Struggling With Reciprocity and Compassion: Mentoring Pregnant and Parenting Mothers Experiencing Vulnerability

2019 ◽  
Vol 30 (4) ◽  
pp. 504-517
Author(s):  
Carla Ginn ◽  
Karen M. Benzies
Keyword(s):  
Low Income ◽  
Infant Development ◽  
Intervention Program ◽  
Maternal Mental Health ◽  
Late Pregnancy ◽  
Constructivist Grounded Theory ◽  
Social Emotional ◽  
Written Text ◽  
Core Category ◽  
Pregnant And Parenting Women

Transitioning from pregnancy to parenthood is particularly challenging for women living with low income and experiencing social isolation, mental illness, addiction, and/or family violence. The purpose of this qualitative study was to evaluate one component of Welcome to Parenthood, a two-generation multiple intervention program including neuroscience-based parenting education, kin and non-kin mentorship, and an engagement tool (baby kit). From late pregnancy to 2 months postpartum, mentors kept a journal regarding their experiences of mentoring mothers experiencing vulnerability. We engaged in a modified constructivist grounded theory to explore hand-written text from the journals. The core category, Struggling with Reciprocity and Compassion, influenced processes of Becoming a Mentor. Mentoring mothers experiencing vulnerability was both challenging and rewarding, requiring an inordinate amount of physical, social, emotional, and economic resources. To foster maternal mental health and infant development, pregnant and parenting women experiencing vulnerability could benefit from long-term reciprocal and compassionate mentoring.

“Achieve the best while rushing against time”: A grounded theory study on caring for low-income immigrant cancer patients at end of life

2020 ◽  
pp. 026921632097427
Author(s):  
Simona Sacchi ◽  
Roberto Capone ◽  
Francesca Ferrari ◽  
Federica Sforacchi ◽  
Silvia Di Leo ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Grounded Theory ◽  
End Of Life ◽  
Cancer Patients ◽  
Low Income ◽  
Cultural Barriers ◽  
Constructivist Grounded Theory ◽  
Terminal Phase ◽  
Grounded Theory Study ◽  
Core Category ◽  
Clinical Conditions

Background: Between 2000 and 2020, Europe experienced an annual net arrival of approximately 1.6 million immigrants per year. While having lower mortality rates, in the setting of severe diseases, immigrants bear a greater cancer-related burden due to linguistic and cultural barriers and socio-economic conditions. Professionals face a two-fold task: managing clinical conditions while considering the social, economic, cultural, and spiritual sphere of patients and their families. In this regard, little is known about the care provision to low-income immigrant cancer patients in real contexts. Aim: To investigate the perspective of professionals, family members, and stakeholders on the caring process of low-income immigrant cancer patients at the end of life. Design: A Constructivist Grounded Theory study. Setting/participants: The study, conducted at a Hospital in Northern Italy, involved 27 participants among health professionals, family caregivers, and other stakeholders who had recently accompanied immigrant cancer patients in their terminal phase of illness. Results: Findings evidenced that professionals feel they were not adequately trained to cope with immigrant cancer patients, nonetheless, they were highly committed in providing the best care they could, rushing against the (short) time the patients have left. Analyses evidenced four main categories: “providing and receiving hospitality,” “understanding each other,” “addressing diversity,” and “around the patient,” which we conceptualized under the core category “Achieve the best while rushing against time.” Conclusions: The model reveals the activation of empathic and compassionate behavior by professionals. It evidences the need for empowering professionals with cultural competencies by employing interpreters and specific training programs.

scholarly journals Geography of intergenerational mobility and child development

2017 ◽  
Vol 114 (35) ◽  
pp. 9320-9325 ◽  
Author(s):  
Louis Donnelly ◽  
Irwin Garfinkel ◽  
Jeanne Brooks-Gunn ◽  
Brandon G. Wagner ◽  
Sarah James ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Low Income ◽  
Behavioral Problems ◽  
Intergenerational Mobility ◽  
Upward Mobility ◽  
Cognitive Test ◽  
Growing Up ◽  
Social Emotional Development ◽  
Social Emotional ◽  
Working Paper ◽  
Low Income Families

Recent research by Chetty and colleagues finds that children’s chances of upward mobility are affected by the communities in which they grow up [Chetty R, Hendren N (2016) Working paper 23002]. However, the developmental pathways through which communities of origin translate into future economic gain are not well understood. In this paper we examine the association between Chetty and Hendren’s county-level measure of intergenerational mobility and children’s cognitive and behavioral development. Focusing on children from low-income families, we find that growing up in a county with high upward mobility is associated with fewer externalizing behavioral problems by age 3 years and with substantial gains in cognitive test scores between ages 3 and 9 years. Growing up in a county with 1 SD better intergenerational mobility accounts for ∼20% of the gap in developmental outcomes between children from low- and high-income families. Collectively, our findings suggest that the developmental processes through which residential contexts promote upward mobility begin early in childhood and involve the enrichment of both cognitive and social-emotional development.

scholarly journals EFFICIENCY OF AN EARLY INTERVENTION WITH PHYSICAL THERAPY ON AN INFANT WITH CONGENITAL TORTICOLLIS

GYMNASIUM ◽  
2017 ◽  
Vol XVII (2) ◽  
Author(s):  
Marinela Rață ◽  
Georgiana Frunzete
Keyword(s):  
Physical Therapy ◽  
Infant Development ◽  
Intervention Program ◽  
Sternocleidomastoid Muscle ◽  
Normal Infant ◽  
Neurological Development ◽  
Initial Hypothesis ◽  
Congenital Torticollis ◽  
Musculoskeletal Pathology ◽  
Main Intervention

Congenital torticollis is a musculoskeletal pathology which is observed at or shortly after birth and is caused by the fibrosis or unilateral shortening of the sternocleidomastoid muscle (SCM). Physical therapy is one of the main intervention methods for torticollis and aims at: preventing the occurence of mobility limitation, reestablishing the muscular and neuromuscular balance, stimulating the normal infant development. The study was carried out on a 2-month-old patient diagnosed with congenital torticollis. The intervention program consisted in relaxing and stimulating massage, stretching, posture and facilitating exercises in accordance with the stages of development. Following the results, the initial hypothesis was confirmed, physical therapy managing to eliminate torticollis and facilitate normal neurological development of the infant.

Effects of Early Intervention and Stimulation on the Preterm Infant

PEDIATRICS ◽  
1980 ◽  
Vol 66 (1) ◽  
pp. 83-90
Author(s):  
Susan A. Leib ◽  
D. Gary Benfield ◽  
John Guidubaldi
Keyword(s):  
Weight Gain ◽  
Early Intervention ◽  
Treatment Group ◽  
High Risk ◽  
Preterm Infants ◽  
Neonatal Intensive Care ◽  
Infant Development ◽  
Intervention Program ◽  
Control Group ◽  
Enrichment Program

To test the hypothesis that early intervention can enhance the development of high-risk preterm infants, a prescribed multimodal sensory enrichment program, within a regional neonatal intensive care unit, was designed and implemented. Twenty-eight appropriate-for-gestational age infants with birth weights between 1,200 and 1,800 gm were selected for study. To prevent control group contamination by the enrichment procedure, the first 14 infants were designated as the control group, and the next 14 as the treatment group. Treated infants had significantly higher developmental status than control infants, as measured by the Bayley Scales of Infant Development, at six months past the maternal expected date of confinement (F = 14.98, P < .001, and F = 16.46, P < .001 for the mental and motor scales, respectively). Mean infant weight gain per day and mean total weight gain during the hospitalization were not significantly different for the two groups although the treatment group received significantly less calories per kilogram per day than the control group (F = 9.02 P < .006). Our data suggest that a prescribed intervention program for high-risk preterm infants appears to enhance the quality of development as measured at six months past the expected date of confinement. Further studies are necessary to determine the long-term value of early intervention and the apparent ability of infants receiving an enrichment program to utilize calories more efficiently than control infants.

scholarly journals Effect of play-based family-centered psychomotor/psychosocial stimulation on the development of severely acutely malnourished children under six in a low-income setting: a randomized controlled trial

2019 ◽  
Vol 19 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Teklu Gemechu Abessa ◽  
Berhanu Nigussie Worku ◽  
Mekitie Wondafrash ◽  
Tsinuel Girma ◽  
Johan Valy ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Low Income ◽  
Effect Size ◽  
Linear Growth ◽  
Intervention Group ◽  
Fine Motor ◽  
Social Emotional ◽  
Gross Motor ◽  
Psychosocial Stimulation ◽  
Low Income Setting

Abstract Background The World Health Organization (WHO) recommends incorporating psychosocial stimulation into the management of severe acute malnutrition (SAM). However, there is little evidence about the effectiveness of these interventions for SAM children, particularly when serious food shortages and lack of a balanced diet prevail. The objective of this study was to examine whether family-based psychomotor/psychosocial stimulation in a low-income setting improves the development, linear growth, and nutritional outcomes in children with SAM. Method Children with SAM (N = 339) admitted for treatment to the Jimma University Specialized Hospital, Ethiopia, were randomized to a control (n = 170) or intervention (n = 169) group. Both groups received routine medical care and nutritional treatment at the hospital. The intervention group additionally received play-based psychomotor/psychosocial stimulation during their hospital stay, and at home for 6 months after being discharged from hospital. The fine motor (FM) and gross motor (GM) functions, language (LA) and personal-social (PS) skills of the children were assessed using adapted Denver II, the social-emotional (SE) behavior was assessed using adapted Ages and Stages Questionnaires: Social-Emotional, and the linear growth and nutritional status were determined through anthropometric assessments. All outcomes were assessed before the intervention, upon discharge from hospital, and 6 months after discharge (as end-line). The overtime changes of these outcomes measured in both groups were compared using Generalized Estimating Equations. Results The intervention group improved significantly on GM during hospital follow-up by 0.88 points (p < 0.001, effect size = 0.26 SD), and on FM functions during the home follow-up by 1.09 points (p = 0.001, effect size = 0.22 SD). Both young and older children benefited similarly from the treatment. The intervention did not contribute significantly to linear growth and nutritional outcomes. Conclusion Psychomotor/psychosocial stimulation of SAM children enhances improvement in gross motor functions when combined with standard nutrient-rich diets, but it can enhance the fine motor functions even when such standard dietary care is not available. Trial registration The trial was retrospectively registered on 30 January 2017 at the US National Institute of Health (ClinicalTrials.gov) # NCT03036176.

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