scholarly journals Illness perceptions of youths with functional disorders and their parents: An interpretative phenomenological analysis study

2019 ◽  
Vol 25 (1) ◽  
pp. 45-61 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ditte Roth Hulgaard ◽  
Charlotte Ulrikka Rask ◽  
Mette Bech Risor ◽  
Gitte Dehlholm
Keyword(s):  
Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis ◽  
Illness Perceptions ◽  
Psychiatric Treatment ◽  
Psychological Symptom ◽  
Qualitative Interview ◽  
Healthcare Services ◽  
Functional Disorders ◽  
Physical Explanation ◽  
Qualitative Interview Study ◽  
Significant Burden

Background:Functional disorders, defined as disorders with no clear medical explanation, are common and impose a significant burden on youths, their families, healthcare services and society as a whole. Currently, the literature describes resistance among patients and their families towards psychological symptom explanations and treatments. More knowledge about the thoughts and understandings of youths with functional disorders and their parents is needed. The aim of this study was to explore the illness perceptions of youths with severe functional disorders and their parents.Methods:A qualitative interview study using interpretative phenomenological analyses. The study included 11 youths aged 11–15 years with functional disorders and their parents, where interviews were performed at the point of referral from a somatic to a psychiatric treatment setting.Results:Analyses identified three main themes. Themes 1(Ascribing identity to the disorder) and 2 (Monocausal explanations) explore key elements of the participants’ illness perceptions, and theme 3 (Mutable illness perceptions) explores how illness perceptions are influenced by experiences from healthcare encounters.Conclusions:The label ‘functional disorder’ was poorly integrated in the illness perceptions of the youths and their parents. Participants used a monocausal and typically physical explanation rather than a multicausal biopsychosocial explanation for their symptoms.

‘I can hardly breathe’: Exploring the parental experience of having a child with a functional disorder

2019 ◽  
Vol 24 (2) ◽  
pp. 165-179 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ditte Roth Hulgaard ◽  
Charlotte Ulrikka Rask ◽  
Mette Bech Risør ◽  
Gitte Dehlholm
Keyword(s):  
Psychological Treatment ◽  
Qualitative Interview ◽  
Functional Disorder ◽  
Functional Disorders ◽  
Emotional Challenges ◽  
Parental Experience ◽  
Parental Experiences ◽  
Parental Roles ◽  
Paediatric Department ◽  
Qualitative Interview Study

Functional disorders in children and adolescents are common. Still, little is known about parents’ experience of having a child with a functional disorder. The aim of this qualitative interview study was to explore challenges encountered by parents caring for a child undergoing treatment for functional disorder. Sixteen parents to children with functional disorders were interviewed when their child was referred from a paediatric department for further specialized treatment with family therapy in child and adolescent mental health services. Analysis identified three themes, reflecting the parental experiences: parents in limbo, which described how limited knowledge about functional disorders among professionals in non-specialized settings influenced parental roles; a counterintuitive kind of caring, describing parental struggles with adhering to treatment recommendations for functional disorders; and challenges to parental identity, describing parental emotional challenges. These challenges may bar the acceptance of psychological treatment approaches in families with a child with functional disorders.

scholarly journals ‘I’m not Sherlock Holmes’: Suspicions, secrecy and silence of transplant professionals in the human organ trade

2019 ◽  
Vol 17 (6) ◽  
pp. 764-783
Author(s):  
Frederike Ambagtsheer ◽  
Linde Van Balen
Keyword(s):  
Qualitative Interview ◽  
Interview Study ◽  
Safe Distance ◽  
Sherlock Holmes ◽  
Human Organ ◽  
Qualitative Interview Study ◽  
Organ Trade ◽  
The Subject

This article presents the results of a qualitative interview study amongst 41 Dutch transplant professionals. The overarching aim was to acquire in-depth understanding of transplant professionals’ experiences with and attitudes towards patients who purchase kidneys. We found that transplant professionals occasionally treat patients who are suspected of kidney purchases abroad. However, they turn a blind eye to their patients’ suspected purchases. Secrecy and silence function as a tacit agreement between patients and their caregivers that keeps the subject of kidney purchase at a safe distance and allows transplant professionals to ignore its suspected occurrence. They thus participate in the building of walls of secrecy and silence in the organ trade.

scholarly journals Experiences of a National Early Warning Score (NEWS) intervention in care homes during the COVID-19 pandemic: a qualitative interview study

BMJ Open ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (7) ◽  
pp. e045469
Author(s):  
Rachel Stocker ◽  
Siân Russell ◽  
Jennifer Liddle ◽  
Robert O Barker ◽  
Adam Remmer ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Early Warning ◽  
Healthcare Professionals ◽  
Care Home ◽  
Qualitative Interview ◽  
Interview Study ◽  
Care Homes ◽  
Early Warning Score ◽  
Service Utilisation ◽  
Qualitative Interview Study ◽  
National Early Warning Score

BackgroundThe COVID-19 pandemic has taken a heavy toll on the care home sector, with residents accounting for up to half of all deaths in Europe. The response to acute illness in care homes plays a particularly important role in the care of residents during a pandemic. Digital recording of a National Early Warning Score (NEWS), which involves the measurement of physical observations, started in care homes in one area of England in 2016. Implementation of a NEWS intervention (including equipment, training and support) was accelerated early in the pandemic, despite limited evidence for its use in the care home setting.ObjectivesTo understand how a NEWS intervention has been used in care homes in one area of North-East England during the COVID-19 pandemic, and how it has influenced resident care, from the perspective of stakeholders involved in care delivery and commissioning.MethodsA qualitative interview study with care home (n=10) and National Health Service (n=7) staff. Data were analysed using thematic analysis.ResultsUse of the NEWS intervention in care homes in this area accelerated during the COVID-19 pandemic. Stakeholders felt that NEWS, and its associated education and support package, improved the response of care homes and healthcare professionals to deterioration in residents’ health during the pandemic. Healthcare professionals valued the ability to remotely monitor resident observations, which facilitated triage and treatment decisions. Care home staff felt empowered by NEWS, providing a common clinical language to communicate concerns with external services, acting as an adjunct to staff intuition of resident deterioration.ConclusionsThe NEWS intervention formed an important part of the care home response to COVID-19 in the study area. Positive staff perceptions now need to be supplemented with data on the impact on resident health and well-being, workload, and service utilisation, during the pandemic and beyond.

scholarly journals Meta-analysis, complexity, and heterogeneity: a qualitative interview study of researchers’ methodological values and practices

2016 ◽  
Vol 5 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Theo Lorenc ◽  
Lambert Felix ◽  
Mark Petticrew ◽  
G J Melendez-Torres ◽  
James Thomas ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Meta Analysis ◽  
Qualitative Interview ◽  
Interview Study ◽  
Qualitative Interview Study
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