-
Preventive Medicine Reports Dec 2023Although research has established social participation as important for preventing frailty in older people, the association between the type and frequency of social...
Although research has established social participation as important for preventing frailty in older people, the association between the type and frequency of social participation and comprehensive frailty remains unclear. This study aimed to reveal the associations between types and frequency of social participation and comprehensive frailty among community-dwelling older people. This was a cross-sectional study conducted in four cities and towns (Inabe City, Nabari City, Odai Town, and Kiho Town) of Mie Prefecture, Japan, among adults who were: (i) aged ≥65 years and (ii) not certified as needing long-term care. We measured comprehensive frailty using the participants' total scores on the Kihon Checklist, developed by Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare of Japan, which divides frailty status into three categories: robust (0-3 points), prefrail (4-7), and frail (8-25). Types and frequency of social participation were explanatory variables, and ordered logistic regression analysis adjusted for potential confounding factors identified the associations. The frailty status of the 296 participants (age 65-74 years: 44.3 %; female: 74.0 %) was as follows: frail, 21.3 %; prefrail, 40.2 %; and robust, 38.5 %. Lower level of frailty was associated with interaction using smartphones 2-3 times per month, participating in sports ≥4 times per week, participating in local improvement activities several times per year, and engaging in activities for children 2-4 times per month. Social participation among older adults at appropriate frequencies were associated with the lower level of comprehensive frailty. However, future longitudinal studies are needed using populations from more diverse countries or regions and from different cultures.
PubMed: 38021414
DOI: 10.1016/j.pmedr.2023.102443 -
Journal of Veterinary Internal Medicine 2023
Topics: Veterinary Medicine; Practice Guidelines as Topic; Systematic Reviews as Topic
PubMed: 37787558
DOI: 10.1111/jvim.16869 -
Trauma, Violence & Abuse Jul 2023Despite an increasing emphasis on adolescents' participation rights, there are concerns about their participation in research on sensitive topics, such as trauma and... (Review)
Review
Despite an increasing emphasis on adolescents' participation rights, there are concerns about their participation in research on sensitive topics, such as trauma and violence. This review reports findings of a scoping review that examined the nature and extent of qualitative studies conducted with adolescents about their experiences of participating in research on sensitive topics. Studies were identified by searching electronic databases and grey literature and reported on qualitative and mixed-methods studies eliciting adolescents' experiences of participating in research on sensitive topics. Seventeen (17) studies were included after screening 4426 records. The scoping review revealed significant adolescent benefits from participation, relating to positive emotions, skill acquisition and enhanced self-efficacy and interpersonal relationships. To a lesser extent, participants also experienced burdens relating to negative emotions, concerns about confidentiality and privacy and inconvenience of participation, which were mitigated by careful attention to research design and researcher engagement and training. Participants shared insights into their motivation to participate, and factors that impacted their experiences of research, such as ethical considerations, including consent procedures, safety and connection in research, study procedures and documentation and researcher characteristics. There were tangible benefits and some burdens involved in adolescents' participation in sensitive research. This review considers implications for research and practice, such as the need to regularly publish findings of consultations, assessing caregiver consent requirements, obtaining adolescent views on study documents and measures and building on existing research, differentiated by age, gender and dis/ability status, especially in diverse and under-represented regions.
Topics: Humans; Adolescent; Qualitative Research; Interpersonal Relations; Violence; Motivation
PubMed: 35044869
DOI: 10.1177/15248380211069072 -
Nursing ResearchAt-home self-collection of specimens has become more commonplace because of measures taken in response to the coronavirus pandemic. Self-collection of hair cortisol is...
BACKGROUND
At-home self-collection of specimens has become more commonplace because of measures taken in response to the coronavirus pandemic. Self-collection of hair cortisol is important because chronic stress is present in many populations, such as older adults living with Alzheimer's disease and their family caregivers. For the evaluation of chronic stress, scalp hair can be used as a predictive biomarker because it examines the cumulative, retrospective stress from previous months.
OBJECTIVES
The aim of the paper is to provide a study procedure for at-home, scalp hair self-collection for cortisol concentration analysis from dyads consisting of a person living with Alzheimer's disease and their family caregiver.
METHODS
After informed electronic consent is obtained, a package containing the necessary tools for self-collection of hair samples from the dyad is mailed to the participant's home. Participants are provided detailed print and video multimedia guides outlining how to obtain the hair samples. Ideally, the hair samples are obtained during the virtual data collection meeting with research personnel. Participants mail back the hair sample in a prepaid package to the biomedical laboratory for analysis.
DISCUSSION
At-home, self-collection of hair provides potential advantages such as reduced participant burden, especially for vulnerable populations where transportation and different environments are challenging. At-home sample collection options may increase research participation and can be applied to multiple research foci. Research considerations for dyads, such as people living with Alzheimer's disease and their caregivers, are discussed.
Topics: Humans; Aged; Hydrocortisone; Retrospective Studies; Alzheimer Disease; Caregivers; Hair
PubMed: 37625184
DOI: 10.1097/NNR.0000000000000672 -
Industrial Health Jul 2023Return to Work (RTW) programmes have become imperative in manpower scarce countries. This paper describes a RTW programme in a Singapore tertiary hospital, reports...
Return to Work (RTW) programmes have become imperative in manpower scarce countries. This paper describes a RTW programme in a Singapore tertiary hospital, reports patient outcomes and discusses the practicality and effectiveness of the programme. Seventy-three workers participated in the programme over a two-year period. A statistically significant increase in work ability and self-perceived overall health status from first contact with worker (baseline) to discharge was observed. Continued programme participation till first RTW was associated with higher work ability and self-perceived overall health status at baseline. The RTW Coordinator-anchored multidisciplinary model which provided holistic support to the worker and addressed stakeholder interests were central to the programme's success. Greater awareness of RTW programme benefits will improve sustained participation. Our RTW programme features, implementation experiences and participant reported effectiveness may inform the development of improved return to work models.
Topics: Humans; Return to Work; Singapore; Hospitals
PubMed: 35584948
DOI: 10.2486/indhealth.2022-0072 -
PloS One 2023There is growing recognition that young people should be given opportunities to participate in the decisions that affect their lives, such as advisory groups,...
There is growing recognition that young people should be given opportunities to participate in the decisions that affect their lives, such as advisory groups, representative councils, advocacy or activism. Positive youth development theory and sociopolitical development theory propose pathways through which youth participation can influence mental health and wellbeing outcomes. However, there is limited empirical research synthesising the impact of participation on youth mental health and/or wellbeing, or the characteristics of activities that are associated with better or worse mental health and/or wellbeing outcomes. This scoping review seeks to address this gap by investigating the scope and nature of evidence detailing how youth participation initiatives can influence mental health and/or wellbeing outcomes for participants. To be eligible, literature must describe youth (aged 15-24) in participation activities and the impact of this engagement on participant mental health and/or wellbeing outcomes. A systematic scoping review of peer-reviewed and grey literature will be conducted using Scopus, PsycINFO, Embase, Medline and grey literature databases. The scoping review will apply established methodology by Arksey and O'Malley, Levac and colleagues and the Joanna Briggs Institute. Title, abstract, and full text screening will be completed by two reviewers, data will be extracted by one reviewer. Findings will be reported in accordance with the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic reviews and Meta-Analyses extension for Scoping Reviews (PRISMA-ScR), including a qualitative summary of the characteristics of youth participation and their influence on youth mental health outcomes. Youth advisory group members will be invited to deliver governance on the project from the outset; participate in, and contribute to, all stages of the review process; reflect on their own experiences of participation; and co-author the resulting publication. This scoping review will provide essential knowledge on how participation activities can be better designed to maximise beneficial psychosocial outcomes for involved youth.
Topics: Humans; Adolescent; Mental Health; Empirical Research; Peer Review; Research Design; Systematic Reviews as Topic; Review Literature as Topic
PubMed: 37847717
DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0293006 -
Health SA = SA Gesondheid 2023Nurses' experience in participation in research has been very diverse and culturally dependent. A shifting environment that appreciates and supports research growth...
BACKGROUND
Nurses' experience in participation in research has been very diverse and culturally dependent. A shifting environment that appreciates and supports research growth necessitates studying who is involved in research and how and assessing present individual and organisational research capabilities.
AIM
This study aimed to ascertain the existing research capacity among nurses in a large public hospital in Ijebu Ode, Ogun State, Nigeria, to inform the development of a programme towards building a sustainable research culture.
SETTING
A public hospital at Ijebu Ode, Ogun State, Nigeria.
METHODS
A qualitative research design was utilised. Data were collected through semi-structured interviews with 21 nurses from the general hospital. The data were then analysed thematically.
RESULTS
Participants highlighted the need for more nurses to be engaged in research development, research development problems and recommended solutions. The critical requirement was that research has a direct impact on clinical practice.
CONCLUSION
The results from this study show that research development allows nurses to participate in research relevant to their practice and objectives. More focus should be placed on developing and implementing context-specific nursing research agendas and implementation research skills.
CONTRIBUTION
The overall implications or benefits to the practice (as an example) with reference to the expanded nurses' clinical knowledge in participating in research and expand nurses' clinical knowledge in participating in research.
PubMed: 37670754
DOI: 10.4102/hsag.v28i0.2360 -
PloS One 2023This study sought to assess perceptions towards and reasons for participation in research bronchoscopy studies in a high TB burden urban setting. Additionally, the study...
This study sought to assess perceptions towards and reasons for participation in research bronchoscopy studies in a high TB burden urban setting. Additionally, the study aimed to identify areas of pre- and post-procedural concern among healthy adults approached to participate in research bronchoscopy. A cross sectional qualitative study was undertaken at the Uganda-Case Western Reserve University Collaboration Tuberculosis Research Project Clinic at Mulago National Referral Hospital in Kampala, Uganda. In-depth interviews were conducted with participants at their pre-bronchoscopy visit (n = 17) and after they had undergone bronchoscopy (n = 23) to examine their perceptions and experiences with the procedure. Following consent, all interviews were audio recorded and later transcribed and typed in MS WORD. Local language interviews were translated into English by the social science interviewers. Qualitative analysis was performed manually following an inductive and emergent approach typical in thematic analysis. This study was approved by the Makerere University School of Social Sciences Research Ethics Committee (MAKSS REC 09.18.220) and registered with the Uganda National Council for Science and Technology (UNCST SS4785). Overall willingness to participate in bronchoscopy was high as many participants viewed the study as primarily a means of getting free health checks and determining their health status. Notably, despite extensive face to face counseling for this study coupled with the fact that our participants had been involved in prior research at the site, therapeutic misconception still played a pivotal role in willingness to participate in research bronchoscopy. Therapeutic misconception has important ethical and research implications in clinical research, which requires strategies to tackle it, even among a pool of potential participants who are knowledgeable about a disease or clinical care procedures. Continuous awareness and knowledge building about the difference between being a trial participant and therapeutic misconception must become a mainstay in trials to improve the process of informed consent for future research bronchoscopy studies.
Topics: Adult; Humans; Uganda; Bronchoscopy; Cross-Sectional Studies; Therapeutic Misconception; Informed Consent; Qualitative Research
PubMed: 37862303
DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0293174 -
Frontiers in Sociology 2023When COVID-19 health guidelines vastly restricted or shut down in-person ethnographic research in 2020, many researchers pivoted to forms of online qualitative research... (Review)
Review
When COVID-19 health guidelines vastly restricted or shut down in-person ethnographic research in 2020, many researchers pivoted to forms of online qualitative research using platforms such as WeChat, Twitter, and Discord. This growing body of qualitative internet research in sociology is often encapsulated under the umbrella term "digital ethnography." But the question of what makes digital qualitative research ethnographic remains open. In this article, we posit that digital ethnographic research necessitates a negotiation of the ethnographer's self-presentation and co-presence within the field that other forms of qualitative research, such as content or discourse analysis, do not require to satisfy their epistemological stance. To make our case, we provide a brief overview of digital research in sociology and related disciplines. Then, we draw upon our experiences conducting ethnographies in digital communities and in-person communities (what we call here, "analog ethnography") to explore how decisions about self-presentation and co-presence facilitate or block the generation of meaningful ethnographic data. We think through pertinent questions such as: Does the lower barrier for anonymity online justify disguised research? Does anonymity generate thicker data? How should digital ethnographers participate in research environments? What are the possible repercussions of digital participation? We argue that digital and analog ethnographies share a common epistemology that is distinct from non-participatory forms of qualitative digital research-namely the need for the researcher to relationally gather data from the field site over an extended period of time.
PubMed: 37333064
DOI: 10.3389/fsoc.2023.1156776 -
Exploratory Research in Clinical and... Sep 2023Students participating in student-run clinics (SRCs) have opportunities to develop and practice beneficial skill sets, including empathy and interprofessional...
BACKGROUND
Students participating in student-run clinics (SRCs) have opportunities to develop and practice beneficial skill sets, including empathy and interprofessional collaboration.
OBJECTIVES
This study aimed to assess whether participation in an underserved SRC impacts the development of empathy and interprofessional skills in pharmacy and medical students.
METHODS
This study assessed empathy and interprofessional skills development through a self-assessment survey. The survey included the Interpersonal Reactivity Index (IRI) to assess empathy, the Attitudes Towards Health Care Teams/Team Skills Scale (ATHCTS/TSS) to assess interprofessional team dynamics, and a free-text response section. Participants were grouped based on whether they participated in the SRC (intervention group) or did not participate in the SRC (control group). A subgroup analysis was performed based on the participants' discipline (medicine vs. pharmacy). To compare differences in IRI, ATHCTS, and TSS scores between study groups, independent samples -tests were performed. A thematic analysis was used for qualitative data.
RESULTS
There were no statistically significant differences between intervention and control groups in IRI, ATHCTS, or TSS scores. Subgroup analyses showed no significant differences in scores of student pharmacists or medical students. For both disciplines, the thematic analysis revealed the most common positive themes identified were "real-world patient interaction and care," "impact on practice/career development." Alternatively, it revealed the highest reported negative themes identified as "time management and operational difficulties" and "concerns about the quality of/access to care".
CONCLUSIONS
This study demonstrates that involvement in an SRC neither improves nor hinders a learner's development of empathy and interprofessional team skills. Qualitatively, students reported that participation in an SRC benefited their learning and helped develop their skills, like empathy and team dynamics, in an interprofessional setting. Future research with longitudinal monitoring or alternative assessment tools is recommended.
PubMed: 37521018
DOI: 10.1016/j.rcsop.2023.100306