Introduction: Research has described improved health for persons with Parkinson's Disease (PD) who participate in dance classes. However, few studies focus on how relatives experience their life together with a partner who has PD and how the impact of Dance for Parkinson's Disease (DfPD) influences everyday life.

Objective: The aim of the study was to identify and describe the impact of DfPD on subjective experiences of well-being and functioning in daily living as experienced by dancers and their relatives.

Methods: The study used a descriptive method design combining a questionnaire for the dancers at the end of the dance semester and focus group interviews with relatives during a national dance camp.

Results: Most of the dancers experienced DfPD as improving their balance, and both the dancers and relatives experienced increased joy and happiness in life. The results highlight health factors such as improved body movements and social interactions, which makes life easier and raises awareness of the importance of DfPD.

Conclusion: Dancers and relatives consistently experienced being part of a joyful and healthy exercise, testifying to the positive effects that DfPD has on subjective well-being and body functioning for persons with PD and their relatives. © 2024 The Authors

When the COVID-19 pandemic began to spread around the world, Swedish municipalities were unprepared. Different guidelines on how to act in relation to the disease varied and protective equipment was lacking. This study aims to describe the experiences of health and social care providers of working at municipality level during the COVID-19 pandemic. A total of 12 assistant nurses, 13 registered nurses, and three physicians were interviewed, individually or in groups, between fall 2020 and spring 2021. The interviews were semi-structured and were analyzed using thematic analysis, utilizing a design following the COREQ-checklist. Three main themes were identified as follows: ‘Initial chaotic situation and uncertainty regarding how to deal with the pandemic’; ‘Continuous changes in organization and work routines’, and ‘Management of the pandemic has become the new normal’. Though health and social care workers eventually managed to embed dealing with COVID-19 as a routine feature of their daily work, municipalities must prepare for future crises. © The Author(s) 2022

A Dual Career (DC) scenario perspective was introduced in the European project “Gold in Education and Elite Sport” (GEES) and is characterized by integration of student-athletes’ athletic and non-athletic demands into difficult situations or periods (i.e., scenarios) requiring coping efforts. In this study we consider balance as the primary challenge for student-athletes and set out to identify DC scenarios that influenced university student-athletes’ optimal DC balance, and the factors involved in coping with such scenarios. We implemented a post-positivist qualitative design through semi-structured interviews with six university student-athletes. Our thematic analysis generated seven DC scenarios, for example, A sport event coincides with exams, and Finalize degree project and continue to train and compete. The scenarios, their characteristics and student-athletes’ corresponding coping are described. Based on the findings, we suggest an updated definition of DC scenarios and present their taxonomy, with four types of DC scenarios in which student-athletes’ circumstances challenge them to (a) maintain sport and study, (b) maintain study, (c) maintain sport, and (d) maintain personal life. We discuss how these developments can be useful for DC research and practice.

Background: During the last decade, there has been an increase in studies describing use of mHealth, usingsmartphones with apps, in the healthcare system by a variety of populations. Despite this, few interventions including apps are targeting older people receiving home care. Developing mobile technology to its full potential of being interactive in real time remains a challenge. The current study is part of a larger project for identifying and managing health concerns via an app by using real-time data. The aim of the study was to describe older people’s usage of an app and to evaluate the impact of usage on aspects of health and health literacy over time.Methods: A quasi-experimental design was employed. Seventeen older people self-reported health concerns via Interaktor twice a week for 3-months and answered questionnaires at baseline, the end of the intervention and at a 6–month follow-up. Logged data on app usage and data on Sense of Coherence, Health Index, Nutrition Form for the Elderly, Geriatric Depression Scale-20, Swedish Communicative and Critical Health Literacy and Swedish Functional Health Literacy were collected and analysed using descriptive and non-parametric inferential statistics.Results: The median usage of the app as intended was 96%. Pain was one of the most reported health concerns and was also the health concern that triggered an alert (n = 33). The older people’s communicative and critical health literacy improved significantly over time. Regarding the scores of Sense of Coherence, Health Index, Nutritional Form for the Elderly, Geriatric Depression Scale-20 and Swedish Functional Health Literacy scale, there were no significant differences over time.Conclusions: The high app usage showed that an app may be a suitable tool for some older people living alone and receiving home care. The results indicate that the usage of Interaktor can support older people by significantly improving their communicative and critical health literacy. Aspects of health were not shown to be affected by the usage of the app. Further research with larger sample is needed for evaluation the effect on health literacy, andwhich aspects of health of importance to support by an app. © 2020 The Author(s).

Background: Timely identification of patients with palliative care needs is a prerequisite for being able to carry out effective and equal palliative care. The Supportive and Palliative Care Indicators Tool (SPICT) identifies patients likely to benefit from a palliative approach.

Aim: The main objective was to describe the translation, cross-cultural adaptation and content validation process of the SPICT-SE. In this process, the prefinal SPICT-SE was tested in focus group interviews to explore how the tool was perceived and interpreted by healthcare professionals in a Swedish healthcare context.

Methods: In this qualitative descriptive study, the translation, cross-cultural adaptation and content validation process of the SPICT-SE was based on a recommended method for cross-cultural adaptation of self-report measures. The process included two independent forward translations, a synthesis, and one independent back-translation. An expert committee consolidated all the versions and developed the prefinal version of the SPICT-SE. The prefinal version of the SPICT-SE was tested in four focus group interviews with physicians and nurses engaged in inpatient or outpatient care in south-west Sweden. A thematic analysis of the transcribed interviews was performed. The SPICT-SE was then revised to the final version.

Results: In the thematic analysis, four themes were constructed that together described how the SPICT-SE was perceived and interpreted by healthcare professionals: The mindset is familiar and relevant; the tool needs to be adjusted in order to be clearer; the purpose and consequences of the tool are ambiguous; and the tool supports a palliative approach.

Conclusion: The SPICT-SE has now been successfully translated, culturally adapted and content validated in a Swedish healthcare context. © 2019 Nordic College of Caring Science

The study's rationale: The need for home care among older persons is increasing, and mHealth is evolving to help meet the challenge. When developing an app to help maintain their health, it is essential to incorporate older persons' preferences.

Aims and objectives: To describe and evaluate the experiences of self-care support and sense of security among older persons using an interactive app to report health concerns.

Methodological design and justification: The study had a descriptive and evaluative design. Qualitative and quantitative methods were applied to achieve a broader understanding.

Ethical issues and approval: Ethical approval was obtained from the Regional Ethical Review Board. The older persons received verbal and oral information about the study and gave written informed consent.

Research methods: Questionnaires (n = 17 older persons) answered at baseline, end of the intervention and at a 6-month follow-up were analysed with statistical analysis. Interviews (n = 17 older persons) conducted at the end of the intervention were analysed using a qualitative directed approach.

Measurements and intervention: The questionnaire included the Appraisal of Self-care Agency Scale and a question concerning sense of security. For 3 months, the older persons used an app for regular reporting of health concerns. The app included self-care advice, graphs and a risk assessment model that generated alerts directly to the nurses.

Results: The older persons described how self-care and sense of security increased at the end of intervention, but statistically, it was shown to decrease afterwards.

Study limitations: The small sample size for statistical analysis.

Conclusions: This study shows that an app can be a complementary tool to conventional home care that can increase older persons' sense of security and self-care ability. The results mirror the older persons' awareness that the support they received with the app was only temporary. Larger studies are needed for generalisation. 

© 2019 Nordic College of Caring Science.

This project has its starting-point in dance project with children and senior citizens. Children and senior citizen have their own health challenges. The Swedish culture does not encourage intergenerational activities in organizations and communities. Intergenerational contacts are in many terms referred to within families, except certain environments such as the educational institutions. Especially, the intergenerational contacts between children and senior citizens are neglected as an important factor in promoting knowledge and health in society. It does not need to be questioned, that both knowledge and health contributes to the sustainability in society. If individuals from different generations have the opportunity to exercise physical activities together, it is likely that it generates positive values for social sustainability. Social constructivism combined with a life course perspective is the fundamental theoretical standpoint for this project.  We will explain the complex matter of how theses processes of “constructed realities” are accomplish before approaching the central ideas of social constructivism in relation to our project.

The overall aim was to understand the knowledge of the social value of intergenerational physical activities, and how different age groups communicate their experiences in a life course perspective. There were many things we could learn in a life course perspective through activities among children and senior citizens, and how we could make use of this knowledge for implementations for social sustainability in general. This study included a three-stage process qualitative data from 48 stakeholders describing in individuals diaries about daily exercise, collected during one and a half year, with focus groups interviews with 24 children and 24 senior citizens. The third stage dancing activities was conducted, and follow up interviews with both participants. The thematic analysis was used emerge the results. We found a common joy for both children and senior citizens when performing the physical activities. Women believed physical activities improved their inclusion and social networks. The men found that the physical activities improved their wellbeing and health.

Background. Health is important in workplaces. A good organisational climate in a workplace plays a major role in the employees’ well-being at work and is also associated with increased productivity. Today, employees are expected to work into older age and it is a challenge for companies to promote health and well-being for this growing group. Purpose. The purpose of this study was to explore how to promote workplace health at present time and for the end of working life in the perspective of employees. Design/Methodology/Approach. The study had an explorative design, and a thematic analysis was chosen. The inclusion criteria were persons 50 years and older, working in the company and planning to continue working into old age. A total of 21 coworkers (14 men) participated in the study. Three focus group interviews were conducted. Findings. The results from the focus group interviews are presented in four themes: handle change in a changeable workplace, take responsibility for health concerns, get confirmation for feeling needed, and support and tolerance adapted for each employee. Practical Implications. Promoting health should be an urgent mission for employees themselves as well as for managers in order to support employees in working into old age. The health promotion must be suitable for each employee and should be designed in such a way as to avoid inequality in workplace health. Originality/Value. There is a need for more health-promoting behaviours, support, and activities for employees in order to work into old age.