Introduction: Documentation of nursing care and procedures is an evidence of performance and quality of these cares. Failure to document could be a sign of inadequate care performance.

Method and Materials: This study was carried out to determine causes of inadequate nursing documentation in wards of Shahid Beheshti Hospital, Zanjan, in 2003. This study was a descriptive survey a checklist was designed according to standard principles of nursing documentation which was validated by 10 academic members. Patients&apos files were assessed based on this checklist. Also, 20 nurses were interviewed (open question) to determine of causes of incorrect nursing documentation.

Results: The results showed that 17% of items of checklist had been documented correctly, documentation’s of 35.81% of these items were incomplete and 48% of items had not been documented. The interviews showed that the inadequate nursing documentation was related to inattention to these documentation’s and lack of control of nursing documentation, work overload of nurses, educational problems and unawareness of legal and occupational issues.

Conclusion: Documentation of nursing care was inadequate. The most important causes were inattention and lack of control. Considering importance of nursing documentation, ways to solve these problems must be sought.

Background & Aim: One of the cause of anxiety for most patients is hospitalization. Once the patients are hospitalized for cardiac catheterization, the anxiety would be augmented. The anxiety raises body physiological and psychological activities such as: heart rate and respiratory rate. This research, as clinical trial study, has the objective to determine the influence of applying two methods of relaxation and premeditation on respiratory rate and pulse rate in hospitalized patients, experiencing coronary angiography, in heart and postangio wards of Shahid Beheshti Hospital in Zanjan, at 2003.

Methods & Materials: 40 patients who were candidates for CA, has been studied, in regard to existing conditions and methods of sampling and random allocation to two groups of relaxation, and premedication. Data collection tool included demographic and disease related information sheet, as well as record sheets for respiratory rate and pulse rate at intervals of 8-12 and ½ hrs before, during and after the angiography. For relaxation group, the researcher would speak individually about the influence of relaxation, the day before angiography then with the aid of client himself/herself, performed relaxation instances in a single bout, and eventually asked client to perform relaxation technique 2-3 times before going for angiography. In premedication group, patients received regular preangiographic medications including diazepam, chlorpheniramine, metoclopramid, and hydrocortisone. Respiratory rate and pulse rate were measured in both groups 8-12 and ½ hrs, before during and after CA. Afterward, resulted data were analyzed statistically by (SPSS) software for windows.

Results: Pulse rate at 8-12 hours before, during and after the angiography showed no significant difference between two groups (p>0.05). Thus our research hypothesis that “alterations of respiratory rate and pulse rate in patients under coronary angiography, who get relaxation, are identical to those in premedicaton group”, would be confirmed

Conclusion: These results show that the premeditation method can be substituted by relaxation before practicing invasive procedures.

Background & Aim: Physiologic signs of anxiety usually change hemodynamic variables in patients undergoing heart catheterization. This study carried out to determine the effect of Orientation Program on hemodynamic variables in patient undergoing heart catheterization.

Methods & Materials: In this experimental study, 60 patients undergoing heart catheterization were randomly assigned to either the test or control group. Data were collected using the demographic checklist and a hemodynamic variables checklist for recording hemodynamic variables. The collected data were analyzed using the Chi-square, repeated measurement, and independent t test in the SPSS.

Results: According to the results, there were significant reductions in the systolic and diastolic blood pressures, pulse rate, respiratory rate and systolic left ventricle pressure in the intervention group after the intervention (P<0.05). There were no significant statistical difference between the two groups in systolic aorta pressure (P=0.173), diastolic aorta pressure (P=0.104), and end diastolic left ventricle pressure (P=0.886).

Conclusion: Orientation program had positive effects on most of the hemodynamic variables in the intervention group. The Orientation program is recommended to be used during invasive diagnostic procedures in order to prohibit anxiety&aposs physiologic complications.

  Background & Aim: The major problem with mechanically ventilated patients receiving enteral nutrition hospitalized in the intensive care units is delayed gastric emptying. Acupressure can increase gastric motility. This study aimed to determine the effect of acupressure on the amount of gastric emptying in mechanically ventilated patients hospitalized in the intensive care units .

  Methods & Materials: In this clinical trial, 78 mechanically ventilated patients were recruited using convenience sampling method and were randomly divided into two control and experimental groups. Acupressure was applied on the Neiguan point for four days in the experimental group. The control group patients received no intervention. Gastric residual volume was measured in the admission time and before the gavages. The mean gastric residual volume of the admission time and the 1-4 days after the admission were compared in the two groups. Data were analyzed using the independent t-test, Chi-squared test, covariance analysis and repeated measured tests in the SPSS-16. 

  Results: The results revealed that there were no differences between the two groups in the admission time and the first day (P>0.05). There were statistically significant differences between the two groups in the admission time and 2-4 days after the admission (P<0.05). The difference of mean scores of gastric residual volume were significantly different between the two groups during the four days of post intervention constantly (Repeated measured ANOVA P=0.011) .

  Conclusion: The acupressure increased the gastric emptying in mechanically ventilated patients hospitalized in the intensive care units. Since the acupressure wristband was an easy to use, non-expensive, available procedure, it can be used to improve gastric emptying and prevent delayed gastric emptying complications .