Unspoiled Identities of People Living Alone With Dementia: Resisting Stigma by Helping Others

Goffman (1963) described stigma as the shift from being viewed as a whole and usual person to one with a spoiled identity. People living with dementia (PLWD) often report feeling stigmatized. Many dementia stereotypes highlight losses (e.g., loss of self) and negatively position the person as a passive, dependent care recipient. Here, we present findings from a qualitative study of people living alone with dementia (N=10) in the community that challenge these stereotypes. Analysis of in-depth interviews revealed that many participants resisted the spoiled identity label through active engagement in the community such as participating in paid employment, providing care for neighbors and family members, and volunteering. Overall, findings underscore the need to rethink and challenge common perceptions of PLWD that are focused solely on care, to recognize their active and valuable role in the lives of others. How PLWD negotiate these identities should inform policies of dementia in community.

Unemployed women in neo-liberal Canada: an intersectional analysis of social well-being

This study explores the lived experiences of unemployed women in neo-liberal Canada, through interviews with a diverse sample of participants between the ages of 25 and 40 from the cities of Toronto and Halifax. The results were analyzed using intersectional and grounded theory. The study resulted in four main findings. First, the study builds on intersectional methodology by McCall (2005) and Hancock (2007) to indicate the significance of context-specify and fluidity of identities. The significance of intersectionality theory is that there is not one salient identity; rather the impacts of identities are context dependent. Second, the neo-liberal erosion of the state infrastructure is manifested in a paucity of supports for unemployed workers. The unemployed woman workers do not only have to face a lack of adequate support when they become unemployed but they also do not have adequate support in other aspects of their lives including child care, retraining, health care and labour market supports while employed. Thus, many women do not have access to adequate living conditions without reliance on a male partner. Third, the health of the women was negatively affected, whether precariously employed or unemployed. They have insecurity around not being able to plan their future, and living on limited money and poor health care benefits. Finally, regional economic differences may be disappearing while all EI measures are brought towards the lowest common denominator. Thus, neo-liberal labour market policies put women, and particularly women with intersectional identities, in jeopardy. This study makes four policy recommendations: (1) to create social policies that address intersectional identities to allow women a real choice in facing competing demands of wage work and dependent care; (2) to create policies to curb the impacts of precarious employment; (3) to create EI policies not bound by regions but to the needs of the labour market including the growth of precarity; and (4) in the interim, to introduce extended health benefits to improve the situation of unemployed and precariously employed workers.

Unemployed women in neo-liberal Canada: an intersectional analysis of social well-being

This study explores the lived experiences of unemployed women in neo-liberal Canada, through interviews with a diverse sample of participants between the ages of 25 and 40 from the cities of Toronto and Halifax. The results were analyzed using intersectional and grounded theory. The study resulted in four main findings. First, the study builds on intersectional methodology by McCall (2005) and Hancock (2007) to indicate the significance of context-specify and fluidity of identities. The significance of intersectionality theory is that there is not one salient identity; rather the impacts of identities are context dependent. Second, the neo-liberal erosion of the state infrastructure is manifested in a paucity of supports for unemployed workers. The unemployed woman workers do not only have to face a lack of adequate support when they become unemployed but they also do not have adequate support in other aspects of their lives including child care, retraining, health care and labour market supports while employed. Thus, many women do not have access to adequate living conditions without reliance on a male partner. Third, the health of the women was negatively affected, whether precariously employed or unemployed. They have insecurity around not being able to plan their future, and living on limited money and poor health care benefits. Finally, regional economic differences may be disappearing while all EI measures are brought towards the lowest common denominator. Thus, neo-liberal labour market policies put women, and particularly women with intersectional identities, in jeopardy. This study makes four policy recommendations: (1) to create social policies that address intersectional identities to allow women a real choice in facing competing demands of wage work and dependent care; (2) to create policies to curb the impacts of precarious employment; (3) to create EI policies not bound by regions but to the needs of the labour market including the growth of precarity; and (4) in the interim, to introduce extended health benefits to improve the situation of unemployed and precariously employed workers.

What Causes the Most Stress in Breast Radiology Practice? A Survey of Members of the Society of Breast Imaging

Objective The objective of this study is to determine the major stressors affecting practicing breast radiologists. Methods All members of the Society of Breast Imaging within the United States received an email invitation to complete an anonymous survey evaluating stressors that may contribute to physician burnout. Stressors evaluated included pace at work, work–life balance, care of dependents, job security, financial strain, decreasing reimbursement, new regulations, delivering bad news, fear of getting sued, and dealing with difficult patients, radiologists, and administrators. Results The overall response rate was 13.5% (312/2308). For those who opened the email, response rate was 24.6% (312/1269). The most prevalent stressors reported were working too fast (222/312, 71.2%), balancing demands of work with personal life (209/312, 70.0%), fear of getting sued (164/312, 52.6%), and dealing with difficult administrators (156/312, 50%). Prevalence of stress related to new regulation requirements, job security, financial strain, decreased reimbursement, dependent care, call, delivering bad news, and dealing with difficult patients, difficult referrers, and difficult radiologists were present in fewer than 50% of respondents. Conclusion The most prevalent sources of stress in breast imaging radiologists relate to working too fast and balancing demands of work with time needed for personal life.