GUEST REVIEWERS-VOLUME 5

No abstract available for this article.     

Administrators and Quality of Care in Long-Term Care Facilities

This exploratory study investigated administrator and facility-related predictors of quality of care in long-term care facilities. Quality was measured using several unmet standards of care identified in the last inspection report of the Ontario Ministry of Health and Long-Term Care (2007). Supplemental data were gathered from surveys mailed to all 602 long-term care administrators in Ontario, Canada, 302 of whom completed the questionnaire. Multiple regression analyses were conducted to test sets of hypotheses linking characteristics of administrators and those of the long-term care facility to quality of care. Education and experience as an administrator in a participant's current position had a moderate positive influence on quality of care; however, negative associations were found between administrator salary and effort devoted to resident care problems and quality of care. In addition, smaller facilities, being located in less populated communities, and administrators with a nursing background significantly affected quality of care in a positive manner.     

Anne Clifford and Samuel Pepys: Diaries and Homes

ABSTRACT

This article examines the diaries of two great English characters of the seventeenth century, Lady Anne Clifford (1590–1676) and Samuel Pepys (1633–1703), in order to explore their representation of houses and ideas of home. Taking these two texts as case studies, it explores the significance of houses in relation to family history and personal advancement, as well as their function as places of self-fulfillment. Contrasts of gender and class play an important part in the analysis, which concludes with an emphasis on rhetorical houses and the nature of diaries as textual homes replete with recorded memories.     

Families,Work, and an Aging Population

Abstract

This article examines the intersection of family caregiving, work, and long-term care. Supporting families who provide care in order to minimize negative work effects while enhancing the acceptability of care options is of common concern to employers, state and federal policymakers, and the homecare professionals in the community-based care system. The contribution of families to the long-term care system, how employer policies have developed, how the public policy agenda has addressed family caregiving, and the importance of a more effective partnership on the state level are discussed.     

Introduction: Exposing Misinformation Concerning Child Sexual Abuse and Adult Survivors

SUMMARY

This article introduces a special volume on misinformation about child sexual abuse. Despite extensive research findings on the long-term effects and consequences of child sexual abuse, misinformation on this topic is widespread. Several forces have worked to support and disseminate this erroneous information. Because it is difficult to comprehend the horror of sexual crimes against children, society's denial and disbelief have often unwittingly supported the agendas of those who want to discount or minimize the impact of these crimes. The media has also contributed to the aura of skepticism surrounding claims of sexual abuse and its mental health impact, and has reported favorably on controversial and unproven claims such as the “false memory syndrome”. In the hope of countering misinformation and thus raising the level of discourse to the engagement of real scientific issues, a number of well known and respected researchers and clinicians examine various facets of the problem.     

NO ROOM FOR ABUSE

In Canada, media reports on health care tend to focus on the high costs of the health care system; reporting privileges the economic aspects of this social service. In the Canadian system, long-term care or chronic care is a type of service that is situated within the health care system. Long-term care institutions typically house older individuals who have lost a significant amount of autonomy and require constant care. Until recently, the services dispensed within these institutions were unseen by the media, and thus the public did not reflect much on these services. The publication of the Report of the Royal Commission on the Future on Health Care in Canada in 2002 has fostered a growing public awareness of the vulnerability of older individuals and those with chronic illnesses, and their relationship with their care-givers. Although it may be the case that the typical care for such persons in these situations is now emerging from a zone of invisibility, it is uncertain that the media coverage accurately portrays the realities of institutionalized care-giving. This essay examines the care practices in long-term care institutions in order to understand the processes at work in an environment in which care is commodified. The ‘area’ in which this caring labour is located is an area where constant moral compromise can create a climate where abuse can become endemic. This paper considers these environments and the potential for abuse in them in relation to the concept of ‘grey zone’, first formulated by Primo Levi and later adapted by Giorgio Agamben and Claudia Card, as well as in relation to the related concept ‘bare life’, also formulated by Agamben. The author argues that the ‘greyness’ produced by care practices that are bound to a cost-effective and task-oriented framework create an environment that is not conducive to proper moral behaviour.     

原乡记忆与日常叙事——关于孙惠芬的乡土小说创作

作为当代优秀的小说家,孙惠芬一直勤耕不辍于乡土世界里。在其原乡记忆和日常叙事的基础上,作者将她对乡土经验的把握和深切体验发挥到极致,从而使其创作在同时期的乡土作家中显现出突出的创作优势。     

服务补救措施的长期效果研究

过程改进、补偿措施、道歉措施、沟通措施是4种主要的服务补救措施。利用企业服务补救的真实数据, 建立向量自回归多元时间序列模型(VAR), 估计出4种常用服务补救措施的影响持续时长和长期影响大小, 揭示服务补救措施的动态效果。分析结果显示, 过程改进的影响持续时长最长, 长期影响最大;道歉措施的影响持续时长最短, 长期影响最小;补偿措施和沟通措施的影响持续时长都大于道歉措施, 且长期影响居中。     

From ‘weak’ to ‘strong’ multifunctionality: Conceptualising farm-level multifunctional transitional pathways

Building on normative conceptualisations of multifunctionality as a decision-making spectrum bounded by productivist and non-productivist action and thought, this paper analyses farm-level multifunctional agricultural transitions. First, the paper suggests that it may be possible to categorise different farm types along the productivist/non-productivist multifunctionality spectrum, and that transitional potential from weak to strong multifunctionality often differs between different categories of farms and types of farm ownership. Second, the paper conceptualises multifunctional transitional processes at farm level over time, and introduces the notions of multifunctional path dependency and decision-making corridors, the latter of which can be understood as ‘bundles’ of decision-making opportunities bounded by productivist and non-productivist action and thought. The analysis suggests that system memory plays an important role in defining the likelihood of multifunctional actions, and argues that transitional ruptures—sudden breaks in transitional pathways—often characterise farm-level transitions. The paper concludes by highlighting the methodological challenges awaiting future researchers of multifunctional agricultural transitions.     

Beyond the Classroom:

No abstract available for this article.