Housing and Health in Beijing: Implications of High-rise Housing on Children and the Aged

The authors are at present engaged in a Swedish-Chinese interdisciplinary and crossectional project on housing and health in Beijing. This article is concerned with a literature review on the topic and general observations during two recent visits to China. After some basic assumptions concerning high-rise dwellings, private space and life style, this paper contains explicit comparisons of the design, use and experience of traditional courtyard houses, flats in midrise and high-rise buildings as well as a comparisons of two vulnerable groups , i.e., children and elderly residents. The article ends with a discussion, and the authors conclude that city planning without involvement of specialists from the field of psychological factors and environmental health (i.e., a matter not only of quantity but also of quality) will provide an inadequate environment for the development of children and care of the elderl

Housing and Health in Beijing: Implications of High-rise Housing on Children and the Aged

The authors are at present engaged in a Swedish-Chinese interdisciplinary and crossectional project on housing and health in Beijing. This article is concerned with a literature review on the topic and general observations during two recent visits to China. After some basic assumptions concerning high-rise dwellings, private space and life style, this paper contains explicit comparisons of the design, use and experience of traditional courtyard houses, flats in midrise and high-rise buildings as well as a comparisons of two vulnerable groups , i.e., children and elderly residents. The article ends with a discussion, and the authors conclude that city planning without involvement of specialists from the field of psychological factors and environmental health (i.e., a matter not only of quantity but also of quality) will provide an inadequate environment for the development of children and care of the elderl

Inter-Professional and Inter-Cultural Competence Training as a Preventive Strategy to Promote Collaboration in Encountering New-Coming Refugees in the Reception Programme - A Case Study

Every encounter with a patient/client in the mental health and social services constitutes a challenge for the responsible staff or organisation. Meeting a patient/client from a culture other than the one to which the caretaker/case manager belongs accentuates this challenge. The challenge will be even greater in the future because the number of refugees at menta

Educational potential of a virtual patient system for caring for traumatized patients in primary care

Background: Virtual Patients (VPs) have been used in undergraduate healthcare education for many years. This project is focused on using VPs for training professionals to care for highly vulnerable patient populations. The aim of the study was to evaluate if Refugee Trauma VPs was perceived as an effective and engaging learning tool by primary care professionals (PCPs) in a Primary Health Care Centre (PHC). Methods: A VP system was designed to create realistic and engaging VP cases for Refugee Trauma for training refugee patient interview, use of established trauma and mental health instruments as well as to give feedback to the learners. The patient interview section was based on video clips with a Bosnian actor with a trauma story and mental health problems. The video clips were recorded in Bosnian language to further increase the realism, but also subtitled in English. The system was evaluated by 11 volunteering primary health clinicians at the Lynn Community Health Centre, Lynn, Massachusetts, USA. The participants were invited to provide insights/feedback about the system’s usefulness and educational value. A mixed methodological approach was used, generating both quantitative and qualitative data. Results: Self-reported dimensions of clinical care, pre and post questionnaire questions on the PCPs clinical worldview, motivation to use the VP, and IT Proficiency. Construct items used in these questionnaires had previously demonstrated high face and construct validity. The participants ranked the mental status examination more positively after the simulation exercise compared to before the simulation. Follow up interviews supported the results. Conclusions: Even though virtual clinical encounters are quite a new paradigm in PHC, the participants in the present study considered our VP case to be a relevant and promising educational tool. Next phase of our project will be a RCT study including comparison with specially prepared paper-cases and determinative input on improving clinical diagnosis and treatment of the traumatized refugee patient

Protecting Family Interests: An Interview Study with Foreign-Born Parents Struggling On in Childhood Cancer Care

Sweden's population is gradually changing to become more multiethnic and diverse and that applies also for recipients of health care, including childhood cancer care. A holistic view on the sick child in the context of its family has always been a cornerstone in childhood cancer care in Sweden. The purpose of this study was to gain knowledge about the experiences and main concern of foreign-born parents in the context of paediatric cancer care. Interviews were performed with eleven foreign-born parents and data were analysed using a classic grounded theory approach. Foreign-born parents often feel in a position of powerless dependence, but family interests are protected in their approaches to interaction with healthcare staff, through cooperation, contesting, and reluctant resigning. Healthcare staff need to listen to foreign-born parents and deal with their concerns seriously to prevent powerless-dependence and work for trustful cooperation in the common fight against childhood cancer

Psychological distress and associated factors among the attendees of traditional healing practices in Jinja and Iganga districts, Eastern Uganda: a cross-sectional study

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Mental health problems are a major public health concern worldwide. Evidence shows that African communities, including Uganda, use both modern and traditional healing systems. There is limited literature about the magnitude of psychological distress and associated factors among attendees of traditional healing practices. This study aimed to determine the prevalence and associated factors of psychological distress among attendees of traditional healing practices in two districts in Uganda.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>Face-to-face interviews with the Lusoga version of the Self Reporting Questionnaire (SRQ-20) were carried out with 400 patients over the age of 18 years attending traditional healing in Iganga and Jinja districts in Eastern Uganda. Patients were recruited consecutively in all the traditional healers' shrines that could be visited in the area. Persons with 6 or more positive responses to the SRQ were identified as having psychological distress. Prevalence was estimated and odds ratios of having psychological distress were obtained with multiple logistic regression analysis.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>387 questionnaire responses were analyzed. The prevalence of psychological distress in connection with attendance at the traditional healers' shrines was 65.1%. Having a co-wife and having more than four children were significantly associated with psyclogical distress. Among the socioeconomic indicators, lack of food and having debts were significantly associated with psychological distress. The distressed group was more likely to need explanations for ill health. Those who visited both the healer and a health unit were less likely to be distressed.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>This study provides evidence that a substantial proportion of attendees of traditional healing practices suffer from psychological distress. Associated factors include poverty, number of children, polygamy, reason for visiting the healer and use of both traditional healing and biomedical health units. These findings may be useful for policy makers and biomedical health workers for the engagement with traditional healers.</p

Ansvariga i mottagandet av ensamkommande barn och unga behöver samarbeta mer med akademin

Temanumret har aktualiserats mot bakgrund av att Sverige för närvarande är det EU-land som tar emot flest antal asylsökande barn och unga per capita. Här tas upp vad vi kan lära från studier och översikter kring risk- och skyddande faktorer för utveckling och mående när det gäller ensamkommande barn och unga. De kan ha flytt från krig och våld och/eller tidigare levt på gatan. Det gemensamma är att de kommer utan vårdnadshavare men det är en heterogen grupp. En ekologisk modell ger en ram där barnen utvecklas i en social miljö i vilken familjen, närmiljön och samhället bidrar till en hälsosam utveckling. Därför är familjeåterförening, att ha tillträde till skola och fritidsaktiviteter nycklar till barnens hälsa. Artikeln slutar med regeringens förslag på förändring i asylpolitiken och vilka socialmedicinska effekter detta får

Upplevd ohälsa hos vuxna asylsökande

I föreliggande kapitel presenteras en avslutad intervjustudie på 108 asylsökande. Under upplägget togs stor hänsyn till gruppens sårbarhet för upplevd ohälsa, stigma och tillträde endast till akut vård och vård som inte kan anstå. De asylsökande visar jämförbara siffror med andra studier när det gäller erfarenhet av krig, men har högre siffror på svåra traumatiska upplevelser före ankomst såsom tortyr och sexuella övergrepp samt förlust av anhöriga. Att inte känna sig isolerad och inte uppleva tidsspillan under väntan på asyl halverade risken för suicidala tankar. Traumatiska påfrestningar före ankomst kom i bakgrunden för påfrestningarna under asylprocessen. Slutsatserna av studien är att hälsofrämjande strategier bör introduceras och utvecklas från Dag 1 i asylmottagandet på olika nivåer: (1) att tiden för asylprocessen minimeras, (2) att den asylsökande är i ett sammanhang, (3) att mottagningspersonal erbjuds kontinuerlig handledning, (4) att asylsökande får av sjukvårdspersonal hälso- och sjukvårdsinformation och kunskap om risk- och skyddsfaktorer för upplevd ohälsa, (5) att kontinuerligt kvalitetssäkra att varje nyanländ erbjuds en gratis hälsoundersökning och hälsosamtal, att tiden utökas för genomförandet och efter behov, samt följs upp i samband med permanent uppehållstillstånd som grund för mål med introduktion, SFI (svenska för invandrare) praktik och arbete, samt (6) att det finns tillgång för vård efter behov och som är oberoende av juridisk status