Associations between health-related quality of life, physical function and fear of falling in older fallers receiving home care

Falls and injuries in older adults have significant consequences and costs, both personal and to society. Although having a high incidence of falls, high prevalence of fear of falling and a lower quality of life, older adults receiving home care are underrepresented in research on older fallers. The objective of this study is to determine the associations between health-related quality of life (HRQOL), fear of falling and physical function in older fallers receiving home care

Valid and reliable instruments for arm-hand assessment at ICF activity level in persons with hemiplegia: a systematic review

Contains fulltext : 110141.pdf (publisher's version ) (Open Access)BACKGROUND: Loss of arm-hand performance due to a hemiparesis as a result of stroke or cerebral palsy (CP), leads to large problems in daily life of these patients. Assessment of arm-hand performance is important in both clinical practice and research. To gain more insight in e.g. effectiveness of common therapies for different patient populations with similar clinical characteristics, consensus regarding the choice and use of outcome measures is paramount. To guide this choice, an overview of available instruments is necessary. The aim of this systematic review is to identify, evaluate and categorize instruments, reported to be valid and reliable, assessing arm-hand performance at the ICF activity level in patients with stroke or cerebral palsy. METHODS: A systematic literature search was performed to identify articles containing instruments assessing arm-hand skilled performance in patients with stroke or cerebral palsy. Instruments were identified and divided into the categories capacity, perceived performance and actual performance. A second search was performed to obtain information on their content and psychometrics. RESULTS: Regarding capacity, perceived performance and actual performance, 18, 9 and 3 instruments were included respectively. Only 3 of all included instruments were used and tested in both patient populations. The content of the instruments differed widely regarding the ICF levels measured, assessment of the amount of use versus the quality of use, the inclusion of unimanual and/or bimanual tasks and the inclusion of basic and/or extended tasks. CONCLUSIONS: Although many instruments assess capacity and perceived performance, a dearth exists of instruments assessing actual performance. In addition, instruments appropriate for more than one patient population are sparse. For actual performance, new instruments have to be developed, with specific focus on the usability in different patient populations and the assessment of quality of use as well as amount of use. Also, consensus about the choice and use of instruments within and across populations is needed

Remaking intimate citizenship in multicultural Europe: introduction

Book synopsis: This book offers a ground-breaking analysis of how women's movements have been remaking citizenship in multicultural Europe. Presenting the findings of a large scale, multi-disciplinary, cross-national feminist research project, FEMCIT, it develops an expanded, multi-dimensional understanding of citizenship as practice and experience. Remaking Citizenship pays particular attention to processes of racialization and minoritization as they impact upon, and construct, citizenship and women's movements in contemporary Europe. The book develops answers to two vital questions – what difference have women's movements and feminism made to experiences and practices of citizenship, and how can we assess the state of citizenship in contemporary Europe from the perspective of women, particularly minoritized women

Remaking citizenship in multicultural Europe: women's movements, gender and diversity

Book synopsis: This book offers a ground-breaking analysis of how women's movements have been remaking citizenship in multicultural Europe. Presenting the findings of a large scale, multi-disciplinary, cross-national feminist research project, FEMCIT, it develops an expanded, multi-dimensional understanding of citizenship as practice and experience. Remaking Citizenship pays particular attention to processes of racialization and minoritization as they impact upon, and construct, citizenship and women's movements in contemporary Europe. The book develops answers to two vital questions – what difference have women's movements and feminism made to experiences and practices of citizenship, and how can we assess the state of citizenship in contemporary Europe from the perspective of women, particularly minoritized women

Gendered citizenship in a multidimensional perspective: the challenges facing Norway within the Nordic model

This article discusses the challenges that continue to exist in the struggle for full and equal citizenship in Norway, focusing particularly on the multidimensional citizenship that has been central to the overarching project of women's movements. It reports on comparative research on the social, economic, multicultural, and intimate dimensions of citizenship which offers grounds to regard Norway as an example of good practice and supportive policies in relation to gendered citizenship, and at the same time highlights that fully equal and just citizenship remains to be achieved, particularly for minoritized women

Intersectionality:multiple inequalities in social theory

The concept of intersectionality is reviewed and further developed for more effective use. Six dilemmas in the debates on the concept are disentangled, addressed and resolved: the distinction between structural and political intersectionality; the tension between ‘categories’ and ‘inequalities’; the significance of class; the balance between a fluidity and stability; the varyingly competitive, cooperative, hierarchical and hegemonic relations between inequalities and between projects; and the conundrum of ‘visibility’ in the tension between the ‘mutual shaping’ and the ‘mutual constitution’ of inequalities. The analysis draws on critical realism and on complexity theory in order to find answers to the dilemmas in intersectionality theory