RESUMEN
Background: Over the years, a few tools and instruments have been developed to assist in the assessment within a palliative care setting. However, many of these tools and instruments do not reflect a person-centered palliative care model. Objective: This study aims to develop a Person-centered Palliative Care Nursing Instrument (PPCNI) in the Philippines. Methods: An exhaustive search of the literature was conducted to develop a pool of items for the instrument. The validity of the instrument was evaluated using the content validity index (CVI), while the factor structure was assessed using exploratory factor analysis (EFA) using maximum likelihood estimation with Promax rotation. Also, the internal reliability was evaluated using Cronbach's alpha. Results: EFA yielded three factors: 1) Caring as maintaining person's dignity (13 items), 2) caring as empowerment of person's autonomy (14 items), and 3) caring as understanding person's momentary concerns (10 items). Whereas the internal consistency reliability of these subscales appeared excellent (i.e., 0.95, 0.96, and 0.93, respectively), the Cronbach's alpha for the overall scale was 0.98. The item-total correlation coefficients were >0.30 for all items, ranging from 0.310 to 0.726. Conclusion: Findings support a three-factor, 37-item PPCNI that can be used in clinical practice to ensure that nurses provide palliative care based on patient needs and preferences.
RESUMEN
Prolonged implementation of lockdowns during the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic has resulted in older adults living alone in social isolation. The purpose of the study was to describe the meaning of the experience of Filipino older adults, who are living alone and using social media technologies during the COVID-19 pandemic. Eight participants who met the inclusion criteria were interviewed using the snowball selection technique. Transcribed interviews were read while also listening to the recorded interviews and highlighting significant words, phrases, and statements. An iterative process of analysis using van Manen's phenomenological approach identified thematic structures and categories revealing life-worlds of corporeality, relationality, temporality, spatiality, and materiality. The five general essences of flourishing, communicating, struggling, journeying and empowering, described the meaning of living alone and using social media technologies among older adults during the pandemic. The experience was expressed as "flourishing despite struggling to communicate, while journeying and empowering oneself and others." Older adults in isolation struggled to communicate with others however, with social technologies opportunities were opened for them in securing needed food, safety and security, maintaining their health, and their social connectedness. Despite the physical isolation and living arrangements during the pandemic, the use of social media technologies sustained older persons' well-being.
