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There have been growing concerns that social distancing and stay-at-home mandates have exacerbated loneliness for older people. Empirical evidence about older people's experiences of loneliness and COVID-19 have quantified this phenomena without considering how older people themselves define and understand loneliness. This paper explores how older New Zealanders conceptualized and experienced loneliness under 'lockdown' stay-at-home measures. This multi-methods qualitative study combines data from letters (n = 870) and interviews (n = 44) collected from 914 people aged over 60 and living in Aotearoa, New Zealand during the COVID-19 pandemic. We conducted a reflexive thematic analysis to conceptualise this data. We identify three interconnected ways in which older people conceptualised and experienced loneliness: (1) feeling disconnected relating to lack of emotional closeness to another often resulting from being physically separated from others and not being able to touch; (2) feeling imprisoned relating to separation from preferred identities and activities and was frequently associated with boredom and frustration; and (3) feeling neglected which often related to feeling let down by generalised and idealised forms of support, such as one's neighbourhood and health care system. Older New Zealanders experienced lockdown loneliness in three interconnected ways rather than as a stable and homogenous experience. Māori, Pacific, Asian and New Zealand European older people often discussed loneliness in different ways; attesting to loneliness being a culturally-mediated concept shaped by expectations around desirable social interaction. We conclude the paper with implications for research and policy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

As policymakers globally recognize aging in place as the preferred option for most adults, there is a growing need to supplement family or informal caregiving for frail older adults with formal homecare services, particularly for those who require 24/7 care due to significant physical and/or cognitive impairment. The core objective of this qualitative study was to explore family members' experiences in employing live-in care workers, particularly the nature of their engagement and the quality of their relationships with these care workers. Our analysis of semi-structured interviews with 35 family caregivers revealed four themes: 1) challenges in acquiring support and developing dependency; 2) negotiation of roles, responsibilities, and moral dilemmas; 3) shifting emotions between trust and suspicion; and 4) role confusion, expectations, and disappointments. The study suggests that families might benefit from formal guidance regarding fostering and maintaining positive relationships in the homecare environment. This paper provides nuanced knowledge that may inform the development of such interventions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The purpose of this systematic review and thematic synthesis was to identify and consolidate research on the support needs of impacted Higher Education (HE) counselors that have experienced a student suicide death. When exposed to a student suicide death, counselors are often extensively involved in a postvention response. This systematic review synthesized four qualitative papers that explored the experiences of staff impacted by student suicide. Thematic synthesis revealed three core themes: The unknown, responding, and the known, and six subthemes: Gaps in knowledge of individual experience, gaps in knowledge of organizational impact, extrospective responding, introspective responding, the needs of impacted counselors, the degree of impact, and the support processes that arise from needs. The results provide a summary of the current supports available to impacted HE counselors and considerations relevant to their postvention needs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Nonprofit organizations operating in civil society have become the main channel for social service provision in most neoliberal welfare economies. Social service nonprofits (SSNs) deliver essential services mainly to vulnerable and marginalized populations. Since the outbreak of COVID-19, SSNs have been at the frontline of dealing with its socioeconomic consequences. This paper focuses on the activities and responses to the crisis of SSNs in Israel. Interviews with SSN directors (N = 17) show that they dealt with growing demands for services due to the social implications of the pandemic, along with operational difficulties, such as deterioration in clients' condition, disruption in service continuity, and reduced funding and staff. Next to these difficulties, the findings highlighted the social innovations adopted by SSNs to maintain service provision, such as implementing remote service technologies, forming collaborations, and recruiting volunteers. Implications for the social services and policies are presented and discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper authentically represents the voices of non-verbal children with cerebral palsy using a case study design. Policy suggests that children should have the right to play and leisure opportunities, however non-verbal children with cerebral palsy have fewer choices. Additionally, children with communication, learning and mobility limitations are usually excluded from research. The aim of this research was to capture the voices of non-verbal children by exploring their well-being impact in terms of their experiences and choices about their level of participation in recreational activities. A qualitative case series study included interviews, observations, photographs and diaries. Where possible, the diaries were completed by both caregivers and children. Data were analysed thematically, and the lens of positioning theory applied. Seven children aged nine to sixteen years participated. The findings showed how equipment, people and environments enabled or hindered the children's participation. The children also advocated as champions for their own well-being. Positioning theory was applied across the data and was adapted offering a way to better understand the children's well-being responses. The findings demonstrate how these children were able to self-advocate, demonstrating their well-being by their intentional behaviours from their level of participation in a recreational activity. The voices of non-ambulant and non-verbal children are underrepresented in the literature. This study offers an innovative approach to highlight their voices using visual data. The images project the narrative about their choices for participation in recreational activities. The proposed kaleidoscope of well-being offers a way to demonstrate the fluctuations in their emotional responses from their participation. Choices for participation in recreational activities remains limited for non-ambulant and non-verbal children with cerebral palsy. Designers and policy makers should consider how equipment and environments can be adapted or created to increase the choices for non-ambulant and non-verbal children with cerebral palsy. Practitioners in health and social care should consider how to listen to the voices of non-verbal and non-ambulant children with cerebral palsy and their parents/guardians and work towards jointly setting participation goals to affirm their strengths. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

As the number of older Americans double in the next forty years, it will be important to delay the decline in cognition. The aim of this paper is to describe the feasibility and acceptability of a six-week cognitively stimulating program focusing on visual arts (Picasso, Andrew Wyeth, and Carl Warner), music (Bach and Franklin), and travel (Europe). An explanatory, mixed methods design (a quantitative phase followed by a qualitative phase) was used to encapsulate a more comprehensive description of the program. The program was conducted with 10 community living older adults who were mostly female (70.5 ± 7.5 years). The goal of each 90-min, weekly session was to provide cognitively challenging activities utilizing peer support and education about memory loss. Pre- and post-surveys assessed cognition (SLUMS) life satisfaction (SWL), and general demographics. Further, preliminary results on the effects of the program on cognition and life satisfaction were obtained. Post-program assessments showed improvement in cognition (p <.001) and revealed relationships between age and life satisfaction (p <.05), and cognition and attendance (p <.05) and life satisfaction (p <.05). Qualitative analyses from the focus group (N = 4) demonstrated program acceptability and the potential for long-term impact. These results suggest the current program has the potential for larger-scale implementation. Future directions include efficacy and effectiveness trials across more diverse community settings and populations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Systematic uptake of family-centered care (FCC) interventions remains challenging and frequently suboptimal in many neonatal intensive care units (NICUs). Across NICUs in the United States, integrating family members as partners in infant caregiving and decision-making has not been well supported and routine screening and provision of psychological support for parents remains inadequate. Trauma-informed care (TIC) may offer a more comprehensive approach to NICU care which can encompass FCC principles and promote family recovery and resilience by recognizing and responding to the traumas experienced by NICU infants and families. The current paper aimed to understand needs identified by mothers of NICU-hospitalized children and reports a focused analysis of one-on-one interview data (n = 13 mothers) collected during a larger mixed methods study. Reflexive thematic analysis was used to understand needs identified by mothers and to explore how these needs aligned with TIC principles. Six themes were identified and subsequently examined in the context of the principles of TIC: I Just Had No Control, That Really Caught Us Off Guard, So Much Was Already Taken Away, We're People and There Needs To Be More Support and Practices Which Helped. Mothers' care needs were found to align with TIC principles. Findings suggest that implementation of TIC principles in NICU settings can support parental presence, participation in infant care, and mental health and support the potential of TIC as a more comprehensive approach to meeting the needs of NICU parents. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Young people in Colombia present high rates of mental health problems, to which the country’s history of armed internal conflict contributes in complex ways. Mental health services in Colombia are fragmented, inadequate, and difficult to access for many. Young people’s help)seeking is often hindered by mental health stigma and/or poor experiences with services. This paper presents a thematic analysis of qualitative data from a mixed-methods study aimed at developing and testing a mental health intervention for Colombian youths. We draw upon theoretical lenses from scholarly work on stigma and Sen’s ‘capabilities approach’ to inform our analysis of interviews and group discussions with staff and young people involved in the state-funded human capital building programme ‘Jovenes en Acción’ (JeA). By illustrating how study participants talked about stigma, vulnerability, mental health services organisation, and the challenges of discussing mental health topics in a learning environment, we illuminate aspects of mental health support and anti-stigma interventions that might need enhancing. In particular, we suggest that more emphasis on ‘community competencies’ as complementary to and interrelated with individual competencies would strengthen young people’s individual and collective resources for mental wellbeing while being in line with the sociocritical principles of existing human capital-enhancing programmes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]