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- Children’s understanding of informed assents in research studiesPublication . Cotrim, Hortense; Granja, Cristina; Carvalho, Ana Sofia; Cotrim, Carlos; Martins, RuiThe assent procedure reflects an effort to enable the minor to understand, to the degree they are capable of, what their participation in the decision making process would involve. Aims: To evaluate the minors’ ability to understand the information provided to them when obtaining assent and to evaluate the opinion of the parents regarding the importance of asking the child’s assent. Methods: The sample included a total of 52 minors aged between 10 and 17 years who underwent exercise echocardiogram. The Quality of Informed Consent is divided into two parts: Part A was used to measure objective understanding and part B to measure subjective understanding. Results: The results show that the minors have a high capacity to understand the information given to them when asking for assent. A positive relationship was found between the two parts of the questionnaire. No statistically significant relationship was found between age and sex and part A and part B or between both age groups (<14 years old and ≥14 years old) and the measure. In the case of the parents, 96.6% of parents consider assent as an advantage for the child’s acceptance of health care. The opinion of the parents is not related to the age, sex or level of schooling. Conclusion: Minors showed a substantial level of understanding regarding the information provided to them. The parents considered the implementation of assent fundamental to the child’s acceptance of health care.
- Knowledge and behavior among health professionals in relation to cadaveric organ donation and transplantation: a questionnaire-based analysis in Portuguese HospitalsPublication . Melo, J.; Batista, A.; Teixeira, A.; Figueiredo, E.; Ribeiro, O.; Lopes, P.; Pina, J.; Granja, C.; Carvalho, A. S.Objective. To assess knowledge and behavior relative to cadaveric organ donation and transplantation among physicians and nurses working at nine Portuguese hospitals. Methods. This prospective study between May and October 2009 included 495 questionnaires that were returned among 840 that were delivered, a 59% response rate. The transplant questionnaire comprised three main sections: section 1, sociodemographic-professional variables of the participants with nine questions; section 2, generic questions on organ donation and transplantation with 12 questions; and section 3 evaluated knowledge with 20 specific questions on organ donation and transplantation. Results. Sixty-one percent of the participants were females, with 40% of the overall cohort between 31 and 40 years old; 62% married; 63% working in the emergency department; and 78% nurses. Although 78% of the participants stated that they had undergone specific training on organ donation and transplantation, 62% felt that they needed more training. The reasons evoked for the low rate of donation included difficulties in initiating the process of organ donation, in diagnosing cerebral death and in obtaining necessary human resources. There were no significant differences in knowledge between physicians and nurses concerning specific organ donation and transplantation issues. Having had specific training on organ donation and transplantation was significantly associated with correct answers to several questions, including those pertaining to knowledge of the national legislation on organ donation and transplantation. Conclusions. The present study showed a lack of specific knowledge and training on organ donation and transplantation issue. It also suggested that for hospital staff to successfully act as initiators of the organ procurement process, more information and education are necessary. This effort could significantly increase the rate of organ donation and transplantation in Portugal.