| 1. |
- Argento, Daniela, et al.
(författare)
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Integrating sustainability in higher education : a Swedish case
- 2020
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Ingår i: International Journal of Sustainability in Higher Education. - : Emerald Group Publishing Limited. - 1467-6370 .- 1758-6739. ; 21:6, s. 1131-1150
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Purpose – This paper aims to unveil how sustainability is integrated into the courses/programmes ofhigher education institutions. The research question addressed is: how do academics representing differentdisciplines cooperate and engage in the work of integrating sustainability into their teaching programmes.Design/methodology/approach – This paper draws upon the notions of practise variation andinstitutional work from institutional theory and empirically focusses on the case of Kristianstad University(Sweden). This case is based on an autoethnographic approach and illustrates the experiences shared by sixcolleagues, representing different disciplines, engaged in implementing sustainability in their courses/programmes.Findings – The findings highlight how academics representing different disciplines, with specific traditionsand characteristics, face the sustainability challenge. Despite being bound by similar sustainable developmentgoals, differences across disciplines need to be acknowledged and used as an asset if trans-disciplinarity is theultimate goal.Research limitations/implications – Although the intrinsic motivation of individuals to work withsustainability might be a strong driver, the implementation of sustainability within courses/programmes andacross disciplines requires joint efforts and collective institutional work.Practical implications – By highlighting how academics engage in the work of integratingsustainability, this study emphasizes that managers of higher education institutions need to account for thetime and additional resources needed to ensure that academics effectively cope with sustainability. Intrinsicmotivation may not last if organizational structures and leadership are not supportive on a practical level andin the long run.
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| 2. |
- Brogårdh, Christina, et al.
(författare)
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Psychometric properties of the Walking Impact Scale (Walk-12) in persons with late effects of polio
- 2021
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Ingår i: PM&R. - : Wiley-Blackwell. - 1934-1482 .- 1934-1563. ; 13:3, s. 297-306
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- BACKGROUND: Many persons with late effects of polio (LEoP) perceive walking limitations in everyday life. A common rating scale to assess walking limitations is the Walking Impact Scale (Walk-12). However, there is limited knowledge about its psychometric properties.OBJECTIVE: To investigate the psychometric properties of Walk-12 in persons with LEoP.DESIGN: Rasch model analysis of cross-sectional data.SETTING: University Hospital.PARTICIPANTS: A total of 325 persons with LEoP (175 women; mean age 70 ± 10 yr).MAIN OUTCOME MEASUREMENT: The Walk-12, comprising 12 items with five response categories ranging from 1 (not at all) to 5 (extremely).METHODS: Data of Walk-12 were collected by a postal survey. The Rasch model analysis was used to analyze unidimensionality of the scale, local dependency, targeting, hierarchical order of items, Differential Item Functioning (DIF), response category functioning and reliability (Person Separation Index, PSI). Raw score transformation to interval measurements was also performed.RESULTS: The analysis revealed that Walk-12 was multidimensional and suffered from some local dependency. Targeting was compromised among persons with less and worse walking limitations. Hierarchically, the most difficult item to perform was "running" and the easiest was "walking indoors with support". There was a minor DIF for gender in one item ("support when walking outdoors"). Reliability was high (PSI = 0.94). Disordered response category thresholds were found for three items; when merging the middle response categories for these items model fit slightly improved and unidimensionality was achieved.CONCLUSION: The Walk-12, in its current version, does not fully meet the rigorous psychometric Rasch measurement standards in persons with LEoP. Further development of the scale is warranted, including merging response categories and complementing Walk-12 with objective measures of gait in order to improve targeting. As these limitations can be considered minor, the current version of Walk-12 can still be useful for research and clinical practice. This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved.
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| 4. |
- Laustsen, Christine E., et al.
(författare)
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Involvement of professionals in research: knowledge integration, development of practice, and challenges : a group concept mapping study
- 2021
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Ingår i: Health Research Policy and Systems. - 1478-4505 .- 1478-4505. ; 19:1, s. 1-17
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- BACKGROUND: Research and practice are often considered as two different worlds with different values, which causes a gap between them. Involving professionals such as practitioners, managers, decision-makers, and policy-makers in research on ageing and health might address the gap between research and practice, strengthen the healthcare system, and increase older people's possibilities for healthy ageing. The aim of this study was to conceptualize professionals' involvement in research on ageing and health from the perspective of the professionals themselves.METHODS: A mixed method called group concept mapping was used. Professionals with experience being involved in research on ageing and health participated in qualitative data collection through brainstorming sessions (n = 29) and by sorting statements (n = 29). Afterwards, they participated in a quantitative data collection by rating statements according to how much each statement strengthened practice (n = 30) and strengthened research (n = 28). Multidimensional scaling analysis and hierarchical cluster analysis were used to conduct quantitative analysis. Latent qualitative analysis was also conducted.RESULTS: Analysis resulted in eight clusters which illustrated conceptual areas of professionals' involvement in research projects. The qualitative latent construct of the cluster map resulted in the themes: challenges for professionals; prerequisites and professionals' learning can contribute to development of practice; and integrated knowledge benefits older people. There was a strong correlation between what strengthens practice and research (r = 0.92).CONCLUSIONS: This study illustrates conceptual areas of professionals' own perspectives on what their involvement in research can lead to. Their involvement may lead to knowledge being integrated, and the professionals may learn through their involvement, which can contribute to the development of practice. However, there can also be challenges that need to be handled when professionals are involved in research. The study can be useful for improving the understanding of and actual involvement of professionals in research, and for optimizing the involvement of professionals.
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| 5. |
- Nivestam, Anna, et al.
(författare)
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Give older persons a voice in the society : By using information compiled during preventive home visits on a societal level
- 2021
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Ingår i: International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health. - 1661-7827 .- 1660-4601. ; 18:14, s. 1-17
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Preventive home visits (PHVs) are offered to older persons with the purpose of promoting health and preventing risks on an individual level. However, aspects of health need to be considered on a societal level as well. This study aims to get a deeper understanding of perceptions of the usability of the information compiled during the PHVs to promote health, among older persons, on a societal level. Three online focus groups were conducted with heads of unit of PHVs, heads of department, and politicians responsible for health and welfare in seven municipalities in Sweden (n = 12). The findings were visualised in the core category Enable an inclusive society and the interrelated categories Monitoring determinants of health and Enabling exchange of information. The information from the PHVs could be used to monitor determinants of health by identifying assets, challenges, shifts, trends, and future needs in the society. Moreover, exchange of information from the PHVs could occur within and outside the health and welfare organisation. However, the potential use was affected by hindrances illustrated in the category Obstacles to interpreting and communicating the information. To conclude, using the information from the PHVs could possibly contribute to an inclusive society, where persons not usually represented in decision making are given a voice.
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| 6. |
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| 7. |
- Nivestam, Anna, et al.
(författare)
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Older person's experience of the gains from the support and advice given during the preventive home visit
- 2021
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Konferensbidrag (övrigt vetenskapligt/konstnärligt)abstract
- Background: In order to maintain good health in old age, a comprehensive perspective including both health promotion and risk prevention is crucial. Preventive home visit is one intervention with the purpose to prevent risks and promote health among older persons. Support and advice given during the preventive home visit needs to be tailored towards the older person’s needs. In order to give advice and support that is targeting older persons prerequisites there is a need for more research about how older persons experience support and advice given during a preventive home visit. Therefore, the aim of this study was to explore older person’s experiences of the gains from the support and advice given in a preventive home visit program developed in collaboration between several municipalities, a county council and researchers.Method: Individual semi-structured interviews were conducted with 13 older persons, mean age 79 years old, living at home who had received a preventive home visit. The interviews were analysed with content analysis.Findings: The overarching preliminary theme Being empowered and recognised as a person reviled the participants feeling of that the support and advice given encountered all aspects of health and the whole person. The support and advice generated conditions for the person to be empowered by contributing to a feeling of control and preparedness for the future. Further the support and advice given contributed to a feeling of being recognised when health, behaviour and the surrounding environment were assessed.Conclusion: Being empowered and recognised as a person might be central gains from the support and advice given during the preventive home visits, which enables good health among older persons.
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| 8. |
- Nivestam, Anna, et al.
(författare)
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Promote social participation among older persons by identifying physical challenges : an important aspect of preventive home visits
- 2021
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Ingår i: Archives of gerontology and geriatrics (Print). - 0167-4943 .- 1872-6976. ; 93, s. 1-6
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Introduction: Social participation can have a positive impact on health; however, physical challenges can be hindrances. During a preventive home visit a health professional (visitor) assesses different aspects of physical, mental and social health. However, there might be a challenge for the visitor to discover the interrelationship between physical factors that hinder social participation. Therefore, the aim of this study was, in the context of preventive home visits, to identify physical factors which can hinder older persons from taking part in social contexts. Methods: Cross-sectional register data from preventive home visits to older persons (n=1,245, ≥77 years old, without home care) was used. Data was collected during a period of 17 months, in seven Swedish municipalities. Logistic regression was used to analyse the association between physical factors and the item physical problems hindering social participation. Results: The mean age was 78.8 (standard deviation 1.8 years), and 55% were women. The physical factors significantly associated with physical problems hindering taking part in social contexts were: having urinary incontinence (women only), having pain, impaired endurance and using a mobility device. Conclusions: This study provides insights into how to make the best use of the questions asked during preventive home visits, in order to enable older persons to take part in social contexts. The results recognise the importance of taking into account physical challenges to be able to support social participation. Furthermore, considering physical challenges for social participation on both an individual and a societal level might reduce inequalities among older persons.
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| 10. |
- Westergren, Albert, 1967-, et al.
(författare)
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Next of kin participation in the care of older persons in nursing homes : a pre-post non-randomised educational evaluation, using within-group and individual person-level comparisons.
- 2021
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Ingår i: PLOS ONE. - : Public Library of Science (PLoS). - 1932-6203. ; 16:1, s. 1-15
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- BACKGROUND: Next of kin participation in care is a cornerstone of palliative care and is thus important in nursing homes, and outcomes following interventions need to be evaluated using robust methods.OBJECTIVE: To use within-group and within-individual analytical approaches to evaluate the participation of next of kin in care following an intervention and to compare the outcome between the intervention and control groups.METHODS: A pre-post intervention/control group study design was used. The educational intervention, directed towards staff members, focused on palliative care. The Next of Kin Participation in Care scale comprises the Communication and Trust subscale and the Collaboration in Care subscale, with nine items each. In total, 203 persons (intervention group: n = 95; control group: n = 108) were included. Three different analytical approaches were used: 1) traditional within-group comparison of raw ordinal scores and linearly transformed interval scores; 2) modern within-individual (person-level) interval score comparisons; 3) comparisons between the intervention group and control group based on individual person-level outcomes.RESULTS: Within-group comparisons of change revealed no change in any of the groups, whether based on raw or transformed scores. Despite this, significant improvements at the individual level were found in 32.9% of the intervention group and 11.6% of the control group for the total scale (p = 0.0024), in 25% of the intervention group and 10.5% of the control group for the Communication and Trust subscale (p = 0.0018), and in 31.2% of the intervention group and 10.5% of the control group for the Collaboration in Care subscale (p = 0.0016). However, a significant worsening at the individual level in Collaboration in Care was found in 35.1% of the intervention group but only among 8.4% of the control group (p < 0.0005).CONCLUSION: The intervention seems to have a positive impact on next of kin participation in care in nursing homes, especially for communication and trust. However, some next of kin reported decreased participation in care after the intervention. Modern individual person-level approaches for the analysis of intervention outcomes revealed individual significant changes beyond traditional group-level comparisons that would otherwise be hidden. The findings are relevant for future outcome studies and may also necessitate a re-evaluation of previous studies that have not used individual person-level comparisons.TRIAL REGISTRATION: This study is part of the intervention project registered under Clinical Trials Registration NCT02708498.
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