A concept analysis of children’s agency within the health literature

2016 ◽  
Vol 20 (4) ◽  
pp. 503-511 ◽  
Author(s):  
Marjorie Montreuil ◽  
Franco A Carnevale
Keyword(s):  
Health Care ◽  
Health Care Needs ◽  
Social Worlds ◽  
Care Needs ◽  
Research And Practice ◽  
Related Literature ◽  
Health Literature ◽  
Children’S Agency ◽  
Health Related ◽  
Legal Contexts

The capacity of children to act as agents is being increasingly recognized and has important implications for health research and practice. However, there are various discrepancies in how children’s agency is defined in the literature. The aim of this analysis was to examine the concept of children’s agency within the health-related literature, using Rodgers evolutionary method. The following questions were addressed: How did the concept of agency become associated with children in the health-related literature? What are the sociocultural and legal contexts that surround the concept of children’s agency? What is the meaning of children’s agency? Forty-five articles were included in the analysis. An inductive approach was used to identify the attributes of children’s agency as well as the temporal, disciplinary, and paradigmatic trends in its conceptualization. The concept of children’s agency first appeared in the health literature in the 1980s and was defined as an ability children could gradually develop. Later on, children’s agency was used to refer to the capacity of all children to influence their own and others’ health-care needs and is now increasingly used to refer to children as active agents who reflect on and construct their social worlds.

scholarly journals Promoting the health and well being of older carers: A proactive strategy

2003 ◽  
Vol 26 (2) ◽  
pp. 78 ◽  
Author(s):  
Bev O'Connell ◽  
Susan Bailey ◽  
Arlene Walker
Keyword(s):  
Health Care ◽  
Health Care Professionals ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Care Recipient ◽  
Health Care Needs ◽  
Physical And Mental Health ◽  
Care Needs ◽  
Health Related ◽  
Mental And Physical Health ◽  
Health And Well Being

Research has indicated that carers are concerned about their ageing status, their deteriorating health and their abilityto continue to care for their dependants. Given that the health care system will become increasingly reliant on carersthe health care needs of carers should be a concern for all health care professionals. This paper describes the first stageof a project designed to enhance older carers health promotion knowledge and skills and improve their healthpromoting behaviors. This stage investigated the mental and physical health status of older carers. It also soughtinformation on older carers' levels of participation in health related and social activities and identification of barriersto participation in these types of activities. The results highlighted that carers responding to the survey experiencedcompromised physical and mental health. Many carers reported being unable to participate in social and health-typeactivities as they were unable to leave the care recipient. Of note, is that carers identified their own mental fragilityand felt they needed further emotional support.

scholarly journals Perceived Met and Unmet Health-Care Needs in a Community Population with Multiple Sclerosis

2012 ◽  
Vol 14 (1) ◽  
pp. 2-8 ◽  
Author(s):  
Scott B. Patten ◽  
Jeanne V.A. Williams ◽  
Dina H. Lavorato ◽  
David Terriff ◽  
Luanne M. Metz ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Multiple Sclerosis ◽  
Health Care ◽  
Unmet Needs ◽  
Care Seeking ◽  
Health Care Needs ◽  
Supportive Services ◽  
Care Needs ◽  
Health Related ◽  
Unmet Health Care Needs ◽  
Statistics Canada

Community-based studies are required to accurately describe the supportive services needed by people with multiple sclerosis (MS). Characteristics that influence (or result from) care-seeking may introduce bias into other types of studies. The Participation and Activity Limitation Survey (PALS) was a post-census survey conducted by Statistics Canada in association with a 2006 national census. The PALS collected data from a sample of 22,513 respondents having health-related impairments according to their census forms. The survey collected self-reported diagnostic data and obtained ratings for items assessing impairment as well as perceived met and unmet needs for care and support. It identified 245 individuals with MS, leading to an estimated (weighted) population prevalence of 0.2% (200 per 100,000). As expected, those with MS reported more-severe health problems than did those with other types of disability, particularly in the areas of mobility, dexterity, and cognition; they were also more likely to report having multiple caregivers. People with MS also reported more unmet health-care needs than did those with other forms of disability, particularly with respect to meal preparation, housework, shopping, and chores. Despite their more negative health status and greater reliance on caregivers, people with MS reported participation in society comparable to that of people without MS. Thus, people with MS report greater needs than do people with other forms of health-related disability and utilize supportive services more often. However, they also report higher levels of unmet needs. The substantial needs of people with MS are only partially addressed by existing services.

scholarly journals Associations of Health Conditions and Health-Related Determinants with Disability among New York City Adult Residents

2021 ◽  
Vol 31 (3) ◽  
pp. 445-452
Author(s):  
John B. Wetmore ◽  
Claudia Chernov ◽  
Sharon E. Perlman ◽  
Luisa N. Borrell
Keyword(s):  
Health Care ◽  
New York ◽  
New York City ◽  
Health Care Needs ◽  
Care Needs ◽  
Poor General Health ◽  
Health Related ◽  
Disability Prevalence ◽  
Unmet Health Care Needs ◽  
Fair Poor

Introduction: Population-based disability prevalence estimates are limited for New York City (NYC). We examined the associa­tion of several health and health-related measures with disability among NYC resi­dents aged 20-64 years.Methods: We used information from 1,314 adults who participated in the 2013-2014 NYC Health and Nutrition Examination Sur­vey (HANES). We categorized survey partici­pants as having a disability if they reported a physical, mental, and/or emotional problem preventing work or if they reported difficulty walking without special equipment because of a health problem. We used log-binomial regression to quantify the association of each exposure with disability before and after adjustment for select covariates.Results: Overall, 12.4% of the study’s NYC residents aged 20-64 years had a disabil­ity. After adjustment, disability prevalence was significantly greater among those who reported having unmet health care needs (prevalence ratio [PR] = 1.75, 95% CI: 1.18-2.57) and those who reported fair/ poor general health (PR = 2.33, 95% CI: 1.68-3.24). The probability of disability was greater among NYC residents with arthritis (PR = 2.66, 95% CI: 1.85-3.98) and hy­pertension (PR = 1.48, 95% CI: 1.04-2.11) when compared with those without these conditions. Disability was also associated with depression (PR = 2.96, 95% CI: 2.06- 4.25), anxiety (PR = 2.89, 95% CI: 2.15- 3.88), and post-traumatic stress disorder (PR = 2.55, 95% CI: 1.66-3.91). Disability, however, was not associated with diabetes.Conclusion: Disability is more prevalent among those with unmet health care needs, fair/poor general health, arthritis, hyperten­sion, depression, anxiety, and PTSD in these NYC residents, aged 20-64 years. These findings have implications for NYC’s strate­gic planning initiatives, which can be better targeted to groups disproportionately affect­ed by disability.Ethn Dis. 2021;31(3):445- 452; doi:10.18865/ed.31.3.445

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