Bibliotek

This article outlines the rationale for a family-focused psychoeducational intervention for individuals at risk for psychosis and explains the design of a randomized multisite trial to test its efficacy. Adolescents and young adults that meet criteria for a psychosis risk syndrome at eight participating North American Prodromal Longitudinal Study sites are randomly assigned to a 6-month, 18-session family-focused treatment for prodromal youth or a 3-session psychoeducational enhanced care control intervention and followed over 1 year. The results will determine whether the use of a family intervention is able to significantly improve functional outcomes, decrease the severity of positive symptoms and possibly prevent the onset of full psychosis, compared with enhanced care alone. Levels of familial criticism at baseline are hypothesized to moderate responses to family intervention. Improvements in knowledge about symptoms, family communication and problem solving will be tested as mediators in the pathways between treatment assignment and clinical or psychosocial outcomes in high-risk youth. The ongoing trial evaluates whether a non-invasive psychosocial approach can significantly enhance functional outcomes and prevent the ultra high risk patients from developing psychosis. The results will provide an important stepping stone in the movement of the field from refining early detection strategies to developing efficacious preventative treatments.

Objectives: To evaluate the effectiveness of an education programme for patients and carers recovering from stroke.
Design: Randomized controlled trial.
Subjects and setting: One hundred and seventy patients admitted to a stroke rehabilitation unit and 97 carers of these patients.
Interventions: The intervention group received a specifically designed stroke information manual and were invited to attend education meetings every two weeks with members of their multidisciplinary team. The control group received usual practice.
Measures: Primary outcome was knowledge of stroke and stroke services. Secondary outcomes were handicap (London Handicap Scale), physical function (Barthel Index), social function (Frenchay Activities Index), mood (Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale) and satisfaction (Pound Scale). Carer mood was measured by the General Health Questionnaire-28.
Results: There was no statistical evidence for a treatment effect on knowledge but there were trends that favoured the intervention. The education programme was associated with a significantly greater reduction in patient anxiety score at both three months (p=0.034) and six months (p=0.021) and consequently fewer 'cases' (Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale anxiety subscale score ≥ 11). There were no other significant statistical differences between the patient or carer groups for other outcomes, although there were trends in favour of the education programme.
Conclusion: An education programme delivered within a stroke unit did not result in improved knowledge about stroke and stroke services but there was a significant reduction in patient anxiety at six months post stroke onset.

Abstract [en]
Background
When the ageing population increases, the burden and responsibility of close family members will likely increase. Those closely related who assume a great responsibility can be significantly affected in health, well-being and daily life.

Aim
This study aims to describe the life situation when family caregivers are imposed responsibility for an older person with complex care needs in their own home.

Methods

In this Swedish qualitative study, ten family caregivers were strategically selected in order to achieve variations in the life situation. A reflective lifeworld research design based on phenomenological philosophy was used throughout the data collection with the lifeworld interviews and the analytic process.

Findings
In terms of extensive responsibility, the life situation is complex and involves emotions that are difficult to manage. In essence, a paradoxical life situation is described which is experienced as both voluntarily and nonchosen at the same time. The responsibility never rests. The essential meaning is further illustrated with three constituents: loss of freedom, contradictory feelings and affected relationships.

Conclusion
A life situation with extensive responsibility for an older family member interferes with the whole life situation with an impact on health and relationships with other people. The findings are crucial for professional caregivers in order to capture the nature of family support in a way that enables a meaningful life for both the family caregiver and the older person being cared for. Knowledge of this will give professional caregivers an increased awareness of the life situation of family caregivers and provide a better understanding of the support they are longing for, and, in some countries, such as Sweden, also are entitled to by law.

It is well accepted that heavy alcohol consumption during pregnancy is a risk factor for fetal alcohol spectrum disorder, but research findings for exposure to low to moderate alcohol levels during pregnancy are equivocal, allowing a range of interpretations. The 2001 guideline from the National Health and Medical Research Council (NHMRC) for low-risk drinking for "women who are pregnant or might soon become pregnant" recommends fewer than seven standard drinks per week, and no more than two standard drinks on any one day. This position has polarised health professional and consumer opinion in Australia. The NHMRC guidelines on alcohol are scheduled for review in 2007. We surveyed the alcohol and pregnancy policies and clinical practice guidelines of Australia and six other English-speaking countries to identify current policy. Documents were obtained through Internet searches and direct contact with the relevant organisations. The policies and guidelines varied both across and within countries, and the NHMRC guideline, while not universally supported in Australia, is in step with the policies of the United Kingdom and Canada. Research is needed to elucidate the true association between low to moderate alcohol consumption and fetal harm, the impact of different policies on rates of maternal alcohol consumption during pregnancy, and any untoward outcomes of an abstinence message, to inform and underpin future policy development in Australia.

This paper introduces semiotics to the field of augmentative and alternative communication (AAC). Semiotics includes the study of all types of communicative acts (signs) from language and other complex forms of human communication to animal communication and natural events in our environment. Its object of study overlaps that of AAC: communication. This paper presents semiotics as a methodological and/or theoretical framework that can be useful for AAC researchers and/or professionals to validate AAC terminology, identify sign characteristics, operationalize sign variables, expand sign taxonomies, and understand sign transmission processes (e.g., production and interpretation).

This paper introduces semiotics to the field of augmentative and alternative communication (AAC). Semiotics includes the study of all types of communicative acts (signs) from language and other complex forms of human communication to animal communication and natural events in our environment. Its object of study overlaps that of AAC: communication. This paper presents semiotics as a methodological and/or theoretical framework that can be useful for AAC researchers and/or professionals to validate AAC terminology, identify sign characteristics, operationalize sign variables, expand sign taxonomies, and understand sign transmission processes (e.g., production and interpretation).

OBJECTIVE: One prerequisite for palliative home care is the relatives'
participation in the care. The relatives' situation in palliative home care is
unique, as they support the sick person and also have a great need for support
themselves. The aim of this care development project was to develop and implement
separate structured conversations (SSC) with relatives of patients of an advanced
palliative home care team (APHCT). METHOD: During the project, 61 conversations were held and 55 relatives answered
a questionnaire. The questionnaire, eight semistructured interviews with
relatives, and three focus-group discussions with nurses constitute the material
for the evaluation. RESULTS: Relatives have difficulties separating the SSC from the APHCT's care as
a whole. They underline that the SSC was a part of an ongoing process. They also
emphasize the value of having a conversation of their own in which the patient
was absent, and in which the focus was on the relative's situation. For some, the
conversation took place at the APHCT premises. The advantages of that were more
privacy and the opportunity to walk around the inpatient palliative care units.
The main problem during the project was conducting the SSC soon after the patient
was enrolled with the APHCT. SIGNIFICANCE OF RESULTS: Routinely offering one separate structured conversation with relatives with the intention of answering questions, talking about their
willingness to provide care in the home, and mapping out their situation and
social network, is a way to support both the relatives and the patients. The
common structure of the conversations facilitated the assessment of the
relatives' situation but did not hinder individualization according to the
relatives' needs. The assumption is that all relatives should be offered a
conversation.

OBJECTIVE: One prerequisite for palliative home care is the relatives'
participation in the care. The relatives' situation in palliative home care is
unique, as they support the sick person and also have a great need for support
themselves. The aim of this care development project was to develop and implement
separate structured conversations (SSC) with relatives of patients of an advanced
palliative home care team (APHCT). METHOD: During the project, 61 conversations were held and 55 relatives answered
a questionnaire. The questionnaire, eight semistructured interviews with
relatives, and three focus-group discussions with nurses constitute the material
for the evaluation. RESULTS: Relatives have difficulties separating the SSC from the APHCT's care as
a whole. They underline that the SSC was a part of an ongoing process. They also
emphasize the value of having a conversation of their own in which the patient
was absent, and in which the focus was on the relative's situation. For some, the
conversation took place at the APHCT premises. The advantages of that were more
privacy and the opportunity to walk around the inpatient palliative care units.
The main problem during the project was conducting the SSC soon after the patient
was enrolled with the APHCT. SIGNIFICANCE OF RESULTS: Routinely offering one separate structured conversation with relatives with the intention of answering questions, talking about their
willingness to provide care in the home, and mapping out their situation and
social network, is a way to support both the relatives and the patients. The
common structure of the conversations facilitated the assessment of the
relatives' situation but did not hinder individualization according to the
relatives' needs. The assumption is that all relatives should be offered a
conversation.

The revised new forest parenting programme (NFPP) is an 8-week psychological intervention designed to treat ADHD in preschool children by targeting, amongst other things, both underlying impairments in self-regulation and the quality of mother-child interactions. Forty-one children were randomized to either the revised NFPP or treatment as usual conditions. Outcomes were ADHD and ODD symptoms measured using questionnaires and direct observation, mothers' mental health and the quality of mother-child interactions. Effects of the revised NFPP on ADHD symptoms were large (effect size >1) and significant and effects persisted for 9 weeks post-intervention. Effects on ODD symptoms were less marked. There were no improvements in maternal mental health or parenting behavior during mother-child interaction although there was a drop in mothers' negative and an increase in their positive comments during a 5-min speech sample. The small-scale trial, although limited in power and generalizability, provides support for the efficacy of the revised NFPP. The findings need to be replicated in a larger more diverse sample.

Falls are a major cause of injuries and hospital admissions among elderly people. Thus, the caregiving process and the quality of life of older adults can be improved by adopting systems for the automatic detection of falls. This paper presents a smartphone-based fall detection system that monitors the movements of patients, recognizes a fall, and automatically sends a request for help to the caregivers. To reduce the problem of false alarms, the system includes novel techniques for the recognition of those activities of daily living that could be erroneously mis-detected as falls (such as sitting on a sofa or lying on a bed). To limit the intrusiveness of the system, a small external sensing unit can also be used for the acquisition of movement data.

Investigation into the family burden (FB) of schizophrenic patients has recently risen sharply. Nevertheless, to date there has been little consensus as to what factors influence the FB. The purpose of this study is to acquire a greater insight into the variables that influence the FB. The FB was measured with the interview for the family burden (Kluiter H, Kramer JJAM, Wiersma D, et al. Interview voor de belasting van de familie 1997 [Interview for the burden on the family]. Department Sociale Psychiatric. Groningen: Rijksuniversiteit). One hundred and fifty family members (parents/partners) of schizophrenic patients participated in the study. The results of our study show (1) that family members experience burden both on a practical and an emotional level, (2) a highly significant correlation between the amount of symptomatic behaviour of the patient and FB, (3) that parents had taken on more tasks, had contributed more financially and had experienced a tenser atmosphere at home than partners did and (4) that family members of patients who have been treated for less than 1 year worry more about the other members of their family than family members of patients who have been receiving treatment for more than 1 year. Family members of schizophrenic patients experience burden on a practical, financial and emotional level and the extent of the burden is closely linked to the amount of symptomatic behaviour of the patient. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2012 APA, all rights reserved)(journal abstract)

This study describes an intervention where relatives were invited to take part in a support group programme during the late palliative phase of their family member. The purpose was to describe their experiences of the support group programme and the subsequent impact on their lives as relatives of a terminally ill person. Qualitative interviews were chosen as the data collection method. The analysis was inspired by the phenomenological method as described by Giorgi (1989). The relatives' experiences were categorised into six key constituents: confirmation; insight into the gravity of the illness; sense of belonging created by similar experiences; participation in the care system; being able to rest; and strength to provide support for the patient. These six constituents resulted in a sense of safety in relation to the patient, the illness, the nursing staff and the care unit. The study's findings show that interventions of this kind may be integral to the relatives' ability to handle their situation when caring for a terminally ill family member.

Aims This review identified published studies evaluating interventions delivered outside educational settings, designed for young people with existing alcohol use problems, or who participate in behaviour that places them at high risk of alcohol-related harm, critiqued their methodology and identified opportunities for new interventions.

Methods A systematic search of the peer-reviewed literature interrogated 10 electronic databases using specific search strings, limited to 2005–09. No additional studies were found by a librarian searching other collections and clearing-houses, or by hand-searching review paper reference lists. The 1697 articles identified were reviewed against criteria from the Dictionary for the Effective Public Health Practice Project Quality Assessment Tool for Quantitative Studies.

Results The methodological quality of existing studies is variable, and needs to be both more rigorous and more consistent. Particular problems include the lack of blinding outcome assessors, a reliance solely on self-report measures, highly variable consent and follow-up rates, infrequent use of intention-to-treat analyses and the absence of any economic or cost analyses. The range of interventions evaluated is currently limited to individually focused approaches, almost exclusively implemented in the United States.

Conclusions There is a great need for more intervention trials for young people at high risk of experiencing alcohol-related harm that are both methodologically rigorous and have a broader community focus, to complement the psychological interventions that currently dominate the relevant literature. Such trials would improve outcomes for high-risk young people themselves and would improve the evidence base, both in their own right and by facilitating future meta-analyses.

Abstract
OBJECTIVE:
Critically appraise research evidence on effectiveness of internet self-management interventions on health outcomes in youth with health conditions.
METHODS:
Published studies of internet interventions in youth with health conditions were evaluated. Electronic searches were conducted in EBM Reviews-Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials, Medline, EMBASE, CINAHL and PsychINFO. Two reviewers independently selected articles for review and assessed methodological quality. Of 29 published articles on internet interventions; only nine met the inclusion criteria and were included in analysis.
RESULTS:
While outcomes varied greatly between studies, symptoms improved in internet interventions compared to control conditions in seven of nine studies. There was conflicting evidence regarding disease-specific knowledge and quality of life, and evidence was limited regarding decreases in health care utilization.
CONCLUSIONS:
There are the beginnings of an evidence base that self-management interventions delivered via the internet improve selected outcomes in certain childhood illnesses.

This review synthesizes recent research evidence regarding the parenting characteristics associated with families with children with Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD). ADHD is a complex, heterogeneous disorder with a range of genetic and environmental factors that contribute to its behavioral expression and different developmental trajectories. The current review adopts a developmental psychopathology perspective to conceptualize the risk and protective factors that might shape the developmental pathways of the disorder across different domains. Following from Johnston and Mash's review (Johnston and Mash, Clin Child Fam Psychol Rev 4:183-207, 2001), the present review systematically examines empirical studies from 2000-2008 that investigate parenting variables in relation to the development of children with ADHD, with a particular focus on the development of externalizing and internalizing comorbidities, as well as functional impairments in academic and social contexts. The most recent research evidence uses correlational designs to show that ADHD is associated with problematic family functioning, including greater stress within the family, higher rates of parental psychopathology and conflicted parent-child relationships, which appears to be exacerbated in children with comorbid oppositional and conduct problems. However, there is an absence of literature that considers the role that parents play in contributing to children's development in areas such as academic achievement and peer competence, as well as the development of internalizing difficulties. Future research should examine family factors that are associated with resilience in children with ADHD, using longitudinal designs that reflect the dynamic changes associated with a developmental psychopathology framework.

Through collaborative action-oriented community research, agency-based clinicians, and university-based researchers engaged in a two-year theory-driven evaluation of a therapeutic summer camp for grieving children. The evaluation examined the camp practice model and children's engagement in therapeutic camp activities and psychosocial functioning based on the camp staff and parental caregivers' assessments. The first year findings led to a synergistic decision-making process that strengthened one of camp therapeutic activities. The overall results reveal a high consistency among staff on assessments of engagement and psychosocial functioning, and parental caregivers' satisfaction with the camp. Limitations of research evaluation and implications for practice are considered.

This paper presents the EUROFAMCARE study findings, examining a typology of care situations for family carers of older people, and the interplay of carers with social and health services. Despite the complexity of family caregiving situations across Europe, our analyses determined the existence of seven "caregiving situations," varying on a range of critical indicators. Our study also describes the availability and use of different support services for carers and care receivers, and carers' preferences for the characteristics of support services. Our findings have relevance for policy initiatives in Europe, where limited resources need to be more equitably distributed and services should be targeted to caregiving situations reflecting the greatest need, and organized to reflect the preferences of family carers.

Our whole society may be obsessed with "family values," but as John Gillis points out in this entertaining and eye-opening book, most of our images of "home sweet home" are of very recent vintage. A World of Their Own Making questions our idealized notion of "The Family," a mind-set in which myth and symbol still hold sway. As the families we live with become more fragile, the symbolic families we live by become more powerful. Yet it is only by accepting the notion that our ritual, myths, and images must be open to perpetual revision that we can satisfy our human needs and changing circumstances.

Purpose: To review current research on the use of augmentative and alternative communication (AAC) for prompting literacy in children with special educational needs. Method: Research studies relevant to emergent literacy and AAC use are reviewed. Studies focused on acquisition of literacy across various populations of children with special needs are reviewed. Results: Existing literature suggests that AAC may provide strategies and systems to compensate for impairments and disabilities of individuals with severe communication disorders. Conclusion: AAC may support literacy learning in children with special educational needs.

Many children with developmental disability have limited skills in both play and communication. In this study, the effects of a naturalistic intervention approach to play and symbolic communication was investigated within a single-subject multiple baseline design. The intervention involved scripting play activities and modelling vocabulary in speech and the augmentative and alternative communication (AAC) modality of sign. An additional intervention phase was introduced, wherein the AAC intervention was expanded to include an electronic communication device. The results indicated that modelling and scripted play activities resulted in increases in symbolic play, while changes in types of functional play were evident, while its frequency was somewhat erratic across baseline and intervention phases. Improvements in communication were more evident when a multimodal AAC approach was used in modelling than when sign was used alone. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2012 APA, all rights reserved)(journal abstract)

The aim of the present pilot study was to provide an initial evaluation of a brief, 4-session, universal health promoting parenting group program, the "ABC". We examined the effects of the program on improving parental strategies, parental self-efficacy, and child well-being. We also hypothesized that in a health promoting intervention implemented in the general population, increased parental self-efficacy and parental strategies would be associated with improvements in child well-being after 4 months. Parents living in 11 municipalities and local community agencies in Sweden enrolled in the project were invited to participate in the study. A repeated measurement within group design was used to assess the effects. In total, parents of 104 children aged 2–12 years participated in the ABC-study. Parental and child outcomes were evaluated before, after the intervention, and at a 4-month follow-up with parental self-report questionnaires. Paired t tests and ANOVA repeated measures showed statistically significant improvements of parental strategies (showing guidance, empathy/understanding, having rules/boundaries), parental self-efficacy (self-competence, knowledge/experience), and child well-being (emotional well-being, independence) from pre- to post measurement, with small to moderate effect sizes. Improvements were maintained at the 4-month follow-up, apart from changes in parental knowledge. University education and increased pre- to post improvements in self-efficacy predicted child emotional well-being at the 4-month follow-up. The findings suggest that the ABC-group intervention was effective in terms of improving child well-being, parental strategies and self-efficacy. This pilot study provides promising evidence for the ABC as a universal parenting program but further more rigorous evaluations are needed.

Abstract
For individuals providing care for older people the issue of risk is a well-established concern, especially in the context of the older person's declining functional abilities and cognitive skills. Recently in expert discussions of health care, the issue of risk has been subsumed under the discourse of patient safety with the assumption that risk is intrinsic to certain situations and therefore can be measured by professionals and ultimately prevented. Less attention has been paid to the risk perceptions of older persons and their families and friends. We undertook the study on which this article is based in Toronto, Ontario, Canada between 2005 and 2007. We used grounded theory to identify the process whereby family and friends recognise and balance risk of older persons with cognitive impairment who live alone. Twenty pairs of older adults with cognitive impairment and their primary family members or friends were interviewed using in-depth, semi-structured interviews. The model of acceptable and unacceptable risk began with family members' perceptions that the older person was living with an acceptable level of risk, but then noticing red flags that eventually led to the perception of unacceptable risk. They employed risk-balancing strategies such as making changes in the physical environment, increasing surveillance, becoming more involved in the older person's care or redefining their definitions of acceptable risk in order to return the perceived risk to an acceptable level. Meanings of risk were constantly redefined as new situations arose and risk-balancing strategies were implemented. Throughout family members constantly balanced the risks of physical harm with the risks of undermining the older person's independence and self-esteem.

Historically, access in augmentative and alternative communication (AAC) has been conceptualized as the physical operation of AAC technologies; more recently, research and development in the cognitive and social sciences has helped to broaden the concept to include a range of human factors involved in the successful use of AAC technologies in social interactions. The goal of this article is to expand the current understanding of communication access by providing a conceptual framework for examining AAC access, evaluating recent scientific and technical advances in the areas of AAC, and discussing the challenges to accessing AAC technologies for a range of communication activities.

Historically, access in augmentative and alternative communication (AAC) has been conceptualized as the physical operation of AAC technologies; more recently, research and development in the cognitive and social sciences has helped to broaden the concept to include a range of human factors involved in the successful use of AAC technologies in social interactions. The goal of this article is to expand the current understanding of communication access by providing a conceptual framework for examining AAC access, evaluating recent scientific and technical advances in the areas of AAC, and discussing the challenges to accessing AAC technologies for a range of communication activities.

Children with severe physical impairments require a variety of access options to augmentative and alternative communication (AAC) and computer technology. Access technologies have continued to develop, allowing children with severe motor control impairments greater independence and access to communication. This article will highlight new advances in access technology, including eye and head tracking, scanning, and access to mainstream technology, as well as discuss future advances. Considerations for clinical decision-making and implementation of these technologies will be presented along with case illustrations.

Avhandling

This dissertation studies factors that predict use of public eldercare, informal care, and purchase of private services in relation to an individual's needs, social network characteristics, and sociodemographic factors. A further purpose is to examine whether use of public eldercare is correlated to receipt of informal care and purchase of private services in the Swedish welfare state.The dissertation is based on the Kungsholmen Study, a population-based longitudinal study. Studies I–III used cross-sectional data from community-dwelling people aged 81-100 and examined (I) gender, (II) marital and parental status, and (III) dementia and depressive symptoms as predictors of use of home help. Study IV analyzed factors related to moving into institutional care and receipt of home help from 1994/96 to 2000.The majority of support provided to elders living in the community comes from informal sources, even among people living alone. There was considerable overlap between home help and informal care. When all sources of care were considered, childless individuals had comparatively lower odds of receiving care. Factors predicting use of public eldercare and informal care differed depending on whether or not elders coresided. No gender differences in use of formal and informal care were found when controlling for household composition. Living alone, dementia, need of help with household chores, and walking limitations increased the likelihood of using public eldercare. Coresidence, informal care from outside the household, and use of private services decreased the likelihood. Depressive symptoms increased the likelihood of receiving home help and institutionalization when using longitudinal data, but not in the cross-sectional studies. Educational level was of importance and interacted with several factors; persons with higher levels of education were advantaged. Very few people moved into institutional care without previously having received home help services. Essentially the same factors that predicted receipt of home help services also predicted institutionalization.

A theory of action must come to terms with both the details of language use and the way in which the social, cultural, material and sequential structure of the environment where action occurs figure into its organization. In this paper it will be suggested that a primordial site for the analysis of human language, cognition, and action consists of a situation in which multiple participants are attempting to carry out courses of action in concert with each other through talk while attending to both the larger activities that their current actions are ambedded within, and relevant phenomena in their surround. Using as data video recordings of young girls playing hopscotch and archaeologists classifying color, it will be argued that human action is built throught the simultaneous deployment of a range of quite different kinds of semiotic resources. Talk itself contains multiple sign systems with alternative properties. Strips of talk gain their power as social action via their placement within larger sequential structures, encompassing activities, and participation frameworks constituted through displays of mutual orientation made by the actors' bodies. The body is used in a quite different way to perform gesture, again a class of phenomena that encompasses structurally different types of sign systems. Both talk and gesture can index, construe or treat as irrelevant, entities in the participants' surround. Moreover, material structure in the surround, such as graphic fields of various types, can provide semiotic structure without which the constitution of particular kinds of action being invoked through talk would be impossible. In brief it will be argued that the construction of action through talk within situated interaction is accomplished through the temporally unfolding juxtaposition of quite different kinds of semiotic resources, and that moreover through this process the human body is made publicly visible as the site for a range of structurally different kinds of displays implicated in the constitution of the actions of the moment.

A theory of action must come to terms with both the details of language use and the way in which the social, cultural, material and sequential structure of the environment where action occurs figure into its organization. In this paper it will be suggested that a primordial site for the analysis of human language, cognition, and action consists of a situation in which multiple participants are attempting to carry out courses of action in concert with each other through talk while attending to both the larger activities that their current actions are ambedded within, and relevant phenomena in their surround. Using as data video recordings of young girls playing hopscotch and archaeologists classifying color, it will be argued that human action is built throught the simultaneous deployment of a range of quite different kinds of semiotic resources. Talk itself contains multiple sign systems with alternative properties. Strips of talk gain their power as social action via their placement within larger sequential structures, encompassing activities, and participation frameworks constituted through displays of mutual orientation made by the actors' bodies. The body is used in a quite different way to perform gesture, again a class of phenomena that encompasses structurally different types of sign systems. Both talk and gesture can index, construe or treat as irrelevant, entities in the participants' surround. Moreover, material structure in the surround, such as graphic fields of various types, can provide semiotic structure without which the constitution of particular kinds of action being invoked through talk would be impossible. In brief it will be argued that the construction of action through talk within situated interaction is accomplished through the temporally unfolding juxtaposition of quite different kinds of semiotic resources, and that moreover through this process the human body is made publicly visible as the site for a range of structurally different kinds of displays implicated in the constitution of the actions of the moment.

Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to make a critical analysis of the conceptual platform of the recently introduced International Classification of Functioning, Disability and Health (ICF). Special attention is paid to the suggested definitions of the concepts of activity and participation. My argument intends to show that these definitions are not coherent. Methods: The theoretical platform of this paper is philosophical action theory. My argument makes particular use of the distinction between capacity and opportunity and shows that both concepts are applicable to all actions. Capacity and opportunity are distinguished from the actual performance of actions. The latter presupposes the existence of a will. On this conceptual basis follows an analysis of the distinction between activity and participation as conceived by the WHO in ICF. Conclusions: The main conclusion of my reasoning is that the notions of activity and participation in ICF partly rest on confusion between capacity for action and the actual performance of an action. If my conclusion is sound this has far-reaching consequences for the application of the ICF in the practice of rehabilitation. My diagnosis therefore is that the conceptual framework of ICF is in great need of a strict action – theoretic reconstruction.

Abstract
Patients with advanced cancer and family caregivers in palliative care face physical, psychological, social and existential challenges, much of the time home alone. Specialist palliative home care team services can be instrumental for sense of security in an uncertain situation. The aim of this study was to describe patients' and family caregivers' experiences of specialist palliative home care team actions that are identified by the participants as helping or hindering interventions. Six patients and seven family caregivers were interviewed using the enhanced critical incident technique. Ninety-five critical incidents and wish list items were identified. Providing adequate resources, keeping promises and being reliable, and creating partnerships are actions by specialist palliative care teams that patients and family caregiversexperienced as helping in meeting expressed or anticipated needs in patients and family caregivers. Being reliable and including patients and family caregivers in partnerships help to continue with daily life, even though death may be close. Unmet needs resulted in experiences of disrespect or violation of personal space/integrity.

Abstract
OBJECTIVE: To explore the experiences of older people and their supporting family members in relation to home rehabilitation, with a focus on activity and participation.
METHODS: Qualitative interviews were carried out with 6 older people and 6 family members at 1 and 6 months after the older person's discharge to their home. Qualitative content analysis of the data was carried out. The International Classification of Functioning, Disability and Health provides a guiding framework for rehabilitation.
RESULTS: Informants' experiences of home rehabilitation contributed to the formation of 6 categories: (i) living with a frail body; (ii) striving for well-being in daily life; (iii) being close at hand; (iv) feeling dependent in daily life; (v) struggling to carry on; and (vi) striving to be at home.
CONCLUSION: Older people's goals were to return to daily routines and to perform meaningful activities without feeling dependent on other people. Family members' participation was crucial. Psychosocial support and autonomy were essential for facilitating activity and participation. Healthcare professionals should consider each individual's unique experiences along with the significance of being at home

Objective: To describe and compare the context of participation of children with physical disabilities and complex communication needs (Group CCN) in out-of-school activities with children with physical disabilities only (Group PD) and typically-developing peers (Group TD).
Method: A cross-sectional, matched, multi-group design was used. Thirty-nine participants between 10–15 years of age were administered the Children's Assessment of Participation and Enjoyment.
Results: Kruskall-Wallis analyses revealed that there were significant differences among the three groups for overall location, enjoyment of the activities and with whom they did the social and self-improvement activities with. Mean trends showed that Group CCN participated in activities closer to home rather than in the community, were restricted in social participation and reported higher levels of enjoyment in activity participation than the other two groups.
Conclusions: Group CCN appeared to experience differences in participation when compared to peers with and without disability.

This article addresses the challenge of igniting action on health promotion for women in Canada with respect to alcohol use during pregnancy. We illustrate that accelerated action on health promotion for women that engages multiple levels of players, women-centred and harm-reduction frameworks and a gendered approach to understanding women's lives can be achieved when the right policy moment occurs. We illustrate this by describing the opportunity afforded by the Olympic Games in 2010, where the BC government used the Games to encourage action on women's health promotion and the prevention of alcohol use in pregnancy. We suggest that the 2011 announcement of new low-risk drinking guidelines that recommend lower intake of alcohol for women than for men offers another, to date unused, opportunity.

INTRODUCTION AND AIMS:
This study aimed to estimate the prevalence and describe the patterns of alcohol use during pregnancy among Australian mothers. The study also aimed to examine the characteristics associated with alcohol use in pregnancy.
DESIGN AND METHODS:
Data comprised two representative samples of families (infant cohort = 5107 parents of 0- to 1-year-olds; child cohort = 4983 parents of 4- to 5-year-olds) from the 2005 Longitudinal Study of Australian Children.
RESULTS:
Alcohol use in pregnancy was reported by 37.6% of mothers of infants aged 0-1 years and 27.6% of mothers of children aged 4-5 years. The majority of women reported low level/occasional use of alcohol but, when extrapolated to population level, this equates to 131,250 children in these two age groups exposed to alcohol in utero, with over 1000 children exposed to alcohol most days and an estimated 671 infants exposed to three or more drinks per occasion. Among mothers of infants, alcohol use in pregnancy was associated with increasing maternal age, higher education, greater economic advantage and fewer physical health problems in pregnancy. Among mothers of children, maternal drinking in pregnancy was associated with increasing maternal age and smoking in pregnancy.
DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSIONS:
Alcohol use during pregnancy is common with around one-third of all mothers reporting use. Most women reported only occasional use, and among those who were asked, consumed one standard drink on average per occasion. Significant numbers were exposed to three or more drinks on one occasion or to alcohol most days while in utero. National guidelines recommend abstinence as no 'safe' threshold has been determined. Public health campaigns are needed to educate pregnant women regarding national guidelines.

This article will outline the main strands of the UK-based Alcohol, Drugs and the Family (ADF) research programme. This programme has examined the impact of substance misuse problems on children, spouses, and families, both in the UK and elsewhere, especially in urban Mexico City and in Australia amongst both urban and rural Aborigine populations. This article will outline the main theoretical perspective that we have developed from this work (the stress-strain-coping-support model). It will outline some of the key findings of this programme, and address some of the key universals that we have observed across various cultures. It will end by describing current research, including the testing of brief interventions being delivered through primary care to family members to enable them to cope better with the problems which family substance misuse causes.

Although characterized as a chronic disease for more than 200 years, severe and persistent alcohol and other drug (AOD) problems have been treated primarily in self-contained, acute episodes of care. Recent calls for a shift from this acute treatment model to a sustained recovery management model will require rethinking the natural history of AOD disorders; pioneering new treatment and recovery support technologies; restructuring the funding of treatment services; redefining the service relationship; and altering methods of service evaluation. Recovery-oriented systems of care could offer many advantages over the current model of serial episodes of acute care, but such systems will bring with them new pitfalls in the personal and cultural management of alcohol and other drug problems.

Boken är skriven för personer som i sin yrkesverksamhet ansvarar för området AKK, t ex logopeder, arbetsterapeuter och pedagoger, och för både grundutbildning och vidareutbildning.
Huvudförfattarena för denna reviderade upplaga är logopeder och driver sedan många år Södra regionens kommunikationscentrum, SÖK, och har mångårig erfarenhet av AKK-området bland såväl barn som vuxna.
Ur innehållet: Teorier kring tal, språk och kommunikation, alternativa och kompletterande kommunikationssätt, omgivningsfaktorer, metodik, etik, olika funktionsnedsättningar m m. Genom boken får vi följa ett antal personer i varierande ålder och med olika svårigheter och de ställningstagande som görs för att dessa ska få bästa möjliga förutsättningar att kunna kommunicera.

Attachment Q‐Sort (AQS) is a tool for quantifying observations about toddler/caregiver relationships. Previous studies have applied factor analysis to the full 90 AQS item set to explore the structure underlying them. Here we explore that structure by applying multidimensional scaling (MDS) to judgements of inter‐item similarity. AQS items are arranged in the MDS solution along three easily interpretable axes: a model that is compatible with but more parsimonious than factor analysis solutions. This geometrical approach suggests ways to modify the AQS—primarily a research tool—to make it more practical for clinical applications. Sets of AQS data are represented and interpreted in the three‐dimensional model as vectors. Summaries at a finer‐grained level are obtained by finding points in the model where variability across datasets is greatest. We report re‐analyses of archival (published) data, and also data collected with streamlined procedures more suitable in the field. Although not reported here, collection and analysis can both be performed online via a website. The general methodology is not restricted to the current application of toddler attachment.

The burden of caregivers of patients suffering from of Alzheimer type dementia (DAT) and vascular dementia (VD) was analysed at the critical time, the "breaking-point", when home care becomes insufficient and/or inadequate and the caregiver burden has probably reached its upper limit. Primary family caregivers of 39 DAT and 40 VD patients who were being considered for relocation into group-living units were studied. Total caregiving burden and different aspects of the burden: general strain, isolation, disappointment, and emotional involvement, were correlated with the patients' diagnoses, abilities, and symptoms. Closer kinship to the patient imposed a heavier burden. The caregiver's gender, social class, and previous institutionalization of the patient did not influence the caregiver burden. There was no significant correlation between the patients' ADL ability or cognition and the burden. A higher level of disappointment was found among the VD carers. Different symptomatology in patients of the two diagnostic groups was related to special aspects of the burden. Multiple regression analysis showed that the amount of caregiving time each week and impaired sense of own identity, misidentifications, clinical fluctuations, and nocturnal deterioration in the patients predicted the breaking-point.

The main objective of the study was to apply the recently developed Index of Capability (ICECAP-O) instrument to measure and value the quality of life of a representative sample of the older South Australian population (aged>=65 years) according to carer status. A Health Omnibus survey including the ICECAP-O instrument, carer status (informal carer vs. non-carer) and several socio-demographic questions was administered in 2009 as a face-to-face interview to 789 individuals aged 65 years or older in their own homes. A total of 671 individuals (85%) characterised themselves as a non-carer and 115 individuals (15%) characterised themselves as an informal carer. In general, carers exhibited relatively high quality of life as measured by the ICECAP-O, with carers having comparable mean ICECAP-O scores to non-carers in the general population [carers: mean (SD) 0.848 (0.123), non-carers: mean (SD) 0.838 (0.147)]. The results of the multivariate regression model for the total sample indicated statistically significant variations in overall ICECAP-O scores according to age (with younger participants tending to have slightly higher scores on average), country of birth (with those participants who were born in Australia having higher scores on average than those who were born elsewhere) and household income (with participants with higher income levels having higher scores on average). The results of the multivariate regression model differentiated by carer status also indicated some important differences. Specifically, average ICECAP-O scores were noticeably lower for carers who are separated or divorced and for carers who lived alone and these differences were statistically significant. The study findings provide support for the existence of process utility in informal care-giving. The provision of informal care may be associated with a positive impact upon quality of life for many caregivers, which may mediate the negative aspects arising from the burden associated with informal care-giving.

Background: Several parent training programmes and behavioural teacher training programmes built on learning theory have been developed for problem prevention and treatment of attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and/or oppositional defiant disorder (ODD) during the last few decades. Group format has often been used for parent training but single-subject designs are more common in teacher training. More studies have focussed on pre-school children than on older children, and a minority have been conducted in public mental health settings. Aim: This study aimed to evaluate a combined parent and teacher manual-based group training programme for children with ADHD conducted by the staff at a child and adolescent psychiatric clinic in Sweden. Method: The intervention was a modified version of Barkley's programme. Children were randomized to an Intervention or a Control group. Sixty-one parents and 68 teachers answered questions about ADHD and ODD symptoms, and about behavioural problems when the study started and at a 3-month follow-up. Results: Results showed that the intervention resulted in a reduction of the number of children who met DSM-IV criteria for ADHD and/or ODD. Effects were more pronounced in the home setting than in the school setting, and were further accentuated when both parents and teachers of the same child took part in the intervention. Teachers with more problematic classroom situations benefited most from the intervention. Conclusion: The programme, "Strategies in Everyday Life", has, in a regular clinical setting, demonstrated promising effects on children's disruptive behaviour, and a clinical implication was to recommend involving both parents and teachers in the programme.

This study evaluated the efficacy of 2 theory-based preventive interventions for divorced families: a program for mothers and a dual component mother-child program. The mother program targeted mother-child relationship quality, discipline, interparental conflict, and the father-child relationship. The child program targeted active coping, avoidant coping, appraisals of divorce stressors, and mother-child relationship quality. Families with a 9- to 12-year-old child (N = 240) were randomly assigned to the mother, dual-component, or self-study program. Postintervention comparisons showed significant positive program effects of the mother program versus self-study condition on relationship quality, discipline, attitude toward father-child contact, and adjustment problems. For several outcomes, more positive effects occurred in families with poorer initial functioning. Program effects on externalizing problems were maintained at 6-month follow-up. A few additive effects of the dual-component program occurred for the putative mediators; none occurred for adjustment problems

AIMS:
Children whose parents abuse drugs are exposed to numerous factors that increase the likelihood of future drug abuse. Despite this heightened risk, few experimental tests of prevention programs with this population have been reported. This article examines whether intensive family-focused interventions with methadone treated parents can reduce parents' drug use and prevent children's initiation of drug use.
DESIGN:
Parents were assigned randomly into intervention and control conditions and assessed at baseline, post-test, and 6 and 12 months following the intervention. Children were assessed at baseline, and 6- and 12-month follow-up points.
SETTING:
Two methadone clinics in Seattle, Washington.
PARTICIPANTS:
One hundred and forty-four methadone-treated parents, and their children (n = 178) ranging in age from 3 to 14 years old.
INTERVENTION:
The experimental intervention supplemented methadone treatment with 33 sessions of family training combined with 9 months of home-based case management. Families in the control condition received no supplemental services.
MEASUREMENT:
Parent measures included: relapse and problem-solving skills, self-report measures of family management practices, deviant peer networks, domestic conflict and drug use. Child measures included self-report measures of rules, family attachment, parental involvement, school attachment and misbehavior, negative peers, substance use and delinquency.
FINDINGS:
One year after the family skills training, results indicate significant positive changes among parents, especially in the areas of parent skills, parent drug use, deviant peers and family management. Few changes were noted in children's behavior or attitudes.
CONCLUSIONS:
Programs such as this may be an important adjunct to treatment programs, helping to strengthen family bonding and to reduce parents' drug use.

AIMS:
Children whose parents abuse drugs are exposed to numerous factors that increase the likelihood of future drug abuse. Despite this heightened risk, few experimental tests of prevention programs with this population have been reported. This article examines whether intensive family-focused interventions with methadone treated parents can reduce parents' drug use and prevent children's initiation of drug use.
DESIGN:
Parents were assigned randomly into intervention and control conditions and assessed at baseline, post-test, and 6 and 12 months following the intervention. Children were assessed at baseline, and 6- and 12-month follow-up points.
SETTING:
Two methadone clinics in Seattle, Washington.
PARTICIPANTS:
One hundred and forty-four methadone-treated parents, and their children (n = 178) ranging in age from 3 to 14 years old.
INTERVENTION:
The experimental intervention supplemented methadone treatment with 33 sessions of family training combined with 9 months of home-based case management. Families in the control condition received no supplemental services.
MEASUREMENT:
Parent measures included: relapse and problem-solving skills, self-report measures of family management practices, deviant peer networks, domestic conflict and drug use. Child measures included self-report measures of rules, family attachment, parental involvement, school attachment and misbehavior, negative peers, substance use and delinquency.
FINDINGS:
One year after the family skills training, results indicate significant positive changes among parents, especially in the areas of parent skills, parent drug use, deviant peers and family management. Few changes were noted in children's behavior or attitudes.
CONCLUSIONS:
Programs such as this may be an important adjunct to treatment programs, helping to strengthen family bonding and to reduce parents' drug use.

OBJECTIVES:
To explore the impact of two methods of post-hospital stroke rehabilitation on both carers' perceptions of the health services offered and their quality of life.
SETTING:
East Dorset Health Authority.
SUBJECTS:
Forty-six informal carers were recruited from a sample of 106, initially identified from stroke patients participating in a larger randomized controlled trial.
DESIGN:
Qualitative methods.
METHODS:
Semi-structured interviews were used at baseline and six months to explore carers' perception of a good therapy, the advantages and disadvantages of the different services and their fulfilment with the services. In-depth thematic analysis was carried out to explore the impact of the two different methods of service delivery on carers' quality of life.
RESULTS:
Day hospitals provided carers with respite opportunities, whilst domiciliary stroke teams provided carers with better educational opportunities to be involved in therapy. No qualitative difference was found in the impact that the different services had on carers' quality of life, which were influenced by factors such as the degree of disruption that caring had on their lives, the loss of a shared life and the availability of social support. Ultimately, carers saw the services as providing benefit for survivors and not themselves.
CONCLUSIONS:
Domiciliary stroke teams provided informal stroke carers with skills that could help improve postdischarge stroke rehabilitation amongst stroke survivors. Informal carers also benefited from the respite elements of day hospital. A mixed model using both domiciliary care and day hospital care, could provide carers with the benefits of education, convenience and respite.

A key worker has been described as a named person whom the family can approach
for advice about, and practical help with, any problem related to the disabled child.
Provision of 'key workers' or 'care coordinators' for disabled children and their families, working across health, education and social services, has often been recommended in policy guidance, most recently in the Children's National Service Framework. Up to now, research has shown that less than a third of families with severely disabled children have a key worker, but compared to those who do not have a key worker, those who do show benefits in terms of relationships with and access to services and overall quality of life. However, as more key worker services have been developed, different models of service and ways of working have proliferated and there has been no research on the outcomes for families of different types of services. This study aimed to explore the effectiveness of different models of multi-agency key worker services.

A key worker has been described as a named person whom the family can approach
for advice about, and practical help with, any problem related to the disabled child.
Provision of 'key workers' or 'care coordinators' for disabled children and their families, working across health, education and social services, has often been recommended in policy guidance, most recently in the Children's National Service Framework. Up to now, research has shown that less than a third of families with severely disabled children have a key worker, but compared to those who do not have a key worker, those who do show benefits in terms of relationships with and access to services and overall quality of life. However, as more key worker services have been developed, different models of service and ways of working have proliferated and there has been no research on the outcomes for families of different types of services. This study aimed to explore the effectiveness of different models of multi-agency key worker services.

Introduction: Play is essential to a child's development, and is a dominating component of a child's life. Forming part of a broader study aiming to explore what parents of children with cerebral palsy understand by play, and its use in therapy and home programmes, this research article focuses on how parents expand their concept of play for their children.
Method: A qualitative methodology and interpretive descriptive approach were taken. Following ethical approval, seven parents were recruited, completed an interview, and provided a contextual information sheet. An interpretive descriptive approach to analysis allowed exploration of this data.
Findings: Parents appeared to expand their concept of play beyond the conventional idea of play for typically developing children, seemingly as a result of the limitations placed on each child's play through their physical disability. Parents discussions revealed three subthemes: vicarious play, play through communication, and therapy in play.
Conclusion: Occupational therapists can help parents to understand how the concept of play can be expanded to involve ideas such as vicarious play and communication as play. Parents may then feel more comfortable in allowing their children to experience play as a primary occupation, in a less conventional way.

PURPOSE OF REVIEW: This article examines interventions aimed at improving
psychological outcomes (e.g., caregiver burden, quality of life, anxiety,
depression, perceived control, stress mastery, caregiver confidence and
preparedness, and caregiver mastery) in family caregivers of patients with heart
failure.
RECENT FINDINGS: Eight studies meeting the inclusion criteria were included in
the review. The most common intervention involved psychoeducation facilitated by
a nurse (6/8) and supplemented with a combination of follow-up face-to-face
sessions (2/6), home visits (2/6), telephone calls (3/6), and telemonitoring
(3/6). Two studies used a support group intervention of four to six sessions.
Half of the interventions reported a significant effect on one or more primary
outcomes, including caregiver burden (n = 4), depressive symptoms (n = 1), stress
mastery (n = 1), caregiver confidence and preparedness (n = 1), and caregiver
mastery (n = 1).
SUMMARY: Compared with dementia and cancer family caregiving, few interventions
have been evaluated in caregivers of patients with heart failure. Of the existing
interventions identified in this review, considerable variability was observed in
aims, intervention content, delivery methods, duration, intensity, methodological
rigor, outcomes, and effects. Given this current state of the science, direct
comparison of heart failure caregiver interventions and recommendations for
clinical practice are premature. Thus, research priority is strongly warranted
for intervention development and testing to enhance heart failure caregiver
support and education.

PURPOSE:
To investigate whether there are differences in participation in leisure activities between children with and without disabilities in Sweden, Norway and the Netherlands and how much personal and environmental factors explain leisure performance.
METHODS:
In a cross-sectional analytic design, the Children's Assessment of Participation and Enjoyment, CAPE, was performed with 278 children with disabilities and 599 children without disabilities aged 6-17 years. A one-way between-groups ANOVA explored the differences in participation between the countries. Hierarchical multiple regression analysis assessed if age, gender, educational level, living area and country of residence explained the variance in participation.
RESULTS:
Scandinavian children with disabilities participated in more activities with higher frequency compared to Dutch children. The strongest predictor was country of residence. For children without disabilities, differences existed in informal activities, the strongest predictor was gender.
CONCLUSION:
Differences in school- and support systems between the countries seem to influence patterns of participation, affecting children with disabilities most.

Abstract
The ACTION project uses information and communication technology to support frail elderly people and their family carers. The aims are to enhance their quality of life, independence and preparedness and to break social isolation. A videoconferencing system, connecting homes and a call centre, was used in a pilot study in 1997 - 2002. A re-designed system was brought into use in late 2004 and over 60 new units were introduced during the first six months. The new system was evaluated with an interview study and by data logging. Eight family users and four professional carers were interviewed. The family users had used the videophone at least six times and they had had the equipment at home for at least two months. The average number of initiated calls per user was 5.7 per month and the average call time per user was 40 min per month. Seven of the users (88%) reported that the system very much reduced their sense of loneliness and isolation. The results of the evaluation were encouraging. There were several frequent users of videoconferencing. System quality was acceptable although a shorter audio delay would be desirable. The system was used regularly by the participants and it fulfilled its purpose.

OBJECTIVES: This study evaluated an intervention designed to improve behavioral and mental health outcomes among adolescents and their parents with AIDS. METHODS: Parents with AIDS (n = 307) and their adolescent children (n = 412) were randomly assigned to an intensive intervention or a standard care control condition. Ninety-five percent of subjects were reassessed at least once annually over 2 years. RESULTS: Adolescents in the intensive intervention condition reported significantly lower levels of emotional distress, of multiple problem behaviors, of conduct problems, and of family-related stressors and higher levels of self-esteem than adolescents in the standard care condition. Parents with AIDS in the intervention condition also reported significantly lower levels of emotional distress and multiple problem behaviors. Coping style, levels of disclosure regarding serostatus, and formation of legal custody plans were similar across intervention conditions. CONCLUSIONS: Interventions can reduce the long-term impact of parents' HIV status on themselves and their children

Abstract
OBJECTIVES:
This study evaluated an intervention designed to improve behavioral and mental health outcomes among adolescents and their parents with AIDS.
METHODS:
Parents with AIDS (n = 307) and their adolescent children (n = 412) were randomly assigned to an intensive intervention or a standard care control condition. Ninety-five percent of subjects were reassessed at least once annually over 2 years.
RESULTS:
Adolescents in the intensive intervention condition reported significantly lower levels of emotional distress, of multiple problem behaviors, of conduct problems, and of family-related stressors and higher levels of self-esteem than adolescents in the standard care condition. Parents with AIDS in the intervention condition also reported significantly lower levels of emotional distress and multiple problem behaviors. Coping style, levels of disclosure regarding serostatus, and formation of legal custody plans were similar across intervention conditions.
CONCLUSIONS:
Interventions can reduce the long-term impact of parents' HIV status on themselves and their children.

Aim: To study the effects of alcohol and coping intervention among University students who have parents with alcohol problems. Methods: A total of 82 university students (56 women and 22 men, average age 25) with at least one parent with alcohol problems were included. The students were randomly assigned to one of three programs: (i) alcohol intervention program, (ii) coping intervention program, and (iii) combination program. All programs were manual based and individually implemented during two 2-h sessions, 4 weeks apart. This assessment contained both a face-to-face interview and six self-completion questionnaires; AUDIT, SIP, EBAC, coping with parents' abuse questionnaire, SCL-90 and ISSI. Follow-up interviews were conducted after 1 year. Results: All participants finished the baseline assessment, accepted and completed the intervention, while 95% of the students completed the 12-month follow-up assessment. The two groups that received alcohol intervention improved their drinking pattern significantly more than the group that did not receive alcohol intervention [change of standardized scores -0.27 (CI -0.53 to -0.03)]. The groups receiving coping intervention did not differ from the group not receiving coping intervention concerning their ability to cope with their parents' alcohol problems. Nor did they differ regarding changes in their own mental health or in their social interaction capacity. Conclusion: The intervention improved drinking patterns in adult children of alcoholics.

Although more is understood about childhood cancer's impact on the often forgotten siblings in the family, developing empirically tested interventions that support positive health outcomes is only just emerging. As family support is of key importance in sibling adjustment, further knowledge about their needs is crucial to the development of effective interventions. This investigation focused on examining parental perceptions regarding the concerns and issues for siblings of children with cancer and explored what support is helpful. Focus group methods were used to gather the data with probe questions developed from the literature and from clinical experience. Emergent topics generated were further analyzed using content analysis with 3 major topics identified: the universality of losses arising from the illness experience, behavioral challenges and adaptation, and parent-sibling communication. Parents also discussed helpful interventions. These are described and discussed in relation to the literature. The information obtained will contribute to developing interventions for siblings, specifically to produce a protocol for a therapeutic peer-support camp.

Akad. Avhandling

Bereaved children are a hidden population. Although little is known about the experience of loss, grief and mourning in children, the literature suggested that, without successful intervention, irreparable harm to the child's cognitive, affective and behavioral functioning can result (Arthur & Kemme, 1964; Bendiksen & Roberts, 1975; Birtchnell, 1969; Bowlby, 1961; Brown, 1961; Gray, 1988). The present study evaluated treatment outcome of a time-limited, Children's Bereavement Program as measured by the Louisville Behavior Checklist, and the Revised-Children's Manifest Anxiety Scale. Subjects included children between the ages of 4-12 who lost a significant other to death. A pretest, posttest, follow-up, repeated measure, control group design (Campbell & Stanley, 1963) was used in the study. It was predicted that, compared to the controls, the experimental group would evidence at posttest and follow-up a reduction in grief induced anxiety and behavioral problems as a result of treatment. No significant differences were found between experimental and control groups on either instrument. However, significant differences were found for combined groups across time periods on ten out of fourteen subscales of the Louisville Behavior Checklist. Findings suggested that both the experimental and control groups evidenced a lessening of reported symptoms related to grieving at posttest and follow-up.

Abstract:
Background: For a significant proportion of the older population, increasing age is associated with health problems and worsening health. Older family caregivers are largely responsible for care of next-of-kin living at home, which impacts their own physical and mental health both positively and negatively. However, evidence is insufficient regarding the health situation of older caregivers. The aim of this study was to investigate health-related quality of life (HRQoL) and pain, and their associations, among caregivers aged ≥60 years.Methods: The participants (n = 3444) were recruited from the Swedish National Study on Aging and Care-Blekinge and Good Aging in Skåne during 2001-2004. Participants aged ≥60 years were selected randomly and underwent cognitive tests, with demographic information obtained through questionnaires. The response rate was 60%. A predefined research protocol was used. HRQoL was measured with the Short-Form Health Survey, dimension mental health. Logistic regression models were used to investigate the associations between HRQoL and pain as well as control factors.Results: Family caregiving was reported by 395 (11.5%) of the participants, and 56.7% of the caregivers reported pain. Family caregivers reported lower pain intensity on the Visual Analogue Scale and were younger, on median, than non-caregivers. Irrespective of caregiver status, pain was associated with mental HRQoL. Concerns about personal health and financial status had the strongest associations with mental HRQOL in both groups, but the levels were higher among caregivers.Conclusion: Pain was one factor associated with low HRQoL regardless of family caregiver status and remained important when controlling for factors related to advanced age. This finding remained among family caregivers, though they reported lower pain intensity. Factors other than pain were shown to be important to mental HRQoL and should also be taken into consideration when discussing actions for family caregivers to maintain and improve health and HRQoL.Trial Registration Number: Not applicable.

Abstract:
Background: For a significant proportion of the older population, increasing age is associated with health problems and worsening health. Older family caregivers are largely responsible for care of next-of-kin living at home, which impacts their own physical and mental health both positively and negatively. However, evidence is insufficient regarding the health situation of older caregivers. The aim of this study was to investigate health-related quality of life (HRQoL) and pain, and their associations, among caregivers aged ≥60 years.Methods: The participants (n = 3444) were recruited from the Swedish National Study on Aging and Care-Blekinge and Good Aging in Skåne during 2001-2004. Participants aged ≥60 years were selected randomly and underwent cognitive tests, with demographic information obtained through questionnaires. The response rate was 60%. A predefined research protocol was used. HRQoL was measured with the Short-Form Health Survey, dimension mental health. Logistic regression models were used to investigate the associations between HRQoL and pain as well as control factors.Results: Family caregiving was reported by 395 (11.5%) of the participants, and 56.7% of the caregivers reported pain. Family caregivers reported lower pain intensity on the Visual Analogue Scale and were younger, on median, than non-caregivers. Irrespective of caregiver status, pain was associated with mental HRQoL. Concerns about personal health and financial status had the strongest associations with mental HRQOL in both groups, but the levels were higher among caregivers.Conclusion: Pain was one factor associated with low HRQoL regardless of family caregiver status and remained important when controlling for factors related to advanced age. This finding remained among family caregivers, though they reported lower pain intensity. Factors other than pain were shown to be important to mental HRQoL and should also be taken into consideration when discussing actions for family caregivers to maintain and improve health and HRQoL.Trial Registration Number: Not applicable.

Familjen och anhöriga har på senare år fått en allt mer betydande roll i vården och omsorgen om de äldre. Till följd av nedskärningar i den offentliga sektorn sker vården av äldre allt oftare i hemmet och de anhöriga blir allt viktigare. Författaren diskuterar bakgrunden till denna utveckling, dess villkor och kännetecken och redovisar kunskapsläget när det gäller anhörigomsorg och anhörigstöd.
Betydelsen av att föra in ett tydligare anhörigperspektiv i vården och omsorgen, i synnerhet i äldreomsorgen, diskuteras liksom hur man kan utveckla bemötandet av, stödet till och samarbetet med de anhöriga.
Boken vänder sig till universitets- och högskolestudenter inom vård- och omsorgsutbildningar samt till alla som på olika sätt arbetar med att utveckla stöd till anhöriga som vårdar äldre

Familjen och anhöriga har på senare år fått en allt mer betydande roll i vården och omsorgen om de äldre. Till följd av nedskärningar i den offentliga sektorn sker vården av äldre allt oftare i hemmet och de anhöriga blir allt viktigare. Författaren diskuterar bakgrunden till denna utveckling, dess villkor och kännetecken och redovisar kunskapsläget när det gäller anhörigomsorg och anhörigstöd.
Betydelsen av att föra in ett tydligare anhörigperspektiv i vården och omsorgen, i synnerhet i äldreomsorgen, diskuteras liksom hur man kan utveckla bemötandet av, stödet till och samarbetet med de anhöriga.
Boken vänder sig till universitets- och högskolestudenter inom vård- och omsorgsutbildningar samt till alla som på olika sätt arbetar med att utveckla stöd till anhöriga som vårdar äldre.

Familjen och anhöriga har på senare år fått en allt mer betydande roll i vården och omsorgen om de äldre. Till följd av nedskärningar i den offentliga sektorn sker vården av äldre allt oftare i hemmet och de anhöriga blir allt viktigare. Författaren diskuterar bakgrunden till denna utveckling, dess villkor och kännetecken och redovisar kunskapsläget när det gäller anhörigomsorg och anhörigstöd.
Betydelsen av att föra in ett tydligare anhörigperspektiv i vården och omsorgen, i synnerhet i äldreomsorgen, diskuteras liksom hur man kan utveckla bemötandet av, stödet till och samarbetet med de anhöriga.
Boken vänder sig till universitets- och högskolestudenter inom vård- och omsorgsutbildningar samt till alla som på olika sätt arbetar med att utveckla stöd till anhöriga som vårdar äldre.

Den här boken vänder sig till dig som vårdar, stödjer eller hjälper din make eller maka, partner, dina barn, syskon, en förälder eller någon annan närstående.
Förhoppningsvis ska den guida dig till att efter förmåga, förutsättningar och med stöd och hjälp finna balans mellan att hjälpa andra och livet i övrigt.
Budskapet är att du ska tänka på dig själv, både för ditt eget bästa och för den du hjälper.
För att kunna hjälpa andra måste också du själv få hjälp.

Den här boken vänder sig till dig som vårdar, stödjer eller hjälper din make eller maka, partner, dina barn, syskon, en förälder eller någon annan närstående. Förhoppningsvis ska den guida dig till att efter förmåga, förutsättningar och med stöd och hjälp finna balans mellan att hjälpa andra och livet i övrigt. Budskapet är att du ska tänka på dig själv, både för ditt eget bästa och för den du hjälper. För att kunna hjälpa andra måste också du själv få hjälp.