scholarly journals Diversity and health strategies for newly resettled refugees

2020 ◽  
Vol 16 (3) ◽  
pp. 241-252
Author(s):  
Linda Vikdahl ◽  
Göran Ståhle ◽  
David Gunnarsson ◽  
Fredrik Saboonchi

Purpose In general, newly resettled refugees have poorer physical and mental health than native-born Swedes. This indicates that the society must make special efforts to enable refugees to attain health that is on a par with the rest of the population. The challenges rest primarily with employees in the public sector. But what resources do professionals need to meet the refugees’ health needs? This paper is about the need to develop strategies for professionals working with diversity and health, with a focus on the establishment of newly resettled refugees in Sweden. Thus, the purpose of this paper is to identify the needs and obstacles in working with diversity and health for the newly resettled. Design/methodology/approach The paper is based on focus group interviews with 40 professionals working in three large municipalities and one County Administrative Board, all of whom work with challenges related to migration and health on a daily basis. Findings The needs expressed by the interviewees are primarily about developing and improving communications. Three important areas of communication were expressed: how information can be transferred from sender to receiver, institutionalization and interactions at different levels. Originality/value This paper identifies important needs and obstacles when working with diversity and health in Sweden, with a focus on the establishment of newly resettled refugees. It is an important contribution because refugees in general have poorer physical and mental health than native-born Swedes and strategies to improve their health, therefore, need to be further developed.

Author(s):  
Sarah J. Hoffman ◽  
Cheryl L. Robertson

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to provide a comprehensive perspective of the documented physical and mental health issues Karen refugees from Burma face as a result of war and refugee trauma, and migration. The review will address the question: What is the impact of trauma and migration on the physical and mental health of Karen refugees? Design/methodology/approach – A total of 18 articles were systematically selected for inclusion in the final review. The focal content for included articles includes qualitative and quantitative research representative of the health and migration experiences of Karen refugees. Findings – The findings of this review demonstrate significance for health providers from a public health standpoint as programs and services are targeted to meet the specific health needs of the Karen community. It also highlights the contribution of the Karen forced migration experience to the complexity of individual and community health needs, particularly as a result of the protracted conflict. Originality/value – This critical appraisal of the body of literature describing the health experiences of Karen refugees from Burma, with a particular focus on outcomes relevant to resettlement, demonstrates value as programs are developed with an integrated refugee perspective.


2016 ◽  
Vol 20 (1) ◽  
pp. 22-28 ◽  
Author(s):  
Theodore Stickley ◽  
Ada Hui ◽  
Gary Souter ◽  
Danielle Mills

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to present an evaluation of a community-based arts programme for older people in Nottinghamshire. Design/methodology/approach – The evaluation was conducted using a combination of pre- and post-initiative quantitative questionnaires and qualitative focus group interviews. This paper focuses upon the findings from the focus groups. Findings – Participants reported feeling more positively about ageing and being more motivated to pursue new opportunities at the end of the programme. Five themes emerged from the focus group interviews, namely age and ageing, the finished product, new opportunities, aspirations and the future and personal benefits. These related to increased confidence, having greater creative expression, meaningful occupation and opportunities for socialisation. Social implications – The programme was found to be successful in helping individuals feel more positive about their age, to feel more confident and motivated, to engage with others through mutual creativity, as well as to challenge negative social stereotypes of older people. Originality/value – The paper will be of relevance and value to those working with older people and those with an interest in the arts. This evaluation demonstrates the diversity of the older population with older citizen’s voices being at the heart of the programme.


2020 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Kirk Heilbrun ◽  
Sarah Fishel ◽  
Claire Lankford ◽  
Mina Ratkalkar

Purpose The conviction of innocent individuals has emerged as an international concern, resulting in substantial attention to the legal needs that stem from exoneration. However, many other challenges can also arise in the aftermath of an exoneration, including financial, psychosocial and mental health needs. Relatively little has been written about the particular reentry needs of individuals who are exonerated of their charges, and even fewer studies have considered the effectiveness of various treatment approaches. The purpose of this paper is to reviews the available literature, identifies gaps and provides clinical recommendations for the development of treatment interventions for exonerees. Design/methodology/approach The research addressing the needs and challenges that arise in the aftermath of exoneration is reviewed and analysed for implications that can guide treatment-planning in this area. Findings This paper reviews key finds from the literature and provides recommendations for developing a semi-structured approach to treating exonerees. Practical implications Practical applications for the development of effective therapeutic interventions for exonerated individuals are identified and discussed. Originality/value Currently, there is very limited literature addressing the specific reentry needs and effective therapeutic interventions for exonerated individuals.


2020 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Tiina-Kaisa Kuuru ◽  
Elina Närvänen

Purpose This paper aims to study the embodied nature of service employees’ work in human touch contexts. Design/methodology/approach The paper adopts the practice theory as its interpretive approach, using focus group interviews with service employees from different industries. Findings The study identifies four practice bundles related to the embodied dimension of service employees’ work: orienting, attuning, connecting and wrapping up. The findings illustrate how employees’ knowledge, skills and capabilities are used via the body. Practical implications The study provides guidance for managers to use an embodied perspective in the management of service employees. Originality/value This study contributes to the discussion on embodiment in service encounters by highlighting the embodied nature of service employees’ work.


2020 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Agnieszka Kacprzak ◽  
Katarzyna Dziewanowska

Purpose Poland’s political and economic transition of 1989 resulted in a cultural trauma experienced by consumers, which has influenced their perception of the retail experience. However, younger Polish consumers can remember neither communism nor the transition period. Therefore, this study aims to investigate the differences in perception of customer experiences in retail between Poland’s pre- and post-transitional generations. Design/methodology/approach A quantitative survey is first conducted with a sample of 1,045 Polish consumers measuring their perception of utilitarian and hedonic customer experiences in retail environments. Then, five qualitative focus group interviews with 29 participants provide an in-depth understanding of the survey results. Findings The quantitative study suggests that the pre-transitional generation is focused on utilitarian experiences, whereas the post-transitional generation is attracted to hedonic experiences in retail environments. The qualitative study provides an understanding of how the utilitarian and hedonic aspects of customer retail experiences are perceived and how the cultural trauma manifests in consumers’ values. Originality/value The study provides a new perspective on the customer experience in retail contexts from a society that has undergone a cultural trauma. The findings focus on generational differences in consumer attitudes toward hedonic and utilitarian experiences in a post-transition society and expand the theory of cultural trauma into the field of customer retail experience.


2015 ◽  
Vol 36 (6/7) ◽  
pp. 462-475 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mary Wilkins Jordan

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to identify competencies in common across public library managers. Design/methodology/approach – The request for public library managers to participate in this survey was posted to the public listserve. Participants were asked about the tasks they do regularly, to identify the skills currently seen as most important in their work. They were then given a list of competencies, and asked to identify those they felt were most important for current public library managers, for those in future managers. Findings – Some commonalities emerged, but there was not a substantial amount of overlap between skills identified by directors and non-director managers as important now or into the future. Research limitations/implications – Further research into managerial competencies focussed on specific job titles is necessary to see what kinds of skills each may value. Likewise, a broader look at public library managers may provide a better set of common competencies that will be useful for both training and hiring. Practical implications – Understanding strategies for managerial competencies will be useful in building successful training programs. Social implications – Learning in this study that it will be challenging to carry out training relevant to all types of public library managers is useful; instead it can be tailored to different levels of managers for more success. Originality/value – This is an original study, building on other work the author has carried out. The value is in understanding the real needs of managers, not just anecdotal stories.


Author(s):  
Erik Søndenaa ◽  
Terje Olsen ◽  
Patrick Stefan Kermit ◽  
Nina Christine Dahl ◽  
Robert Envik

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to examine the awareness of intellectual disabilities (ID) amongst professionals in the criminal justice system (CJS) and their knowledge of those persons, either as victims, witnesses, suspects, accused or defendants. Design/methodology/approach A survey of the professionals in the CJS (n=388), combined with a series of focus group interviews with experienced professionals (n=20), was conducted. Findings One out of three respondents (police, district attorneys and judges) reported that they have regular contact with suspects who have an ID. Differences in knowledge of ID amongst professionals in the CJS can explain awareness and detection of persons with ID. Research limitations/implications Non-responders may represent professionals with no knowledge or less interest in these issues. Originality/value Reflections on ID have not previously been studied in the Norwegian CJS. The findings serve as a basis and status quo for further research.


Author(s):  
Bodil Stilling Blichfeldt ◽  
Aurimas Pumputis ◽  
Kiya Ebba

Purpose Travelers are both surrounded by and perform places, thus making places ambiguous sites that “come alive” when travelers use them and engage in various performances. A place many travelers pass through is the airport. Airports are places where travelers’ performances are restricted in many ways and waiting is a key element of the airport experience. This paper contributes with knowledge on what airport terminals “are”, not as designs or material objects but as places enacted by travelers. In doing so, the paper aims to emphasize on both how travelers “see” airports and how they use them. Design/methodology/approach The study uses different qualitative methods and notions of time and waiting. Sources of data are small-scale netnography, focus group interviews, observations done at airports and qualitative interviews. Findings The study shows that airport terminals are heterogeneously enacted environments that are heavily inscribed with the mundane act of waiting and travelers use a series of different strategies to “use”, “spend” and “kill” time. Furthermore, whereas more affluent travelers spend waiting time using airports’ commercial offerings (shopping, restaurants, bars, etc.), less affluent travelers do not have the same options. Research limitations/implications The research points to airport terminals as not only “places of movement and mobility” but also “places of waiting” inscribed with boredom and travelers actively fight boredom by spending, using and killing time in a variety of ways. Furthermore, the study points to significant differences between affluent travelers and other travelers and differences between people travelling alone and in groups. Therefore, a call is made for research focusing on less affluent travelers, people traveling in groups and on waiting and waiting time. Practical implications The study suggests that airports are more than consumerscapes and places of movement, hereby questioning the current focus on commercial revenues. Social implications The study points to airport space as space “inhabited” not only by travelers willingly taking on the roles as consumers but also by travelers that kill, spend and use waiting time in other ways, hereby questioning the idea that airports are places for the “elite”. Originality/value Travelers associate airports with boredom and inscribe them with waiting. However, travelers “fight” boredom and waiting with performances and acts designed to use, spend, pass and “kill” time. Hereby, travelers not only accept but also construct the seemingly mundane act of waiting as restricted, negotiated and confined, but nevertheless meaningful performances.


2020 ◽  
Vol 19 (2) ◽  
pp. 179-189
Author(s):  
Gabriel Abotsie ◽  
Roger Kingerlee ◽  
Andrew Fisk ◽  
Sam Watts ◽  
Rachel Cooke ◽  
...  

Purpose Comparatively, men have poorer physical and mental health outcomes than women, with a significantly higher suicide rate. Contributory factors are thought to be social and biological, leading to reduced access to health-care services. The study aims to develop and implement community-based support to increase awareness of and access to men’s mental health support networks and groups. Design/methodology/approach The project involved three key work-packages discussed in this paper: raising awareness of men’s mental health needs in health care, educational and community settings; collaboration between National Health Services (NHS) and non-NHS health-care support organisations to build multi-sector partnership working; and developing a supported sports-based community intervention aimed at men living with mental health conditions. The acceptability and feasibility of these work-packages were pragmatically evaluated through mixed-methods surveys and qualitative content analysis. Findings Overall, both community events and sports groups successfully engaged men living with mental health problems. Organisations interested in men’s mental health are continuing to engage in a partnership initiative. Community events were well-attended and received positive feedback, particularly regarding the educative and real-life experiences approach promoted in the events. The sports intervention is feasible and well-accepted by participants, who described feeling supported with their physical and mental health needs, with increased mental well-being reported. Research limitations/implications The main limitations of this project are that the authors only evaluated a football group rather than all work areas. The project collected outcomes relating to participants’ demographics and qualitative reflections of participating in the football group along with a retrospective survey of perceived benefits, but the project did not undertake a pre- and post-comparison of well-being outcomes owing to low completion of these measures. Future work could focus on collecting more pre- and post-measures related to well-being, recovery and inclusion and compare these with men not involved in the football groups or public events. Practical implications This paper discusses the development and feasibility of setting up community-based men’s mental health support networks, involving public events, partnership working and targeted-sports interventions. All initiatives were well-received and successfully attended by men living with mental health conditions. Evaluation of the programme revealed the value placed on education about mental health and the role that community sports interventions may play in men’s mental health care. Social implications This project has demonstrated three different ways of supporting men’s mental health needs in the community. Community public events were held to raise awareness of men’s mental health needs and issues were well-attended and highlighted the need for health promotion and education in this area across all the communities. The men’s football group demonstrated the feasibility of moving mental health support out into a non-clinical and more community arena in a way that men engaged effectively. Finally, the creation of MensNet has bought together disparate multi-sector organisations successfully to lead public health mechanisms to support men’s mental health needs. Originality/value This paper describes a new multi-disciplined approach to supporting health-seeking challenges among men, in particular, how partnership working across NHS and non-NHS sectors can successfully support an identified public health need pragmatically using existing services and organisations.


2020 ◽  
Vol 76 (5) ◽  
pp. 981-997
Author(s):  
Andrew M. Cox ◽  
Jorge Tiago Martins ◽  
Gibrán Rivera González

PurposeThe study aims to understand the nature of traditional knowledge by examining how it is used and reinvented in the context of Xochimilco in Mexico City.Design/methodology/approachThe paper is based on field site visits and focus group interviews.FindingsTraditional knowledge was being reinvented in two contrasting ways. One was based on heritage tourism drawing on syncretism between Aztec and Spanish culture in the formation of Xochimilco. The other was agro-ecological focussed on traditional farming practices on the chinampas, their productivity, their ability to sustain biodiversity and their link to social justice. There were some common elements, such as a passionate concern with retaining a valued past in the face of growing threat.Research limitations/implicationsTraditional knowledge is often seen as a static heritage, under threat. But it also has the potential to be a fertile source of strong identities and sustainable practices.Originality/valueThe paper helps to conceptualise the dynamic character of traditional knowledge.


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