A systematic review and narrative summary of couple-based smoking cessation interventions

Background: Smoking is formed and reinforced in social networks. Smoking interventions have incorporated social networks, especially partners, to promote smoking cessation. This review provides a synthesized review on the effectiveness of couple-based smoking cessation interventions. Methods: A systematic review of peer-reviewed studies of experimental, couple-based smoking cessation interventions, published in English, was conducted. Database searching of CINAHL, PubMed, and SCOPUS and citation review resulted in 2170 articles for reviews. Abstract and initial review screening excluded 2,126, leaving 44 for full-text review. Further exclusions based on type of intervention and reported outcomes left a total of 11 studies to be included in the analysis. Results: Two major outcomes were reported among the 11 studies: long-term quit rates (≥6 months post-intervention) and aspects of the couple’s relationship (e.g., satisfaction, adjustment, and partner support). Only two studies showed significant differences in long-term quit rates compared to control groups. Five studies reported outcomes of couples’ relationships, yet none of the five promoted partner support in the intervention, which may have limited the effectiveness of couple-based interventions. One study observed higher levels of partner support among quitters than continued smokers. A large heterogeneity of target populations was also observed. Conclusions: Current literature does not support the effectiveness of couple-based smoking interventions. Future studies need to re-evaluate the role of partners and partner support to facilitate effective partner support and increase the likelihood of success in smoking cessation among smoker couples. Limitations of the current literature and suggestions for future research are discussed.

Partner Involvement in Type 2 Diabetes Self-Management: A Mixed-Methods Investigation

Researchers have recognized the role of social environment in diabetes management, with substantial attention directed toward spouses or romantic partners of people with diabetes. However, the specific ways in which partners are involved have not been articulated. This study, which included 207 couples in which one person was recently diagnosed with type 2 diabetes, used a mixed-methods approach to assess types of partner involvement in diabetes management. First, different types of partner involvement were qualitatively identified from audiotaped interviews, and links between qualitative findings and demographics were examined. Next, qualitative codes were compared to quantitative measures of partner involvement. Finally, relations of qualitative codes to relationship quality and diabetes outcomes were assessed. Qualitative analyses identified three ways in which partners were involved in diabetes management (support provision, collaboration, and controlling behavior) and two ways in which they were not involved (independent coping and disengagement on the part of the person with diabetes). Participants with diabetes perceived less partner involvement than their partners. Comparisons with quantitative measures revealed that collaboration was distinct from partner support. Reports from participants with diabetes of collaboration, but not partner support, were connected to higher relationship quality and lower A1C, whereas partner reports of collaboration were related to better self-care. Diabetes disengagement was associated with poorer relationship and behavioral outcomes. These findings underscore the varied ways in which partners are and are not involved in diabetes management and suggest that collaboration is more beneficial than social support in terms of relationship quality and diabetes outcomes.

Partner Involvement in Type 2 Diabetes Self-Management: A Mixed-Methods Investigation

Researchers have recognized the role of social environment in diabetes management, with substantial attention directed toward spouses or romantic partners of people with diabetes. However, the specific ways in which partners are involved have not been articulated. This study, which included 207 couples in which one person was recently diagnosed with type 2 diabetes, used a mixed-methods approach to assess types of partner involvement in diabetes management. First, different types of partner involvement were qualitatively identified from audiotaped interviews, and links between qualitative findings and demographics were examined. Next, qualitative codes were compared to quantitative measures of partner involvement. Finally, relations of qualitative codes to relationship quality and diabetes outcomes were assessed. Qualitative analyses identified three ways in which partners were involved in diabetes management (support provision, collaboration, and controlling behavior) and two ways in which they were not involved (independent coping and disengagement on the part of the person with diabetes). Participants with diabetes perceived less partner involvement than their partners. Comparisons with quantitative measures revealed that collaboration was distinct from partner support. Reports from participants with diabetes of collaboration, but not partner support, were connected to higher relationship quality and lower A1C, whereas partner reports of collaboration were related to better self-care. Diabetes disengagement was associated with poorer relationship and behavioral outcomes. These findings underscore the varied ways in which partners are and are not involved in diabetes management and suggest that collaboration is more beneficial than social support in terms of relationship quality and diabetes outcomes.

Going Into a Community, We Need to Start From Where They’re At: Caregiver and Advocate Perspectives

We recorded and inductively coded an open-ended discussion of jargon surrounding “dementia” with the “Supporting Dementia Caregivers After Death” community advisory board (CAB). CAB-members included current and former caregivers of PLWD due to early- and normal-onset Alzheimer’s, Lewy body, and Parkinson’s, a co-president of the Alzheimer’s Association (ALZ) Young Champions, a dementia trainer/consultant and member of a Catholic church that preserves American Indian spiritual traditions, a senior program manager at ALZ who was entrusted by American Indian reservation elders to provide dementia education, a care partner support group leader, and an Alzheimer’s Ambassador chosen by multiple US senators. Themes identified included differential inclusiveness of terms like “memory loss” versus “dementia”, misuse and misunderstanding of “dementia” versus “Alzheimer’s,” and the difficulty of translating “dementia” into the American Indian Ojibwe (i.e., Anishinaabemowin) language where suggested translations directly translated to “slow memory loss”, “brain deterioration”, “absent mindedness”, or even “craziness”.

Early Association Factors for Depression Symptoms in Pregnancy: A Comparison between Spanish Women Spontaneously Gestation and with Assisted Reproduction Techniques

Women with assisted reproduction techniques (ART) have a different psychological profile than women with a spontaneous pregnancy. These differences may put the former group at higher risk for depressive symptomatology. Our aim was to determine what sociodemographic factors and psychological variables interact with early depressive symptoms in pregnant women with ART. This is a cross-sectional, non-interventional, and observational study where a total of 324 women were analyzed in the first trimester of pregnancy at the Hospital Universitario Central de Asturias (Spain). Women completed a sociodemographic questionnaire, the Patient Health Questionnaire (PHQ-9), the Generalized Anxiety Disorder 7-item Scale, the Resilience inventory, the General concerns (ad hoc scale), the Stressful life events, and the prenatal version of Postpartum Depression Predictors Inventory-Revised (PDPI-R), including socioeconomic status, pregnancy intendedness, self-esteem, partner support, family support, friends support, marital satisfaction, and life stress. According to our models, women undergoing ART had significantly increased the PHQ-9 scores (β = 6.75 ± 0.74; p-value < 0.001). Being single also increased the PHQ-9 score. Related to the psychological variables, anxiety (β = 0.43 ± 0.06; p-value < 0.001) and stressful life events (β = 0.17 ± 0.06; p-value = 0.003) increased PHQ-9 scores. In contrast, resilience (β = −0.05 ± 0.02; p-value = 0.004), self-esteem (β = −1.21 ± 0.61; p-value = 0.048), and partner support (β = −1.50 ± 0.60; p-value = 0.013) decreased PHQ-9 scores. We concluded that women undergoing ART need interventions to reduce anxiety and stressful life events, and to improve resilience, self-esteem, and emotional partner support to prevent depressive symptomatology during this important phase in their lives.

THE RELATIONSHIP OF PARTNER SUPPORT WITH VARIOUS ACTIVITIES OF THE ELDERLY HYPERTENSION

Hypertension is a health problem that many elderly suffer from. Blood pressure in the elderly with hypertension can be controlled in various ways, namely doing physical activity regularly, performing activities related to cognitive function, and controlling stress levels so as not to affect contractions or pulsations of the heart and nervous system that can cause blood pressure to increase. The purpose of this study was to determine the relationship of partner support with physical, mental, and social activities of the elderly with hypertension.This study used a correlational non-experimental design with a cross-sectional approach. The number of samples were 102 respondents in the Morokrembangan area, where the sampling used Nonprobability Sampling method, namely Purposive Sampling. The research instrument used partner support questionnaires, Global Physical Activity Questionnaire (GPAQ), mental health practices, social activities and demographic characteristics. The analysis used Spearman Rho test.The results of this study were there was a relationship between partner support with physical activity (p = 0.000; r = 0.589 ), mental activity (p = 0.000; r = 0.778 ), and social activity (p = 0.000; r = 0.671) with positive and unidirectional correlation.As you get older, daily activities will decrease too. The better the support provided by the partner, the higher the level of daily activities carried out by the elderly. Therefore, elderly couples are expected to provide mutual support in carrying out physical, mental, and social activities.

The risk and protective factors of heightened prenatal anxiety and depression during the COVID-19 lockdown

While pregnant women are already at-risk for developing symptoms of anxiety and depression, this is heightened during the COVID-19 pandemic. We compared anxiety and depression symptoms, as indicators of psychological distress, before and during COVID-19, and investigated the role of partner, social network and healthcare support on COVID-19-related worries and consequently on psychological distress. A national survey, conducted during the first lockdown in The Netherlands, assessed COVID-19 experiences and psychological distress (N = 1421), whereas a comparison sample (N = 1439) was screened for psychological distress in 2017–2018. During COVID-19, the percentage of mothers scoring above the questionnaires’ clinical cut-offs doubled for depression (6% and 12%) and anxiety (24% and 52%). Women reported increased partner support during COVID-19, compared to pre-pandemic, but decreased social and healthcare support. Higher support resulted in lower COVID-19-related worries, which in turn contributed to less psychological distress. Results suggest that a global pandemic exerts a heavy toll on pregnant women’s mental health. Psychological distress was substantially higher during the pandemic than the pre-pandemic years. We identified a protective role of partner, social, and healthcare support, with important implications for the current and future crisis management. Whether increased psychological distress is transient or persistent, and whether and how it affects the future generation remains to be determined.