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Expressive Flamenco© theory and praxis is presented by Sánchez through this art-based personal reflection paper, which explores the applications of flamenco for its inherent psycho-somatic therapeutic capacities. She asserts the applied practice of flamenco (in its broadest definition), when combined with other expressive arts practices, can have therapeutic benefits; including (but not limited to) psycho-social, spiritual, and aesthetic connection to the individual's unconscious. During these experiences of arts based emotional expression, one can transcend the self into divine connection with their authentic self, what the author understands as the "duende". By allowing one's authentic truth to be expressed through Expressive Flamenco©, a spirit of evocation, born from within the self, appears when the self-connects with and is in creative conversation with its unconscious. The main hypothesis asserts the emergence of the "duende" facilitates an epistemological process of self-knowledge and an emotional process of catharsis, suggesting that when this art form is utilized as 'Expressive Flamenco' it helps facilitate holistic healing. This paper aims to stretch flamenco into new applied therapeutic practice territories, specifically in the arts therapies. Practical applications of Expressive Flamenco in the expressive therapies, including expressive arts therapy and dance/movement therapy, is presented along with the preliminary results of a virtual telehealth group facilitated during Covid-19. Professor Pinna-Perez′s critical reflections on Expressive Flamenco© and its importance to the field is presented in response to this emerging expressive arts practice. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Family-centered care (FCC) is widely established as the standard professional practice model in pediatric hospital settings (Arabiat, D., Whitehead, L., Foster, M., Shields, L., & Harris, L. (2018). Parents' experiences of family centred care practices. Journal of Pediatric Nursing, 42, 39–44. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.pedn.2018.06.012; Espe-Sherwindt, M. (2008). Family-centred practice: Collaboration, competency and evidence. Support for Learning, 23(3), 136–143. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1467-9604.2008.00384.x). It embraces social work values that promote self-determination and family empowerment by positioning family members as partners in healthcare treatment, delivery, and decision-making (Kuo, D. Z., Houtrow, A. J., Arango, P., Kuhlthau, K. A., Simmons, J. M., & Neff, J. M. (2012). Family-centered care: Current applica?tions and future directions in pediatric health care. Maternal and Child Health Journal, 16(2), 297–305. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10995-011-0751-7). To promote and advance FCC principles, healthcare organizations collaborate with patients and families as lived experience volunteers, or family leaders, to ensure program design and education reflect users' perspectives and experiences. Despite evidence for its efficacy and uptake (Arabiat, D., Whitehead, L., Foster, M., Shields, L., & Harris, L. (2018). Parents' experiences of family centred care practices. Journal of Pediatric Nursing, 42, 39–44. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.pedn.2018.06.012), translating FCC principles into practice can be challenging (McCarthy, E., & Guerin, S. (2022). Family-centred care in early intervention: A systematic review of the processes and out?comes of family-centred care and impacting factors. Child: Care Health and Development, 48(1), 1–32. https://doi.org/10.1111/cch.12901). In this paper, we introduce an innovative training program for family leaders that embodies the core principles of FCC. The training program was developed in collaboration with families, healthcare and higher education stakeholders, and engagement specialists by a social worker in a pediatric rehabilitation setting in Toronto, Ontario. The program prepares family leaders to engage in teaching and facilitation roles in healthcare education. The Teaching and Facilitation Course for Family as Faculty is the first program of its kind in Canada and was recently recognized by the Health Standards Organization of Canada as a leading practice in healthcare. Since launching in 2019, over 50 participants connected with healthcare organizations across Ontario have completed the course. Graduates have partnered with educators in designing and facilitating over 85 initiatives and workshops across healthcare and academic institutions. The outcomes of a utilization-focused program evaluation, including the strengths and lessons learned are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The goal of the paper is to identify the message in letters written by Polish and Czech seniors. The letters were subject to qualitative analysis. The method used was the analysis of the inspired texts—letters written by older people to the younger generation, which may become a didactic tool for the younger generations to learn from the biographies of seniors. The result of the analysis is a list of categories reflecting the main aspects dominating in the letters. These categories are: message addressed to a younger generation, important events and people in individual life story, reflection upon the meaning of life and concerns and challenges in the course of life. All the seniors express their affirmation of family, share ethical reflections on their relationships with other people and on passing. Thus, the main message of the letters is a call to cherish family relationships, nurture relations with other people and show respect to others. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Communication is fundamental to the transfer of information between individuals, agencies and organizations, and therefore, it is crucial to planning and decision-making particularly in cases of uncertainty and risk. This paper brings forth some critical aspects of communication that need to be acknowledged and considered while managing risks. Most of the previous studies and theories on natural hazards and disaster management have limited perspective on communication, and hence, its implication is limited to awareness, warnings and emergency response to some selected events. This paper exposes the role of communication as a moderator of not just risk interpretation and action but also various factors responsible for shaping overall response, such as individual decision-making under uncertainty, heuristics, past experiences, learning, trust, complexity, scale and the social context. It suggests that communication is a process that influences decision-making in multiple ways, and therefore, it plays a critical role in shaping local responses to various risks. It opens up the scope for using communication beyond its current use as a tool to manage emergency situations. An in-depth understanding of ongoing communication and its implications can help to plan risk management more effectively over time rather than as a short-term response. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper uses secondary analysis to understand how COVID-19 shaped people's experiences with psychosocial support services in Australia. Data are drawn from questionnaires (n = 66) and semi-structured interviews (n = 62), conducted for a national service evaluation, with 121 people living with enduring mental health conditions and using psychosocial support services. Data relating to COVID-19 were inductively coded and analysed using constant comparative analysis. Most people's experiences included tele-support. While some people described minimal disruption to their support, many reported reduced engagement. People's wellbeing and engagement were influenced by: their location, living situation and pre-COVID lifestyles; physical health conditions; access to, comfort with, and support worker facilitation of technology; pre-COVID relationships with support workers; and communication from the organisation. The findings can help services prepare for future pandemics, adjust their services for a 'COVID-normal' world, and consider how learnings from COVID-19 could be incorporated into a flexible suite of service delivery options. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The objective of this paper is to characterize barriers and facilitators reported by U.S. military veterans related to campaigns promoting help seeking during suicidal crisis. Individual telephone interviews (N = 40) were conducted from August 2018-April 2019 with a sample of veterans who had a recent non-fatal suicide attempt. Interview transcripts were analyzed using a constant comparison analytic strategy. Participants reported the four facilitators to message effectiveness: (a) potential reach of specific channels; (b) interruption of suicidal thoughts; (c) normalizing the suicidal experience and help seeking; and (d) modeling desired behavior change. Barriers that hindered campaigns were also identified and include (a) broad messages, (b) challenges in cognitive processing, (c) media avoidance and (d) a boomerang effect. This study underscores the significance of involving those with lived experience to identify factors that may improve or hinder message effectiveness. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper is a qualitative analysis of perspectives on leadership development among working peer support specialists and highlights the challenges, needs and efficacy these individuals experience in their work settings. Six participants engaged in a 2 h semi-structured focus group. Participants were guided through a series of nine questions regarding their transition to leadership, professional communication and relationships. Seven themes emerged: managing dual relationships; having difficult conversations; push and pull of leadership; taking responsibility for others; taking responsibility for self-care; addressing stigma in the workplace, and, spirituality/a calling to help. These professionals integrate their personal experiences of recovery into their direct care and leadership approaches in the workplace. This blending of recovery concepts and supervision approaches reflect some of the powerful elements that peer recovery specialists are uniquely qualified to lead in the healthcare workforce. These findings provide important implications for leadership development among this growing segment of the healthcare workforce. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper explores the potential and relevance of an innovative sociological research method known as the Imitation Game for research in health care. Whilst this method and its potential have until recently only been explored within sociology, there are many interesting and promising facets that may render this approach fruitful within the health care field, most notably to questions about the experiential knowledge or 'expertise' of chronically ill patients (and the extent to which different health care professionals are able to understand this experiential knowledge). The Imitation Game can be especially useful because it provides a way to map this experiential knowledge more systematically, without falling in the dual trap of either over-relying on in-depth, but highly specific phenomenological 'insider'-approaches that are hard to generalize, or, alternatively, problematically reducing the rich life-worlds of patients to a set of indicators in a questionnaire. The main focus of this paper is theoretical and conceptual: explaining the Imitation Game method, discussing its usefulness in the health care domain, and exploring the ways in which the approach can be utilized for chronic illness care. The paper presents both a conceptual and empirical exploration of how the Imitation Game method and its underlying theoretical concepts of 'contributory expertise' and 'interactional expertise' can be transferred from the sociological realm to the field of health care, what kinds of insights can be gained from the method, which methodological issues it may raise, and what potentially fruitful research routes can be explored. I argue that the Imitation Game can be thought of as a 'social learning experiment' that simultaneously enables the participants to learn from each other's perspectives, allows researchers to explore exciting new possibilities, and also offers the tools to intervene in the practice that is being studied. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The current paper addresses the implications of doing research on socially assistive robots in real homes. In contrast to laboratory studies, studies of robots in their intended natural environments can provide insights into people's experiences of robots, and if and how a robot becomes embedded and used in people's everyday life. However, moving robots out of the lab and into real life environments poses several challenges. Laboratory methods mainly focus on cause-and-effect relations between independent and dependent variables, while researchers who are conducting studies in real homes have much less control. In home trials, researchers need to decide what kind of data is obtainable and available. In real homes, researchers face unique challenges that require unique and pragmatic approaches. Any single study conducted in a real home is likely to have methodological limitations. Therefore, several different studies using different robots and methods are needed before the results can be converged in order to reach conclusions that are convincingly supported. This paper is an effort to provide such a report on a specific empirical case and converging findings from other studies. The goal is to provide an account of the research challenges and opportunities encountered when introducing a robot into its intended practice: the homes of older people. The aim is to give enough details for other researchers to critically examine and systematically build on the insights and findings presented. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study aimed to learn about the experiences of families of individuals with a dual diagnosis of Down syndrome (DS) and autism spectrum disorder (ASD) (DS-ASD), and to document the journey from early concerns to diagnosis and intervention. Caregivers completed an online survey describing their journey raising a child with DS-ASD. Survey responses were analyzed qualitatively and coded into categories to highlight common themes. Stereotypy, severe communication impairments, and behavioral difficulties prompted caregivers to pursue further evaluation. There was a mean 4.65-year gap between first noticing symptoms and receiving an ASD diagnosis. Several therapeutic interventions were identified as beneficial, including behavioral and communication support. Caregivers expressed frustration and described high levels of stress and social isolation. The diagnosis of ASD in children with DS is often delayed, and caregivers' initial concerns are frequently dismissed. Raising a child with DS-ASD can lead to social isolation and elevated caregiver stress. More research is needed to tailor diagnostic algorithms and therapeutic interventions to the unique needs of this patient population. Caregivers yearn for improved understanding of DS-ASD, more targeted therapies and educational programs, and more overall support. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Migrant youth are vulnerable and face a risk of internalised disorders such as depression. This qualitative meta-synthesis explores migrant adolescents' experience of depression. 14 studies (7 qualitative studies and 7 case reports) were selected after a systematic search of PubMed, Embase, Scopus and PsycInfo. Their quality was assessed with the Critical Appraisal Tool (CASP) for qualitative studies and the Joanna Briggs Institute (JBI) checklist for case reports. The analysis identified six themes describing the experience of depression among migrant adolescents: (1) the vulnerability factors underlying depressive distress, before, during and after migration; (2) the subjective experience of depression, combining symptoms associated with a form of depression common in the West with symptoms more common in other cultures; (3) two types of aetiological hypotheses to make sense of their distress; (4) attitudes adopted in response to distress; (5) experience of care, especially reasons discouraging investment in care; and (6) impairment of identity construction by breaks in cultural transmission and intergenerational conflicts. The threat of losing their connections both at the interpersonal (connection to family, peers and community) and intrapsychic levels (construction of identity) is inherently linked to migrant adolescents' experience of depression. We propose to adapt Brandenberger's 3C model (communication, continuity of care, and confidence) for the care of young migrants to promote a therapeutic alliance, foster construction of a coherent bicultural identity, and support the family. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Qualitative studies of autistic people's pregnancy experiences have indicated sensory and communication related barriers to accessing adequate prenatal healthcare. However, quantitative work on the topic is scarce. This online survey study explored pregnancy experiences among 417 autistic and 524 non-autistic people. Compared with non-autistic people, autistic people reported heightened sensory and physical experiences during pregnancy and were more likely to experience prenatal depression and anxiety. Autistic people experienced lower satisfaction with prenatal healthcare, including having lower perceptions of their relationships with healthcare professionals and greater difficulties with antenatal classes. This study identifies key adjustments that can be made to prenatal healthcare, including sensory and communication adjustments. The findings highlight the need for greater autism understanding and awareness among professionals. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Past research, media and pop culture, and the medical field have largely overlooked the sexual lives and stories of disabled adults. This research used a long-response survey methodology to collect the stories of over 300 physically disabled adults regarding the interaction between their disability and sexuality, and their experiences navigating sexual partnerships. Data showed there were a variety of challenges sexually active disabled adults faced, but numerous benefits were also described. Additionally, participants discussed the process of choosing a sexual partner, experiences of rejection and "coming out" as disabled, and the experience of communicating with partners about sexuality. This research sheds light on the nuances of disabled sex and sexuality, contributing to a growing body of literature which highlights the interpersonal and emotional aspects of navigating sex as a disabled person. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The objective of this study is to assess the initial perception of referring providers and radiologists to a virtual consultation solution (the Virtual Radiology Reading Room, VR3). VR3 is specifically designed to replace the radiology reading room phone and enable the radiologist to continue to work as part of the clinical care team fielding radiology consults without being confined to the same physical space. Surveys of providers' and radiologists' initial experience were conducted approximately 6 months after initial deployment. Users were asked about their overall impression, and how well the solution integrates with their workflow as well as how it compares to traditional phone calls to the reading room. Forty of 71 referring providers and 27 of 44 radiologists responded to our survey. VR3 was rated 4.7 out of 5 stars by referrers and 4.1 by radiologists. Seventy percent of referrers and radiologists preferred VR3 to the phone while 4.5% of referrers and 11% of radiologists preferred the phone. Referring providers and radiologists expressed a positive initial perception of the Virtual Radiology Reading Room and prefer it to traditional phone calls to the reading room. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Culture is an important factor to be considered during any mental health intake assessment. The Cultural Formulation Interview (CFI) is a 16-item semi-structured patient assessment that was developed by the DSM-5's Cross-Cultural Issues Subgroup (DCCIS) and published in 2013 to aid clinicians in their cultural clinical assessment of mental illnesses. This scoping review aims to broadly summarize and review the existing literature on the CFI to see how the tool has been used since 2013. Following an initial search and screening in 4 databases, 30 articles were included in the final synthesis and evaluation. The main finding was that the CFI was a useful tool in a variety of settings throughout the world. The results suggest that employing the CFI increased rapport between patients and clinicians, aided in diagnostic and treatment planning, and increased the subjective exploration of the patient's illness narrative. The CFI was also deemed to have a positive impact on medical communication. Barriers to implementing the CFI were also presented. The available literature on the CFI is critically discussed, and the limitations of this review are explained. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Sibling relationships remain understudied in typically developing adolescents who have siblings with autism spectrum disorder (ASD). This study explored the lived experiences and perceptions of adolescents who have a brother or a sister with a diagnosis of ASD using semi-structured interviews. Using thematic analysis, the participants reported having difficulties communicating with their siblings. Feeling a mixture of emotions was common when interacting with their siblings with ASD and emotional self-regulation was a typical coping strategy utilized by these adolescents. Despite the challenges, having a sibling with ASD led to closer relationships between the siblings. These findings offer insights into these adolescents' needs and how they may be best supported, informing the practice of speech-language pathology and other health professions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Treatment options for metastatic renal cell carcinoma (mRCC) have improved over recent years. Various therapies for metastatic renal cell carcinoma are currently approved for first and successive lines. Having various treatment options makes it important to reflect how patients experience side effects in the real-world setting. So far, data on the side effects of these treatments have only been collected within clinical trials, and have been mostly assessed by the investigator and not as patient-reported outcomes. Our aim was to determine patient-reported experiences of side effects in the real-world setting and to evaluate the doctor-patient communication regarding side effects. Data were collected via an anonymous, voluntary online survey given to members of a support group for RCC; the questionnaire was completed by 104 mRCC patients. Results: 89.1% of participants were suffering from side effects of any grade. These appeared to be higher for patients treated with tyrosine kinase inhibitors compared to those treated with immune-checkpoint inhibitors (98.4% vs. 68.4%). However, information on side effects is scarce: 4.0% had never heard anything about them while only 18.8% of participants received detailed information on possible side effects. Although 85.6% of participants reported side effects to their physician, 34.6% did not encounter an improvement. Limitations of the study include the design as an online questionnaire and the small sample, consisting only of members of a support group. Conclusions: Differences can be seen between patient-reported side effects within our survey and those based on clinical trials. A shift towards more patient-reported outcomes is needed. In addition, patients seeking the advice of their physician on side effects are in need of more—or better—information and support. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Communication during a combat deployment has changed significantly in current times. Couples can now communicate with each other frequently and through multiple modes. Despite this greater availability of communication options, there remain unanswered questions related to how healthy deployment communication is best achieved between couples, particularly regarding navigating the uncertainty of deployment. In this qualitative study, we report on the experiences of 31 National Guard couples who endured a combat deployment in support of Operation Enduring Freedom. Couples were interviewed three months after the soldier returned from deployment. Through the lens of relational turbulence theory, we provide a conceptual framework related to effective and non-effective deployment communication, along with structural communication barriers in the military that may negatively affect the mental well-being of partners. Finally, we provide recommendations to guide couples through these difficult deployments. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: Understand whether and how Black adolescent daughters' relationships with their single mothers could be strengthened through an intervention to address adverse experiences and stress during the COVID-19 pandemic. Methods: Five Black adolescent daughters of single mothers and five Black single mothers with adolescent daughters were interviewed during the pandemic who participated in a program designed to improve Black adolescent daughter-single mother relationships. Results: Changes in work and school requirements impacted the daughter-mother relationship, with most respondents suggesting their relationships improved during COVID-19 due to involvement in this program. Conclusions: Despite the stress and strain of COVID-19, involvement in similar programs can strengthen daughter-mother relationships. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Open dialogue is a systemically-based approach to mental healthcare, originating from Finland. Growing numbers of practitioners are being trained internationally, but little is known about the impact of such trainings within a UK setting. This study used interpretative phenomenological analysis of focus group data to explore the experiences of thirteen individuals undertaking a three-year UK open dialogue training. Four themes emerged: (1) a powerful experiential process; (2) personal therapeutic change; (3) deeper and more open relationships and (4) altered relationships to power in working practice. The findings suggest that open dialogue trainees experience greater depth in relationships with both clients and colleagues as a result of training, even participants who already had therapeutic training backgrounds. The findings also contribute to Transformational Learning literature regarding how experiential, non-hierarchical, dialogical teaching methods may enhance learning on therapeutic programmes and, therefore, lead to positive changes within clinical practice. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background/Objectives: The purpose of this study was to explore the postpartum experiences of publicly-insured women of color, and identify how postpartum care can be improved to reduce hospital emergency department usage after delivery. Methods: We conducted four focus groups with 18 publicly-insured women who primarily self-identified as Black and/or Latina and gave birth between June 1, 2019 and May 1, 2020. We used inductive qualitative analysis to identify prominent themes from focus group discussions. Results: We identified four domains: (1) lack of access to and communication with a medical team; (2) lack of preparation; (3) value of social support; and (4) participant-identified opportunities for improvement. Conclusions for Practice: This study describes the postpartum experiences of publicly-insured women of color with the objective of identifying areas for intervention to reduce postpartum emergency department usage. Our findings suggest that focused efforts on enhancing continuity of care to increase healthcare access, strengthening patient-provider communication by training providers to recognize unconscious bias, increasing postpartum preparation by adapting teaching materials to an online format, and engaging women's caregivers throughout the pregnancy course to bolster social support, may be beneficial. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study captured the experiences of 35 autistic adolescents and their parents after completing a 16-session variant of social skills group training KONTAKT® (ACTRN12617001117303). Semi-structured interviews explored participants' and relatives' perceptions of KONTAKT® and associated social outcomes. Adolescents were classified as either high (HR, n = 23) or low (LR, n = 12) responders based on the primary outcome effects during the previous trial. Thematic analysis revealed that both HR and LR participants their parents were satisfied with KONTAKT®, noting consistent patterns of improvement in adolescents' social understanding, communication, relationships, and empowerment, although positive reports were more frequent among HR than LR groups. This study enhances the understanding of the impact of SSGT, which is key in improving their content, principles, and administration. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objectives: Educational attainment has been demonstrated as a protective factor for the physical and mental health of children into adulthood, yet there has been limited research on the association between positive childhood experiences (PCEs) and school success. The purpose of this study is to examine the associations between PCEs and challenges to school success. Methods: This cross-sectional study used data of 33,450 children from the 2017–2018 National Survey of Children's Health to examine PCEs and two challenges to school success (school absenteeism and repeated grades), using multivariable logistic regression analysis. Results: The most prevalent types of PCEs were mentor for advice or guidance (89.8%), family resilience (81.1%), and after-school activity participation (79.8%). Children who participated in after-school activities had lower odds of reported school absenteeism (aOR 0.59; 95% CI 0.46–0.76) and repeating a grade (aOR 0.75; 95% CI 0.59–0.97) than their counterparts. Children who shared ideas with their caregiver had lower odds of repeating a grade (aOR 0.78; 95% CI 0.63–0.97) than children who did not share ideas with their caregiver. Children who lived in a supportive neighborhood were less likely to have reported school absenteeism than children who did not live in a supportive neighborhood (aOR 0.77; 95% CI 0.60–0.98). Conclusions for Practice: Participation in after-school activities had optimal associations with both school absenteeism and repeated grade, suggesting its potential protective effect for school success. Promoting PCEs at the school, family, and community levels may help address school absenteeism and grade retention. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

For transgender (trans) women, community belonging may play an important role in shaping perceptions of HIV Pre-exposure Prophylaxis (PrEP). A cluster analysis was performed using data obtained from a survey administered to 128 trans women residing in Philadelphia, PA and the San Francisco Bay area, CA. Six items assessing feelings of community belongingness among trans women produced three distinct clusters. Associations were examined between cluster membership and perceptual items including beliefs about PrEP, experiences with healthcare, patient self-advocacy, and perceived trusted sources for PrEP information. Clusters were demographically comparable apart from age. There were significant differences noted between trust in various communication channels and perceptions of PrEP; the least community-connected cluster had less trust and more negative perceptions of PrEP. Analyses suggest that psychographic differences exist based on perceived community belongingness in this population, and this in turn may be consequential in determining how information about PrEP is communicated and diffused to trans women for whom PrEP may be indicated. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The nature of relationships between service providers and parents of children with disabilities influences the health and wellbeing of parents and ultimately the quality of life of their children. The aim of this study was to explore parents' perceptions of their partnerships with service providers. We explored what was and was not working within these service relationships and solicited ideas for improved partnerships and services. We employed a qualitative, participatory research approach and adapted the Reflexive Methodology of Analysis in Partnership developed by Boudreault and Kalubi (2006). Thematic analysis and critical interpretation of the statements created in two focus groups by eight parents of nine children with disabilities generated eight themes: system complexity; funding; communication; navigation and advocacy; education; segregation; emotional support; and connecting with parents. Parents described difficulties in mediating partnerships in an ineffective disability service system and proposed practical solutions to these problems. We suggest that the structure of the disability service system is the root of these problems and must be radically changed to realize true partnership and client-centered services. Implications from this study for policy and practice include transforming the structure of the system, streamlining the organization and location of service information and delivery, including parents on decision-making bodies, and creating spaces for mutual peer support for parents of children with disabilities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Over 74,000 women in the United States are diagnosed annually with endometrial or cervical cancers and experience significant treatment-related difficulties with body image, sexuality, and sexual functioning. The aims of the research were to examine relationships among body image, sexuality, and sexual functioning, and to understand women's views of these concepts. A novel theoretical framework encompassing these three concepts and contextual variables guided the research. A non-experimental cross-sectional pilot study was conducted with pre-menopausal women in an academic medical center who had stages I–III cervical or endometrial cancer, were 3–36 months post-treatment, and had no mental health comorbidities. Participants completed the Body Image Scale, Female Sexual Function Index, Female Sexuality Questionnaire, a demographic questionnaire, and open-ended questions; the researchers collected clinical data from the medical record. Twenty women participated, and most reported issues with body image, sexuality, and sexual functioning. Significant relationships were found between body image and sexuality (p = 0.0244) and sexuality and sexual functioning (p < 0.0003). Stages II–III disease were significantly (p = 0.0371) associated with worse body image. Women reported issues with body image, sexuality, sexual functioning, psychosocial areas, reproduction, and communication with healthcare providers and personal caregivers. This study is one of the first to simultaneously examine relationships among body image, sexuality, and sexual functioning. Despite design and sample limitations, findings demonstrate a need for longitudinal studies using larger samples to further examine relationships among these concepts and selected contextual variables, explore communication issues, and refine the theoretical framework. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objectives: There is growing recognition that it is important to involve youth and caregivers in the implementation of evidence-based treatments (EBTs). This study explored how youth and caregivers who received trauma-focused cognitive-behavioral therapy (TF-CBT) in a public behavioral health system perceived the concept of EBT, their experience with treatment, their perceptions of TF-CBT, and whether their perceptions varied as a function of clinical improvement. Methods: Participants were eight youth (aged 10–17) and nine caregivers/legal guardians who received TF-CBT in community mental health centers. Semi-structured interviews were conducted post-treatment and symptoms were assessed at pre- and post-treatment. An integrated approach was used to analyze the interview data and the reliable change index was used to assess whether youth and caregivers' impressions varied as a function of clinical improvement. Results: Participants rarely had exposure to the term "evidence-based" and often had the misconception that evidence referred to personal experience. Youth and caregivers found the concept of receiving treatment supported by research appealing but did not like the specific term "evidence-based" and worried that treatment guided by research alone may not individualize to their needs. Personal stories were noted as a good way to market TF-CBT and the therapist emerged as an important advocate for promoting this treatment approach. Clinical improvement was associated with the perception of therapists as collaborative and with trauma narrative completion. Conclusions: Findings suggest that language and how therapists communicate EBTs to youth and caregivers may be important for targeted implementation strategies. Highlights: This study used mixed methods to explore youth and caregiver perceptions of evidence-based treatments. Participants rarely had exposure to the term "evidence-based" and found it unappealing. Marketing treatment to youth and caregivers requires careful language and explanation. Therapists should be selective in their explanations of treatment to engage youth and caregivers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Adults on the autism spectrum report comparable levels of desire for sex and sexual satisfaction as adults who are not on the spectrum. However, there has been little empirical focus on the need for sexual and relationship-oriented education for youth on the spectrum as they transition to adulthood. In this review, we use the Information–Motivation–Behavioral Skills Model of sexual health behavior change as a lens through which to understand the experiences of adults on the autism spectrum. We present those insights infused with emerging data and best practices in the field. Overall, it appears clear from the extant literature that providers need to recognize the specific characteristics of autism when developing sexual education curricula. Specifically, the social communication and sensory profile of people on the autism spectrum appears to interact with access to information, motivation to engage in healthy sexual activities, and the development of skills needed to engage in healthy sexual behavior. Finally, the voice of adults on the spectrum is essential to guide the emerging understanding of healthy sexuality. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The journey following migration for adolescent youth can consist of psychosocial and sociocultural difficulties with acculturating and integrating into the new host society. The family unit, however, has been identified to be a source of strength and wellbeing for youth during the integration process. This study explores factors that are suggested to make the home environment more supportive after migration. Newcomer youth between 15 and 18 years of age within a medium-sized Canadian city, living in Canada for no more than 2 years were interviewed in a group setting. Mixed methods were utilized and collected data was analyzed using concept mapping. Participants stated wanting more positive feedback from and increased communication with parents, in addition to having a home that is more open and welcoming to friends. The needs of youth can be sourced in the effects of the migrant journey and acculturation process. By improving the degrees of understanding, warmth, communication and cultural integration in the home, youth and their families can develop a greater sense of cohesion which can assist with supporting their migrant experience. Implications for practitioners working with newcomer youth and their families are provided, in addition to research and policy-related implications. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Adoption provides stability, loving care, security, and family interactions for children that have been separated from their birth parents. It also entails many challenges and difficulties, especially for adoptees in middle childhood, since feelings of loss can be particularly strong at this developmental stage. Aiming to use empirical evidence to improve adoption-related policies and practices, this study focused on the adoption-related gains, losses and difficulties, poorly explored in adoption research. One-hundred and two children aged 8–10, who were adopted from care at different ages, were interviewed using the Children's Interview about Adoption. Data collected on gains, losses and difficulties were analyzed using content analysis. Results showed that adopted children identified four main gains inherent to the experience of being adopted. The most frequent gains were related to being part of a family and experiencing family life. Adoptees identified losses related to their pre-adoption life, particularly birth family loss (parents and siblings), and previous relationships loss (especially school peers). Most adoptees reported facing family and social relationships difficulties in their post-adoption life, such as communicating openly about adoption with the adoptive parents and peers. Findings showed that children's adaptation to adoption is complex, ambivalent and individually experienced. Adopted children need parents and professionals to help them elaborate and make sense of their life story. Important implications for practice and research with adoptees, adoptive parents, adoption professionals/practitioners and school staff were drawn from data. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This exploratory and formative study draws from discursive psychology to gain insights into how young people construct their experiences of parental domestic violence and abuse (DVA) and how they claim to understand the occurrence of DVA within their home. Data from interviews with 13 young people (18–26 years old) who reported DVA in their families of origin were analyzed using a discursive psychological approach. Analysis revealed two interrelated themes. Theme 1, '"How it was": constructions of DVA' identified that the young people had difficulty in recognizing psychological aspects of this phenomenon as DVA. However, as these behaviors also deviated from the normative expectations of intra-parental behaviors, the occurrence of psychological DVA led to ambiguity and confusion. Paradoxically, the occurrence of extreme physical DVA was readily recognized as DVA, and this worked to facilitate disclosure, discussion, and help-seeking. Theme 2, 'Barriers and facilitators to talking with mothers about DVA', identified how young people's reported perceptions of their mother's role in DVA were related to the likelihood that they had conversations about DVA with their mothers. The occurrence of extreme physical DVA, which unambiguously placed responsibility for the DVA with the perpetrator, who in the cases presented here were male, was reported to enable conversations around DVA between the young people and their mothers. Findings suggest a need to adapt discourses to make understandings of the psychological aspect of DVA more accessible to young people, so they can name and make sense of their experiences. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study explores the association between student factors and delinquency by comparing two groups of adjudicated youth in six Midwestern residential facilities: 331 young men committed for a sexual offense, and 171 committed for a nonsexual offense. Statistically significant findings include juvenile sexual offenders exhibiting a greater number of delinquent behaviors and greater academic and social difficulties compared with their counterparts adjudicated for a nonsexual offense. Additionally, path analysis revealed that school experience was negatively associated with delinquency for both groups. For juvenile sexual offenders, academic difficulties were associated with delinquency through their school experience. Among general delinquents, delinquency was directly associated with social difficulties and school experience. Implications for interventions and future research are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: To report patients’ own experiences of receiving a diagnosis of Parkinson’s disease (PD) and to identify factors influencing this experience.Methods: A survey by the European Parkinson’s Disease Association in 11 European countries.Results: 1775 patients with an average age of 69.7 years participated of whom 54% were male. Those living in rural areas reported having waited longer to seek medical help (p < 0.05). A possible diagnosis of PD was made at the first appointment in a third of respondents. When the diagnosis was made, only 50% reported that the diagnosis was communicated sensitively. 38% of patients reported having been given enough time to ask questions and discuss concerns, but 29% did not. 98% of participants reported having been given information about PD at the time of diagnosis but 36% did not find the information given helpful. Patient satisfaction with the diagnostic consultation was positively associated with more sensitive delivery of diagnosis, the helpfulness and quantity of the information provided and time to ask questions (all p < 0.001). Where diagnosis was given by a specialist, participants reported greater perceived satisfaction with the diagnostic consultation, greater sensitivity of communicating the diagnosis, time to ask questions, provision and helpfulness of information, and earlier medication prescription (all p < 0.0001).Conclusions: There is a need to improve how the diagnosis of PD is communicated to patients, the opportunity to ask questions soon after diagnosis, and the amount, timing and quality of life information provided, as this is associated with greater satisfaction with the diagnostic process. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Parental separation anxiety has been identified as a detrimental factor for parent-adolescent relationship quality and, ultimately, for adolescents' psychosocial adjustment. However, few studies have examined how separation anxiety is related to parents' style of interaction with their adolescent, which is unfortunate as this interaction style could explain why separation anxiety is related to negative outcomes. The present study (a) examined the association between maternal separation anxiety and mothers' autonomy-supportive, relative to controlling, conversation style as observed in mother-adolescent interactions about the adolescents' friendships, and (b) investigated the link between maternal separation anxiety and mothers' personal experiences during the conversation. A total of 62 mother-adolescent dyads ( M age mothers = 44 years, M age adolescents = 14 years) were willing to participate in this study. After mothers filled out a measure of separation anxiety, mothers' autonomy-supportive and controlling practices were observed and coded during a 10-min conversation. Further, mothers reported on their emotional and motivational experiences during the conversation. Mothers high on separation anxiety were observed to be less autonomy-supportive and to experience the conversation as more stressful (e.g., more pressure, more tension, and more relief at the end). Clinically, our results suggest that maternal separation anxiety is an important target for intervention and prevention efforts aimed at promoting autonomy-supportive parenting. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We examined African American women's experiences of communication with their male intimate partners a couple of hours before and after an incident of unwanted sex. We also examined women's experiences of disclosure following an incident of unwanted sex. Semi-structured qualitative interviews were conducted with a community-based sample of sexually active African American women (n = 19) reporting at least one incident of sexual coercion (i.e., being pressured into unwanted sex without consent) by an intimate male partner since the age of 18. Our analysis was guided by "the sexual division of power" from Connell's (1987) theory of gender and power. Data were analyzed inductively by examining the interviews for common themes in the following domains: communication before the unwanted sex, communication after the unwanted sex, and disclosure to others. Men pressured partners for unwanted sex through verbal and non-verbal tactics, ranging from pestering and blunt requests for sex to verbal bullying and violence. Many women responded by clearly saying no. However, many women also described eventually ceasing to resist their partners and engaging in unwanted sex. After the unwanted sex, men actively and passively avoided discussing the incident. Although many women discussed the unwanted sex with family and friends, less women disclosed to trained professionals. In some cases, women did not discuss the incident with anyone at all. These findings indicate that, when addressing sexual violence against women, there is a need to target men as well as the norms of masculinity that underpin physical and sexual violence against women. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article reports on a 2016 study of qualitative data from nine participating families in a therapeutic wilderness program for struggling teens and parents. Results showed that communication among family members improved, with families applying learned skills like the use of time-outs, enhanced listening, and other assertive interaction tools, and that the parent/child conference at program's end strengthened the relationship. Also noted are the emergence of implications for family therapy.

The article discusses a project which aimed to explore and describe the views of physiotherapy students on sexual health as a part of physiotherapy education and enable them in their future profession as physiotherapists to be able to discuss sexual health matters with patients in an informed, sensitive and relaxed way. Physiotherapy students believe that sexual health is an important part of quality of life and should be a part of physiotherapy.

The purpose of this article is to utilize an insider's perspective to describe and analyze the experience of abuse and neglect of adolescent girls in Israel. A purposive sample of 20 adolescent, 'at risk' girls was interviewed and chosen due to intensive experiences of abuse throughout their lives. Findings highlighted how these individuals negotiated and framed their experiences in order to enable them to cope with the abuse they had endured. Firstly, they manipulated space as well as time, using controlled, incremental processing ('dosing') when narrating their experiences. For the adolescents in our study, communication was a central organizing axis of their abuse experiences and a tool for healing, encouraging a sense of self and facilitating relationships with others. In addition, the findings indicated that these adolescent girls possess a body of experiential knowledge that translates into coping skills extending beyond their abuse experiences. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Integrative Model for the Study of Developmental Competencies in Minority Children argues that while discrimination and prejudice are normative experiences for ethnic minority children, promoting environments, family factors and adaptive culture may help minority youth develop effective coping strategies to deal with discrimination. Although this model emphasizes the critical role of family, there are relatively few studies on discrimination that include data from both parents and youth. In the current study, we qualitatively investigated themes of teen discrimination experiences and youth/parent responses in a sample ( N = 40) of Mexican descent parents ( n = 20) and middle school aged (11-15 years old) adolescents ( n = 20) who participated in separate youth and parent focus groups. Adolescents indicate that stereotypes are pervasive, as evidenced in media, anti-immigrant comments, and insults from peers. Yet, adolescents expressed few specific strategies to deal with discrimination, and often expressed concern that standing up to discrimination may lead to physical altercation. Parents discussed the pervasiveness of prejudice and ethnic slurs, and specifically identified school as a setting where teens experience discrimination. Parents discussed strategies of teaching children not to use derogatory terms against others, telling them not to engage in fighting, encouraging children to report school incidents to teachers, and trying to prevent criminalization of male youth by talking to them about clothing choices. Mixed race families especially talked about inclusivity, ethnic/racial pride, and sharing family history (immigration, language, racial diversity). The Integrative Model for Developmental Competencies guides our discussion of implications for adolescent well-being and future research. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]