Antecedent and Sequalae Issues of Nepalese Women Trafficked into Prostitution

Using a qualitative descriptive methodology, this study explored the experiences of Nepalese women trafficked into prostitution in India. The study found that poverty and lack of awareness about being at risk for trafficking are the major precursors for their trafficking experience. Abduction, fake marriages and the seduction of a better job were the major approaches adopted by pimps to traffic the women. The study also showed that after returning from the Indian brothel(s), they were rejected by their family and community. Such rejections occurred as family and community perceived these young women as at high risk for HIV infection. Strategies should be put in place to assist the women to reintegrate into their family and community

Disparity in health care: HIV, stigma, and marginalization in Nepal

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>The provision of effective health care to people with HIV and those from usually marginalised backgrounds, such as drug users and sex workers is a growing concern in Nepal, because these populations often do not seek health care, as willingly as the general population. Exploration of the factors, which hinder them seeking health care is crucial. The 'lived' experiences of the usually marginalized participants in this research will reflect on the constraining factors, and contribute to the development of appropriate strategies, which will facilitate people with HIV and other marginal populations to seek more readily appropriate health services.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>This study explored the healthcare-seeking experiences of 20 HIV-positive participants in Nepal, as well as 10 drug-using participants who had never had an HIV test and did not know their HIV status. Using grounded theory, this study investigated the perceptions and experiences of HIV-positive persons, or those perceived to be at risk for HIV, as they sought health care services in locations around Kathmandu Valley.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>Health professionals were perceived to lack knowledge and sensitivity in providing health care to often marginalized and stigmatized injecting drug users, sex workers and HIV-positive people. Stigma and marginalization seem to interfere with doctors' and other health professionals' decisions to voluntarily treat persons who they perceive to be at high risk for HIV infections. Doctors and other health professionals appear suspicious, even unaware, of contemporary biomedical knowledge as it relates to HIV. The fear that certain marginalized groups, such as injecting drug users and sex workers, would be infected with HIV has further intensified stigma against these groups.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>The study identified the beginning of a change in the experiences of HIV-positive people, or those at risk of HIV, in their seeking of health care. With focused, contemporary HIV education and training, the beginning of positive changes in the knowledge base and attitude of health providers seemed to be apparent to some participants of this study.</p

Sexual Harassment and Australian Registered Nurses

Using a multi-method approach, this thesis examines sex-based and sexual harassment as perceived and experienced by Australian Registered Nurses (RN). The first phase of the research was a broadly based, exploratory survey questionnaire which served as a foundation for the second and third phases of the study. This initial phase and its analysis focused on the frequency and kinds of harassment the Registered Nurses described, as well as their responses and the affects of the harassment on them personally and professionally. ... The second phase of the study involved sixteen in-depth interviews that focused on how Registered Nurses acquire or process knowledge about harassment and how this knowledge is personally and socially reproduced. That is to say, how these RNs come to 'see' and 'understand' harassment; come to recognise harassment, label it, deal with it and interpret their action or inaction when confronted with it

An Exploration of the Experiences of Adults that were Raised without Routine Childhood Vaccinations

This thesis explores the experiences of adults raised without routine childhood vaccinations. This is a highly contentious topic and despite the substantial number of children that are raised in this way, there is a paucity of literature exploring this group of people and the outcomes of such health care decisions. This study's theoretical framework is constructed from a phenomenological perspective. A phenomenological methodology guiding this study allowed the researcher to hear the participants' voices as they had experienced this phenomenon. Using a mixed method of data collection enabled the researcher to gain a breadth and depth of the phenomenon in question. Sixty-seven participants completed the open-ended online survey questionnaire and thirteen participants participated in the in-depth interviews. The data was collected from the survey questionnaire, which then informed the in-depth interviews that followed. Participants were found to have a high regard for their health and displayed proactive health conscious behaviours. A high level of contentment was found amongst participants in regards to the vaccine decision that was made on their behalf, with a great majority of participants found to have made the same non-vaccination decision for their own children. This thesis revealed the existence of a significant gap between the lived experience of individual's and the vaccine imperative placed upon the populace. Contributing to the literature, this study gleaned intergenerational insights, directly related to asking participants about vaccine decision-making regarding their own children. In addition, the project elucidated the way in which participants navigated between heterodox and orthodox medicine, in an attempt to meet their health care needs and preferences

Leadership in context: A case for exploring Bass' Leadership Continuum Theory in Jordan's Ministry of Health hospitals

Can a leadership theory, which favours a Western-dominated paradigm, be applied in a Middle Eastern context? If applied, could leaders who are tasked to lead–based on their position, title and level of responsibility within an organization - exhibit specific leadership styles that are representative of the collective whole (paradigm)? If not, what underlying factors could be identified that differentiate cultural traits or behavioural patterns of leadership? Generally speaking, leadership may be best defined as the ability to influence or build capacity in the workforce to perform to the highest possible level or maximum capacity (Bass, 1990a; Gardiner, 2006). After all, leading and exhibiting leadership qualities, regardless of context, should be "easy" to identify. It is not. This study considers that leadership is not only elusive but possesses transient qualities or styles based on ever-changing contexts. A mixed methods approach is proffered to investigate leadership styles as perceived by top, middle and lower levels of Ministry of Health hospitals in Jordan in an effort to identify commonalities and difference

An Australian whistleblowing experience in healthcare: A study of six women from the New South Wales public health system who were labelled by the media as whistleblower nurses

In the Australian state of New South Wales (NSW), six women with 200 years clinical experience between them were employed by different hospitals within a common Area Health Service. Independently, and unknown to each other, they advocated for patients' rights and patient safety through hospital internal escalation channels. After failing to garner satisfactory responses, these nurses were deliberately drawn together by another colleague, who without their consent or knowledge escalated their individual concerns to the media: where they were portrayed as a vigilante group of whistleblower nurses. This research explores the premise the inherent moral and ethical qualities and responsibilities of a nurse demand nurses advocate for patients. As a facet of care, this action differs fundamentally from other experiences of whistleblowing. Three rounds of in-depth interviews were audio-taped, transcribed and analysed, to provide data to address the issues associated with nurses who are labelled as whistleblowers. The study group was identified to the researcher by another nurse, who attempted to aggregate this group of nurses to release information about their patient safety and advocacy issues; to add credibility to her own concerns about patient care; and to promote through the media an image of a cohesive group of vigilante whistleblower nurses. Telling the stories and identifying the consequences of each nurse's experiences provides the key findings of this research. The set of harms identified spans not only the whistleblowing events, but also the conduct of this research, whose author is a participant observer. The major research implications and recommendations relate specifically to the role of the media in whistleblowing, the concept of advocacy and the impact of Australian law upon nurses who speak out publicly. The recommendations challenge the appropriateness of labelling nurses as whistleblowers. The survival strategies of whistleblower nurses are explored and recommendations are made to address 'mobbing' - a severe form of bullying and harassment. The concept of risk to a researcher who undertakes sensitive research is explored, and recommendations for researcher protection are defined. The nurses have survived, albeit altered personally and professionally. This is the story

The Practice of Assistants in Nursing: A study of resource distribution at the bedside in nursing homes

The provision of residential care to elderly people in Australia has received much attention since the introduction of aged care reform in 1997. In Australia, as in most parts of the world, increasing numbers of people are likely to enter aged care because of the increasing percentage of populations approaching the age bracket of 65 years and over, particularly within the next 20 years. Focus on the quality and cost of provision of care, particularly in nursing homes, which until recent times has remained mostly invisible, is continually scrutinised and highlighted in the current public arena. Issues such as the standard of care, appropriateness of staffing levels and costs associated with the delivery of care have been reflected in policy development and the advent of aged care structural reform. As macro policy aims to balance the social issues of nursing home care equally against the cost of provision of such care, the 'trickle down effect' on the quality and type of care delivered to residents at the micro-level of the bedside has not been explored. This study is primarily concerned with the micro-level of care experienced at the bedside in Australian residential care and, as a consequence, it examines the practice of assistants in nursing (AINs) employed in Australian nursing homes. In particular, it identifies and examines AINs' notions of equality and, in turn, how these are influenced by contextual factors within the nursing home industry, in terms of their distribution of resources at the bedside. This issue is significant, given that the majority of employees in nursing homes who deliver bedside care are AINs. How they distribute resources impacts upon the type and quality of care that is delivered, and the quality of life that older persons experience in nursing homes on a day-to-day basis

Particulate Air Pollution in Armidale

Epidemiological studies have consistently shown associations between particulate air pollution, especially with fine particles, and mortality and morbidity. This study has assessed the effects of particulate air pollution in terms of health status and economic cost and reviewed policy options to reduce the air pollution problem in Armidale. The first stage of the study involved a theoretical assessment of the health effects and economic costs of the current level of air pollution. The calculation of health effect used dose-response relationships from relevant epidemiological literature. Recognised monetary values were attached to estimated health effects. A conservative estimate of the annual economic cost of mortality effects and restricted activity days due to particulate air pollution in Armidale ranged between A$6.5 million and A$25.7 millio

Contact Tools in Japanese Acupuncture: An Ethnography of Acupuncture Practitioners in Japan

This study aimed to identify procedural elements of Japanese acupuncture, describe these elements in detail, and explain them in terms of the key thematic category of treatment principles. Between August 2012 and December 2016, ethnographic fieldwork was conducted in Japan. In total, 38 participants were recruited by chain referral and emergent sampling. Data was collected through participant observation, interviews, and by analyzing documents. A total of 22 participants agreed to clinical observation; 221 treatments were observed with 172 patients. Seventeen consented to formal interviews and 28 to informal interviews. Thematic analysis was used to critically evaluate data. One especially interesting theme was interpreted from the data: a variety of contact tools were applied in treatment and these were manipulated by adjusting elements of form, speed, repetition, and pressure. Tapping, holding, pressing/pushing, and stroking were the most important ways contact tools were used on patients. Contact tools are noninvasive, painless, can be applied in almost any environment, and may be easily accepted by patients worldwide. Contact tool theory and practice may be successfully integrated into acupuncture curricula outside of Japan, used to inform clinical trials, and contribute to an expanded repertoire of methods for practitioners to benefit individual patients in international contexts

Effects of Social Technology on Older Adults in a Residential Living Facility

Personal connection and social interaction are vital components of health throughout the lifespan. Loneliness and social isolation among the older adult population impacts both physical and mental health negatively. Analysis of published research demonstrates the importance of considering the use of different social technology platforms to foster opportunities for social support among family and friends. Researchers noted an increased relevance of the need for social technology in residential living facilities with the emergence of the COVID-19 pandemic and social distancing. The study aims to investigate the impact of social technology, via Sherish℠ Connect on older adults’ reported levels of loneliness and social isolation within a residential living facility. The seven participants used Sherish℠ Connect, a television-based photo-sharing application, for a minimum of one month prior to data collection. Data was collected via survey responses and medical records review to determine the effect of the Sherish℠ Connect intervention on participants’ perceived loneliness. Six participants reported using Sherish℠ Connect weekly or daily. All participants reported Sherish℠ Connect provided comfort. Social technology platforms offer an opportunity for social support among family and friends. Sherish℠ Connect, given a larger sample and increased duration of use, has the potential to combat loneliness and social isolation and provide comfort for older adults. Researchers hope this study provides baseline research that inspires additional studies investigating Sherish℠ Connect. The utilization of social technology adds value to occupational therapy intervention for mental health and social participation, particularly during the unprecedented time of COVID-19