TOPIC

Medical-surgical research

Everything we have read on medical-surgical. Each paper is summarised from the full article rather than its abstract, so the limitations are in there too, and the funding wherever the paper declares it.

342 PAPERS · PAGE 2 OF 7 · NEWEST FIRST

• RNOther2025Translation, Adaptation, and Criterion Validation of the Family Caregiver Assessment Tool for French-Speaking Cardiovascular Patients in Canada (FAM-CAM-Fr).The Canadian journal of nursing research = Revue canadienne de recherche en sciences infirmieresIn 100 cardiovascular inpatients, the French caregiver FAM-CAM-Fr detected 58% of diagnosed delirium cases and rarely raised false alarms. Use it to add family observations, not to replace nurse assessment.
• RNCohort2026Predictors of Pressure Injuries in Older Residents Living in Nursing Homes in Sri Lanka: A Prospective Multi-Site Cohort Study.Journal of advanced nursingIn Sri Lankan nursing homes, having a pressure injury at baseline and having more medical devices were the only factors that predicted a new pressure injury in the final analysis. Check skin and device placement closely.
• PTRNQualitative2025Immediate Mobilisation After Elective Colorectal Surgery-Patients' and Healthcare Professionals' Experiences: A Qualitative Study.Scandinavian journal of caring sciencesPatients and staff described immediate mobilisation 30 minutes after colorectal surgery as both helpful and hard. Some felt dizzy, nauseated, afraid or reluctant; others felt supported, safer and ready. Staff said it needed time, skill, collaboration and space.
• RNQualitative2025Patients' Perspectives on Postoperative Follow-Up Calls in Day Surgery: A Qualitative Study.Scandinavian journal of caring sciencesDay surgery patients wanted a nurse to call about a week after surgery, after pain and symptoms settle. They said the call would reduce worry, maintain contact with the unit, and cover wound healing, pain, activity, and coping at home.
• RNSystematic Review2025What Is Known About Family-Inclusive Inpatient Care From Patient and Family Perspectives? An Integrative Review.Journal of advanced nursingPatients and families described culturally safe care, relationship building, and clear information as helping them feel included. Culturally unsafe care, unwelcoming environments, inconsistent rules, and poor communication made them feel excluded. These are experiences, not proof any intervention works.
• PTOTRNCohort2026How Often Are Hospitalised Children Physically Restrained During Painful and Stressful Procedures?Journal of clinical nursingPhysical restraint was observed in 22.3% of 1210 procedures in stable hospitalised children, rising to 32.9% during painful ones. Restraint clustered on airway suctioning, tube insertion and nasal lavage, and was most likely in infants and children crying or in distress.
• RNSurvey2026The Relationship Between Quality of Discharge Teaching and Oral Nutritional Supplementation Adherence in Postoperative Patients With Gastric Cancer: A Chain Mediated Role of Readiness for Hospital Discharge and Medication Beliefs.Journal of clinical nursingHigher reported discharge teaching quality was linked to greater discharge readiness, stronger beliefs about supplements, and better oral nutritional supplement adherence in 505 gastric cancer patients at one month. This is association, not proof teaching caused adherence.
• RNQualitative2025Perspectives of Nurses and Adolescents About Pro Re Nata Treatment in Adolescent Inpatient Psychiatric Units: A Qualitative Study.Journal of psychiatric and mental health nursingAdolescents and nurses described PRN medication as a tool for autonomy and dialogue rather than just symptom control. Nurses used PRN requests to gauge distress levels and build trust, while adolescents viewed the transition to PRN as a step toward discharge and self-management.
• RNCohort2025A Multi-Outcome Prognostic Model for Community-Dwelling Older Adults Admitted to Skilled Nursing Facilities for Post-Acute Care.Journal of the American Medical Directors AssociationA model using age, diagnoses, hospital stay and comorbidities estimated death within 6 months and successful return to the community after skilled nursing. It can guide goals-of-care and discharge planning, but was not tested outside Medicare data.
• RNSystematic Review2026Implementing Transitional Care Interventions for Surgical Patients: A Scoping Review.Journal of advanced nursingAcross 27 studies, hospitals implementing transitional care for surgical patients relied on staff training, role changes, electronic systems, and change management. Few reported who led these steps or how well they were followed, limiting what other teams can copy.
• RNSystematic Review2026Is the Active Involvement of Family Caregivers in Adult Hospital Care Effective to Improve Patient Outcomes? A Systematic Review.Journal of clinical nursingActive family caregiver involvement in adult hospital care shows mixed results. It may reduce readmissions and length of stay in some studies, but showed no significant benefit on mortality, complications, or most quality of life measures across the reviewed trials.
• PTOTRNRCT2025A Cross-Lagged Panel Model Testing the Impact of Physical Activity During Hospitalization on 1- and 6-Month Discharge Physical Activity and Adverse Events Among Older Adults With Dementia.Journal of the American Medical Directors AssociationOlder adults with dementia who were more physically active at hospital discharge had lower odds of falling and being rehospitalized within one month. Activity levels did not drop after these adverse events occurred, suggesting discharge mobility is a key protective factor.
• RNCase Report2026Prone positioning for spinal surgery in achondroplasia: A case study report.Journal of perioperative practiceA patient with achondroplasia had prone spinal surgery for 5 h 20 min without recorded complications after tailored positioning and difficult airway planning. This is a single case, not proof the approach works.
• RNSurvey2026Examining the Association Between Perceived Quality of Care and Experienced Coercion Among Patients in Acute Mental Health Units in Spain: A National Cross-Sectional Study.Journal of clinical nursingPatients who rated care quality lower, especially regarding privacy and safety, reported higher feelings of coercion and humiliation. Improving environmental dignity and clear discharge planning is associated with reduced perceived coercion in acute mental health units.
• RNQualitative2025An Advanced Practice Nurse's Contributions to the Care of Opioid-Dependent Patients in an Acute Somatic Hospital: A Qualitative Study.Scandinavian journal of caring sciencesPatients and staff described an advanced practice nurse as checking withdrawal and craving, adjusting medications, building trust, coordinating care, and reducing conflict. Their reports suggest this role can make hospital care more reliable for opioid-dependent patients.
• RNQualitative2025Qualitative study of Black and Latino (a/e) caregiver participation on family-centered rounds.Patient education and counselingBlack and Latino/a/e caregivers said they felt more comfortable participating in family-centered rounds when clinicians answered questions unhurriedly, used plain language, allowed interpretation, and respected their input. Some said large teams, rushed communication, and racial distrust made them less likely to participate.
• PTOTRNOther2026Safe Mobility in Hospitalised Older Adults: A Concept Analysis.Journal of clinical nursingPromote hospitalised older adults' active movement while reducing severe fall and immobility harms, rather than preventing every fall. This concept analysis defines safe mobility; it does not test patient outcomes.
• RNSystematic Review2025Measures to evaluate clinician communication in the intensive care unit: A systematic review of measurement properties.Patient education and counselingNo patient- or family-reported ICU communication survey was recommended for clinical use. Family satisfaction scores do not necessarily mean communication was good; the Quick FICS is most promising but still needs ICU validation.
• RNCohort2025The Association Between Frequency of Fingertip Blood Glucose Measurement and Delirium in Intensive Care Unit Patients: A Retrospective Study Based on the MIMIC-IV Database.Nursing in critical careICU patients who had more frequent fingertip blood glucose checks were more likely to be documented with delirium. This association remained after other factors were considered, but the study cannot show the checks caused delirium.
• RNSystematic Review2025Safeguarding Experiences of People in Mental Distress, Police and Healthcare Practitioners: An Integrative Review.Journal of psychiatric and mental health nursingPeople in mental distress often felt unheard, dismissed or unsafe in police and emergency care. Stigma, delays caused by intoxication and poor transfer of care were recurring problems.
• RNOther2026'Living Well With a PICC at Home': Co-Design and Evaluation of a Peripherally Inserted Central Catheter (PICC) Booklet.Journal of advanced nursingAdults living with a PICC described practical ways to shower, do housework, dress and care for children, and asked for a plain language booklet that also explains clinical risks. A consumer-designed home PICC resource was produced, but its effect on outcomes is untested.
• RNSystematic Review2026Psychometric Properties of Pain Scales in Inpatient Settings: An Umbrella Review.Journal of clinical nursingOnly three hospital pain scales had enough evidence to recommend: Breakthrough Pain Assessment Tool for cancer pain, Paediatric Pain Profile for children who cannot self-report, and Questionnaire on Pain caused by Spasticity for limb spasticity pain. Most others still need better validation.
• RNRCT2025Application of "Internet+"-Based Continuous Nursing to Improve the Nutrition-Health Level of Pediatric Liver Transplant.Nursing & health sciencesAfter 4 weeks, children whose families used an Internet+ continuity care package had fewer malnutrition-risk cases than routine care (8/38 vs 16/38). The package bundled team, WeChat, daily photo checks, videos, emergency contact and calls, so no single part is shown to be responsible.
• RNOther2025An Open, Noncomparative, Clinical Follow-up Study to Confirm Performance and Safety of a Gelling Fiber Dressing When Used on Split-thickness Skin Graft Donor Sites.Advances in skin & wound careSplit-thickness skin graft donor sites improved in 29 of 33 patients when a gelling fiber dressing with foam and tape or bandage was left in place for about 14 days. No comparator was used, so this does not show the regimen caused improvement.
• RNSystematic Review2026Clinical Trials in Central Venous Access Devices: An Evidence and Gap Map.Journal of advanced nursingCentral venous access device research over the past decade is concentrated on insertion and infection prevention, with little evidence on removal, pain, satisfaction, costs, and education tested by strong trials. Nurses should treat device care guidance as uneven rather than complete.
• RNRCT2025The Impact of Nurse-Led Peer Support Interventions on Psychological Status and Quality of Life After Acute Myocardial Infarction Stent Implantation in China.The Journal of cardiovascular nursingAfter stent implantation for heart attack, adults receiving 12 weeks of nurse-led peer support plus standard care had less anxiety, depression and stress than standard care alone, with better quality of life and medication adherence.
• RNOther2025Implementing a Quality Improvement Project to Reduce Incidents of Hospital-Acquired Pressure Injury.Advances in skin & wound careHospital-acquired pressure injuries fell from 3.4 to 1.7 per 1000 patient days after a bundle including assessment, repositioning, surfaces, nutrition and incontinence care, then to 0.8 by 2023.
• RNOther2025Assessing the Cost-effectiveness of Pressure Injury Prevention Strategies in a Quasi-experimental Design.Advances in skin & wound careA pressure-injury prevention bundle was associated with more days without a pressure injury and lower total costs than routine care. But patients were not assigned by chance and bundle implementation cost was omitted, so treat the cost saving as tentative.
• RNRCT2025Safety and Cost Evaluation of Modified Medium-Length Catheters in Patients With Advanced Cancer: A Randomized Controlled Trial.Journal of nursing care qualityModified midline catheters caused fewer infections, bleeds, and clots than PICCs in advanced cancer patients and cost less. Patient satisfaction was not significantly different. The lower complication rate suggests a safer option for palliative IV care.
• RNQualitative2026A Descriptive Qualitative Study of Patient and Carer Perspectives on the Acceptability of Transcatheter Aortic Valve Implantation.Journal of advanced nursingPatients valued TAVI for relieving breathlessness and restoring independence, but discharge left them anxious due to missing information about the procedure's success and physical limits. Carers reported feeling uninformed about what happened during surgery and how to support recovery.
• RNCohort2025Racial and Rural Disparities in Stroke Discharge Disposition Stratified by 90-Day Survival Status.Journal of the American Medical Directors AssociationBlack, Hispanic, and other-race stroke patients who died during hospitalization or within 90 days after discharge were less likely than non-Hispanic White patients to be discharged to hospice or other care. Among longer survivors, no clear race or rurality differences appeared.
• RNSurvey2025Family Members' Psychosocial Support in Palliative Inpatient Care: A Cross-Sectional Study.Journal of family nursingFamily members of palliative inpatients said psychosocial support was mostly as much as desired, but information was the weakest area. They wanted more proactive discussion of prognosis, support providers, ward routines, and consistent staff.
• RNQualitative2025Methodological Insights From Evaluating a Family Member's Voice Reorientation Programme: An Interpretive Descriptive Approach.Nursing openParticipants described the FAMVR programme, which combined family recordings, nurse training, readiness checks, templates, iPad playback and timed delivery, as orienting and calming, while handover, documentation and family delirium education gaps remained. No component can be separated.
• RNOther2025International Pain Outcomes (IPO) - Brazilian Portuguese version: cross-cultural adaptation and psychometric validation.Revista brasileira de enfermagemA Brazilian Portuguese postoperative pain questionnaire was understood by patients and gave consistent scores when two researchers used it. It can help nurses assess pain, side effects, sleep, mobility and satisfaction after surgery.
• RNOther2025Cleaning and disinfection in neonatal intensive care units: correlation of evaluation methods.Revista brasileira de enfermagemCleaning checks in two neonatal units varied. ATP readings and microbial counts lined up only on some surfaces, and the units had different ATP clean thresholds.
• RNOther2026Research Priorities for Nursing and Allied Health: A Priority-Setting Project Using a Partnership Approach.Journal of advanced nursingPatients, carers and clinicians in two Australian hospitals prioritised access, patient journey, streamlining care, dementia and delirium, mental health, older adults, carers, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Peoples and workforce. These are nursing and allied health research priorities, not tested care changes.
• PTRNCase Report2026Review of Perioperative Care in Elderly Patients With Esophageal Hiatal Hernia and Cardiopulmonary Disease.Gastroenterology nursing : the official journal of the Society of Gastroenterology Nurses and AssociatesAn 86-year-old man with a large hiatal hernia and heart failure completed laparoscopic repair after multidisciplinary prehabilitation, monitoring, and infection care. He left hospital 11 days after surgery and had no symptoms at 3 and 6 months.
• OTRNCohort2025Skilled Nursing Facility Population Characteristics and Length of Stay: A Prospective Cohort Study.Journal of the American Medical Directors AssociationResidents dependent in daily activities and those with vascular or surgical devices stayed longer in a skilled nursing facility; dependence in daily activities was the strongest factor tied to longer stays.
• RNQualitative2026Parent's Process of Escalation of Care for Their Deteriorating Children Admitted to Paediatric Wards: A Grounded Theory.Journal of clinical nursingParents worried about a deteriorating child often first asked ward nurses or doctors for help, then sought trusted staff; staff sometimes judged parents' reliability, and without a standard parent escalation pathway responses varied.
• RNCohort2025Incidence and risk factors for nursing-related intraoperative incidents: A 5-year retrospective study at a Japanese tertiary care hospital.Japan journal of nursing science : JJNSIn 37,265 surgeries, nursing-related incidents occurred in 85 cases (0.23%). Surgeries lasting 2 hours or more and nurses with fewer than 6 years were associated with more incidents. Night shift and instrument delivery by nurse were not associated once other factors were considered.
• PTOTRNOther2025Stigma Towards Hospitalised Older Adults: A Concept Analysis.Nursing openHospitalised older adults face stigma as age-based assumptions, exclusion from decisions, neglected pain care and rehabilitation, and dismissive communication. These practices are associated with withdrawal, poorer recovery, disability and delayed discharge.
• PTOTSLPRNCase Report2025A Composite Dermal Matrix Comprising Ovine Forestomach Matrix and Hyaluronic Acid in the Treatment of Chronic Wounds Secondary to Calciphylaxis: A Case Series and Literature Review.Advances in skin & wound careAll four calciphylaxis wounds closed after a single application of a composite dermal matrix, with mean healing time of 43.5 days. Pain scores dropped to zero in three wounds. This shows what happened to three patients, not that the product works better than other care.
• RNQualitative2026Social Representations of Bedside Milk Expression Among Mothers of Preterm Newborns in Neonatal Intensive Care Units.Journal of advanced nursingMothers described bedside milk expression as bonding and protection, but cramped space, staff shortages, procedures and shame hindered it. They said proactive nursing support and clear information helped them feel capable and continue.
• RNSystematic Review2026Which Cultural Safety Strategies Are Making a Difference? Exploring Hospital Initiatives for First Nations Peoples in Australia. A Scoping Review.Journal of clinical nursingFirst Nations staff and interpreters were reported to reduce self-discharge and improve communication; the review mapped hospital strategies rather than testing whether they work.
• RNSystematic Review2025Patient Referral and Pressure Injuries: A Systematic Review.Nursing openPressure injuries occurred during patient transport, with an overall incidence of 9.4%. The review associates risk with longer and repeated transfers, devices, and support surfaces, so skin checks and prevention need to start in transport.
• RNCohort2025Counts, Characteristics and Outcomes of Patients Transported by the Royal Flying Doctor Service to Metropolitan Perth With Suspected Acute Coronary Syndrome: Western Australian Linked Data Study.The Australian journal of rural healthMost rural Western Australians flown to Perth for suspected acute coronary syndrome survived and were admitted to hospital. Women, patients with more comorbidities and some remote regions were less likely to receive a coronary procedure.
• RNQualitative2026Patient Participation in Decision-Making During Nursing Care: A Relational Autonomy Perspective.Journal of advanced nursingIn Chinese inpatient nursing, patients sometimes collaborated, deferred to nurses or family, or acted alone; nurses sometimes persuaded or excluded them. Participation depended on risk, trust and family roles.
• RNSystematic Review2026On the Move to Surgery: A Scoping Review of Patient-Reported Outcomes for Preoperative Walking Into the Operating Theatre.Journal of advanced nursingMost studies show patients feel less anxious and satisfied when walking to surgery, but results are mixed. One trial found lower satisfaction with walking, and an observational study linked supine transport to less severe anxiety. No adverse events were reported, but patient selection is critical.
• RNQualitative2026Perspectives of Healthcare Professionals, Patients and Family Members on Managing Regular Medications Across the Perioperative Pathway: An Exploratory Qualitative Study.Journal of advanced nursingNurses described identifying discrepancies and contacting the team, but poor documentation, outdated medication lists, and electronic chart withhold status disrupted perioperative medication continuity.
• RNOther2025Skin Failure: Results of a Think Tank Hosted by the National Pressure Injury Advisory Panel.Journal of wound, ostomy, and continence nursing : official publication of The Wound, Ostomy and Continence Nurses SocietySkin failure in critically ill cannot yet be separated from pressure injury: no distinct cause, mechanism, or biopsy findings are established. Use it only after root cause analysis and exclusion of other skin diseases.