Selje Spa Thalasso â en helse- og velværekatedral?

The use of water in healing and curing has existed from the age of antiquity. Both water from mineral springs and ocean water have been used in many cultures around the world. During the last few years, a wave of spa treatments has swept over us, also in Norway. Hotel spa is a spa located within a hotel environment that provides guests with a variety of health and healing services, and gives opportunities for health enhancement and life­style improvement, stress reduction, well-being and relaxation. Thalassic therapy is healing by using ocean water and the beneficial qualities of a marine environment. The treatments are presented as both preventive and curing. This article examines some aspects of Selje Spa Thalasso, the only thalassic centre in Scandinavia. The centre is located by the Stadt Sea, at the edge of Selje beach in a âunique sacred landscapeâ.  I am presenting some of the thalassic treatments offered and categories of guests who are supposed to be typical. The centre is based on a holistic view of health, characterized by âThe good circleâ, ideas that also exist within the alternative health movement. The article is also offering some reflections on Selje Spa Thalasso as a cathedral of health and well-being.  At last some comments are related to the spa-wave in a Norwegian contemporary cultural and health policy context

Evidence-based medicine – an appropriate tool for evidence-based health policy? A case study from Norway

Abstract Background Evidence-based policy (EBP), a concept modelled on the principles of evidence-based medicine (EBM), is widely used in different areas of policymaking. Systematic reviews (SRs) with meta-analyses gradually became the methods of choice for synthesizing research evidence about interventions and judgements about quality of evidence and strength of recommendations. Critics have argued that the relation between research evidence and service policies is weak, and that the notion of EBP rests on a misunderstanding of policy processes. Having explored EBM standards and knowledge requirements for health policy decision-making, we present an empirical point of departure for discussing the relationship between EBM and EBP. Methods In a case study exploring the Norwegian Knowledge Centre for the Health Services (NOKC), an independent government unit, we first searched for information about the background and development of the NOKC to establish a research context. We then identified, selected and organized official NOKC publications as an empirical sample of typical top-of-the-line knowledge delivery adhering to EBM standards. Finally, we explored conclusions in this type of publication, specifically addressing their potential as policy decision tools. Results From a total sample of 151 SRs published by the NOKC in the period 2004–2013, a purposive subsample from 2012 (14 publications) advised major caution about their conclusions because of the quality or relevance of the underlying documentation. Although the case study did not include a systematic investigation of uptake and policy consequences, SRs were found to be inappropriate as universal tools for health policy decision-making. Conclusions The case study demonstrates that EBM is not necessarily suited to knowledge provision for every kind of policy decision-making. Our analysis raises the question of whether the evidence-based movement, represented here by an independent government organization, undertakes too broad a range of commissions using strategies that seem too confined. Policymaking in healthcare should be based on relevant and transparent knowledge, taking due account of the context of the intervention. However, we do not share the belief that the complex and messy nature of policy processes in general is compatible with the standards of EBM

Doing participant observation in a psychiatric hospital-- Research ethics resumed

Social scientists who employ participant observation methods in medical settings are often held accountable for their research methods, specifically in regard to medical research ethics. However, the medical research ethics tradition rubs uneasily against participant observation and the anthropological understanding of the research process. The underlying premise for considering research ethics in the current case is the notion of the vulnerability of psychiatric patients as a participant group. Based on this notion of vulnerability among psychiatric patients, this article discusses the epistemological grounds for vulnerability in anthropological and medical research ethics. The authors draw on their experience with the Regional Committee for Medical Research Ethics in Norway, and the consequences of the guidelines used for participant observation as a research method in a psychiatric hospital. Social science researchers are required to follow medical ethical guidelines, such as informed consent, the principle of voluntariness, and estimation of risks and benefits. Ethnographers have found these guidelines to be obstructive when doing social science research in a psychiatric hospital. The article suggests the need for reformulation of research guidelines for participant observation in medical settings.Research ethics Participant observation Vulnerability Informed consent Voluntariness Psychiatric ward Norway

Brukerperspektiv i norsk forskning om innlagte psykiatriske pasienter. En litteraturgjennomgang

Nasjonal plan for psykisk helse og andre offentlige dokumenter understreker behovet for å inkludere pasienterfaringer og pasientdeltakelse i behandling og organisering av psykisk helsevern. Det er imidlertid ikke klart om dette bør gjelde for psykiatrisk forskning som involverer psykiatriske innlagte pasienter, og norsk forskning som er avhengige av erfaringer fra psykiatriske innlagte pasienter synes spredt. Det er et behov for å oppsummere dette feltet, og målet med denne artikkelen var å gå gjennom norsk forskning basert på psykiatriske innlagte pasienter sine erfaringer siden 1970