Background: Age-related macular degeneration (AMD) is the most common cause of incurable visual impairment and impacts daily life. There are benefits of physical activity for people who are affected with AMD; however, living with AMD is associated with lower levels of physical activity and social isolation. The aim of this study was to explore how older people with AMD in Sweden experienced participation in a 6-month empowerment-based physical activity intervention and how it influenced their physical abilities. Methods: The participants were nine individuals with AMD aged 70–87 years. The intervention comprised physical and social activities in a group twice a week and individual health coaching on three occasions. The study was based on an exploratory qualitative case study design. Results: The findings showed two themes: created meaningfulness in life and creative and playful ways to develop body movements. The findings also showed improved muscle strength after the intervention. Conclusions: The findings showed that participants had increased social connectedness, improved physical self-efficacy and physical ability, as well as improved muscle strength. The empowerment process of the intervention was appreciated by the participants and challenged them to participate in physical activity offered by the municipality for older individuals. © 2024 by the authors.

BACKGROUND: Mental ill health among children and adolescents has increased worldwide. Mental health difficulties from a young age are associated with school absence and educational underachievement. A holistic perspective of treatments besides medical treatment is essential Thus, there is a need for research regarding equine-assisted intervention (EAI).

PURPOSE: The present study aimed to understand the outcomes of an equine-assisted intervention for children and adolescents with mental ill health from the perspectives of parents and close relatives.

METHODS: This study used a qualitative research design informed by Charmaz's Grounded Theory, with a purposive sample including six in-depth interviews.

RESULTS: The theory "building up bit by bit" was constructed, explaining the recognition that their children/adolescents were built up bit by bit and created a stronger self-identity. The participants referred to changes in the child's or adolescent's way of being and emotional regulation, which constituted building blocks leading to the child's or adolescent's increased Harmony, enhanced Self-identity, and improved Capability.

CONCLUSION: Parents and close relatives experienced that their child or adolescent was built up bit by bit and gained a stronger foundation to stand on. This led to increased harmony in everyday life with stronger self-worth, better performance, and reduced school absenteeism.

Background: Age-Related Macular Degeneration (AMD) is an eye disease associated with age that causes progressive and irreversible loss of central vision, while the peripheral visual ability remains. The present study explored what it means to live with AMD through the eyes of those living with the condition. Methods: This is an explorative interview study. People who were ≥ 65 years old, living in their own homes, and diagnosed with advanced dry AMD in one or both eyes, causing a visual acuity of no more than 0.3 or worse in the best eye, were invited to participate in the study. The method chosen was the constructivist grounded theory, where reality is seen as fundamentally social and processual and a way of accessing the participants' experiences, thoughts, and feelings. Results: In total, 12 interviews were conducted. Living with dry AMD confronted different problems and challenges. The substantive theory, Perpetuating ability to live life as usual, is characterised by a desire to continue life as usual, which requires an acceptance of the disease's progress, self-acceptance of the new me, and an acceptance that you must live the new life a little more carefully. Moreover, the participants used three strategies to resolve the main concern: 1) Navigating the new normal, 2) Trusting own ability, and 3) Interdepending. Conclusion: Maintaining an everyday life is the primary concern among people with AMD. In supporting self-care, gaining information about the subjective experience to support their everyday living is of the utmost importance. This grounded theory captures valuable knowledge of how the older adults resolved their main concern “you got to keep on” despite their affected vision by “facing the fact” live life as usual since life continues. Our study also gives rise both to implications for research and practice in order to strengthen older people with AMD facing their future challenges. Trial registration: The Swedish Ethical Review Authority (EPN 2021/02877). © 2024, The Author(s).

Aims and objectives

The aim was to conduct a synthesis of the literature on value-creating care for older persons with incontinence provided with toileting assistance and containment strategies, from the perspectives of older persons and healthcare professionals.

Background

Incontinence is a health problem for many persons worldwide and the problem will increase as the global population ages. It can have a profound impact on a person's wellbeing, and assistance with toileting and containment strategies is common in home care settings and nursing homes.

Design

The design was a literature review with an iterative, reflexive and critical approach.

Methods

A critical interpretive synthesis was conducted. Ten papers published between 2011 and 2019 were analysed. The PRISMA -ScR Checklist was used in this review.

Results

Based on the findings, the conceptual construct ‘The art of connectedness’ was developed, built on co-created care, personalised care and reflective care between the older person and healthcare professionals. Co-created care is based on establishing a relationship, building trust and respecting preferences. Personalised care consists of meeting the person's needs, promoting comfort and maintaining self-determination. Reflective care entails showing empathy, upholding the person's dignity and developing professional competence.

Conclusions

Value-creating care consists conceptually of a connectedness that starts with co-creating the care together with the older person in a close relationship. Assistance is given and received based on the older person's individual needs and is highly valued by the older person as it helps them maintain self-determination. Reflective care is of importance for healthcare professionals.

Relevance for practice

The findings are hoped to enhance healthcare professionals’ understanding of how to improve the clinical encounter in nursing when providing assistance. They may also stimulate critical reflection among healthcare professionals on how to improve assistance to meet the older person's values. © 2022 The Authors. 

INTRODUCTION: Symptomatic pelvic organ prolapse (sPOP) can have a negative impact on a woman's health. While research exists about the impact of sPOP on women, little is known about the effect on their partners. Therefore, this study aimed to explore, from the partner's perspective, what it means to live with a woman with symptomatic pelvic organ prolapse after vaginal birth. METHODS: A qualitative explorative design with a constructed grounded theory approach was taken to analyse the interviews of 13 partners who experienced living with a woman who had sPOP after vaginal birth. RESULTS: "The theory of bearing the burden of spill-over effects" was constructed based on a core category: "Facing a new restricted life", with related categories "Giving up valued activities"; "Struggling with added demands"; "Changing intimate behaviour" and "Redefining future family planning". The theory also contains factors constraining and enabling adjustment to the new reality. While the shortcomings of healthcare constrained the process of adjustment, getting competent treatment and the feeling of love for the family enabled it. CONCLUSION: This study demonstrated that women's sPOP had an apparently negative impact on partners' health behaviours, sexual health, relationship harmony, and psychological well-being. The partners indicated they were unprepared for post-birth adversities and distressed by the lack of treatment options. There is a need to develop prenatal information highlighting the potential risks of sPOP which may be accompanied by levator ani muscle injury, implement guidelines for the prevention and management of these conditions, and offer targeted support to partners if needed. Copyright © 2023 The Authors. Published by Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Background: Age-related macular degeneration (AMD) is the most common cause of incurable visual impairment. These impacts include loss of social activities, decreased functional independence, and reduced physical activity.

The purpose of the study was to explore the participants' experiences and meanings expressed by people with AMD participating in an empowerment-based intervention.

Methods: The study has an explorative design based on ethnographic observations and informal interviews during the Empowerment-Based Physical Activity Intervention (EPI). The intervention embraced empowerment as a process and adopted the reflective equilibrium community empowerment approach. The EPI was carried out over six months and comprised adapted physical activity and social activities twice a week—furthermore, individual health coaching on three occasions. Nine women and two men aged 70-87 years old with AMD in Sweden participated in EPI. Field notes of the observations were analysed using a thematic method with an abductive approach.

Findings: The analysis resulted in five themes: a) Feeling seen and included, b) Having a sense of security, c) Developing physical skills, d) Feeling meaningful and social connectedness, and e) Feeling increased motivation.

Conclusion: Based on the findings, EPI has been a resource for the participants' well-being and development. The findings also filled a gap in the research literature and may provide insights into the potential of creative supervised, adapted physical activity in groups, health coaching, and socialising.

Age-related macular degeneration (AMD) is the most common cause of incurable visual impairment and impacts daily life. These impacts include loss of social activities, decreased functional independence, and reduced physical activity. This protocol aims to describe a prospective, mixed-methodology for studying a population with AMD before, during, and after an empowerment-based physical activity intervention (EPI). A study framework was also developed for EPI. The intervention will include 20 older individuals (age 65+ years) with AMD recruited in Sweden. The intervention period is six months and comprises adapted physical activity and social activities in a group twice a week and individual health coaching on three occasions. The quantitative pre-test and three follow-ups include physical functional tests, an accelerometer that monitors physical activity continuously for one week, and questionnaires. Individual and focus-group interviews and ethnographic observations will explore the experience of living with AMD and what it means to participate in the EPI for individuals with AMD. The chosen methodology offers a structured way for researchers to explore the experiences and factors that may provide insights into the potential of creative supervised, adapted physical activity in groups, health coaching, and socialising that are significant to enable well-being among older individuals with AMD. © 2022 by the authors.

People with psychotic disorders have a significantly increased risk of physical diseases and excessive mortality rates. The aim of the study was to investigate relationships between changes in physical activity, levels of salutogenic health, and glycated hemoglobin among people with psychotic disorders after participation in an individualized lifestyle intervention. The results from analyses showed that self-reported increased physical activity was positively associated with the level of salutogenic health and negatively associated with the level of HbA1c on an individual level. The results indicate that coordinated, individualized, holistic and health-promoting nursing care is crucial to enabling enhanced lifestyle within this vulnerable target group. © 2023 The Author(s). Published with license by Taylor & Francis Group, LLC.

AbstractAge-Related Macular Degeneration (AMD) is an eye disease associated with age with progressive loss of central vision, but the peripheral vision remains. The disease is considered the third most common cause of impaired vision and legal blindness in the world among people 60 years and older and as the elderly population increases, the prevalence of AMD is also expected to increase. Because of the progress of the disease, vision-related issues are accumulated and consequently also on the quality of life. The aim of the study was to explore the experience of living with AMD. The participants were ≥ 65 years living in their own homes and having a diagnosis of dry AMD in one or both eyes caused visual acuity of no more than 0.3 in the best eye. The method chosen was the constructivist grounded theory where reality is seen as fundamentally social and processual and a way of getting access to the participants’ experiences, thoughts, and feelings. The interviews were conducted in the participants’ homes or where they preferred such as at a library. 

Mental illness among children and adolescents is increasing globally, and prescription of psychiatric drugs for children and adolescents with mental illness is increasing worldwide, including Sweden. Holistic health-promoting interventions have shown promising long-lasting significant health benefits in young individuals with mental illness, but holistic health-promoting mental health interventions are often disregarded due to a lack of systematic theory-based knowledge. Consequently, the lack of scientific knowledge thwarts implementation of equine-assisted therapy as an established intervention in mental health nursing for children and adolescents with mental illness. The purpose of the study was to better understand experiences of equine-assisted therapy among children and adolescents with mental illness. The study adopted an inductive approach and data was collected using photovoice methodology. Six young persons, 7–18 years of age, referred by a psychologist to the equine-assisted intervention due to mental health issues, were included in the study. Data was analyzed using qualitative content analysis. The results could be summarized by an overarching theme, a physical, emotional, and social milieu for growth, consisting of three subcategories: feeling relief from everyday stress and anxiety; nurturing self-esteem in a mutual friendship; and strengthening self-reliance through synchronized interplay. The results indicate that equine-assisted therapy has essential values closely related to the goals of mental health nursing. Further research should strive to attain even gender distribution in study samples and focus on how equine-assisted therapy could be thoroughly integrated into established nursing intervention for children and adolescents with mental illness. © 2022 the author(s).