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In Sweden, integration is a pressing issue particularly following the large influx of immigrants in 2015. Swedish municipalities play an important role in civic integration, with responsibility for newly arrived immigrants receiving a basic understanding of Swedish society, their rights and obligations. We analyse data from 204 applications granted funding 2016/2017 for projects improving the integration of refugees into society by co-operation between municipalities and other actors. Using thematic analysis, we identify two broad themes. One concerning the ‘what’ of integration–the Swedish values, norms and behaviours that immigrants are expected to learn in order to become ‘good’ Swedish citizens, and the other concerning the means or the ‘how’ of integration. However, although these projects are well-meaning, they may have normalizing and disciplining effects whereby the immigrant is constructed as subordinate, as the Other. Swedish gender-equality is heavily emphasized and we see how, in relation to this, the immigrant is constructed as unmodern, bound by tradition and unequal. Particularly immigrant women are produced as passive objects rather than active subjects, in need of special women’s activities and lacking as parents in comparison with the Swedish ideal.

Introduction: Acutely hospitalised older patients often live with frailty and have an increased risk of impaired physical function. Previous studies suggest that exercise might mitigate the risk of physical impairment; however, further research is needed to compare the effect of different types of exercise interventions. In this paper, we report a protocol for a trial that aims to examine (1) if multicomponent exercise interventions (interventions that include both mobility and strengthening exercises) have effects on physical function compared with usual care in older adults and (2) if a comprehensive multicomponent exercise programme is more effective than a simple multicomponent exercise programme that only include walking and sit-to-stand exercises. Methods and analysis: This is a three-armed randomised controlled trial, with two intervention groups (comprehensive and simple exercise programme) and a control group receiving usual care. We will include 320 participants aged >= 75 years from geriatric medical departments of four hospitals in Stockholm, Sweden. Assessments will be conducted at hospital admission, discharge and 3 months thereafter concerning physical function (primary outcome), activities of daily living, health-related quality of life, sarcopenia and falls. The number of readmissions will be registered up to 1 year after discharge. Data will be analysed with linear mixed effects models, according to the intention-to-treat approach. Ethics and dissemination: Ethical approval for this trial has been granted by the Swedish Ethical Review Authority (approval number 2022-03032-01). Data collection will consider the information requirement, the requirement of consent, confidentiality obligations and the utilisation requirement. Trial findings will be disseminated through multiple channels, including scientific publications and conferences, and workshops with healthcare professionals and the public.

Syftet med denna rapport är att belysa förutsättningarna, utmaningarna och möjligheterna för flyktingmottagande och integrationsarbete på mindre orter, med särskilt fokus på glesbygdskommuner i norra Sverige. Tills nyligen har Sverige haft en relativt generös migrationspolitik och de svenska kommunerna har haft en nyckelroll i mottagandet och integrationen av flyktingar. Många små, glesbefolkade landsbygdskommuner har tagit emot en hög andel individer i förhållande till sin befolkningsstorlek. Flyktingmottagande har setts som en möjlighet att utveckla kommunen. Många av de små kommuner i norra Sverige som står inför en minskande befolkning har sett mottagandet som en möjlighet till sysselsättning, genererad av de uppgifter som en tillströmning av flyktingar innebär, men också som en grund för att utveckla den kommunala verksamheten. Kommunernas flyktingmottagande är dock beroende av politiken på nationell nivå och förändringar i denna politik som påverkar antalet flyktingar som kommunerna kan ta emot. När politikerna beslutar att strama åt flyktingpolitiken och stänga ned verksamheter som kommit att utgöra ett hopp inför framtiden, utvecklas en känsla av maktlöshet. Besluten om antal och kvoter fattas någon annanstans, och detta bidrar till en process där små glesbygdskommuner hamnar ännu längre bort från maktens centrum. Att ta emot flyktingar har för dessa kommuner, åtminstone inledningsvis, varit en strategi som gett hopp för framtiden, inte bara för de flyktingar som tas emot i dessa små samhällen, utan också för de små kommunerna själva. Den lilla orten blir således perifer genom att den marginaliseras i såväl politiska som ekonomiska processer och alltså inte (enbart) på grund av sin rumsliga position. Rapporten är organiserad utifrån forskningsprojektets tre delstudier. Delstudierna baseras på olika material och besvarar olika frågor. Den första handlar om hur integration som fenomen beskrivs i ansökningar om projektmedel från Länsstyrelserna och vilka proble

Rural communities in the inland areas of Northern Sweden have long suffered from a steady population declineas young people, particularly women, have moved to the growing urban areas for education/employment.However, in recent years, alongside strategies for survival relating to tourism/hospitality industry, refugeereception has emerged as a strategy for survival whereby these rural municipalities seek to staunch the downwardspiral of decline by accepting refugees in the hope that this will provide not only job opportunities but alsosupport for local services. Using thematic analysis, we focus on media representations of rural refugee receptionin small municipalities Northern Sweden and aim to contribute to an understanding of how spatial and socialrelations are reproduced through these representations; to understand in how ‘the rural’ is constructed in relationto power relations such as race and gender and how these interact with a more explicit spatial power dimension.We are interested in understanding rural refugee reception as a contested hope for the future – a strategy forsurvival. Our analysis shows that the media highlight the stories of how the municipalities set their hopes onrefugee reception to ‘save’ the place not only by bringing in new, younger inhabitants, but also employmentopportunities. However, it also shows that refugee reception may become merely a short-term, temporary solutionand not something that challenges or changes the more general migratory patterns in Sweden.

Swedish migration policy has undergone dramatic changes and has moved from being one of the most generous policies to the minimum EU level. Traditionally refugee reception has been a policy area with a strong tradition of collaboration between national and local government with decentralized decision-making. The role of local government has, however, altered in the face of greater centralization and harder national government steering. This chapter provides a broad picture of Swedish local government’s responsibilities, the changing nature of the role it has played and is playing with regard to refugee reception and integration policies and the challenges it currently faces.

In Sweden, 'safety walks' are a well-established planning practice for improving safety. They involve citizens and local authorities evaluating public spaces in terms of safety. Building on observations, interviews and policy materials, this paper examines safety walks from a governmentality perspective. Our analysis shows that, through the governing techniques employed in the walks, safety problems are rendered technical, auditable and governable, while becoming disconnected from the social and political. Furthermore, the participatory rationale of the walks serves to produce self-governing communities, who are responsible for managing their own safety, while risking the reinforcement of boundaries of inclusion and exclusion within the imagined 'safe community'., Projekt "Rädsla och trygghet i ord och handling": https://www.umu.se/forskning/projekt/radsla-och-trygghet-i-ord-och-handling---att-overkomma-paradoxer-i-planering, Rädsla och trygghet i ord och handling

Objectives: Many persons with dementia live at home with support from home care services. Despite this, research is scarce concerning how risks in daily life among persons with dementia are perceived and handled by home care staff. This study aimed to explore how home care staff identify risks in the everyday lives of persons with dementia, and to inquire into how they reasoned about their own actions related to those risks. Method: A qualitative approach was applied for the study. Both individual interviews and focus groups were conducted with home care staff (n = 23). Data was analysed using a constant comparative method. Results: Identifying, reasoning and acting upon risks in the everyday lives of persons with dementia were related to several dilemmas for the home care staff. These dilemmas are described and elaborated on in three categories: 1) Strategies for tracking risks, 2) Dilemmas concerning where to draw the line and deciding when to act, and 3) Dilemmas when acting on risks. Conclusion: The study provides new knowledge about the dilemmas that staff in home care services may face and how they reason about managing risks in the homes of persons with dementia. The study shows that the staff had to weigh risk and safety against the autonomy of persons with dementia. Based on these findings, we want to highlight the importance of competence among home care staff and the organizational conditions that must exist in order to manage the challenges of risky situations.

With a spatial analytical framework, we study Take Back the Night demonstrations as a way of mobilizing for safety and claiming the right to the city. The marches are a symbolic display of women's distress about living in fear of violence. It is a critique of society's inability to handle the problem of prevailing gendered power relations and the unequal access to city spaces that stem from these. The aim of this paper is to examine feminist struggles to challenge gendered spatial power relations, focusing on Take Back the Night mobilization. Hence, this qualitative study focuses Take Back the Night demonstrations as a phenomenon and as an actual spatial strategy, by analysing representations regarding Take Back the Night in Sweden at large, and in Malmo, Sweden's third largest city, in particular. We discuss feminist efforts to create temporary safe spaces in terms of the demonstrations' emancipatory potential and how these spatial claims provoke resistance. The demonstrations and the reactions they create reveal existing inequalities and power structures.

Under de senaste åren har frågor om trygghet tagit allt mer plats i det offentliga samtalet. Det kan handla om att otryggheten breder ut sig, att den måste bekämpas och att vi måste kunna vara trygga på gator och torg. Vissa grupper pekas ut som mer otrygga medan andra blir de som står för otryggheten. Vid en närmare granskning blir det dock tydligt att trygghet är mer komplicerat än så. Att det som är tryggt för vissa kan vara otryggt för andra. Att talet om trygghet kan betyda både hårdare straff och en längtan efter ett eget hem. Denna bok består av två delar som tillsammans tar sig an (o)trygghet från olika perspektiv samhälleliga föreställningar, politiska förändringar och ambitioner att arbeta för förändring. Bokens författare har sin hemvist i olika akademiska discipliner etnologi, folkhälsovetenskap, genusvetenskap, konstvetenskap, kulturgeografi, socialt arbete, statsvetenskap och urbana studier och ger därmed en mångfacetterad bild av vad (o)trygghet betyder i dagens Sverige. I kapitlet "Patrullering för trygghet - vakter, nattvandrare och medborgargarden" undersöks mediebeskrivningar och offentliga policydokument kopplat till tre olika former av patrullering för trygghet: privata trygghetsvakters patrullering i kommunal regi, ideella aktörers nattvandring samt högernationalistiska medborgargardens patrullering. Analysen utgår ifrån en förståelse av patrullering som ett görande, en praktik, som bidrar till att forma betydelsen av såväl trygghet som otrygghet. Syftet är att belysa frågor om vems trygghet som ska upprättas eller bevaras, hur detta ska göras, samt vad eller vilka som anses vara orsaker till otrygghet., Rädsla och trygghet i ord och handling, https://www.umu.se/forskning/projekt/radsla-och-trygghet-i-ord-och-handling---att-overkomma-paradoxer-i-planering

Swedish migration policy has undergone dramatic changes and has moved from being one of the most generous policies to the minimum EU level. Traditionally refugee reception has been a policy area with a strong tradition of collaboration between national and local government with decentralized decision-making. The role of local government has, however, altered in the face of greater centralization and harder national government steering. This chapter provides a broad picture of Swedish local government’s responsibilities, the changing nature of the role it has played and is playing with regard to refugee reception and integration policies and the challenges it currently faces.

Mandana Fallahpour, 1, 2 Lena Borell, 1 Linda Sandberg, 1 Anne-Marie Boström 3–5 1Department of Neurobiology, Care Sciences and Society, Division of Occupational Therapy, Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden; 2Department of Neurobiology, Care Sciences and Society, Division of Clinical Geriatrics, Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden; 3Department of Neurobiology, Care Sciences and Society, Division of Nursing, Karolinska Institutet Stockholm, Solna, Sweden; 4Theme Aging, Karolinska University Hospital, Stockholm, Sweden; 5Department of Nursing, Western Norway University of Applied Science, Haugesund, NorwayCorrespondence: Mandana FallahpourDepartment of Neurobiology, Care Sciences and Society, Division of Occupational Therapy, Karolinska Institutet, Fack 23200, Huddinge SE-141 83, Stockholm, SwedenTel +46 8 524 838 56Fax +46 8 34 50 14Email Mandana.Fallahpour@ki.seIntroduction: An increasing number of older persons live at home with various limitations, such as dementia, requiring well-educated and trained home care staff to meet their complex care needs. Dementia care specialists working in home care service have reported high levels of job strain in comparison with home care staff in general.Aim: This pilot study aims to evaluate the effects of a dementia care education model targeting self-reported job strain and organizational climate, among dementia care specialists in home care service.Methods: A quasi-experimental, one-group pretest–posttest design was applied, with 12 months’ follow-up. Participants were dementia care specialists who worked in home care service (n=34 baseline; n=30 follow-up). The data were collected using the Strain in Dementia Care Scale and Creative Climate Questionnaires, administered pre- and post-intervention. The intervention applied an educational model based on previous research in dementia care and a person-centered approach.Results: The educational model was implemented in the context

Importance Neurofilament light protein (NfL) is elevated in cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) of a number of neurological conditions compared with healthy controls (HC) and is a candidate biomarker for neuroaxonal damage. The influence of age and sex is largely unknown, and levels across neurological disorders have not been compared systematically to date. Objectives To assess the associations of age, sex, and diagnosis with NfL in CSF (cNfL) and to evaluate its potential in discriminating clinically similar conditions. Data Sources PubMed was searched for studies published between January 1, 2006, and January 1, 2016, reporting cNfL levels (using the search terms neurofilament light and cerebrospinal fluid) in neurological or psychiatric conditions and/or in HC. Study Selection Studies reporting NfL levels measured in lumbar CSF using a commercially available immunoassay, as well as age and sex. Data Extraction and Synthesis Individual-level data were requested from study authors. Generalized linear mixed-effects models were used to estimate the fixed effects of age, sex, and diagnosis on log-transformed NfL levels, with cohort of origin modeled as a random intercept. Main Outcome and Measure The cNfL levels adjusted for age and sex across diagnoses. Results Data were collected for 10 059 individuals (mean [SD] age, 59.7 [18.8] years; 54.1% female). Thirty-five diagnoses were identified, including inflammatory diseases of the central nervous system (n = 2795), dementias and predementia stages (n = 4284), parkinsonian disorders (n = 984), and HC (n = 1332). The cNfL was elevated compared with HC in a majority of neurological conditions studied. Highest levels were observed in cognitively impaired HIV-positive individuals (iHIV), amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, frontotemporal dementia (FTD), and Huntington disease. In 33.3% of diagnoses, including HC, multiple sclerosis, Alzheimer disease (AD), and Parkinson disease (PD), cNfL was higher in men than women. The cNfL inc

There is a powerful narrative of Umeå as a progressive, gender-equal, tolerant citywhich has been important in relation to the investments in culture that the cityhas made, including the European Capital of Culture Year 2014. Viewing the cityas process, as negotiated and contested representation, we study how narratives ofgender-equality figure throughout Capital of Culture year, Umeå2014, and in theprojects that were part of it. We examine how the talk about gender-equality interactswith notions of place and how they are interconnected with each other. Weare interested in what happens with a major cultural project when gender-equalityis emphasized as one of the key values, at the same time as the meaning andcontent of this concept is not specified. Studying official documents and municipalwebpages concerning Umeå as European Capital of Culture, applications forco-funding of cultural projects and news articles, we scrutinize how gender-equalityis used and given meaning by looking at the way it is operationalized bothby the city officials and by those engaging in cultural activities. Gender equalitybecame something that was highlighted in the bid to become European Capitalof Culture and in the making of the programme for the year, and stories aboutthe Umeå2014’s success in implementing a gender-equality perspective have beenrepeated and woven together into a yet another narrative of Umeå. They becamepart of an ongoing negotiation of the city’s identity., Co-creating Participation? Contradictory perspectives Of the European Capital of Culture, umeå2014

Two main explanations of tactical choice among social movements are repertoires of contention and characteristics of collective actors. Feminist theorizing suggests another dimension of tactical choice: the role of gender beliefs. This paper examines the relationship between these three explanations by drawing on a qualitative study that explored how activist groups in Sweden selected the 'Take Back the Night' (TBTN) march as a tactic. Begun in the 1970s, the TBTN march has been performed around the world, usually on central city streets at nighttime, to protest gender violence in spaces presumed to be gender neutral and safe for women. Our findings resulted in three themes that captured how activist groups selected it as a tactic: a routine performance in publicly visible urban settings, alignment with preferred forms of feminist organizing, and refusal of normalized fear and violence in the seemingly safe city. Each theme corresponded to one of the three explanations and shed light on a different dimension of tactical choice. We propose three heuristic tools for identifying these dimensions: making claims, enacting claims and reclaiming spaces. The different dimensions relate to distinct conceptions of power: centralized authority, movement agency and gender power relations respectively.

Little is known about the types of home care services granted to older clients in Sweden. The objectives of this study were to: (a) identify and describe the range of granted home care services and service hours; (b) compare services granted for clients with and without documented cognitive impairment; and (c) examine associations between the range of granted home care services and factors related to cognitive impairment and demographical characteristics. The study design was descriptive and cross‐sectional. The data, included records of granted home care services for clients age 65+ with (n = 43) and without (n = 88) cognitive impairment documented by the local municipality assessors, collected from one agency in Sweden during a 2‐month period in 2015. Data analyses resulted in an overview of the range of home care services divided into two categories: personal care and service. In the personal care category, the median was 3 for types of services (range 0–12), and shower (n = 69; 52.7%) was the most common service. In the service category, the median was 5 for types of services (range 0–10), and cleaning the household (n = 103; 78.6%) was the most common service. The median for service hours was 27 hr per month (range 2.5–127.5). Logistic regression models revealed that cognitive impairment was associated with a higher number of services in the personal care category and a higher number of hours per month. Living alone was associated with a higher number of services in the service category. In conclusion, a wide range of home care services were provided for clients who have complex needs in daily life. Home care services were granted to clients with cognitive impairment and to a greater extent with clients who were living alone.

The overall study’s aim was to increase knowledge of conditions for older, home-residing persons with cognitive impairments – with focus on risks during daily living and support from home care service. To disclose conditions for persons with cognitive impairments, four studies used different methodological approaches. Studies I and II applied a qualitative design; here focus was on daily living risks for persons with dementia. Study I explored experiences of 12 persons with dementia by interviewing them; data were processed using qualitative content analysis. Study II explored experiences of home care staff via 12 individual interviews and 2 focus group discussions (n=11); data were analysed using a constant comparative method. Studies III and IV applied a descriptive correlational cross-sectional design. Study III focused on describing the range of municipal-granted home care services and examined associations between services granted to persons with cognitive impairments and demographic characteristics (from records for 131 older persons). Study IV documented perceived job strain among home care staff members (n=69) and investigated if job strain correlated with personal and organisational factors. Study I contributed knowledge about (i) how home-residing persons with dementia experienced risky situations as being unfamiliar and confusing and (ii) how they dealt with these situations and sought recognition and clarity to reduce risk. Study II showed how home care staff reasoned – regarding risks for persons with dementia – and how they struggled with dilemmas when (i) tracking risks, (ii) deciding when to act on a risk, and (iii) acting upon risks. Study III acquired knowledge about the range of home services granted to older persons and found that these persons receive a wide range of services including support for basic needs such as eating and drinking. This study also found that persons with cognitive impairments, and persons who live alone, were granted a hig

Background: Older persons with cognitive impairment (CI) risk social isolation. Strong evidence shows that perceived loneliness, or inadequate social networks, triggers and increases health problems. How homecare systems address social participation remains unknown; anecdotal data suggests there are significant gaps. This study's objective was to identify and describe how the assessors of homecare needs document social participation among persons with CI and how their documentation corresponds with the services actually provided to meet social needs. The research questions were: How and what kinds of social participation needs are documented on need assessment forms? What types of homecare services (with a social focus) are documented and approved? How are specified needs in social participation profiles addressed by a homecare service? Methods: Descriptive data from need assessment forms and their attached care plans for all applicants aged 65+ were collected during a 2 month period from a large homecare agency serving a municipality in Sweden. Persons with documented CI (n = 43) in the group were identified. Qualitative data analysis was conducted to examine the research questions. Results: Social participation factors were not documented consistently. The relationship between recognition of limitations to social participation and approval of service eligibility was not consistent. Social participation was designated by references to social status, sometimes by social network size, and occasionally by limitations to social participation. The range of approved homecare services (with social focus) covered services such as day care center visits or companionship. Three profiles of social participation were identified: clients with, (a) no participation limitations; (b) potential limitations; and (c) marked limitations. Conclusion: Given the known health harms from social isolation and the high risk of isolation among older persons with CI, this novel study's documen

Introduction: An increasing number of older persons worldwide live at home with various functional limitations such as dementia. So, home care staff meet older persons with extensive, complex needs. The staff's well-being is crucial because it can affect the quality of their work, although literature on job strain among home care staff is limited. Aim: To describe perceived job strain among home care staff and to examine correlations between job strain, personal factors, and organizational factors. Methods: The study applied a cross-sectional survey design. Participants were dementia care specialists who work in home care (n=34) and other home care staff who are not specialized in dementia care (n=35). The Strain in Dementia Care Scale (SDCS) and Creative Climate Questionnaire instruments and demographic variables were used. Descriptive and inferential statistics (including regression modeling) were applied. The regional ethical review board approved the study. Results: Home care staff perceived job strain - particularly because they could not provide what they perceived to be necessary care. Dementia care specialists ranked job strain higher (m=5.71) than other staff members (m=4.71; p=0.04). Job strain (for total score and for all five SDCS factors) correlated with being a dementia care specialist. Correlations also occurred between job strain for SDCS factor 2 (difficulties understanding and interpreting) and not having Swedish as first language and SDCS factor 5 (lack of recognition) and stagnated organizational climate. Conclusion: The study indicates that home care staff and particularly dementia care specialists perceived high job strain. Future studies are needed to confirm or reject findings from this study.