Sexually Transmitted Infections and Health Literacy: A Community-Based Preventive Program.

BACKGROUND: Sexually transmitted infections (STIs) are a public health problem with a high risk of morbidity and community transmissibility. Evidence points to their continuous increase. This study describes the design, development, and implementation of a community-based STI prevention program for community healthcare users. METHODS: Based on the Health Planning Process design method, a structured, community-based intervention program on STI counseling and detection was conducted in a primary health care unit in Lisbon. Two data collection instruments were applied in the diagnosis of the situation, namely the Health Literacy Survey Portugal (ILS-PT) and the STD Attitude Scale, to 47 patients who attended the health consultation on STI counseling and detection in a primary care unit in Lisbon. Two interventions were implemented, the health education session and the provision of an educational poster. In the evaluation of the project, the acceptance and satisfaction of the patients with the implemented interventions were considered as outcome indicators. A descriptive statistical analysis of the data was performed. RESULTS: The participants shows considerably low levels of health literacy and high-risk behaviors for acquiring STIs. After an intervention, a high percentage of the participants point out the project as exciting and valuable and reveal having acquired knowledge that allowed them to improve their health. Furthermore, the patients were very satisfied with the implemented health education session and the educational poster. CONCLUSION: This project revealed the urgent and important need to implement community intervention projects to prevent STIs and promote health literacy among the most vulnerable groups.

Ageing and Long-Term Informal Care: The Reality of Two Countries in Europe: Denmark and Portugal.

The knowledge of long-term informal care is particularly interesting for social and health measures related to ageing. This study aims to analyze how Portugal differs from Denmark regarding long-term informal care, specifically referring to personal care received by older people. A cross-sectional study was developed in Portugal and Denmark through the Survey of Health, Ageing and Retirement in Europe (SHARE) in 2015, with a total of 2891 participants. Descriptive statistics and logistic regressions were performed. The findings suggest a significant association for older people from Portugal who receive long-term informal care from non-household caregivers and household caregivers. Moreover, as they age and are from Portugal, their availability to receive long-term informal care from non-household caregivers increases. Furthermore, older people in Portugal are more likely to receive long-term informal care from a household caregiver. It is important to take a closer look at long-term informal care in both countries and think about healthy ageing policies in the current context of the ageing population. This study provides knowledge about disaggregated health data on ageing in the European region, helping to fill research gaps related to older people.

Health Literacy and Migrant Communities in Primary Health Care.

INTRODUCTION: The promotion of health literacy of the population in a situation of migration, in the community, is a fundamental field of intervention in health promotion, for the reduction of inequalities in access to health care services. It is increasingly necessary to make health care services more equitable for migrant populations. The aim of the study was to characterize the level of health literacy of the population in a migrant situation, attending a primary health care unit in the Lisbon region, to identify priority areas for community intervention that will become the focus of intervention and contribute to the increase in the health literacy levels in this population. METHODS: A cross-sectional study was carried out by applying the Health Literacy Survey (ILS-PT) to a sample of the population in a situation of migration, found by 27 participants. RESULTS: The general health literacy index of the sample is inadequate (21.23 points). An analysis of the sub-indexes revealed that 75% of the participants had difficulties related to information about health care and 80% had difficulties in the field of health promotion. CONCLUSIONS: Problematic and inadequate levels of health literacy was significantly frequent among migrant population. So that enhancing health literacy among migrant is essential to reduce health inequalities to achieve better health outcomes and contribute to defense of human rights of this vulnerable population.

Migrant Communities at the Center in Co-design of Health Literacy-Based Innovative Solutions for Non-communicable Diseases Prevention and Risk Reduction: Application of the OPtimising HEalth LIteracy and Access (Ophelia) Process.

The drivers of high prevalence of non-communicable diseases (NCD) among migrants are well-documented. Health literacy is regarded as a potential tool to reduce health inequalities and improve migrant's access to and quality of health care. Yet, little is known about the health literacy needs among these groups and how to address them. This paper outlines the protocol for a migrant community-based co-design project that seeks to optimize health literacy, health promotion, and social cohesion in support of prevention of NCDs among migrants in Lisbon using the OPtismizing HEalth LIteracy and Access (Ophelia) process. This participatory implementation research project starts with a mixed-methods needs assessment covering health literacy strengths, weaknesses and needs of migrants, and local data about determinants of health behaviors, service engagement, and organizational responsiveness. Diverse migrant groups will be engaged and surveyed using the Health Literacy Questionnaire and questions on sociodemographic and economic characteristics, health status, use of health services, and perceived impact of the COVID-19 pandemic. Semi-structured interviews with migrants will also be conducted. Based on data collected, vignettes will be developed representing typical persons with diverse health literacy profiles. Migrants and stakeholders will participate in ideas generation workshops for depth co-creation discussions in simulated real-world situations based on the vignettes, to design health literacy-based multisectoral interventions. Selected interventions will be piloted through quality improvement cycles to ensure ongoing local refinements and ownership development. Through a genuine engagement, the project will evaluate the uptake, effectiveness and sustainability of the interventions. This protocol takes a grounded approach to produce evidence on real health literacy needs from the perspective of key stakeholders, especially migrants, and embodies strong potential for effective knowledge translation into innovative, locally relevant, culturally and context congruent solutions for prevention of NCDs among migrants. Given the diverse communities engaged, this protocol will likely be adaptable to other migrant groups in a wide range of contexts, particularly in European countries. The scale-up of interventions to similar contexts and populations will provide much needed evidence on how health literacy interventions can be developed and applied to reduce health inequality and improve health in diverse communities.

Papel dos enfermeiros gestores e supervisores na implementação do modelo de supervisão clínica / The role of nurse managers and nurse supervisors in the implementation of the clinical supervision model

Devido às exigências elevadas nos serviços de saúde resultantes da implementação nas organizações de sistemas de certificação da qualidade houve a necessidade de implementar projetos nas organizações de saúde. O gestor é o elemento que tem como função combinar os interesses da organização e gerir a equipa fomentando o espírito de trabalho e a excelência dos cuidados. A supervisão clínica em enfermagem é um dos pilares de apoio às organizações e às equipas, permitindo o desenvolvimento de estratégias que apoiam os enfermeiros no seu desenvolvimento pessoal e profissional, refletindo-se na qualidade dos cuidados prestados. Com o objetivo de obter mais conhecimentos conjugando estas duas áreas, foi desenvolvido um estudo enquadrado no Projeto SafeCare ­ Supervisão Clínica para a Segurança e Qualidade dos Cuidados da Escola Superior de Enfermagem do Porto, onde irá ser implementado o Modelo SafeCare. Este estudo pretende compreender qual o papel dos enfermeiros gestores e supervisores na implementação do modelo, de modo a reunir um conjunto de princípios que facilitem o seu papel. É um estudo com uma abordagem qualitativa de carácter exploratório e descritivo. O processo de recolha de dados consistiu na realização de entrevistas. A amostra foi composta por seis enfermeiros: três enfermeiros gestores e três enfermeiros supervisores, de uma instituição hospitalar da região norte de Portugal, onde está a ser implementado o modelo. Dos resultados sobressai que o modelo SafeCare traz benefícios para os serviços, salientando-se: o desenvolvimento pessoal e profissional dos enfermeiros, a melhoria da qualidade e segurança dos cuidados resultante da criação de protocolos e de procedimentos, assim como, de uma maior capacidade de análise e reflexão das práticas de enfermagem. No entanto, também foram identificadas algumas dificuldades quer pelo gestor quer pelo supervisor, como: desconhecimento do modelo, falta de motivação, sobrecarga de trabalho e estrutura física. Apesar das dificuldades enumeradas, conclui-se que o gestor é um elo importante na implementação do modelo de supervisão, cujo papel desempenhado se concentra em quatro domínios das suas competências: implementação da melhoria contínua da qualidade dos cuidados de enfermagem, otimização das respostas às necessidades dos clientes em cuidados de enfermagem, desenvolvimento de competências profissionais da equipa e prática profissional baseada na evidência

Due to the high demands on health services resulting from the implementation of quality certification systems in organizations, there was a need to implement projects in health organizations. The manager is the element whose function is combine the interests of the organization and manage the team, fostering the spirit of work and excellence in care. Clinical supervision in nursing is one of the pillars of support for organizations and teams, allowing the development of strategies that support nurses in their personal and professional development, which is reflected in the quality of care provided. In order to obtain more knowledge by combining these two areas, a study was developed within the framework of SafeCare Project ­ Clinical Supervision for the Safety and Quality of Care at Escola Superior de Enfermagem do Porto (Porto School of Nursing), where the SafeCare Model will be implemented. This study aims to understand the role of nurse managers and supervisors in implementing the model, in order to gather a set of principles that facilitate their role. It is a study with a qualitative approach of exploratory and descriptive character. The data collection process consisted of conducting interviews. The sample consisted of six nurses: three nurse managers and three nurse supervisors, from a hospital in the north region of Portugal, where the model is being applied. From the results, it stands out that the SafeCare model brings benefits to the services, highlighting: personal and professional development of nurses, improvement in quality and safety of care resulting from the creation of protocols and procedures, as well as a greater capacity for analysis and reflection of nursing practices. However, some difficulties were also identified, either by the manager or by the supervisor, such as: lack of knowledge of the model, lack of motivation, work overload and physical structure. Despite the difficulties listed, it is concluded that the manager is an important link in the implementation of the supervision model, whose role is concentrated in four areas of their competences: implementation of continuous improvement in quality of nursing care, optimization of responses to needs of clients in nursing care, development of professional team skills and evidence-based professional practice.