Perceived support and preparedness for the next pandemic among Israeli social workers in hospital settings during the COVID-19 pandemic.

This study describes the conditions under which Israeli social workers in hospital settings operated s during the COVID-19 pandemic, and assesses their perceived support (informal and organizational support) and preparedness for the next pandemic. It further assesses correlates for perceived support and associations between perceived support and preparedness. The participants were 163 social workers from four hospitals who completed an on-line survey. The findings revealed that the level of exposure to COVID-19 and fear of contracting COVID-19 were unrelated to perceived informal and organizational support. Age and having children who are minors living at home moderated the relationship between fear of contracting COVID-19 and both types of perceived support. Each type of perceived support was significantly associated with preparedness beyond age, having minors at home, exposure to COVID-19, and fear of contracting COVID-19. Implications for research and practice are discussed.

Israeli Health Care Social Workers' Personal and Professional Concerns during the COVID-19 Pandemic Crisis: The Work-Family Role Conflict.

This exploratory study focuses on the personal and professional concerns of Israeli social workers in hospitals and community health settings during the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic. Other studies omitted health care social workers' needs and concerns. Participants included 126 social workers (120 females, 5 males and 1 other gender identity) in hospitals and community health settings who completed an online survey during the height of the first wave of COVID-19 in Israel. Measures included questions on exposure to COVID-19, sense of safety at work, perceived support, and personal and professional concerns. Two open-ended questions about the social workers' concerns and the perceived concerns of their patients were included. The results showed that 17 per cent reported one of their inter-disciplinary team testing positive for COVID-19. Only one-third of the social workers felt safe from COVID-19 infection in their workplace. Mothers of dependent children were more concerned about income loss and about balancing work and family requirements than mothers of older children. 'Home-work conflict' was also a main theme in the qualitative data. In conclusion, the work-home role conflict took an especially heavy toll during the COVID-19 pandemic on social workers who were mothers to dependent children.

Cooperation or Tension? Dyadic Coping in Cystic Fibrosis.

Following a rise in the life expectancy of cystic fibrosis (CF) patients, many adults with CF form couple relationships. Yet, dyadic coping has not been previously examined in people with CF. This study examined how adults with CF and their partners cope as a couple with the illness, and what meanings each partner and the couple as a unit attribute to the experience. Seventeen adult CF patients and their partners participated in separate semi-structured in-depth interviews. Two main patterns of dyadic coping with CF were identified as follows: cooperation and tension. For couples in cooperation, the marital relationship served as a resource for adaptive coping. These couples were characterized by similarities in their perception of the place of CF in their lives and of their roles in the marital relationship. Couples in tension described the couple relationship as strained by difficulty of accepting the disease, proliferation of negative emotions, and a sense of burden and loneliness in the process of coping. Findings point to the importance of mutual empathy, clear and accepted division of roles between the partners, and open communication for facilitating coping as a couple.

Después de un aumento de la expectativa de vida de los pacientes con fibrosis quística, muchos adultos con fibrosis quística forman relaciones de pareja. Sin embargo, no se ha analizado previamente el afrontamiento diádico en personas con esta enfermedad. Este estudio analizó cómo los adultos con fibrosis quística y sus parejas afrontan como pareja la enfermedad, y qué significados cada integrante de la pareja y la pareja como unidad atribuyen a la experiencia. Diecisiete pacientes adultos con fibrosis quística y sus parejas participaron en entrevistas individuales, detalladas y semiestructuradas. Se identificaron dos patrones principales de afrontamiento diádico de la fibrosis quística: la cooperación y la tensión. En las parejas del patrón de cooperación, la relación conyugal sirvió como recurso para el afrontamiento adaptativo. Estas parejas se caracterizaron por similitudes en su percepción del lugar que ocupa la fibrosis quística en sus vidas y de sus roles en la relación conyugal. Las parejas del patrón de tensión describieron la relación de pareja como deteriorada por la dificultad de aceptar la enfermedad, la proliferación de emociones negativas y una sensación de carga y soledad en el proceso de afrontamiento. Los resultados señalan la importancia de la empatía mutua, una división clara y aceptada de los roles entre los integrantes de la pareja y una comunicación abierta para facilitar el afrontamiento como pareja.

Long-term uveal melanoma survivors: measuring their quality of life.

PURPOSE: Patients with uveal melanoma (UM) undergo lifelong follow-up as metastases can occur more than 20 years after diagnosis. Little is known about the quality of life (QoL) of UM survivors over such an extended period. To investigate their QoL, we used various estimating factors. METHODS: A cohort of patients diagnosed and treated for UM with regularly scheduled follow-up visits was asked to fill in a European Organization for Research and Treatment of Cancer (EORTC) questionnaire comprised of the EORTC QLQ-C30 and EORTC QLQ-OPT30 modules. An additional open question examined other changes in the patients' lifestyle since diagnosis. Independent demographic and medical data were collected from patient records. RESULTS: Two hundred and thirty-two of 294 patients agreed to complete the questionnaire. General QoL correlated highly with the eye-related QoL. Statistically significant higher QoL was associated with tumours not involving the ciliary body, and with better best-corrected visual acuity (BCVA). A subgroup of 39% of the patients reported severe disability affecting eye-related tasks. Thirty-three per cent were highly concerned about various aspects of their future health. Patients who underwent enucleation reported lower eye-related QoL and described problems related to body image in response to the open question. CONCLUSION: General QoL of UM patients is only slightly affected by their malignancy. However, body image and psychosocial adjustment are major issues involved in evaluating QoL. Continuous long-term psychosocial treatment is needed from the time of diagnosis in a subgroup of patients suffering from eye-related disabilities.