Veritati

Institutional Repository of the Universidade Católica Portuguesa

The Institutional Repository (Veritati) is a reference platform for those who want to access scientific production, as well as master's dissertations and doctoral theses, developed within the scope of the teaching and research activities of the Universidade Católica Portuguesa (UCP).

As part of the RCAAP project (Repositórios Científicos de Acesso Aberto de Portugal), it aims to preserve and disseminate scientific production, thus increasing its visibility and impact.

The Institutional Repository is also integrated into the UCP science management ecosystem, which includes, namely, the Ciência-UCP platform and the Scientific Journals of Universidade Católica Portuguesa portal

Universidade Católica Portuguesa Resources

Email repositorio@ucp.pt

Recent Submissions

First touch course—the impact of a nation-wide boot camp on the transition to surgical residency

Publication . Reis, Sofia Gaspar; Gonçalves, Mário Rui; Azevedo, Constança; Ruivo, Ana; Guidi, Gonçalo; Marinho, Ricardo; Teles, Joana Pinto; Domingos, Ana Sofia; Borges, André Luís; Quintas, Filipe Rodrigues; Miranda, Liliana Grilo; Oliveira, António; Matos, José Novo de

Surgical residents face numerous challenges and undergo significant changes at the beginning of their residency. Although there are several courses throughout residency, it is difficult to address all of them in a single activity. Boot camps (BC) have been a way for easing this transition period. Our team developed the “First Touch Course” boot camp in 2017 to join all residents of the same year, before they initiate Surgical residency. Since then, 8 editions have been organised (one per year) with the participation of a total of 481 residents. Eighty-four residents have enrolled in the last two editions, mainly from General Surgery, Gynecology and Urology. The present study analysed the 2023 and 2024 editions to evaluate the impact of this BC on residents’ preparedness and confidence to face residency. More than 71% of the participants rated the course as excellent and 100% considered it exceeded their expectations. Almost 100% considered it will have a significant impact and more than 75% felt better prepared to start residency after the course. More than 73% believe that having a laparoscopic simulator will be useful for continuous skills acquisition. This is the first nationwide, multi-speciality boot camp that promotes continuing education, providing each resident with a personal laparoscopy simulator and laparoscopic instruments, allowing for home-based training. This study highlights the importance and impact of this kind of boot camps in preparing residents for the early stages of surgical residency and the impact it may have on basic skills acquisition.

2025-06Research article

Open access

Ambiente de prática do enfermeiro gestor em contexto de cuidados hospitalares: scoping review

Publication . Nascimento, Ana; Jesus, Elvio; Araújo, Beatriz

Introdução: Os enfermeiros gestores têm um papel fundamental nas organizações de saúde, em particular, na promoção de ambientes de prática favoráveis para os enfermeiros na prática clínica. No entanto, o conhecimento sobre o seu próprio ambiente de prática está pouco explorado. Objetivo: Mapear a evidência científica sobre o ambiente de prática do enfermeiro gestor em contexto de cuidados hospitalares. Métodos: Esta revisão seguiu a metodologia do Joanna Briggs Institute (JBI) e foi elaborada de acordo com as orientações PRISMAScR. Foi efetuada uma estratégia de pesquisa exaustiva em três fases nas bases de dados CINAHL, PubMed, Web of Science, ProQuest Dissertations & Theses Index e RCAAP. Foram incluídos estudos em inglês, português e espanhol, sem restrições de tempo. Resultados: Foram incluídos 19 estudos, representando as perspetivas de 2.072 enfermeiros gestores em contexto hospitalar. A maioria dos estudos teve origem nos Estados Unidos (74%), sendo a investigação quantitativa a metodologia mais comum (68%). Conclusão: A melhoria do ambiente de trabalho dos enfermeiros gestores através do apoio organizacional, do desenvolvimento da liderança e da gestão da carga de trabalho é crucial para melhorar a retenção de enfermeiros, a satisfação no trabalho e a qualidade dos cuidados. A investigação futura deve investigar a relação entre os ambientes de trabalho dos enfermeiros gestores e os resultados nos enfermeiros na prática clínica, a fim de informar estratégias de gestão baseadas na evidência.

2025-06-25Research article

Open access

Love at a distance : the influence of Facebook and Instagram on the quality of long-distance romantic relationships

Publication . Laska, Aleksandra Agnieszka; Roberts, Jessica Stewart

Long-distance romantic relationships, defined as relationships where partners live in distant locations, are becoming increasingly common. Existing literature suggests that the significance of geographic proximity in selecting partners may have diminished as societies rely on connections through online networks. Yet long-distance relationships remain an understudied phenomenon due to a widely shared view that such connections are prone to failure. As the number of individuals engaged in long-distance relationships remain on the rise, it is important to understand the patterns of online communication between partners in order to sustain such relationships and improve relational quality. Social media platforms are commonly used for communication purposes and continue to grow in popularity. In addition, previous studies have demonstrated that platforms such as Instagram or Facebook are broadly adopted by romantic partners and are utilized to sustain constant communication and make the relationship public. Consequently, this study explores the impact of Facebook and Instagram on the quality of long-distance relationships. Through in-depth interviews with nine individuals and nine couples currently involved in such relationships, the study identifies communication patterns among individuals in long-distance relationships, as well as positive and negative effects of social media usage. While challenges such as jealousy and technological distractions are noted, results suggest that Facebook and Instagram can improve relationship quality by supporting frequent and varied communication between partners.

2025-06-23Master thesis

Embargoed access

Eucalyptus-enhanced cotton: pretreatment and bioactive coating strategies for the development of sustainable textiles with antimicrobial and antioxidant activities for skin applications

Publication . Oliveira, Cláudia S.; Costa, Ana; Mendanha, Daniel; Macedo, Tiago; Moreira, Joana; Oliveira, Juliana A. S. A.; Bernardes, Beatriz G.; Silva, Carla J.; Tavaria, Freni K.

Eucalyptus essential oils and extracts are widely recognized for their antimicrobial, antioxidant, insecticidal, anti-inflammatory, and aromatizing properties, making them highly valuable across pharmaceuticals, cosmetics, and textiles. For the design of biomedical textiles, cotton is favored for its mechanical strength, porosity, and biodegradability, but its vulnerability to microbial action limits its applications. To address this issue, natural compounds like eucalyptus essential oils and extracts have been prioritized over synthetic agents to enhance their antimicrobial properties. While bioactive textiles using essential oils have been well-documented, the incorporation of eucalyptus leaf extracts with different surface modifications of cotton remains largely unexplored. In this line, this study investigated pretreatment approaches to improve the uptake and uniformity of eucalyptus extract on cotton fibers. To achieve this, chitosan (CH), a cationic agent, and alum were applied to the cotton fabric to promote stronger electrostatic interactions and improve the binding of extract’s bioactive components. The functionalized fabrics were tested for antimicrobial activity against Staphylococcus aureus, Staphylococcus epidermidis, and Escherichia coli, antioxidant properties, and cytotoxicity using human keratinocytes. Eucalyptus-functionalized cotton, particularly with CH pretreatment, exhibited strong antibacterial activity against Gram-positive bacteria and enhanced antioxidant capacity in the DPPH assay. No cytotoxicity was detected with 8 h of exposure, but potential effects were observed after 24 h, indicating the need for further evaluation of long-term safety. These findings highlight the potential of eucalyptus-functionalized textiles for personalized clothing aimed at managing skin conditions linked to microbiota dysregulation, emphasizing the need for optimized functionalization and biocompatibility evaluation.

2025-06-18Research article

Embargoed access

The power of storytelling in women's football : inspiring equality and enhancing fan engagement

Publication . Filipe, Carina Isabel Ramos; Pestana, Catarina Carrilho

Women's football has experienced remarkable growth recently, however, it still faces visible challenges in gender equality and reduced visibility. Thus, storytelling occupies an important space in the rise of this sport, as it is a powerful tool capable of reducing differences by promoting gender equality and allowing closer connections. This study aims to understand whether storytelling truly can challenge gender stereotypes, increase fan engagement, and promote gender equality in women's football. To obtain results that can answer the questions raised in the realization of this thesis, a mixed methodology was employed, involving five interviews with specialists in the field and an online questionnaire to understand the opinion of the respondents more generally. This methodology allowed for a more comprehensive analysis of the study in question. The results obtained demonstrate that storytelling can influence the promotion of gender equality, proving to be an effective tool in challenging existing gender stereotypes and having a quite positive impact on retaining fans in women's football. This powerful tool does indeed change perceptions through narratives that can be of various types. According to the respondents and interviewees, personal stories, documentaries, and social media and advertising campaigns have proven to be the most influential elements.

2025-02-10Master thesis

Open access