| 1. |
- Hallberg, Lillemor R.-M., et al.
(författare)
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Self-reported hearing difficulties, communication strategies and psychological general well-being (quality of life) in patients with acquired hearing impairment
- 2008
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Ingår i: Disability and Rehabilitation. - London : Informa Healthcare. - 0963-8288 .- 1464-5165. ; 30:3, s. 203-212
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- PURPOSE. The aims were to (i) translate the Amsterdam Inventory for Auditory Disability and Handicap (AIADH) into Swedish and evalute its usefulness, (ii) describe hearing difficulties and psychological well-being (quality of life) and (iii) explore variables related to psychological well-being in a Swedish population. METHOD. Seventy-nine consecutive patients, referred to the hearing clinic for hearing examination and audiological rehabilitation, formed the study sample. Along with pure-tone audiometry, the AIADH, the Psychological General Well-being index and the Communication Strategies Scale were used. RESULTS. Men had significantly worse hearing on the high frequencies (2, 3, 4 and 6 kHz) than women but their quality of life was significantly higher than for women. Men scored significantly lower on 'auditory localization' and adopted non-verbal communication strategies less often than women. A stepwise regression analysis showed that 'maladaptive behaviours' and 'intelligibility in quiet' explained 48% of the variance in quality of life. CONCLUSION. Psychosocial consequences of hearing loss, such as lowered quality of life, cannot be predicted from audiometric data alone. The adverse relationship between maladaptive behaviour and quality of life emphasizes the relevance of developing training programs aiming to improve coping with the consequences of a hearing impairment.The AIADH may be useful in assessing self-reported difficulties among patients with hearing problems, but needs to be further developed in terms of psychometric evaluations and reliability testings based on a larger representative sample.
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| 2. |
- Tucker, S., et al.
(författare)
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Improving the mix of institutional and community care for older people with dementia : an application of the balance of care approach in eight European countries
- 2016
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Ingår i: Aging and Mental Health. - Abingdon : Informa UK Limited. - 1360-7863 .- 1364-6915. ; 20:12, s. 1327-1338
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Objectives: To examine whether the mix of community and institutional long-term care (ILTC) for people with dementia (PwD) in Europe could be improved; assess the economic consequences of providing alternative services for particular groups of ILTC entrants and explore the transnational application of the ‘Balance of Care’ (BoC) approach. Method: A BoC study was undertaken in Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, the Netherlands, Spain, Sweden, and the UK as part of the RightTimePlaceCare project. Drawing on information about 2014 PwD on the margins of ILTC admission, this strategic planning framework identified people whose needs could be met in more than one setting, and compared the relative costs of the possible alternatives. Results: The findings suggest a noteworthy minority of ILTC entrants could be more appropriately supported in the community if enhanced services were available. This would not necessarily require innovative services, but more standard care (including personal and day care), assuming quality was ensured. Potential cost savings were identified in all countries, but community care was not always cheaper than ILTC and the ability to release resources varied between nations. Conclusions: This is believed to be the first transnational application of the BoC approach, and demonstrates its potential to provide a consistent approach to planning across different health and social care systems. Better comparative information is needed on the number of ILTC entrants with dementia, unit costs and outcomes. Nevertheless, the findings offer important evidence on the appropriateness of current provision, and the opportunity to learn from different countries' experience.
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| 3. |
- Häggblom, A.M.E., et al.
(författare)
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Nurses' attitudes and practices towards abused women
- 2005
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Ingår i: Nursing and Health Sciences. - Carlton, Vic, Australia : Blackwell Publishing. - 1441-0745 .- 1442-2018. ; 7:4, s. 235-242
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- The present article is a descriptive survey assessing nurses' knowledge, training, and practices regarding the care of abused women. A self-administered questionnaire was sent to all nurses working within the government health organization on the Åland Islands, Finland. The response rate was 57%. Most nurses had no formal training in domestic violence and were less likely than the in-service-trained nurses to intervene with abused women. Nurses' knowledge, beliefs, and practices were found to be unsystematic and had drawbacks. Nurses were not familiar with the formal structure provided by the health administration. The results suggest that in order to meet the urgent need for training among nurses, an in-service training program needs to be set up. This program would help the nurses in identifying survivors of abuse and make them prepared to intervene more effectively to promote the health of these women.
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| 4. |
- Tucker, Sue, et al.
(författare)
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What Makes Institutional Long-Term Care the Most Appropriate Setting for People With Dementia? Exploring the Influence of Client Characteristics, Decision-Maker Attributes, and Country in 8 European Nations
- 2016
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Ingår i: Journal of the American Medical Directors Association. - Philadelphia : Elsevier BV. - 1525-8610 .- 1538-9375. ; 17:5, s. 9-465
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- To explore the extent to which client characteristics, decision-maker attributes, and country influence judgments of institutional long-term care (ILTC) appropriateness for people with dementia. Design, setting, and participants: A total of 161 experts in dementia care from 8 European countries reviewed a series of 14 vignettes representing people with dementia on the cusp of ILTC admission and indicated the most appropriate setting in which to support each case in a simple discrete choice exercise: own home, very sheltered housing, residential home, or nursing home. At least 16 experts participated in each country (Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, the Netherlands, Spain, Sweden, and the United Kingdom). Measurements: Descriptive statistics were used to characterize the experts and their placement preferences. Logistic regression modeling was used to explore the extent to which the sociodemographic and clinical characteristics of people with dementia, and the profession, workplace, and country of decision-makers were associated with ILTC recommendation. Results: Client characteristics, decision-maker attributes, and country all seemed to play a part in influencing professionals' perceptions of the appropriateness of ILTC for people with dementia. Expert decision-makers were more likely to recommend ILTC for individuals who required help with mobility or had multiple care needs, and appeared to give more weight to carers' than clients' wishes. Community-based social workers were less likely than other professional groups to favor ILTC placement. Experts in Finland, Germany, and the United Kingdom were less likely to recommend ILTC than experts in France, the Netherlands, and Estonia; experts in Sweden and Spain took an intermediate position. Conclusion: This study provides new understanding of the factors that shape professionals' perceptions of ILTC appropriateness and highlights the need to construct multifaceted models of institutionalization when planning services for people with dementia. It also has several important clinical implications (including flagging interventions that could decrease the need for ILTC), and provides a basis for enhancing professionals' decision-making capabilities (including the greater involvement of clients themselves).
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