A. Abyad, MD, MPH, MBA, AGSF, AFCHSE (Editor) A. Abyad, MD, MPH, MBA, AGSF, AFCHSE (Editor) Abyad Medical Center & Middle East Longevity Institute Azmi Street, Abdo Center, 2nd Floor PO BOX 618, Tripoli LEBANON Tel & Fax: 961 6 443684/5/6 Email: aabyad@cyberia.net.lb Web: www.amc-lb.com

This is the first issue this year with papers from Qatar, Lebanon, Turkey and Australia. We would like to encourages nurses in the region to be more active in academic nursing which is still meager in the Region.

Zadeh H & Johnson J explore oncology nurse navigators’ roles and implications of these roles in Qatar. The authors stressed that the number of cancer patients is increasing in Qatar. Thus, there is need for oncology nurse navigators to deal with trajectories of cancer care, which in turn aligns with the National Cancer Strategy. Oncology nurse navigators work with patients, families, and caregivers to support them, which eliminate barriers to their care. Oncology nurse navigators provide streamline care toward mitigating the cost of healthcare. A review of the literature was conducted using databases such as CINAHL, Academic Search Complete and MEDLINE. Data analysis revealed themes related to the benefit of oncology nurse

navigators such as: patient satisfaction, self-management, and care coordination. Oncology nurse navigators increase patients’ satisfaction because they provide education, information, and emotional support for patients. They also help patients to increase self-management because they empower patients to have symptom management. Finally, oncology nurse navigators increase care coordination because they facilitate communication and reduce barriers to care.

Mohammad Khan A.N, Johnson J & Forgrave D looked at Hospice Care and the Islamic Faith: A narrative review. The authors stressed that Having care delivered that is culturally relevant and in keeping with one’s own philosophy of a good death is something that is seen to some as important. While there is a vast amount of persons with different cultural mores and beliefs, it is more apparent now than ever for healthcare providers to keep current with the cultural preferences of patients who wish to die at home. Islam is a faith that is practiced not only in Muslim countries but is widespread throughout the world. As such, it is unique in its facets. Having a skilled, knowledgeable healthcare workforce that is familiar with these facets is required in order to facilitate a good death at home. This is one where the patient feels valued and is enabled to die with dignity and be cared for by healthcare providers who are familiar with their beliefs and practices. This narrative review seeks to embrace and enlighten those healthcare providers who wish to become familiar with the preferences of patients of the Islamic faith who wish to die at home.

Helvaci, M.R et al; tried to understand whether or not high density lipoproteins (HDL) and low density lipoproteins (LDL) may be negative acute phase proteins (APP) of the metabolic syndrome. Patients with plasma HDL values lower than 40 mg/dL were collected into the first group, and then age and gender matched patients with plasma HDL values 40 mg/dL and greater were collected into the second group, and compared in between. There were 75 patients in the first and 118 patients in the second groups. Smoking (34.6 versus 31.3%), body mass index (BMI) (27.2 versus 26.7 kg/m2), fasting plasma glucose (119.4 versus 113.0 mg/dL), white coat hypertension (25.3 versus 32.2%), hypertension (10.6 versus 16.1%), and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (14.6 versus 18.6%) were similar in both groups (p>0.05 for all). Although triglycerides (162.7 versus 125.4 mg/dL, p<0.001), diabetes mellitus (DM) (21.3 versus 12.7%, p<0.05), and coronary heart disease (CHD) (20.0 versus 11.0%, p<0.05) were higher, LDL (105.3 versus 126.2 mg/dL, p<0.000) and HDL (34.1 versus 50.0 mg/dL, p<0.000) were lower in patients with plasma HDL values lower than 40 mg/dL. The authors concluded the similar mean age, gender distribution, smoking, and BMI in both groups, triglycerides, DM, and CHD were higher whereas LDL and HDL were lower in patients with plasma HDL values lower than 40 mg/dL. So HDL and LDL may be negative APP of the metabolic syndrome.

Helvaci, M.R et al; tried to understand whether or not low density lipoproteins (LDL) act as negative acute phase proteins (APP) in the metabolic syndrome. Patients with plasma triglycerides values lower than 60 mg/dL were collected into the first, lower than 100 mg/dL into the second, lower than 150 mg/dL into the third, lower than 200 mg/dL into the fourth, and 200 mg/dL and greater into the fifth groups, respectively. The study included 875 cases (370 males and 505 females), totally. Although the mean age, male ratio, smoking, body mass index (BMI), fasting plasma glucose (FPG), white coat hypertension (WCH), hypertension (HT), diabetes mellitus (DM), chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), coronary heart disease (CHD), and chronic renal disease (CRD) increased parallel to the increased plasma triglycerides values, continuously (p<0.05 nearly in all steps), the mean LDL values increased just up to plasma triglycerides values of 200 mg/dL, but then decreased, significantly (137.5 versus 129.0 mg/dL, p= 0.020). The authors concluded that the increased plasma triglycerides values may be one of the most sensitive parameters of the metabolic syndrome that is characterized with disseminated endothelial damage, inflammation, fibrosis, accelerated atherosclerosis, end-organ insufficiencies, early aging, and premature death.