposition from February 1, 2020, to April 30, 2020, at a tertiary medical center in Northern Taiwan. Results: There is no nosocomial spreading of SARS-CoV-2 in our facility. The following strategies were followed: information transparency; epidemic prevention resources planning by authorities; multidisciplinary cooperation; informative technologies; immigration quarantine policies; travel restrictions; management of diversion/subdivision; self-health monitoring; social distancing; screening of travel, occupation, contact, and cluster (TOCC) history; traffic control bundling (TCB); training of using personal protective equipment; real-name visiting management; and employee care. The patients’ basic characteristics and diagnostic results were gathered. Of the 3832 cases, about 25.9% had travel history. Most of them were traveling to Asia (419 people/time, 10.9%) and from China (256 people/time, 6.7%). Meanwhile, healthcare personnel accounted for 316 people/time (8.3%) and cleaning personnel, 6 people/time (0.16%). The 36 cases who care or have contact with confirmed cases have negative results from the COVID-19 test. The most frequent symptoms were fever and upper respiratory infection followed by gastrointestinal symptoms. Conclusion: The above strategies were followed. Patients were stratified based on the risk of TOCC history assessment to ensure the safety of healthcare personnel and patients’ appropriate and timely medical services.

BACKGROUND During pandemics, acquiring outpatients’ travel, occupation, contact and cluster history is one of the most important measures to assess the risk of the incoming patient. Previous means to acquire the information at the examination room was insufficient to block the spread of the disease. OBJECTIVE This study aimed to demonstrate the deployment of an automatic triage system to triage outpatients through internet. METHODS An automatic system incorporated to the operating online registration form of the hospital was deployed along with its on-site counterpart. Automatic query to the VPN travel and contact history database with the patient’s National ID number was made for each attempt to acquire the patient’s travel and contact history. Patients with relevant histories were denied registration or entry. Text messages were sent to patients without relevant history for the expedited route of entry if applicable. RESULTS A total of 127857 visits was recorded. Among all visits, 91195 of them were registered online. Seventy-one-thousand, eight-hundred and sixteen of them received text messages for expedited route of entry. Sixty-five patients had relevant histories revealed by the VPN database and were denied of registration or entry. CONCLUSIONS An automatic system to acquire outpatients’ relevant travel and contact histories was deployed rapidly in one of the largest academic medical centers in Taiwan. The updated system successfully denied patients with relevant travel or contact histories to enter the hospital without forming long lines. Further efforts could be made to integrate the system with the electronic medical record system.