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| 2. |
- Schmöker, Annika, et al.
(författare)
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Female genital mutilation – why does it still exist in Africa?
- 2015
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Ingår i: ScienceOpen Research. - : ScienceOpen. - 2199-1006.
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Annan publikation (övrigt vetenskapligt/konstnärligt)abstract
- Background: Female genital mutilation (FGM) includes all procedures that involve partial or total removal of the external female genitalia for non-medical reasons. FGM is practised in many parts of the world – including 28 African countries, some countries in the Middle East and Asia, and some population groups in Central and South America. Its prevalence rates range from 0.6% up to 97.9%, and it has been classified as a violation of human and children’s rights. Consequently, several countries have passed laws against the practice and many international programmes have been implemented to abandon it. Yet, FGM still prevails in many countries. This literature review aimed at identifying the underlying reasons for the perpetuation of FGM, ascertaining forces that foster its promotion and persistence and who is responsible for pushing its continuation. The main goal was to try to understand the underlying causes that make FGM resistant against initiatives and campaigns targeting its elimination.Methods: A literature search was carried out using several databases. All sources that approached the topic of FGM were incorporated including literature reviews, systematic reviews, qualitative and quantitative as well as mixed-method studies that described attitudes towards FGM and factors associated with its practice.Results: Different factors that were interlinked could be identified at the individual, interpersonal, organisational/institutional as well as the community/societal level as the underlying causes of the perpetuation for FGM. These factors varied within and between different settings and include individual characteristics such as parents’ level of education, place of residence, personal beliefs (aesthetics, health benefits, hygiene) about FGM as well as the medicalisation of FGM and the involvement of health care professionals at the institutional level. Cultural factors like gender inequality, social norms and pressure also played an important role. Surprisingly, no evidence that supported religious motives could be found in any of the three monotheistic religions.Conclusion: This review suggests that the reasons behind the performance of FGM differ between and within countries and contexts, but cannot be found in the scriptures even though it is mainly practiced by Muslims. Girls with low education living in small Muslim communities, in rural areas in Africa and whose parents especially the mother had a low educational level, were at increased risk of undergoing FGM. Successful actions to eliminate this practice require a balance between respect of culture and human rights. Practising communities should be involved in each step of every programme. Finally, it is crucial to target the young generations through education, women empowerment and reduction of gender inequality.
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| 3. |
- Schmöker, Annika, et al.
(författare)
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Longitudinal cohort study reveals different patterns of stress in parents of preterm infants during the first year after birth
- 2020
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Ingår i: Acta Paediatrica. - : Wiley-Blackwell Publishing Inc.. - 0803-5253 .- 1651-2227. ; 109:9, s. 1778-1786
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Aim: To compare experiences of stress in mothers and fathers of preterm infants during the first year of life, assess changes in parental stress and explore potential predictors of parental stress.Methods: Between 2013 and 2015, data on parental stress were collected at 8 weeks after discharge and at 6 and 12 months postpartum from 493 mothers and 329 fathers of 547 preterm infants in Sweden. The Swedish Parenting Stress Questionnaire was used as a secondary outcome in a randomised clinical trial of breastfeeding support.Results: At the three time points, mothers perceived more role restriction and fathers more social isolation (p<0.001). Stress decreased in mothers during the first year (p=0.018), whereas stress increased in fathers between 6 and 12 months (p=0.048). Mothers of very preterm infants (p=0.024), parents of twins (p=0.038) and parents with lower perceived general health (p=0.003) reported higher levels of stress during the first year after birth.Conclusion: This study identified several factors that influenced parental stress. Mothers and fathers showed different patterns of stress levels during the first year after birth. This finding indicates different needs for mothers and fathers regarding the time at which parental support after discharge might be most beneficial.
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| 4. |
- Schmöker, Annika, et al.
(författare)
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Needs and Perceptions Relative to Emotional Support in Parents With Preterm Infants.
- 2021
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Ingår i: Journal of Perinatal & Neonatal Nursing. - 0893-2190 .- 1550-5073.
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Objectives of this study were to explore parents' needs for emotional support and how such support could be best delivered during admittance to a neonatal unit. This study took place at 6 neonatal units in Sweden. Forty-two semistructured interviews were analyzed using qualitative content analysis: 26 individual telephone interviews with mothers of preterm infants 6 to 10 months after discharge and 16 face-to-face interviews with parents of preterm infants admitted to neonatal units. The main category to emerge was needs and preferences for emotional support, which consisted of 2 generic categories: emotional needs and preferences for potential support interventions. Emotional needs define the importance of comprehending the new situation, finding meaning, and managing the situation through resources. Preferences for potential support interventions identify possible ways to deliver emotional support in the form of parental PhD group, diary writing, professional counseling, and Internet support. The results highlight the importance of supporting parents' sense of coherence in their situation and parenthood by offering different interventions according to parent preferences. Parental groups could serve as a keystone for emotional support with the possibility to combine with other support mechanisms.
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| 5. |
- Schmöker, Annika, et al.
(författare)
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Needs and Perceptions Relative to Emotional Support in Parents With Preterm Infants
- 2021
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Ingår i: Journal of Perinatal & Neonatal Nursing. - : Wolters Kluwer. - 0893-2190 .- 1550-5073. ; , s. 1-9
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Objectives of this study were to explore parents’ needs for emotional support and how such support could be best delivered during admittance to a neonatal unit. This study took place at 6 neonatal units in Sweden. Forty-two semistructured interviews were analyzed using qualitative content analysis: 26 individual telephone interviews with mothers of preterm infants 6 to 10 months after discharge and 16 face-to-face interviews with parents of preterm infants admitted to neonatal units. The main category to emerge was needs and preferences for emotional support, which consisted of 2 generic categories: emotional needs and preferences for potential support interventions. Emotional needs define the importance of comprehending the new situation, finding meaning, and managing the situation through resources. Preferences for potential support interventions identify possible ways to deliver emotional support in the form of parental PhD group, diary writing, professional counseling, and Internet support. The results highlight the importance of supporting parents’ sense of coherence in their situation and parenthood by offering different interventions according to parent preferences. Parental groups could serve as a keystone for emotional support with the possibility to combine with other support mechanisms.
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| 6. |
- Schmöker, Annika
(författare)
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Parents’ needs and perceptions on emotional support in neonatal care and patterns of stress in parents of preterm infants during the first year after birth
- 2023
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Licentiatavhandling (övrigt vetenskapligt/konstnärligt)abstract
- Many parents experience preterm birth as traumatic and develop high levels of emotional stress, anxiety, and depressive symptoms. This can have a negative impact on the bonding process and the development of their parental identity. The emotional support provided by the staff varies between Swedish neonatal intensive care units (NICUs), and little is known about parents´ needs and preferences for emotional support. Further, there are knowledge gaps regarding parental stress in fathers and their needs for emotional support, differences in stress between mothers and fathers, change of parental stress over time and potential predictors for parental stress.The aim of this thesis was to explore the needs and preferences for emotional support in parents of preterm infants during their infant’s hospitalisation in a NICU, and to describe parental stress in mothers and fathers up until the infant’s age of 12 months and predictors for parental stress. Study I was a qualitative study using semi-structured interviews with 51 parents of preterm infants, which were analysed using qualitative content analysis. The results showed that parents need a sense of coherence during their infant’s stay in a neonatal intensive care unit, and they want to be offered emotional support according to their preferences. Many parents preferred to attend professionally led parental groups as other NICU parents could really understand their situation and feelings. Parents also emphasised the value of combining parental groups with other means of support.Study II was a longitudinal cohort study in which data on self-reported parental stress during the first year were obtained from 493 mothers and 329 fathers of preterm infants and analysed using descriptive statistics, Student’s independent t-tests, linear regression, and linear mixed-effects modelling. The results showed that mothers perceived more role restriction than fathers, and that fathers experienced more social isolation than mothers. Further, parental stress decreased during the first year for mothers but increased for fathers, especially between 6 months and 12 months postpartum. For both mothers and fathers, having twins and a lower perceived general health were associated to higher levels of parental stress. In addition, mothers with infants of lower gestational age experienced significantly higher levels of parental stress. In conclusion, individualised emotional support is important for parents of preterm infants for them to manage their situation both during their infant’s hospitalisation and during the first year postpartum. Apart from professional support, peer-support in the form of professionally led parental groups are perceived to be potentially valuable emotional support by parents. This peer-support could, preferably, be combined with other means of support during hospitalisation as ‘one size does not fit all’. In a next step, support interventions need to be designed, tested, and evaluated. Antonovsky’s theory of Sense of Coherence can be used to identify emotional needs in NICU parents and how to provide emotional support consistent with the parents’ preferences. After discharge from the NICU, vulnerable groups of parents, including parents of very preterm infants and twins need additional support. Moreover, there is a need in fathers for additional emotional support programmes offered during the first year of infants’ lives.
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