BACKGROUND: In the scientific literature on Malaria in Pregnancy (MiP), no studies have been conducted on lifestyles based on critical theory. The objective of this study was to analyse the lifestyles or singular processes of social determination of health in MiP in northwestern Colombia.
METHODS: Mixed QUAN-QUAL convergent triangulation study. In the quantitative component, a psychometric evaluation and a cross-sectional design were conducted in 400 pregnant women to whom the Pender-Walker lifestyle scale and a survey on MiP prevention were applied. In the qualitative study, a critical ethnography was conducted with 46 pregnant women in whom their narratives and practices regarding lifestyles at home and healthcare were described.
RESULTS: The frequency of MiP was 9%, and a higher occurrence of the disease was identified in those who did not control stagnant water (29%), did not use insecticide-treated net (16%) and went to the hospital (14%) or the microscopist (20%) when they had fever. This coincides with the presence of unhealthy lifestyles, little knowledge about malaria, and a low perception of the risk of getting sick, as well as meanings and experiences about MiP, maternity, and pregnancy that show a high clinical, cultural, and socioeconomic burden for the women studied.
CONCLUSIONS: This epidemiological profile and the approach to lifestyles based on the postulates of critical theory in health evidence that pregnant women exposed to malaria suffer serious social, cultural and health injustices that are not possible to impact with the current health model of malaria control in Colombia guided by aetiopathogenic, biomedical, positivist and utilitarian theories.

Child labor is one of the important social issues that deprive children of many fundamental rights, and make them face many problems and consequences, including health problems. Thus, this study was conducted with the aim of examining the health of working children in Tehran. This is an ethnographic study that was conducted using Carspecken\'s approach and was completed in 2022. The main participants of this study included working children aged 10-18 years living in Tehran. In order to collect information, the researcher was present at the workplace, school, and living places of working children for more than two years, observing their lives and activities. Formal and informal interviews were also conducted with the working children and informed people. In total, hundreds of working children were assessed and observed in this research. A friendly conversation was formed between the researcher and more than 50 children, and official interviews were conducted with six of the working children. Also, more than 10 official interviews were conducted with informed people and parents of working children. In addition to observations and interviews, documents such as medical records and drawings of working children were also examined and interpreted. The information obtained from observations, interviews, and documents was entered into MAXQDA software, and its raw codes were extracted. The high-level codes as well as sub and main categories were formed from the aggregation of low-level codes. Impaired health was formed from three subcategories of tormented body (work and environmental trauma, sexual abuse, malnutrition, fatigue, sleep disorder and inadequate hygiene), disquieted mind (anxious children, depression and isolation, reduced self-esteem and unfocused mind) and disrupted sociability (negative social role modeling, aggression and violence, stubbornness and vindictiveness, harassment and nuisance, reprehensible social behaviors, neglecting others\' ownership, disturbed relationships and out-group self-censorship). The results of the present study showed that the health of working children is compromised in various physical, psychological, and social ways. Therefore, some measures should be taken at the national and international levels to improve their health, such as revising the existing laws regarding children and informing children of their rights.

UNASSIGNED: Social prescribing involves connecting individuals to community groups and activities, often to support their mental health and well-being. It has received increasing support in recent years across the NHS. There is a strong evidence base for the benefits of different types of community activities, including exercise groups, arts groups and nature interventions, on mental health outcomes, however, less is known about how these groups impact mental health and well-being. This study explores through what individual-level mechanisms (the \'how\') these groups support psychosocial well-being.
UNASSIGNED: An ethnographic study was conducted over 12-months to explore key shared, individual-level mechanisms across 4 social prescribing community groups: football, singing, gardening and reading. This study focused mostly on those with severe mental illness, whereas previously most social prescribing studies have focused on mild to moderate mental health problems. To frame the findings, a \'multi-level theoretical framework of mechanisms of action\' of leisure activities was used.
UNASSIGNED: Key shared psychological mechanisms were: increased self-confidence and self-esteem, increased purpose/meaning, increased sense of achievement, experience of pleasure; social mechanisms included: increased social support, formation of friendships and reduced loneliness, enhanced sense of community and belonging; behavioural mechanisms were: increased independence and openness to experience, reduction in addictive behaviours and building healthier habits, increased work-seeking behaviour, and provision of structure & routine.
UNASSIGNED: It is hoped that the findings of this study can help referring professionals increase their understanding of exactly how such groups support individuals\' mental health, thus enhancing referring practices.
This study uses ethnographic methods, wherein the lead researcher spent over a year participating in 4 different community groups, using interviews, conversations and observation to explore the mental health impact of such groups on individuals\' lives. The participants had moderate to severe mental health conditions, and the groups consisted of a reading, gardening, singing and football group. The study explored \'mechanisms\' underlying the mental health benefits of these groups. Key shared psychological mechanisms were: increased self-confidence and self-esteem, increased purpose/meaning, increased sense of achievement, experience of pleasure; social mechanisms included: increased social support, formation of friendships and reduced loneliness, enhanced sense of community and belonging; behavioural mechanisms were: increased independence and openness to experience, reduction in addictive behaviours and building healthier habits, increased work-seeking behaviour, and provision of structure & routine. It is hoped that the findings of this study can help referring professionals (e.g. GPs, social workers, link workers) increase their understanding of exactly how such groups support individuals’ mental health, thus improving referring skills.

BACKGROUND: Digitally assisted health care services and technologies are gaining popularity. They assist patients in managing their conditions, thereby reducing the burden on health care staff. Digital health care enables individuals to receive care that is more tailored to their needs and preferences. When implemented properly, it can promote equity by considering each person\'s opportunities and limitations in the context of health care needs, preferences, values, and capabilities.
OBJECTIVE: This study aims to understand the needs, values, and preferences of individuals with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) who are provided with a 24/7 digital health care service. Furthermore, we aim to understand the dynamics of the communities to which they belong and how these communities intersect. This will provide us with the essential knowledge to establish new methods of providing education, including the development of educational activities for health professionals to engage, train, and empower people living with COPD.
METHODS: The study included 7 informants diagnosed with COPD who received 24/7 digital health care service support from a regional project in Region Zealand, Denmark. The informants were visited 4 times during 2 months, including a \"Hello\" visit, a day with a semistructured interview, and 2 days with field observations. The informants participated in a semistructured interview, following participant observation and an ethnographic approach. The interview content was analyzed using an inductive methodology to categorize the empirical data.
RESULTS: Using the inductive approach, we identified 3 main categories related to the informants\' needs, values, and preferences: (1) Health, (2) Value Creation, and (3) Resources. These 3 main categories were based on 9 subcategories: (1) health and barriers, (2) self-monitoring, (3) medication, (4) behavior, (5) motivation, (6) hobbies, (7) social networks, (8) health professionals, and (9) technology. These findings revealed that the informants placed value on maintaining their daily activities and preserving their sense of identity before the onset of COPD. Furthermore, they expressed a desire not to be defined by their COPD, as conversations about COPD often shifted away from the topic.
CONCLUSIONS: Digital health solutions and the health care professionals who offer them should prioritize the individuals they serve, considering their needs, values, and preferences rather than solely focusing on the medical condition. This approach ensures the highest level of daily living and empowerment for those living with long-term health conditions. The communities surrounding individuals must engage in constant interaction and collaboration. They should work together to incorporate people\'s needs, values, and preferences into future digital health services, thereby promoting empowerment and self-management. New educational programs aimed at developing the digital health service competencies of registered nurses should facilitate collaboration between the 2 communities. This collaboration is essential for supporting patients with long-term health conditions in their daily activities.

BACKGROUND: The high number of unnecessary alarms in intensive care settings leads to alarm fatigue among staff and threatens patient safety. To develop and implement effective and sustainable solutions for alarm management in intensive care units (ICUs), an understanding of staff interactions with the patient monitoring system and alarm management practices is essential.
OBJECTIVE: This study investigated the interaction of nurses and physicians with the patient monitoring system, their perceptions of alarm management, and smart alarm management solutions.
METHODS: This explorative qualitative study with an ethnographic, multimethods approach was conducted in an ICU of a German university hospital. Using triangulation in data collection, 102 hours of field observations, 12 semistructured interviews with ICU staff members, and the results of a participatory task were analyzed. The data analysis followed an inductive, grounded theory approach.
RESULTS: Nurses and physicians reported interacting with the continuous vital sign monitoring system for most of their work time and tasks. There were no established standards for alarm management; instead, nurses and physicians stated that alarms were addressed through ad hoc reactions, a practice they viewed as problematic. Staff members\' perceptions of intelligent alarm management varied, but they highlighted the importance of understandable and traceable suggestions to increase trust and cognitive ease.
CONCLUSIONS: Staff members\' interactions with the omnipresent patient monitoring system and its alarms are essential parts of ICU workflows and clinical decision-making. Alarm management standards and workflows have been shown to be deficient. Our observations, as well as staff feedback, suggest that changes are warranted. Solutions for alarm management should be designed and implemented with users, workflows, and real-world data at the core.

UNASSIGNED: The context of care determines and organizes practices through its structures and guiding principles. It is sometimes a space that generates tension and multiple choices, variable in the provision of different care and uncertain in its duration. We can consider that the construction of the comfort process does not only depend on the will of its actors and the situation itself, but is also conditioned by the professional, cultural, and social context in which it is inserted. This article is part of a doctoral study in the field of comfort in a palliative care unit, and these are some of the partial results that emerged.
UNASSIGNED: Qualitative study using ethnographic approach.
UNASSIGNED: We conducted semistructured interviews with 18 patients at the end of life and their matched significant family members (18) and 21 health professionals. We also conducted a participant observation of care situations.
UNASSIGNED: The context of action, where meanings and practices are learned, is linked to a certain identity that is related to practical, contextual knowledge, linked to a collective and to a feeling of belonging. The relationship between the various factors that shape the Care Context in the palliative care unit studied, constitute the three domains of this topic, specifically: the integrative and inclusive environment, the conceptions of care, and the inclusive factors of organizational culture.
UNASSIGNED: The specific context was determinant as a supporting axis for comfort in this palliative care unit. The context of care, where objects and provisions support the construction of the comfort process as an entity that integrates culture, established conceptions of care, allowing the deepening of knowledge.

Drawing on data from ethnographic fieldwork and interprofessional focus group discussions, this study enquires into staff\'s everyday life on a geriatric ward to explore and understand conditions for engaging in narrative relations in in-patient geriatric care. Avoiding individualistic understandings of narrative practices, we applied a narrative-in-action methodology built on a relational understanding of narrativity, where individual narratives are not separated from social and cultural features. This helped us explore how individual interpretations of the conditions for everyday practices come together with broader social or cultural understandings to gain situated insights about how these are continuously related and reformed by one another in everyday situations of geriatric care. The findings offer insights into the opportunities to engage in narrative relations based on how healthcare staff on a geriatric ward interpret conditions for their practices, and how they act based on such interpretations. While some interpretations were associated with attitudes and activities encouraging narrative relations, others simultaneously thwarted narrative relations by enacting task-orientation, division, or a focus on measurable biomedical or function-related outcomes. Moreover, the findings suggest and discuss consequences of the tensions created as interpretations are enacted in everyday healthcare situations, thus questioning assumptions about conditions as something static and linear.

BACKGROUND: Existing qualitative research on early-stage Parkinson\'s disease draws on patients\' reported disease experience, aiming to capture the symptoms and impacts most relevant to patients living with the disease. As a complement to this research, the present study investigated the patient experience of early-stage Parkinson\'s disease from a holistic, ethnographic perspective. We explored the attitudes, beliefs, and social structures that shape how people understand and adapt to life with early-stage Parkinson\'s disease.
METHODS: Researchers interviewed 30 people with early-stage Parkinson\'s disease, 10 relatives, and 10 neurologists and movement disorder specialists in the USA and Germany. Many of these interviews took place in-person, allowing researchers to spend time in participants\' homes and witness their daily lives. A multidisciplinary team of social scientists, clinical researchers, and patient organization representatives led the mixed-methods study design and analysis. In-depth ethnographic interviews yielded qualitative insights, with a quantitative survey following to assess their prevalence in a larger sample of 150 patients.
RESULTS: In addition to developing a patient life experience pathway of early-stage Parkinson\'s disease, we identified five key thematic findings that provide insight into how the clinical features of the disease become meaningful to patients on the context of their daily lives, family relations, and subjective well-being: (1) People with early-stage Parkinson\'s disease start coming to terms with their disease before receiving a medical diagnosis; (2) Acceptance is not a finalized achievement, but a cyclical process; (3) People with early-stage Parkinson\'s disease \"live in the moment\" to make the future more manageable; (4) Slowing disease progression is an important goal driving the actions of people with early-stage Parkinson\'s; and (5) People with early-stage Parkinson\'s disease value information that is grounded in lived experience and relevant to their stage of disease progression.
CONCLUSIONS: This holistic, ethnographic approach to patient life experience provided five key thematic findings that complement insights from qualitative and quantitative datasets on early-stage Parkinson\'s disease. An enhanced understanding of how early-stage Parkinson\'s symptoms impact patients\' health-related quality of life and their broader social lives can help us better understand how patients make decisions about their usage of healthcare services and therapies.
This study aimed to understand the experience of people living with early-stage Parkinson’s. In addition to looking at how symptoms impact people’s daily lives, this research examined how people think about and give meaning to early-stage Parkinson’s. The first step was to conduct interviews with people with early-stage Parkinson’s, their relatives, and doctors. These interviews covered topics such as how people with early-stage Parkinson’s are eventually diagnosed, where they go for information, and how they approach the future. In the second step recordings and transcripts of the interviews were analyzed in detail. The ideas and themes that emerged from analysis were used to create a picture of how people experience early-stage Parkinson’s as part of their broader lives. Researchers identified five key insights: (1) people often begin to come to terms with Parkinson’s before being diagnosed; (2) accepting Parkinson’s is an ongoing process; (3) people with early-stage Parkinson’s value living in the moment; (4) people with early-stage Parkinson’s see slowing the worsening of the disease as an important goal; and (5) learning from the first-hand experience of others can be more valuable than scientific information. Ultimately, this research shows that understanding how early-stage Parkinson’s fits into people’s everyday lives can help researchers, doctors, and patient organizations provide more effective support and care.

Age-friendly environments intend to promote active ageing by facilitating social, mental, and physical participation. This could potentially delay the onset of chronic complex conditions, enabling people to live longer independently at home, and prevent loneliness. This study investigates a community-based living environment in Norway called Helgetun and aims to explore how it can facilitate active ageing.
We chose an ethnographic approach consisting of observation, informal conversations, and in-depth semi-structured interviews with 15 residents (11 female, 4 male, ages 62-84). We analysed the data using reflexive thematic analysis.
We developed three themes on facilitating active ageing in this living environment: maintaining self-identity, experiencing growth and development, and feeling a sense of belonging. These themes were related to physical activity levels, social engagement, and overall satisfaction with the living environment. Maintaining self-identity concerned getting a new role in life as well as access to meaningful activities. Experiencing growth and development involved being exposed to new activities, learning new skills, and experiencing mastery. Lastly, feeling a sense of belonging meant feeling safe and part of a group, as well as receiving social support and help. This feeling of social connectedness and safety was reflected in their experience with the COVID-19 pandemic, in which most felt relatively unaffected, suggesting that this way of living could increase reliance among this age group.
Having a flexible structure, adapting to the core needs and individual resources of the residents, can facilitate active ageing in community-based living environments. Our findings contribute to the growing evidence that these environments increase social and physical engagement, whilst reducing social isolation and loneliness. These findings may be particularly relevant in a Norwegian context-where older adults are less dependent on family for care-and are meant as grounding points for policymakers to reflect upon designing future senior living.

UNASSIGNED: Hospitalised patients could benefit from the emergence of novel technologies for nursing care. There are numerous technical products available, but these rarely find their way into practice. Further knowledge is required about the circumstances under which technology in nursing is accepted and used. In the research project \"Centre for Implementing Nursing Care Innovations\", technical innovations are implemented on a trauma surgery inpatient ward in Germany. After implementation, it was investigated: Which implemented technologies are accepted/rejected, and which factors influence the acceptance/rejection of technology for nurses?
UNASSIGNED: A focused ethnography was used, containing two approaches: First, participant observation was conducted to examine nurses\' and patients\' interaction with technologies. Observations were fixed in a field research diary and analysed using evaluative qualitative content analysis. Second, a questionnaire was used by nurses to provide information about the use frequency and technology suitability. The results of the study were consolidated and analysed using the UTAUT model.
UNASSIGNED: Seven studied technologies can be summarised in four result categories: (1) A Mobilising mattress, a Special projector and a Sound pillow are accepted and used by nurses and patients, because they offer a way to provide high quality care with little additional effort. (2) A Fall prevention system is consistently used in patient care as a work obligation, but since nurses consider the system error-prone, acceptance is low. (3) An Interactive therapy ball is accepted but nurses cannot use it due to the high workload. (4) An App for nurse-patient communication and a work-equipment tracking system are not used or accepted because nurses do not see a practical benefit in the systems.
UNASSIGNED: Acceptance or rejection of a product does not necessarily equate to use or non-use of the technology. Before implementation, technology acceptance among users occurs as prejudice-when users are given time to experiment with technology, intention-to-use can stabilize into sustained use. Accepted and used technologies can serve to mask problems (such as staff shortages) and encourage problematic developments, such as the reduction of contact time at the bedside. Therefore, technology acceptance should be qualified in asking to what accepted technology contributes.