Suicide Prevention Training Program for Gatekeepers Working in Community Hospice Settings

Gatekeepers in community hospice settings encounter patients and caregivers struggling with suicidal thoughts. Limited guidance is available for training staff on the prevention of suicide in hospice care. This study evaluated one promising, evidence-based, suicide prevention program with a behavioral rehearsal practice session. A pre- and post-, one group design, was utilized to measure the training impact and educational needs of staff working in community hospice settings (N =39). Training increased awareness of the risk factors for suicide, as reported by nearly 80% of participants. Self-efficacy scores showed a statistically significant Increase, t(df = 35), ?9.59, p= .00 (two-tailed), from pretraining (n=36, M=2.21, SD= .65) to posttraining (n=36, M=3.03, SD=.56). Satisfaction and the need for additional devoted time for suicide prevention training were highly rated. Suicide prevention training programs can enhance self-efficacy, knowledge, and skills for gatekeepers working in community hospice settings.     

Informed consent comprehension among vulnerable populations in Ecuador: video-delivered vs. in-person standard method

The informed consent comprehension process is key to engaging potential research subject participation. The aim of this study is to compare informed consent comprehension between two methods: standard and video-delivered. We compared the in-person and video-delivered informed consent process in the Familias Unidas intervention. We evaluated comprehension using a 7-item true/false questionnaire. There were a total of 152 participants in the control group and 87 in the experimental. General characteristics were similar between both groups (p > 0.05). First-attempt informed consent comprehension was higher in the intervention group but was not statistically significant (80% and 78% respectively p = 0.44). A video-delivered informed consent process did not differ from the standard method of informed consent in a low educational and socioeconomic environment.     

Validation of multidimensional scale of perceived social support in middle-aged Korean women with diabetes

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to validate the Multidimensional Scale of Perceived Social Support (MSPSS) among middle-aged Korean women with type 2 diabetes. Methods: Data were collected from 123 middle-aged Korean women with diabetes. Construct and concurrent validity were examined using factor analysis. Results: Factor analysis extracted three factors: spouse, family, and friends. The MSPSS had relatively good concurrent validity (r = .66, p < .0001), construct validity, and strong reliability (Cronbach's alpha = .90). Conclusion: We concluded that the MSPSS is a simple and well-established instrument to measure social support in middle-aged Korean women with diabetes.     

Assessment of multiple constructs of social integration for older adults living in nursing homes

ABSTRACT

A variety of terms and measures have been used in the literature to denote being socially integrated, and many studies of older adults focus on only social networks or social support and often only include those living in the community. The purpose of this study was to assess multiple constructs of social integration (i.e., social networks, social capital, social support, and social engagement) for older adults in nursing homes. Data were collected from 140 older adults at 30 nursing homes in Kansas. We interviewed older adults’ in-person using a survey questionnaire, and used multilevel confirmatory factor analysis to analyze the data. The final model that included the four constructs had acceptable fit (χ² = 174.71; df = 112; p < .01; CFI = .93; RMSEA = .06; SRMR-W = .06; SRMR-B = .12). The results showed that the proposed model was supported at the individual level. At the between-level, social networks and social support were supported. Study results have methodological and practice/policy implications for the study of older adults in long term care settings. In particular, this study contributes to understanding how to operationally define and differentiate social integration variables in studies of older adults, particularly when study data are hierarchical.     

Family Transitions,Conduct Problems,and Self-Esteem in Elementary School in Kuwait: A Quasi-Experimental Design

ABSTRACT

This study investigated whether family transitions (disruptions due to parents’ divorce, separation, marriage, or death) were related to problems in the conduct and self-esteem of 331 boys aged 8 to 10 years old in elementary school in Kuwait. The boys were divided into two groups: one whose families had undergone a transition within the past 3 years and one whose families had not undergone such a transition. The two groups were compared on conduct and self-esteem as measured by the Child Behavior Checklist 6–18 and on the Self-Esteem Index. A two-tailed t test was used. The study revealed statistically significant relationships between the two groups. Transitions in the families of young Kuwaiti boys seem to be precursors to problems with conduct but not with self-esteem. Kuwaiti tribal culture may help explain why self-esteem does not suffer after a family transition. The findings suggest a greater need for social services to work with schools to gather information from families to track students and offer services to these families. Future research could study the broader factors surrounding conflict in families undergoing transitions to determine the later impact on children.     

Housing needs of grandparent caregivers: grandparent,youth, and professional perspectives

ABSTRACT

This qualitative study examined the housing needs of grandparent caregivers and the youth in their care in New York State. Nine focus groups were conducted separately with grandparent caregivers (n = 46) and youth (n = 34), and interviews were conducted with key informants (n = 17) knowledgeable about housing and issues. Housing needs of greatest priority, contextual differences, and potential barriers to securing housing and social services were identified. Key themes indicated that housing challenges stem from four problem domains: the experience of poverty, which creates affordability challenges that trap grandparent caregivers and their grandchildren in unsuitable homes and unsafe neighborhoods; physical challenges of aging grandparents, which require specific housing accommodations; changes in family composition when taking in grandchildren, which necessitate moving out of prior accommodations or changing housing plans due to regulatory issues; and obstacles to obtaining needed benefits, including a lack of information, burdensome application processes, ineligibility, and a shortage of resources. These issues are discussed with implications for policy and practice.     

Impacts of child development accounts on parenting practices: evidence from a randomised statewide experiment

ABSTRACT

This study examines the impact of Child Development Accounts (CDAs) on parenting practices of mothers with young children in a statewide randomised experiment conducted in the United States. The experiment included 2704 primary caregivers of children born in Oklahoma during 2007: 1358 were randomly assigned to the treatment group and 1346 to the control group. Structural equation modelling suggests that the punitive-parenting score among treatment participants was .12 standard deviations smaller than that among control participants (p < . 05). Findings indicate that CDAs reduce punitive parenting, and may serve as an additional tool for positive parent–child interactions.     

Sí, Yo Puedo Curricula and Police Departments: Educating Immigrant Latinas

ABSTRACT

Immigrant Latinas experiencing incidences of interpersonal violence require services from police departments. In a mixed-methods study using a culturally specific curriculum, Si, Yo Puedo, designed to foster self-esteem and provide education on interpersonal violence and healthy relationships, two groups (n = 14) were conducted in 2015 at a precinct in a midwestern state. This group-format curriculum is a 2-hour, topic-specific educational program, conducted in Spanish, offered in 11 weeks. Participants reported an increase in self-esteem and knowledge of interpersonal violence after completing the program. Findings implicate this curriculum as a suitable service tool for police departments working with immigrant Latinas.     

A Pilot Randomized Trial of an Intervention to Enhance the Health-Promoting Effects of Older Adults’ Activity Portfolios: The Engaged4Life Program

The purpose of this study was to evaluate the feasibility and outcomes of the Engaged4Life program, an intervention to encourage inactive community-dwelling older adults to embed physical activity, cognitive activity, and social interaction into their everyday lives in contexts that are personally meaningful and natural for them. Fifteen participants were randomized to the intervention group (technology-assisted self-monitoring of daily activity via pedometers and daily tablet-based surveys; psychoeducation + goal-setting via a 3-hour workshop; and peer mentoring via phone 2×/week for 2.5 weeks) and 15 to the control (technology-assisted self-monitoring only). Recruitment was shown to be feasible and efficient, but not able to reach the target for men. Retention rate was 83% and participants manifested high adherence and engagement with the intervention. Though this pilot trial was not powered to demonstrate significant differences between groups, daily steps increased by 431 (11% increase) from baseline to Week 4 for the intervention (p < .05), but decreased by 458 for the control, for a net difference of 889 steps (p < .05). Findings were sustained at Week 8 (p < .01). In a future trial, difficulties in recruiting men, barriers due to the technology-intensive design, and the optimization of secondary outcome measures should be addressed.     

Is religious and existential well-being important in quality of life in Hong Kong Chinese?

The present study aims to determine the extent to which general QoL is predicted by religious and existential well-being, taking into consideration the intensity of participants’ religious and personal beliefs. Additionally, we examine the differences between Christians, believers in the Chinese religions, and those who are not religious. The study is based on the secondary analysis of a cross-sectional survey on the Spiritual Well-being scale (SWBS), which encompasses religious (RWB) and existential well-being (EWB). Participants (N = 445) were comprised of three religious subsamples for known group comparisons: a Chinese religions group (CRG) (n = 133), comprising Buddhism (23.1%), Taoism (5.2%), folk religions and ancestral worship (1.5%); a Christian group (n = 144) consisting of Roman Catholics (8.3%) and Protestants (24%); and non-believers (NRel) (n = 167). Regardless of their religious affiliations, QoL scores were the same in the overall sample. However, when taking the extent of religious commitment and sense of belonging into consideration, religious believers had higher scores in QoL and SWBS than non-believers (highest in Christians, followed by CRG and NRel). Hierarchical regressions showed that EWB was the only significant predictor of QoL after controlling for gender, age, and the extent of religious belief and commitment. The data indicated positive influences of religious beliefs on QoL and SWBS, although distinct affiliations might have affected these scores to a different extent. Fostering RWB and EWB are vital to promoting QoL.     

The Role of Media in Reporting Child Abuse

ABSTRACT

This study looks at the short-term impact that the media coverage of children in need of protection had on the number of cases reported to child protection agencies. The number of reports (N = 11,646) made to these agencies in Canada was tallied each week during a 24-month period. During the same period, a content analysis of print media was conducted regarding child maltreatment and/or child protection services (CPS) to identify and count the number of articles published (N = 1,211) and single out media frenzy events. Results show a statistically significant relationship between media coverage and the number of cases reported to child protection agencies.     

Convalescent patients as mental hospital employees 1

ABSTRACT

The operationalization and conceptualization of mindfulness into Westernized societies have shown certain challenges. Additional attention is needed to demonstrate the ways in which mindfulness is measured in youth and adolescents. This article explored the Child and Adolescent Mindfulness Measure as a reliable and valid measure for youth in a convenience sample of fifth graders who are predominantly minority and living in an urban environment (n = 248). Results from an exploratory factor analysis show that construct validity was established with all 10 items loading on two factors. Unlike the original validation and many subsequent studies that were unidimensional, this study revealed two factors present in this sample: avoidance of feelings and present moment non-judgmental awareness. The model explained 50.37% of the total variance in the examination of mindfulness. The two factors also demonstrated acceptable divergent validity with measures of anxiety (factor 1: r = ?0.45; factor 2: r = ?0.67) and involuntary responses to stress (factor 1: r = ?0.55; factor 2: r = ?0.71). Discussion as to why two factors were found in our study, unlike many previous studies, is offered with suggestions for future research outlined.     

The Social Work Assessment Tool (SWAT)

Abstract

This paper reports on the last of three National Hospice and Palliative Care Organization initiatives to move hospice and palliative care social workers into the patient/family outcomes arena: the development of the Social Work Assessment Tool. The experience of a team of practitioners and researchers is described, including results of two pilot studies and subsequent SWAT revisions. The major focus is on the current model performance improvement project, in which 19 social workers from 14 hospice and palliative care programs used the SWAT with 101 patients and 81 primary caregivers for a median of 44 days. Quantitative analysis indicated significant improvement in SWAT scores for patients from the first to the second social work visit (t = ?2.60, df = 47, p .01). Qualitative interviewing of the social workers indicated some lack of readiness in the field to conduct quantitative outcomes measurement. Additional measures are needed in addition to the SWAT, including qualitative measures, and measures of mezzo and macro practice. Participants indicated that the SWAT was appropriate for use with economically and culturally diverse clients.     

Perceptions of undergraduate pharmacy students on plagiarism in three major public universities in Egypt

The survey aimed to capture the perceptions of undergraduate pharmacy students towards plagiarism in three major public universities in Cairo, Egypt: Helwan, Ain-Shams, and Cairo Universities. This was a paper-based self-administrated survey study. The questionnaire was validated by both content and face validation. The final survey form captured the knowledge of the students on plagiarism in terms of definitions, attitudes, and practices. Four hundred and fourteen students, 320 females and 94 males, participated in the study. There was a significant difference between the students who knew the definition of plagiarism among the three universities with p-value = .01. More than half of the participants (67%) claimed that they had no previous education or training on plagiarism. However, after being informed about plagiarism, most of them agreed that plagiarism should be regarded as stealing and a punishment. Additionally, poor study skills and the ease of copying and pasting from the Internet were identified by the majority of the students to be the leading causes of plagiarism. Pharmacy students need to be more educated on plagiarism and its consequences on research and educational ethics. Finally, more strict policies should be incorporated to monitor and control plagiarism in undergraduate sections.     

Hardly Silent: Exploring Civic Engagement and Participation among a Panel of Adults Ages 85+

ABSTRACT

The past twenty years have seen a surge of resources for and public attention devoted to civic participation opportunities for older adults in the United States. At the same time, technology has transformed the way information related to political and social issues is spread and shared. As more older adults migrate to using a wider range of communication tools and the internet, technology-mediated forms of engagement represent a new way for the oldest old to participate in society. In this study, a panel of adults ages 85 and older was surveyed to understand their experiences engaging with political and social issues. Responses to a questionnaire (N = 24) and focus groups (n = 22) indicate the oldest old are interested in social and political issues, and there are opportunities for technology to facilitate the oldest olds’ civic and political action. This study identifies roles social workers may play in helping the oldest old engage with social and political issues in their communities.     

Material hardship and self-rated health among low-income households in South Korea

Concerns over poverty and health inequality are growing in South Korea. Using advanced statistical methods including lagged-dependent variable and fixed-effects approaches, we investigated whether experiencing material hardship (MH) was associated with self-rated health (SRH) among low-income households in South Korea. This study found that the experience of MH was positively associated with higher likelihood of reporting poor SRH (OR = 1.42, p < .05) and that experiencing two or more items of MH presented more harmful influence on SRH (OR = 2.02, p < .001). This study also found that the negative association between MH and SRH was stronger among the unemployed households.     

Microfinance Participation and Women's Empowerment: Evidence from a Nationally Representative Sample of Women in Bangladesh

ABSTRACT

More than 30 million married women in Bangladesh access microfinance, an empowering anti-poverty tool, amidst mixed responses from scholars about microfinance's empowering effect. The present study evaluates whether microfinance participation empowers women using a culturally suitable conceptualization of empowerment constituting autonomy, decision-making power in the household, and justification of partner violence. This study utilizes data from a representative probability sub-sample of 6,150 married women aged between 15 and 49 years from the Bangladesh Demographic and Health Survey 2011 to assess the difference in empowerment between microfinance participants and a control group using propensity score matching techniques. Findings revealed that women who participated in microfinance were not statistically different at the 0.05 level from women who did not participate in microfinance in terms of empowerment when groups were matched on socio-demographic variables ensuring that treatment and comparison groups had equal propensity to participate in microfinance, casting doubt on the assertion that microfinance participation positively affects women's empowerment. Future research needs to focus on what empowerment may mean in relation to the outside world; we need to move beyond a familial understanding of empowerment to examine the individual in terms of her individual identity in the socio-political world in which she resides.     

Perceived Usefulness and Easiness of Information and Communication Technologies and Volunteering among Older Adults

ABSTRACT

This study investigates the association between older adults’ perception of usefulness and easiness (PUE) of Information Communication and Technologies (ICTs) and volunteering, and if this association differs across their income status. Data were obtained from the 2012 wave of the Health and Retirement Study (HRS), and the sample was restricted to respondents aged between 60 and 84 (N = 901) and who completed the 2012 HRS technology module. Multinomial logistic regression was employed to examine the independent and joint influence of PUE of ICTs and of low-income status on volunteering. The results show that only people with high PUE engaged in more than 100 hours of volunteering among older adults after controlling for covariates. The positive effect of high PUE was found to be more significant in the low-income group. This is the first known research to investigate the PUE of ICTs and volunteering among older adults. This study expands the knowledge of volunteering among older adults by exploring ICTs which can be considered as one of the most influential macrosocial changes in the current society. Moreover, our findings provide some insights and an empirical foundation in volunteering programs for older adults of different PUE levels.