The findings emphasise the need for therapists to look beyond the diagnosed individual and see MS as a chronic illness affecting the whole family. Occupational therapists might assist parents and children to maintain their occupations through the provision of appropriate interventions and connection to referral networks.

Objective: To evaluate an intervention for children of parents with multiple sclerosis (MS). It was hypothesized that the intervention would increase knowledge of MS, approach coping, and social support and decrease avoidant coping and stress appraisals. It was expected that these changes would reduce the adverse impacts of caregiving and produce better adjustment. Method: Twenty children (9 -14 years) who had a parent with MS attended a 6-day camp intervention. These children completed questionnaires at pre-and postintervention and at 3-month follow-up; their parents with MS (N ϭ 14) completed questionnaires at preintervention and at follow-up. Results: After the intervention, children reported significant decreases in distress, stress appraisals, caregiving compulsion, and activity restrictions and increases in social support and knowledge of MS. Parental data confirmed the increase in the children's knowledge of MS, and overall, qualitative data supported the quantitative findings. Qualitative data showed that the intervention had indirect effects on some parents and families. Conclusions: Findings offer preliminary support for the use of a stress-and coping-based intervention for supporting children and their families with parental MS.

The study described in this article aimed to identify issues relating to incontinence and assess the impact of referral to a continence adviser on the lives of people with multiple sclerosis (MS). The study design used an in-depth, two-phase anonymous mail survey within a general community as nominated by the participants. Fifty-six people participated in phase 1 and eleven people completed phase 2. The results indicated that incontinence is a problem for the vast majority of participants--people with MS. One-third of the eligible participants took up the option of a consultation, assessment and treatment from a continence nurse. Reasons for not taking up the visit from the continence nurse included 'managing OK', 'didn't think it would help', 'embarrassed' and 'too busy'. Increasing awareness of urinary incontinence in the community is important and education needs to focus on at-risk groups in presenting the range of options available to assist people experiencing incontinence.

Background: Patient-controlled analgesia (PCA) pumps are complex medical devices frequently used for postoperative pain control. Differences in how nurses program PCA pumps can lead to preventable medication errors. Purpose: To describe similarities and differences in how surgical nurses program PCA pumps. Methods: We conducted a qualitative study using video reflexive ethnography (VRE) to film nurses as they programmed a PCA pump. We spliced and collated videos into separate clips and showed to nursing leaders for their deliberation and action. Results: We found nurses ignored or immediately silenced alarms, were uncertain about the correct programming sequence, and interpreted how to load a syringe in the pump in multiple ways; in addition, the PCA pump design did not align with nurses' workflow. Conclusions: VRE was effective in visualizing common challenges nurses experienced during PCA pump programming. Nursing leaders are planning several nursing process changes due to these findings.