Quality of life and sexual well-being in patients with a Fontan circulation: An explorative pilot study with a mixed method design

The relationships between siblings are the most long-lasting in families. When one of the siblings is a person with intellectual disabilities (ID), this relationship assumes an even more important role since this brother/sister will most likely become the disabled individual’s main caregiver. This pilot study had two aims: to explore the experience as an adolescent or adult sibling of a person with ID and to understand the perceptions of these siblings about quality of life as a sibling and about family quality of life. In-depth interviews were conducted with six siblings. The results showed that the experience of a sibling is positive and the acceptance process is of extreme importance. The domains which, from the sibling perspective, contribute to family quality of life are as follows: Family relationships, Acceptance, Health, Influence of values, Financial well-being, Support from others, and Leisure activities. The implications of these findings for intervention are pointed out.

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A mixed-methods pilot study of ‘LIFEView’ audiovisual technology: Virtual travel to support well-being and quality of life in palliative and end-of-life care patients

Palliative Medicine ◽

10.1177/0269216320918514 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 34 (7) ◽

pp. 954-965

Author(s):

Monisha Kabir ◽

Jill L Rice ◽

Shirley H Bush ◽

Peter G Lawlor ◽

Colleen Webber ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Quality Of Life ◽

Palliative Care ◽

Mixed Methods ◽

Pilot Study ◽

Preliminary Data ◽

Psychological Symptoms ◽

Well Being ◽

Assessment System ◽

Spiritual Well Being

Background: There is evidence that psychosocial and spiritual interventions of short duration, such as reminiscence therapy, provide positive impacts on quality of life and emotional and existential well-being in adults receiving palliative care. Aim: To determine (1) the feasibility of integrating ‘LIFEView’, a video-based software with >1600 videos of world destinations, in palliative care settings, and (2) positive, neutral or harmful effects of using ‘LIFEView’ videos. Design: A mixed-methods pre–post intervention pilot study was conducted to collect feasibility and preliminary data on physical and psychological symptoms, physiological indicators, spiritual well-being and aspects of quality of life. Setting/participants: Adult patients on an inpatient palliative care unit or receiving care from a community palliative care consultation team who were capable of providing consent and completing the outcome measures were eligible participants. Results: Overall, 27/41 (66%) participants took part in the study. Feasibility criteria, including participant acceptability, low participant burden, tool completion rate and retention rate, were fulfilled, though challenges were experienced with recruitment. Modest improvements, though non-significant, were shown on preliminary data collected on physical and psychological symptoms using the Edmonton Symptom Assessment System–revised, spiritual well-being assessed by the 12-item Functional Assessment of Chronic Illness Therapy – Spiritual Well-Being scale and physiological measurements. Qualitative analysis revealed five themes: motivations for using ‘LIFEView’, perceptions of the technology, reminiscence, ‘LIFEView’ as an adaptable technology and ongoing or future use. Conclusion: A future adequately powered study to investigate the impacts of ‘LIFEView’ on patient well-being and quality of life appears to be feasible.

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Quality of Life after Laparoscopic Cholecystectomy for Biliary Dyskinesia in the Pediatric Population: A Pilot Study

The American Surgeon ◽

10.1177/000313481207800147 ◽

2012 ◽

Vol 78 (1) ◽

pp. 111-118 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

Damian Maxwell ◽

Stephanie Thompson ◽

Bryan Richmond ◽

Jillian McCagg ◽

Adam Ubert

Keyword(s):

Quality Of Life ◽

Laparoscopic Cholecystectomy ◽

Pilot Study ◽

Pediatric Population ◽

Symptom Relief ◽

Well Being ◽

Biliary Dyskinesia ◽

Gallbladder Ejection Fraction

This pilot study examined symptom relief and quality of life in pediatric patients who received laparoscopic cholecystectomy surgery at our institution for biliary dyskinesia. We used two validated questionnaires: the Child Health Questionnaire (CHQ-PF28), to assess general well-being, and the Gastrointestinal Quality of Life Index (GIQLI), to measure gastrointestinal-related health. After Institutional Review Board approval, all patients under the age of 18 years who underwent laparoscopic cholecystectomy for biliary dyskinesia between November 2006 and May 2010 received mailed questionnaires. Preoperative and postoperative data were retrospectively collected from respondents and included age, race, symptoms, gallbladder ejection fraction values, pathologic findings, and clinical course. Of 89 patients meeting inclusion criteria, 21 responded. Mean age at surgery was 13.08 years (range, 8 to 17 years). The most common preoperative symptoms consisted of nausea (100%), postprandial pain (90.5%), right upper quadrant pain (81.0%), and vomiting (66.7%). Mean long-term follow-up interval was 18.9 months (range, 7 to 40 months; SD 10.37). Patients with long-term symptom relief reported significantly higher GIQLI scores than those with enduring symptoms. Examination of the results from the CHQ-PF28 revealed significantly lower scores than a general U.S. pediatric sample in both the Physical and Psychosocial Summary Measures ( P < 0.05). Children experiencing long-term symptom cessation after laparoscopic cholecystectomy reported higher quality of life than those who had incomplete or only short-term relief. However, regardless of the degree of symptom relief, the degree of quality of life experienced by our study sample of patients with biliary dyskinesia is lower than that of a comparable U.S. pediatric sample.

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A Randomized Controlled Trial to Investigate the Impact of Tango Argentino versus Tai Chi on Quality of Life in Patients with Parkinson Disease: A Short Report

Complementary Medicine Research ◽

10.1159/000500070 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 26 (6) ◽

pp. 398-403 ◽

Cited By ~ 3

Author(s):

Désirée Poier ◽

Daniela Rodrigues Recchia ◽

Thomas Ostermann ◽

Arndt Büssing

Keyword(s):

Quality Of Life ◽

Pilot Study ◽

Parkinson Disease ◽

Tai Chi ◽

Clinical Care ◽

Well Being ◽

Short Report ◽

Randomized Controlled ◽

The Impact

Objectives: Parkinson disease (PD) is a neurodegenerative disorder with increasing impairments in disease progression. The aim of the pilot study was to investigate the influence of Tango argentino on the quality of life of people with PD compared to Tai Chi. Design, Setting, Interventions: In the two-arm, randomized controlled pilot study, patients with PD received a 10-week Tango argentino or Tai Chi intervention (once per week, 60 min each). Main Outcome Measures: The outcome parameters were assessed at three time points (after the 1st course, after the 5th course, and after the 10th course) using standardized instruments, i.e., Parkinson’s Disease Questionnaire-39 (PDQ-39), Brief Multidimensional Life Satisfaction Scale (BMLSS), Inner Congruence with Practices (ICPH). Results: Overall, 14 patients and their partners received Tango argentino (9 male, 5 female; mean age: 69 ± 8 years) and 15 received Tai Chi (3 male, 12 female; mean age: 69 ± 11 years). Four patients in each group were lost during the trial. No improvements were found in both groups for all outcomes. Patients in the tango group reported better emotional well-being (p = 0.039) after 10 weeks of intervention compared to the Tai Chi group. Conclusions: Further studies are needed taking into account findings from this study to improve recruitment and attrition of patients during the trial and to justify the potential implementation of Tango argentino into clinical care.

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Understanding the impacts of care farms on health and well-being of disadvantaged populations: a protocol of the Evaluating Community Orders (ECO) pilot study

BMJ Open ◽

10.1136/bmjopen-2014-006536 ◽

2014 ◽

Vol 4 (10) ◽

pp. e006536 ◽

Cited By ~ 9

Author(s):

H Elsey ◽

R Bragg ◽

M Elings ◽

J E Cade ◽

C Brennan ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Quality Of Life ◽

Cost Effectiveness ◽

Pilot Study ◽

Well Being ◽

Ethical Review ◽

Management Service ◽

Disadvantaged Groups ◽

Effectiveness Of Care ◽

Health And Well Being

IntroductionCare farms, where all or part of the farm is used for therapeutic purposes, show much potential for improving the health and well-being of a range of disadvantaged groups. Studies to date have been qualitative or observational, with limited empirical evidence of the effectiveness of care farms in improving health and well-being. Understanding the underlying mechanisms that lead to improvements for different disadvantaged groups is a further gap in the evidence. Participants in this study are offenders serving community orders. Their low socioeconomic status and poor health outcomes relative to the general population exemplifies disadvantage.Methods and analysisThis paper describes the protocol of a study to understand the impacts of care farms and to pilot the design and tools for a study to assess cost-effectiveness of care farms in improving the quality of life of offenders. As a pilot study, no power calculation has been conducted. However, 150 offenders serving community sentences on care farms and 150 on other probation locations (eg, litter picking, painting) will be recruited over a 1-year period. Changes in quality of life, measured by Clinical Outcome in Routine Evaluation–Outcome Measure, health and reconvictions of offenders at care farms compared to other probation locations will be analysed to inform the sample size calculation for the follow on study. The feasibility of recruitment, retention, collecting cost data and modelling cost-effectiveness will also be assessed. The study will use qualitative methods to explore the experiences of offenders attending care farms and perceptions of probation and care farm staff on the processes and impacts of the intervention.Ethics and disseminationFindings will be published and inform development of a natural experiment and will be disseminated to probation services, care farms and academics. University of Leeds Ethical Review Board approved: SoMREC/13/014. National Offender Management Service (NOMS) approved: 2013-257.

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Corporate Well-Being Programme in COVID-19 Times. The Mahou San Miguel Case Study

Sustainability ◽

10.3390/su13116189 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 13 (11) ◽

pp. 6189

Author(s):

José M. Núñez-Sánchez ◽

Ramón Gómez-Chacón ◽

Carmen Jambrino-Maldonado ◽

Jerónimo García-Fernández

Keyword(s):

Quality Of Life ◽

Data Collection ◽

Mixed Method ◽

Well Being ◽

Negative Consequences ◽

The World ◽

New Situation ◽

Method Approach

Employees’ health is being affected not only by the possibility of contracting COVID-19, but by all the negative consequences that this pandemic has brought, such as confinement, social distancing, and self-isolation. In recent decades, more companies have opted for corporate well-being programmes in their workplaces, improving the health and quality of life of their employees. The effects generated by the current COVID-19 pandemic require these programmes to adapt to this new situation. The objective of this case study is to analyse the corporate well-being programme, in times of COVID-19, of Mahou San Miguel, a benchmark company in corporate well-being in Spain. A mixed method approach to data collection was used. The findings show the benefits achieved in its adaptation to this new physical-virtual environment. This paper could help other companies around the world to adapt their corporate well-being programmes to the new reality brought about by COVID-19.

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Impact on Quality of Life Following the Implantable Miniature Telescope Procedure: A Mixed-Method Pilot Study

American Journal of Occupational Therapy ◽

10.5014/ajot.2017.71s1-po4150 ◽

2017 ◽

Vol 71 (4_Supplement_1) ◽

pp. 7111520293p1

Author(s):

Tara Boehne ◽

Vanessa Jewell

Keyword(s):

Quality Of Life ◽

Pilot Study ◽

Mixed Method ◽

Implantable Miniature Telescope

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Games for active ageing, well-being and quality of life: a pilot study

Behaviour and Information Technology ◽

10.1080/0144929x.2018.1485744 ◽

2018 ◽

Vol 37 (8) ◽

pp. 842-854 ◽

Cited By ~ 4

Author(s):

Liliana Vale Costa ◽

Ana Isabel Veloso ◽

Michael Loizou ◽

Sylvester Arnab

Keyword(s):

Quality Of Life ◽

Pilot Study ◽

Well Being ◽

Active Ageing

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Perceived Outcomes of Spiritual Healing: Results from a Prospective Case Series

Complementary Medicine Research ◽

10.1159/000496736 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 26 (4) ◽

pp. 265-275 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

Michael Teut ◽

Florian Besch ◽

Claudia M. Witt ◽

Barbara Stöckigt

Keyword(s):

Quality Of Life ◽

Pilot Study ◽

Sense Of Coherence ◽

Self Efficacy ◽

Qualitative Content Analysis ◽

Case Series ◽

Spiritual Healing ◽

Well Being ◽

Perceived Outcomes

Background: The aims of this pilot study were to observe perceived outcomes of spiritual healing in Germany. Patients and Methods: In this prospective case study, we performed qualitative interviews with clients and healers about perceived outcomes of spiritual healing treatments. A directed qualitative content analysis was used. In addition, we applied questionnaires (WHOQOL-BREF, General Self-Efficacy Scale, Sense of Coherence 13, SpREUK-15, intensity of complaints on visual analogue scale) at baseline and after week 1, month 2 and month 6 which were analysed descriptively. Results: Seven healers and 7 clients participated, 42 interviews were analysed. In the interviews, the clients described positive body sensations, greater relaxation and well-being as short-term effects of healing treatments. Perceived longer-term effects were related to making significant life changes, creating new meanings, activating resources and improving social relationships. Patients in pain described a reduction of pain intensity. In the questionnaires, the clients reported improvements in quality of life and self-efficacy, to a smaller extent improvements of intensity of complaints and sense of coherence. Conclusion: The results from this pilot study could be useful to choose outcomes of future prospective studies with a larger sample: qualitative assessments combined with global and broad quantitative outcomes such as quality of life, self-efficacy and intensity of complaints could be applied.

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Meaning-centered group psychotherapy in Portuguese cancer patients: A pilot exploratory trial

Palliative & Supportive Care ◽

10.1017/s1478951521000602 ◽

2021 ◽

pp. 1-10

Author(s):

Guida da Ponte ◽

Sílvia Ouakinin ◽

Jorge Espírito Santo ◽

Afolabi Ohunakin ◽

Domingos Prata ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Quality Of Life ◽

Pilot Study ◽

Well Being ◽

Original Version ◽

Internal Pilot ◽

Exploratory Trial ◽

Spiritual Well Being ◽

Preliminary Study ◽

Internal Pilot Study

Abstract Objective To describe the feasibility of a meaning-centered group psychotherapy (MCGP) adaptation in a sample of Portuguese cancer patients. Method The study was carried out according to four steps: 1st — Transcultural adaptation and validation (focus groups); 2nd — Preliminary study with MCGP original version (to test its feasibility); 3rd — Adaptation of MCGP original version to a 4-session version (and internal pilot study); and 4th — Pilot exploratory trial (MCGP-4 session version), implemented between January 1, 2018 and December 31, 2019. Inclusion criteria were >18 years, psychological complaints, and difficulty to adapt to cancer. Allocation was according to participants’ preference: MCGP vs. care as usual (CAU). Primary outcomes were: MCGP adapted version improved quality of life (QoL) and spiritual well-being; secondary outcomes were improvement of depression, anxiety, and distress. Assessments were done at baseline (T1) and 1 month after (T2), with self-report socio-demographic and clinical questionnaires, Distress Thermometer (DT), McGill Quality of Life Questionnaire (MQOL), Functional Assessment of Chronic Illness Therapy — Spiritual Well-Being Scale (FACIT-Sp-12), Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale, and its subscales (HADS — HADS-D, HADS-A). Results In the 1st step, and through focus groups, the manual was reformulated and tested. The preliminary study (2nd step) with MCGP original version showed a high number of dropouts which could jeopardize the study and, after reframing the sessions content, MCGP was adapted to a 4-session version, and its feasibility was tested by an internal pilot study (3rd step). The pilot exploratory trial (4th step) had 91 participants. Most socio-demographic and clinical characteristics between the groups (51: MCGP; 40: CAU) had no statistically significant differences. A comparison between the two groups at T2 showed that the MCGP group scored significantly higher in the general (U = 552.00, P < 0.001), and existential (U = 727.50, P = 0.018) domains and total score (U = 717.50, P = 0.015) of QoL, and CAU presented statistical higher levels in DT (U = 608.50, P = 0.001). Comparing the groups between T1 and T2, the MCGP group had a statistically significant improvement in the general (Z = −3.67, P < 0.001) and psychosocial (Z = −2.89, P = 0.004) domains and total score (Z = −2.71, P = 0.007) of QoL, and a statistically significant decrease in DT (Z = −2.40, P = 0.016). In terms of group effects, the MCGP group presented increased general (b = 1.42, P < 0.001, η2p = 0.179), and support (b = 0.80, P = 0.045, η2p = 0.048) domains and total score (b = 0.81, P = 0.013, η2p = 0.073) of QoL (small to elevated dimensions), and decreased levels of depression (b = −1.14, P = 0.044, η2p = 0.048), and distress (b = −1.38, P = 0.001, η2p = 0.127) (small to medium dimensions), compared with CAU. At T2, participants who attended ≥3 sessions (n = 38) had a statistically significant higher score in the general domain (U = 130.50, P = 0.009) of QoL, comparing with those who attended 1 or 2 sessions (n = 13). Significance of results This study supports the benefits of an MCGP adapted version in improving QoL and psychologic well-being. More studies are necessary to address the limitations of this pilot exploratory trial, as its small sample size.

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