Signs of Nothing: Negotiations Over Semiotic Indeterminacy in Danish Lung Cancer Diagnostics.

In Denmark, injunctions of "early" cancer diagnosis increasingly imply surveillance of small tissue changes, which may or may not develop into cancer. Based on fieldwork at diagnostic lung cancer clinics and with people in CT surveillance for tissue changes, I explore how detected tissue changes are ascribed meaning as signs of "nothing" or "something." Inspired by Peircean semiotics, I suggest that the semiotic indeterminacy of tissue changes points to how diagnostic socialities both expand medical semiotics and enable this expansion. The article, thereby, contributes to understandings of signs as diagnostic infrastructures.

Experiences and expectations in the first trimester of pregnancy: a qualitative study.

BACKGROUND: A dominant context for pregnant women in the Western world is medical technologies such as ultrasound and screening. It has been argued that such technologies may result in tentative pregnancies, which may be particularly prominent in the first trimester. However, little is known about how women experience early pregnancy. OBJECTIVE: To explore the everyday experiences and expectations of first trimester pregnant women in a medicalized context of comprehensive and routine prenatal screening. DESIGN: Qualitative, semi-structured interviews analysed using thematic analysis. SETTING: Between May 2015 and January 2016, participants were recruited from two general practices and one obstetric ultrasound unit in Aarhus, Denmark. PARTICIPANTS: Twenty, first trimester pregnant women (15 primiparae, five multiparae) aged 21-39 years. RESULTS: Early pregnancy is often kept secret in the first trimester due to a higher risk of miscarriage. However, the pregnancy is very real in the lives of the pregnant women who make it meaningful through practices of information seeking, listening to the body and anticipating the different milestones in pregnancy. First trimester screening represents one such milestone that is expected to mark a new and more certain phase in the pregnancy. A majority expects to terminate following a prenatal diagnosis, but this does not seem to influence their engagement with the pregnancy. CONCLUSIONS: The pregnant women use medical technologies to mark a milestone in pregnancy but do not expect all concerns to disappear upon a normal screening result. The majority of women acknowledge that pregnancy involves simultaneous feelings of happiness and worry.

Community Families: Bridging the gap between mental health services and civil society - A qualitative study from users' perspective.

BACKGROUND: Social interventions to support people with severe mental illness are important to improving the quality of life. The perspectives of users are essential in this process. This article explores users' experiences, investments and concerns of a befriending programme. MATERIAL: Focus group and individual qualitative interviews with service users. DISCUSSION: Overall, the experiences with the programme were positive, and the social interaction was highly valued. However, that the relationships were arranged and facilitated by mental health workers remained an unresolved concern even after several years. CONCLUSION: People with severe mental illness benefit from relationships despite the need of professional assistant.

Danish patients are positive towards fees for non-attendance in public hospitals. A qualitative study.

INTRODUCTION: Patients' non-attendance is a significant problem in modern healthcare. Non-attendance delays treatment, reduces efficiency and increases healthcare costs. For several years, the introduction of financial incentives such as a non-attendance fee has been discussed in Denmark. Set in the context of a tax-financed, free-for-all healthcare system, the political hesitance to introduce fees relates to concerns that additional fees may be badly received by tax-paying citizens and may undermine the political priority of patient equity. The aim of this qualitative sub-study was to investigate patients' attitudes towards a fee for non-attendance. METHODS: Six semi-structured focus group interviews were conducted with a total of 44 patients who had been informed about being charged a fee for non-attendance. Data were transcribed verbatim and analysed using a qualitative content analysis. RESULTS: Overall, patients' attitudes towards the non-attendance fee were positive. Non-attendance was viewed as evidence of disregard for the common free-for-all healthcare, and a fee was expected to motivate non-attendees to show up. However, most patients argued that certain groups (e.g. the mentally disabled) should be exempted from the fee. Furthermore, an implementation of fees should be easy to manage administratively and should not increase bureaucracy. CONCLUSION: In general, patients' attitudes towards implementing non-attendance fees are positive. FUNDING: Danish Regions, Ministry of Health and Central Denmark Region. TRIAL REGISTRATION: not relevant.