Improving evidence-based practice: use of the POP-Q system for the assessment of pelvic organ prolapse

The focus of improving health care outcomes today relies on utilizing evidence-based practice. Pelvic organ prolapse affects women of all ages and negatively impacts their quality of life. Evidence-based tools for consistent assessment of prolapses have been developed, validated, and used by many clinicians. Use of these tools needs to become standard of practice for all clinicians who work in the women's health arena. The Brink scale and the POP-Q assessment tool can assist clinicians, direct quality care, and provide evidence-based practice.

Using Peplau's theory of interpersonal relations to guide the education of patients undergoing urinary diversion

Patients diagnosed with bladder cancer may require a urinary diversion to maximize their health care outcomes. These patients, faced with sudden changes in their health status, develop complex unmet needs that can be addressed by a planned program of education. Peplau's theory of interpersonal relations offers a framework for patient teaching that emphasizes the importance of the nurse-patient relationship. This therapeutic relationship enables the nurse to provide the patient with the information needed to understand the diagnosis, cooperate in the treatment plan, facilitate postoperative recovery, and return to a state of independence with quality of life.