Background Self-report questionnaires are widely used to assess changes in quality of life (QoL) during the course of cancer treatment. However, comparing baseline scores to follow-up scores is only justified if patients' internal measurement standards have not changed over time, that is, no response shift occurred. We aimed to examine response shift in terms of reconceptualization, reprioritization and recalibration among prostate cancer patients. Material and methods We included 402 newly diagnosed patients (mean age 65 years) and assessed QoL at the beginning of cancer treatment and three months later. QoL was measured with the European Organization for Research and Treatment of Cancer Quality of Life Questionnaire Core 30 (EORTC QLQ-C30). We employed structural equation modeling testing measurement invariance between occasions to disentangle 'true' change and change in the measurement model (response shift). Results We found reprioritization effects for both the Physical Functioning and Role Functioning subscales of the EORTC QLQ-C30, indicating that both had gained importance for representing the latent construct of QoL at follow-up. These effects added to the worsening effect evident in the latent construct, thus rendering observed changes even more pronounced. In addition, we found recalibration effects for both the Emotional Functioning and Cognitive Functioning subscales indicating judgments becoming more lenient over time. These effects counteracted 'true' negative changes thus obscuring any substantial changes on the observed level. Conclusion Our results suggest that changes observed in some subscales of the EORTC QLQ-C30 should not be taken at face value as they may be affected by patients' changed measurement standards.

Test anxiety is a significant problem among university students which is frequently accompanied by a decline in performance and severe psychological problems. Studies of treatment methods of test anxiety were identified using literature searches of the Cochrane Library database of randomized controlled trials. A variety of intervention techniques for the treatment of test anxiety was detected, from which cognitive behavioral methods were found to be most effective for the treatment of test anxiety. According to empirical findings, university students should be taught strategies to cope with the demands and organization of their studies at a very early stage to prevent test anxiety and its concomitants. The University of Würzburg (Germany) started a pilot project in fall 2007 comprising lectures and peer coaching with the aim to optimize learning skills and exam preparation to prevent test anxiety. The evaluation of the present concept showed a high level of acceptance among students.

Symptom burden and supportive needs were high, but even more caregivers than patients expressed high distress and supportive needs. SPC appears to reach the target group, both patients and caregivers with elevated symptom burden. Targeted interventions are needed to improve tiredness and drowsiness.

Falling birth rates and rising life expectancy are leading to global aging. The proportional increase in older people can be observed in almost all countries and regions worldwide. As a result, more people spend their later years in nursing homes. In homes where person-centered care is implemented, residents report greater satisfaction and quality of life. This approach is based on the wishes and needs of the residents. Therefore, the purpose of this scoping review is to explore the wishes and needs of nursing home residents. A scoping review of the literature was conducted in which 12 databases were systematically searched for relevant articles according to PRISMA-ScR guidelines. Both quantitative and qualitative study designs were considered. A total of 51 articles met the inclusion criteria. Included articles were subjected to thematic analysis and synthesis to categorize findings into themes. The analysis identified 12 themes to which the wishes and needs were assigned: (1) Activities, leisure, and daily routine; (2) Autonomy, independence, choice, and control; (3) Death, dying, and end-of-life; (4) Economics; (5) Environment, structural conditions, meals, and food; (6) Health condition; (7) Medication, care, treatment, and hygiene; (8) Peer relationship, company, and social contact; (9) Privacy; (10) Psychological and emotional aspects, security, and safety; (11) Religion, spirituality; and (12) Sexuality. Nursing home residents are not a homogeneous group. Accordingly, a wide range of needs and wishes are reported in the literature, assigned to various topics. This underscores the need for tailored and person-centered approaches to ensure long-term well-being and quality of life in the nursing home care setting.

The aim of this paper is to outline a current trend in inpatient medical rehabilitation in Germany, i.e. vocationally oriented medical rehabilitation (VOMR). Since employment-related demands and challenges pose a potential source of strain regarding employees' health and work ability, rehabilitative treatment in Germany is increasingly geared towards including work-related issues in diagnostics and therapy. To date, German rehabilitation research and practice have focussed primarily on the development of screening instruments for identifying vocational problems, interface management and inter-sectoral cooperation and the specification and standardisation of vocationally oriented interventions and programmes (e.g. work hardening, group interventions). Further developments in VOMR should examine the varying needs of patients for work-related interventions as well as the neglect of specific subgroups of patients (e.g. long-term unemployed) and topics (e.g. interference between work and other life domains).

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Key words • ▶ work-related medical rehabilitation • ▶ implementation • ▶ back pain • ▶ sick leave • ▶ formative evaluation Bibliografi e DOI http://dx. Zusammenfassung▼ Hintergrund: Das Anforderungsprofi l zur Durchführung der medizinisch-berufl ich orientierten Rehabilitation (MBOR) im Auftrag der Deutschen Rentenversicherung beschreibt Standards für berufsorientierte Kernmaßnahmen in der medizinischen Rehabilitation. Wir überprüften, wie die Umsetzung der Inhalte und des empfohlenen Leistungsumfangs gelang und welche Verände-rungseff ekte mit der Umsetzung assoziiert waren. Methoden: Die Umsetzung des Anforderungsprofi ls wurde in 7 stationären orthopädischen Rehabilitationseinrichtungen mittels schriftlicher Patientenbefragungen am Rehabilitationsbeginn und Rehabilitationsende sowie 3 Monate nach Abschluss der Rehabilitation untersucht. Zusätzlich wurden aus den ärztlichen Entlassungsberichten die durchgeführten therapeutischen Leistungen extrahiert. Ergebnisse: Der empfohlene Umfang der Sozialberatung und der berufsbezogenen Gruppen wurde erreicht. Diskrepanzen gab es zum empfohlenen Umfang des Arbeitsplatztrainings. Die standardisierte Mittelwertdiff erenz (SMD) der Arbeitsunfähigkeitsdauer vor und 3 Monate nach der Rehabilitation entsprach einer nahezu moderaten Verringerung (SMD = 0,47; 95 %-KI: 0,28-0,66). 5 zusätzliche Stunden berufsorientierter Therapien gingen mit einer Verringerung der Arbeitsunfähigkeitsdauer um 1,2 Wochen einher (95 %-KI: − 2,38 bis − 0,03). Schlussfolgerungen: Das Anforderungsprofi l wurde weitgehend erfolgreich umgesetzt und setzt wichtige Standards für den Ausbau der MBOR. Die fl ächendeckende Umsetzung des MBOR-Anforderungsprofi ls bedarf einer kontinuierlichen Qualitätssicherung, die zeitnahe Rückmeldungen über den erreichten Umsetzungsgrad ermöglicht. Abstract ▼ Background:The guideline for work-related medical rehabilitation (WMR) in responsibility of the German Pension Insurance describes standards of work-related measures in medical rehabilitation. We investigated if contents and recommended amount of treatment were successfully implemented and which improvements were associated with the implementation. Methods: Implementation of the WMR guideline was evaluated at 7 inpatient orthopaedic rehabilitation centres. Patients completed questionnaires at beginning of rehabilitation, at discharge and 3 months after discharge. Details regarding the treatments provided were extracted from the standardised discharge report. Results: The recommended amount of social counselling and work-related psychosocial therapy measures were appropriate. However, there were discrepancies regarding the recommended amount of functional capacity training. The standardised mean diff erence (SMD) between baseline and 3-month follow-up sick leave duration indicated an almost medium-sized eff ect (SMD = 0.47; 95 % CI: 0.28-0.66). An additional 5 h of work-related therapy was associated with a 1.2-week decrease in sick leave duration (95 % CI: − 2.38 to − 0.03). Conclusion: The guideline was for the most p...