scholarly journals How and why do Quality Circles work for General Practitioners - a realist approach

Author(s):  
Adrian Rohrbasser ◽  
Geoffrey Wong ◽  
Sharon Mickan ◽  
Janet Harris

Abstract Objectives: To understand how and why general practitioners in quality circles (QC) reflect on and improve routine practice over time. To provide practical guidance for participants and facilitators to implement and for policy makers to organise this complex social intervention. Design: A theory-driven mixed method Setting: Primary health care Method: We collected data in four stages to develop and refine the programme theory of QCs: 1) co-inquiry with Swiss and European stakeholders to develop a preliminary programme theory; 2) realist review with systematic searches in MEDLINE, Embase, PsycINFO, and CINHAL (1980-2020) to extend the preliminary programme theory; 3) programme refinement through interviews with participants, facilitators, tutors and managers of quality circles; 4) consolidation through interviews and iterative searches for theories enabling us to strengthen the programme theory. Sources of data: The co-inquiry comprised 3 interviews and 3 focus groups with 50 European experts. From the literature search we included 108 papers to develop the literature-based programme theory. In stage 3, we used data from 40 participants gathered in 6 interviews and 2 focus groups to refine the programme theory. In stage 4, five interviewees from different health care systems consolidated our programme theory. Result: Requirements for successful QCs are governmental trust in GPs abilities to deliver quality improvement, training, access to educational material and performance data, protected time, and financial resources. Group dynamics strongly influence success; facilitators should ensure participants exchange knowledge and generate new concepts in a safe environment. Peer interaction promotes professional development and psychological well-being. With repetition, participants gain confidence to put their new concepts into practice. Conclusion: QCs can improve practice, promote professional development, and psychological well-being given adequate professional and administrative support.

2021 ◽  
Vol 12 ◽  
pp. 215013272110535
Author(s):  
Nathan Wright ◽  
Marylee Scherdt ◽  
Michelle L. Aebersold ◽  
Marjorie C. McCullagh ◽  
Barbara R. Medvec ◽  
...  

Objectives: Rural residents comprise approximately 15% of the United States population. They face challenges in accessing and using a health care system that is not structured to meet their unique needs. It is important to understand rural residents’ perceptions of health and experiences interacting with the health care system to identify gaps in care. Methods: Our team conducted focus groups with members of the Michigan Farm Bureau during their 2019 Annual Meeting. Topics explored included resources to manage health, barriers to virtual health care services, and desired changes to localized healthcare delivery. Surveys were used to capture demographic and internet access information. Conclusion: Analysis included data from 2 focus groups (n = 14). Participants represented a wide age range and a variety of Michigan counties. The majority were full-time farm owners with most—93% (n = 13)—reporting they had access to the internet in their homes and 86% (n = 12) reporting that their cellphones had internet capabilities. Participants identified challenges and opportunities in 4 categories: formal health care; health and well-being supports; health insurance experiences; and virtual health care. Conclusion: The findings from this study provide a useful framework for developing interventions to address the specific needs of rural farming residents. Despite the expressed challenges in access and use of health care services and resources, participants remained hopeful that innovative approaches, such as virtual health platforms, can address existing gaps in care. The study findings should inform the design and evaluation of interventions to address rural health disparities.


Author(s):  
Maria Ehn ◽  
Ann-Christin Johansson ◽  
Åsa Revenäs

This paper investigates seniors’ and health care professionals’ (HCPs) perceptions on needed contributions and qualities of digital technology-based motivation support for seniors’ physical activity (PA). Seniors and HCPs expressed their views in focus groups, which were analyzed separately by inductive content analysis. Similarities and differences in seniors’ and HCPs’ views were identified through thematic analysis of qualitative results from both focus groups. This article’s main findings are that both seniors and HCPs believed digital technology should support and make PA more enjoyable in ways to strengthen seniors’ control and well-being. However, seniors emphasized support for social interaction, while HCPs also requested support for increasing seniors’ insight into PA and for facilitating their dialogue with seniors. Conclusions to be drawn are that seniors and HPCs shared overall views on digital technology’s main contributions but had different perspectives on how those contributions could be obtained. This highlights the importance of the early identification of user groups and exploration of their different needs when developing new solutions. Moreover, seniors’ and HCPs’ perceptions included aspects relevant for personal motivation, technology acceptance, and PA behavioral change according to self-determination theory, unified theory of acceptance and use of technology, and behavioral change techniques for increasing PA.


Author(s):  
Susan der Kinderen ◽  
Amber Valk ◽  
Svetlana N. Khapova ◽  
Maria Tims

Demanding and complex work within mental health care organizations places employee well-being at risk and raises the question of how we can positively influence the psychological well-being and functioning of these employees. This study explores the role of servant leadership and workplace civility climate in shaping eudaimonic well-being among 312 employees in a Dutch mental health care organization. The findings showed that servant leadership had a stronger relationship with eudaimonic well-being when workplace civility climate was high. Furthermore, the results showed that servant leadership was positively related to workplace outcomes, partially through eudaimonic well-being, and that this mediating process varied across different levels of workplace civility climate. This study contributes to the scholarly understanding of the role of servant leadership and a positive work climate in shaping psychological well-being at work.


2018 ◽  
Vol 1 (8) ◽  
pp. 60 ◽  
Author(s):  
Tetiana Dziuba ◽  
Iryna Zvyagolskaya Zvyagolskaya

<p>The paper examines the specificity of authoritarian focus in pedagogues’ professional communications, which can be the source of psychological traumatisation, provoke the development of health deviations among the participants of education process, causing the emergence of functional and chronicle diseases. It is observed, that the authoritarian focus under the conditions of stressful professional reality creates “chronicle” psycho-traumatic atmosphere in professional communications of employee and can provoke emergence of negative emotional experiences (psychogeneses). Important aspect of examined problem is the fact, that authoritarian interactions in activities (learning, professional) can be the reason for emergence of children's didactic geneses and development of neuroses. Pedagogue’s sensibility to the demonstrations of authoritarianism points out the undeveloped readiness to build effective professional pedagogical communications, which can become the source of traumatisation and aggravation of pedagogue’s own didactopathy. The results of empirical study of influence of factor “authoritarianism” on the pedagogues’ occupational health with the author’s technique “Occupational health” are presented. The observed correlation tendencies indicate the phenomenon of authoritarian focus in pedagogue’s professional communications, that’s why the authoritarianism syndrome can be the serious barrier for the progressive professional development of the specialist, the ruining factor to the professional communications, which influence the psychological well being and health state of employee. Pedagogue with authoritarian focus of world perception is characterized by the behaviour, which is based on the belief, that using of own status and authority provides the sustaining of hierarchical subordination, control, security and professional stability.</p>


Author(s):  
Michael A. West ◽  
Lynn Markiewicz

In this chapter we show that team working is vital for high quality health care but that team working is often poor. We draw on research to show that effective team working is associated with fewer errors that harm staff and patients; fewer staff injuries; better staff well-being; higher levels of patient satisfaction; better quality of care; and lower patient mortality. “Pseudo team working” leads to the opposite outcomes. We describe how effective team based working can be developed and identify the importance of team objectives and leadership. The chapter describes the specific challenges for team working in health care, including the complexity of the context and the historical legacy of separate professional development and status hierarchies. We explore how these challenges can be overcome, arguing that ensuring effective team working in health care is critical to ensuring the delivery of high quality, continually improving and compassionate health care.


2019 ◽  
Vol 20 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
C. Barcons ◽  
B. García ◽  
C. Sarri ◽  
E. Rodríguez ◽  
O. Cunillera ◽  
...  

Abstract Background The changes in the models of care for mental disorders towards a community focus and deinstitutionalisation might have risen General practitioners’ (GPs) workload, increasing their mental health concerns and the need for solutions. Pragmatic research into improving GPs’ work-related health and psychological well-being is limited by focusing mainly on stressors and through not providing systematic attention to the development of positive mental health via interventions that develop psychological resources and capacities. The aim of this study was twofold: a) to determine the effectiveness of an intensive multimodal training programme for GPs designed to improve their management of mental-health patients; and b) to ascertain if the program could be also useful to improve the GPs management of their own burnout, job satisfaction and psychological well-being. Method Eighteen GPs constituted a control group that underwent the routine clinical Mental health support programme for primary care. An experimental group (N = 20) additionally received a Multimodal training programme (MTP) with an Integrated Brief Systemic Therapy (IBST) approach. Through questionnaires and a clinical interview, level of burnout, professional satisfaction, psychopathological state and various indicators of the quality of administrative and healthcare management were analysed at baseline and 10 months after the programme. Results In relation to government of mental-health patients indicators, on the one hand MTP group showed statistically significant improvements in certain administrative health parameters, but on the other it did not improve opinions and attitudes towards mental illness. Regarding GPs management of their own burnout, job satisfaction and psychological well-being assessments, the MTP presented better scores on global psychopathological state and better evolution of satisfaction at work; psychopharmacology use dropped in both groups; in contrast, the MTP did not improve burnout levels. Conclusions Findings of this preliminary study are promising for the MTP (with an IBST approach) practice in primary care. More research evidence is required from larger samples and randomized controlled trials to support both the hypothetical adoption of MTP (with an IBST approach) as a part of a continuing professional-training programme for GPs’ management of mental-health patients and its positive effects on work-related health factors.


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