Perceptions of an online ‘train-the-champion’ approach to increase workplace movement

2018 ◽  
Vol 34 (6) ◽  
pp. 1179-1190 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ana D Goode ◽  
Nyssa T Hadgraft ◽  
Maike Neuhaus ◽  
Genevieve N Healy

Abstract Prolonged sitting is now recognized as an emergent work health and safety issue. To address the need for a scalable sitting-reduction intervention for workplaces, the BeUpstanding™ Champion Toolkit was developed. This free, online toolkit uses a ‘train-the-champion’ approach, providing a step-by-step guide and resources to workplace champions to assist them in raising awareness and building a supportive culture to reduce sitting time in their team. This qualitative study explored champion and staff perceptions of the beta (test) version of the toolkit. Seven work teams, from a range of workplace sectors (blue-/white-collar), sizes (small/medium/large) and locations (urban/regional) participated; all team members were exposed to the program (n = 603). Approximately 4 months after program initiation, semi-structured interviews were conducted with all champions (n = 7); focus groups were conducted with a random sample of staff (n = 40). Champions were followed-up again at 12 months (n = 5). Transcripts were coded by two researchers, with codes organized into overarching themes. All champions found the ‘train-the-champion’ approach, and the toolkit acceptable. Common enablers for intervention delivery included: champion passion for staff health and wellbeing; perceived fit of the program within existing practice; and, management support. Champions and staff reported improvements in knowledge/awareness about sitting, cultural norms, perceived stress, productivity and resilience. Facilitators for sustained change over time included a stable organizational climate and ongoing management support; barriers included workload intensification. The beta version of the BeUpstanding™ Champion Toolkit was highly acceptable to workplace champions and staff, and was perceived to have benefits for team culture and staff knowledge and wellbeing.

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
◽  
Vanhsana Sayaseng

<p>Workplace bullying has gained more attention in many Western countries and in some Asian countries than in Laos. It is a serious workplace health and safety issue for both individuals and organisations. In order to understand workplace bullying experienced by individuals, it is important to put bullying in a gendered context. This will help people better understand the perceptions and coping tactics of individuals who have experienced workplace bullying. Where existing studies consider gender, they mainly focus on statistical differences in patterns of bullying experienced between women and men and only a few discuss the gendered processes of workplace bullying. This is an exploratory study addressing gender and workplace bullying in a distinctive non-Western context, taking specific cultural factors into account. This thesis studies the perceptions of ten Laotian women, including myself, of bullying in their current and previous workplaces. These include NGOs, private and public organisations. In this national context, the concept of workplace bullying is not well recognised and understood, and gendered and workplace bullying has not been studied at all. The topic is seen as an extremely sensitive one. Snowball sampling techniques were used to recruit participants. Selected key concepts of workplace bullying from Western-based studies were adapted in order to identify and explore bullying in the Laotian context. In addition, a qualitative epistemology, in which social constructionism and interpretivism were employed, was used to understand and interpret the forms of workplace bullying as experienced by the Laotian women in the study. Semi-structured interviews were developed to help identify experiences of bullying in relation to gender and culture. The analysis of gender and workplace bullying is based on gendered organisation theory and social dominance theory.  The findings indicate a number of risk factors that I have identified associated with workplace bullying in Laos. These include gender and culture factors such as marital status, power distance, ethnocentrism, Westerner privilege and religion. These risk factors give more context to the Negative Acts Questionnaire-Revised (NAQ-R) framework when understanding and interpreting the nature of workplace bullying. Importantly, gender and culture have a strong relationship and cannot be separated from each other when understanding workplace bullying. Various forms of workplace bullying appear to be different from that found in many Western studies and are based on the risk factors. Remedies are also different because of the lack of support systems available, and the fact that participants often have to cope with the bullying by themselves.  I hope that my findings can inform the Lao government to pay more attention in developing policies to address and prevent the phenomenon of workplace bullying in Lao organisations, and also can educate women’s organisations about the nature of this problem so that they can find effective ways to better address and prevent the problems associate with workplace bullying.</p>


Author(s):  
Bradley MacDonald ◽  
Ann-Marie Gibson ◽  
Xanne Janssen ◽  
Jasmin Hutchinson ◽  
Samuel Headley ◽  
...  

Background: Interventions targeting a reduction in sedentary behaviour in office workers need to be scaled-up to have impact. In this study, the RE-AIM QuEST framework was used to evaluate the potential for further implementation and scale-up of a consultation based workplace intervention which targeted both the reduction, and breaking up of sitting time. Methods: To evaluate the Springfield College sedentary behaviour intervention across multiple RE-AIM QuEST indicators; intervention participant, non-participant (employees who did not participate) and key informant (consultation delivery team; members of the research team and stakeholders in workplace health promotion) data were collected using interviews, focus groups and questionnaires. Questionnaires were summarized using descriptive statistics and interviews and focus groups were transcribed verbatim, and thematically analysed. Results: Barriers to scale-up were: participant burden of activity monitoring; lack of management support; influence of policy; flexibility (scheduling/locations); time and cost. Facilitators to scale up were: visible leadership; social and cultural changes in the workplace; high acceptability; existing health and wellbeing programmes; culture and philosophy of the participating college. Conclusions: There is potential for scale-up, however adaptations will need to be made to address the barriers to scale-up. Future interventions in office workers should evaluate for scalability during the pilot phases of research.


2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
◽  
Vanhsana Sayaseng

<p>Workplace bullying has gained more attention in many Western countries and in some Asian countries than in Laos. It is a serious workplace health and safety issue for both individuals and organisations. In order to understand workplace bullying experienced by individuals, it is important to put bullying in a gendered context. This will help people better understand the perceptions and coping tactics of individuals who have experienced workplace bullying. Where existing studies consider gender, they mainly focus on statistical differences in patterns of bullying experienced between women and men and only a few discuss the gendered processes of workplace bullying. This is an exploratory study addressing gender and workplace bullying in a distinctive non-Western context, taking specific cultural factors into account. This thesis studies the perceptions of ten Laotian women, including myself, of bullying in their current and previous workplaces. These include NGOs, private and public organisations. In this national context, the concept of workplace bullying is not well recognised and understood, and gendered and workplace bullying has not been studied at all. The topic is seen as an extremely sensitive one. Snowball sampling techniques were used to recruit participants. Selected key concepts of workplace bullying from Western-based studies were adapted in order to identify and explore bullying in the Laotian context. In addition, a qualitative epistemology, in which social constructionism and interpretivism were employed, was used to understand and interpret the forms of workplace bullying as experienced by the Laotian women in the study. Semi-structured interviews were developed to help identify experiences of bullying in relation to gender and culture. The analysis of gender and workplace bullying is based on gendered organisation theory and social dominance theory.  The findings indicate a number of risk factors that I have identified associated with workplace bullying in Laos. These include gender and culture factors such as marital status, power distance, ethnocentrism, Westerner privilege and religion. These risk factors give more context to the Negative Acts Questionnaire-Revised (NAQ-R) framework when understanding and interpreting the nature of workplace bullying. Importantly, gender and culture have a strong relationship and cannot be separated from each other when understanding workplace bullying. Various forms of workplace bullying appear to be different from that found in many Western studies and are based on the risk factors. Remedies are also different because of the lack of support systems available, and the fact that participants often have to cope with the bullying by themselves.  I hope that my findings can inform the Lao government to pay more attention in developing policies to address and prevent the phenomenon of workplace bullying in Lao organisations, and also can educate women’s organisations about the nature of this problem so that they can find effective ways to better address and prevent the problems associate with workplace bullying.</p>


2019 ◽  
Vol 3 (Supplement_1) ◽  
pp. S776-S776
Author(s):  
Natalie Shellito ◽  
Pamela Nadash ◽  
Edward Miller ◽  
Elizabeth Simpson ◽  
Marc Cohen

Abstract Implementing programs such as R3, which adds health-focused supportive services into senior housing sites, can be complicated. This study aimed to understand program management and wellness team views on barriers and facilitators to implementation. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with managers, social workers, and wellness nurses who implemented the R3 program. Facilitating factors included monthly phone calls between wellness team members and program participants, which strengthened relationships and provided valuable information; top-level management support, which was critical in building community partnerships; and daily ambulance reports from local emergency responders, which provided actionable information about participants. Barriers included the need for more wellness team time at individual intervention sites, challenges connecting R3 staff with participants’ hospitals and insurance companies, and refining the technological approach used to facilitate work flow and information exchange. Although obstacles were encountered during implementation, the findings provide support for the beneficial effects of enhanced services within senior housing.


2020 ◽  
Vol 13 (2) ◽  
pp. 203-221
Author(s):  
Leanne Jane Staniford ◽  
Duncan Radley ◽  
Paul Gately ◽  
Jamie Blackshaw ◽  
Lisa Thompson ◽  
...  

PurposeThe purpose of this study is to explore public health employees' experiences of participating in a commercial weight management programme supported by their employers over a 12-week period.Design/methodology/approachSemi-structured interviews were conducted with 28 employees who had participated in the programme (group-based or online).FindingsThe main motivators for enquiring about and attending the programme were: the offer to attend the programme free of charge, the opportunity to kick start their weight loss efforts, to take part in an academic research study and the opportunity for “shared experiences” with their colleagues.Research limitations/implicationsThis study did not allow us to explore the reasons why some employees opted not to take up the opportunity for weight management support through their workplace. Further qualitative research with non-engagers would allow us to inquire about why employees might not engage with WM support and offer alternative strategies.Practical implicationsEmployers should facilitate their employees' efforts to lead a healthier lifestyle in the long-term creating employer health and safety policies that actively encourage healthy living and weight management. Improving employee health can contribute to increasing productivity, reducing stress and absenteeism.Originality/valueThis paper presents a novel approach to facilitating employees' weight management. Employees perceived their employer-supported participation in a commercial weight management programme outside of their work setting as a positive experience that assisted their weight management efforts suggesting the acceptability and feasibility of this approach to addressing weight in the workplace.


2020 ◽  
Vol 4 (Supplement_1) ◽  
pp. 32-32
Author(s):  
Edward Miller ◽  
Elizabeth Simpson ◽  
Pamela Nadash ◽  
Natalie Shellito ◽  
Taylor Jansen ◽  
...  

Abstract The Right Care, Right Place, Right Time initiative (R3) was developed to enable seniors to remain at home as long as possible, while reducing health care costs. It was implemented in four senior housing communities in the Greater Boston area, and consists of two on-site wellness teams (wellness nurse, wellness coordinator), each responsible for about 200 participants across two housing sites. This study aimed to understand barriers and facilitators to implementing R3. Data derived from 31 semi-structured interviews with R3 staff, housing personnel, and community partners (e.g., first responders), as well as 150 key program documents. Facilitating factors in implementing R3 included: top-level management support; formal and informal mechanisms of communication between wellness team members and building staff; substantial discretion, flexibility, and creativity provided to wellness team members; and daily ambulance reports from first responders. Barriers to implementing R3 included: impediments to resident recruitment/engagement; initial role confusion between wellness team members and existing building staff; limited wellness team time at individual intervention sites; challenges establishing systematic relationships with case management staff from the hospitals, AAAs, and insurance companies; and the decentralized approach to data tracking and information exchange. This study suggests several lessons for implementing housing with services initiatives such as R3. Top-level support and buy-in at the organizational level is essential to program development and implementation. Despite early challenges, key program elements can improve over time (communication, data processes, role clarity). Establishing trust with both R3 participants and housing staff is key to building relationships that promote program success.


Multilingua ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 39 (5) ◽  
pp. 587-595 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yongyan Zheng

AbstractThis paper examines the multilingual translation efforts of a group of university student volunteers during the COVID-19 outbreak in Shanghai. Data were collected through semi-structured interviews of the volunteer team leader, team members, and a local community health worker. Findings identified time constraints, limited language proficiency, and limited technical knowledge as the major challenges confronting the university volunteers. In order to overcome the challenges, they worked in close collaboration and used translingual and network strategies to facilitate prompt and high-quality crisis translation. Findings suggest that foreign language university students in local universities may serve as readily available multilingual resources and can be mobilized in prompt response to the grassroots multilingual needs of the local community in times of crisis. The paper ends with implications for measures and strategies to enhance effective emergency language service and crisis communication for global multilingual cities.


Author(s):  
Peter Lundqvist ◽  
Eva Goransson ◽  
Catharina Alwall Svennefelt ◽  
Vania Ceccato ◽  
Hakan Johansson

BMJ Open ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 10 (12) ◽  
pp. e037874
Author(s):  
Lisa Hinton ◽  
James Hodgkinson ◽  
Katherine L Tucker ◽  
Linda Rozmovits ◽  
Lucy Chappell ◽  
...  

ObjectiveOne in 20 women are affected by pre-eclampsia, a major cause of maternal and perinatal morbidity, death and premature birth worldwide. Diagnosis is made from monitoring blood pressure (BP) and urine and symptoms at antenatal visits after 20 weeks of pregnancy. There are no randomised data from contemporary trials to guide the efficacy of self-monitoring of BP (SMBP) in pregnancy. We explored the perspectives of maternity staff to understand the context and health system challenges to introducing and implementing SMBP in maternity care, ahead of undertaking a trial.DesignExploratory study using a qualitative approach.SettingEight hospitals, English National Health Service.ParticipantsObstetricians, community and hospital midwives, pharmacists, trainee doctors (n=147).MethodsSemi-structured interviews with site research team members and clinicians, interviews and focus group discussions. Rapid content and thematic analysis undertaken.ResultsThe main themes to emerge around SMBP include (1) different BP changes in pregnancy, (2) reliability and accuracy of BP monitoring, (3) anticipated impact of SMBP on women, (4) anticipated impact of SMBP on the antenatal care system, (5) caution, uncertainty and evidence, (6) concerns over action/inaction and patient safety.ConclusionsThe potential impact of SMBP on maternity services is profound although nuanced. While introducing SMBP does not reduce the responsibility clinicians have for women’s health, it may enhance the responsibilities and agency of pregnant women, and introduces a new set of relationships into maternity care. This is a new space for reconfiguration of roles, mutual expectations and the relationships between and responsibilities of healthcare providers and women.Trial registration numberNCT03334149.


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