I would be embarrassed for you to see what I eat : Older people rejecting the visual?

This paper will present data from a pilot study carried out in a faithbased community-meal setting. Data was collected using a number of qualitative methods including researcher and participant generated visual images. Using cameras to capture the social context of eating and food eaten, was limited due to poor uptake. Uptake appears not to be influenced by technical phobias but by the subject matter. Food and its consumption is surrounded by strong moral discourses and older people living alone were embarrassed to expose their eating behaviour to visual scrutiny. Using visual devices to explore eating behaviour in older people, particularly those who live alone, should be used cautiously and with sensitivity. Images when collected have the potential to add context to the data provided in food diaries and interviews, however, it appears that alternative methods of data collection alongside visual images are neededPeer reviewe

Practitioner and lay perspectives of the service provision of nutrition information leaflets in primary care

BACKGROUND: In primary care, leaflets are often used to communicate health information. Increasingly, primary healthcare practitioners need to provide dietary advice. There is limited research exploring how nutrition information leaflets are used in primary care. The present study explored practitioner and lay experiences with respect to providing and receiving nutrition information in primary care, focusing in particular on the use of leaflets for nutrition information. METHODS: A qualitative design was used incorporating focus groups with 57 practitioners based at seven general practitioner practices and a purposive sample of 30 lay participants attending six Consumer Health Organisations within one primary care trust. Focus groups were taped and transcribed verbatim and data were analysed thematically, assisted by computer software n6® (QSR International Pty Ltd, Melbourne, Australia). RESULTS: Practitioners discussed barriers to giving nutritional advice, access to leaflets, lay receptiveness to advice and their perceptions about the value of leaflets to lay people. Food was not considered in terms of its nutritional components by lay participants and the need for nutritional information was not perceived to be relevant until they had received a medical diagnosis. Lay participants discussed the importance of receiving nutritional advice relating to their medical diagnosis and the altered status of written information that was delivered personally. Practitioner and lay groups suggested improvements to ensure that nutritional advice be supported by relevant and appropriate written information. CONCLUSIONS: This research has underlined the continuing importance of nutrition information leaflets and concludes that there is particular value in involving lay participants in the development of nutrition information leaflets