Nordic responses to covid-19 from a health promotion perspective.

On 30 January 2020, the disease covid-19 was declared by the World Health Organization to be an international threat to human health and on 11 March 2020, the outbreak was declared a pandemic. The aim of this study was to analyse policy strategies developed by the five Nordic countries during the first 3 months of the pandemic from a health promotion perspective in order to identify Nordic responses to the crisis. Although the Nordic countries have a long tradition of co-operation as well as similar social welfare policies and legislation, each country developed their own strategies towards the crisis. The strategies identified were analysed from a health promotion perspective emanating from five principles: intersectorality, sustainability, equity, empowerment and a lifecourse perspective. Denmark, Finland and Norway had lockdowns to varying degrees, whereas Sweden and Iceland had no lockdowns. Iceland implemented a test and tracking strategy from the very beginning. All countries based their recommendations and restrictions on appeals to solidarity and trust in institutions and fellow citizens. The analysis showed that the strategies in all countries could be related to health promotion principles with some differences between the countries especially regarding equity and sustainability. The Nordic governments took responsibility for protecting their citizens by developing policy strategies based on restrictions and recommendations congruent with the principles of health promotion. The findings also identified issues that will pose challenges for future pandemic strategies.

Mental, Physical and Social Functioning in Independently Living Senior House Residents and Community-Dwelling Older Adults.

Senior houses provide social interaction and support, potentially supporting older people's physical and mental functioning. Few studies have investigated functioning of senior house residents. The aim was to compare functioning between senior house residents and community-dwelling older adults in Finland. We compared senior house residents (n = 336, 69% women, mean age 83 years) to community-dwelling older adults (n = 1139, 56% women, mean age 74 years). Physical and mental functioning were assessed using the SF 36-Item Health Survey. Loneliness and frequency of social contacts were self-reported. The analyses were adjusted for age, socioeconomic factors and diseases. Physical functioning was lower among men in senior houses compared to community-dwelling men (mean 41.1 vs. 46.4, p = 0.003). Mental functioning or the frequency of social contacts did not differ between type of residence in either sex. Loneliness was higher among women in senior houses compared to community-dwelling women (OR = 1.67, p = 0.027). This was not observed in men. Results suggest that women in senior houses had similar physical and mental functioning compared to community-dwelling women. Male senior house residents had poorer physical functioning compared to community-dwelling men. Women living in senior houses were lonelier than community-dwelling women despite the social environment.

The vulnerability of family caregivers in relation to vulnerability as understood by nurses.

In Finland, the care of older persons is shifting from institutional care to family care. Research shows that family caregivers experience their situation much in the same way as professional nurses. The nurses' experiences have been studied in terms of vulnerability, and the same perspective could deepen our understanding of family caregivers' experiences. The aim of this study was to gain knowledge of the vulnerability of older caregivers taking care of an ageing family member. The research questions were as follows: How do family caregivers experience vulnerability? How do their experiences relate to vulnerability as understood by nurses? The study was done as a secondary analysis of focus group interviews on the experiences and daily life of older family caregivers. Four caregivers had taken part in monthly interviews during a period of 10 months. The interviews were analysed by deductive and inductive content analysis. The results showed that the caregivers saw caregiving as part of being human. They experienced a variety of feelings and moral agony and were harmed physically, mentally and socially. They showed courage, protected themselves and recognised that being a caregiver also was a source of maturing and developing. These results corresponded with the nurses' understanding of vulnerability. Shame, the experience of duty as a burden, worry and loneliness were themes that were found only among the family caregivers. The use of a matrix may have restricted the analysis, but using it in an unconstrained way allowed for new themes to be created. The results indicate a common humanness and vulnerability in professional and family caregiving. They also show that family caregivers need more support both from society and professionals.

Significance of scientific evidence in organizing care processes.

Purpose - The purpose of this paper is to analyze how staff and managers in health and social care organizations use scientific evidence when making decisions about the organization of care practices. Design/methodology/approach - Document analysis and repeated interviews (2008-2010) with staff (n=39) and managers (n=26) in health and social care organizations. The respondents were involved in a randomized controlled study about testing a continuum of care model for older people. Findings - Scientific evidence had no practical function in the social care organization, while it was a prioritized source of information in the health care organization. This meant that the decision making regarding care practices was different in these organizations. Social care tended to rely on ad hoc practice-based information and political decisions when organizing care, while health care to some extent also relied in an unreflected manner on the scientific knowledge. Originality/value - The study illustrates several difficulties that might occur when managers and staff try to consider scientific evidence when making complicated decisions about care practices.

The meaning of vulnerability to older persons.

BACKGROUND: Vulnerability is an important concept in nursing and nursing ethics. Vulnerability and ageing have generally been associated with frailty, which gives a limited view of both vulnerability and ageing. OBJECTIVE: The aim of this study was to illuminate the meaning of vulnerability to older persons themselves. RESEARCH DESIGN: A qualitative design based on interpretive description was adopted. The data were collected by interviews that were analysed by qualitative content analysis as interplay between analysis, interpretation and meaning construction. PARTICIPANTS AND RESEARCH CONTEXT: In total, 14 older persons aged 70-96 years were interviewed, 2 men and 12 women. Some of the participants lived in their own homes, some in service houses and some in nursing homes. ETHICAL CONSIDERATIONS: The ethical principles of informed consent, confidentiality and non-identification were respected. FINDINGS: The core meaning was a deeper sense of vulnerability as you grow old. This was expressed in six themes: Being easily harmed, Becoming an old person, Being an old person in society, Reactions when being violated and hurt, Protection and Vulnerability as strength. DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSION: The themes include frailty and threats to the dignity of older persons and also capacity to feel and develop. The results showed that although the frailty perspective dominated, vulnerability also had positive meanings for the older persons.

Healthy ageing, narrative method and research ethics.

The purpose of this article is to describe research and teaching activities related to healthy ageing, narrative methods and research ethics at the Nordic School of Public Health NHV during 1999 - 2012. Healthy ageing was conceived in terms of The World Health Organization's (WHO) model of active ageing and of quality of life defined as a sense of well-being, meaning and value. Qualitative research on ageing and health conducted at NHV showed how elderly people themselves experience health and what they perceive to be health promoting. Narrative method was one the qualitative methods used in research at NHV. By adopting holistic and categorical content analysis the life stories of elderly Finnish migrants, the stories of home-dwelling persons about falls, and working persons' stories of alcohol use were studied. The courses on research ethics took their point of departure in a model that describes the role of scientific, economic, aesthetic and ethical values in research.

The lifelong struggle of Finnish World War II veterans.

OBJECTIVES: In many countries veterans from World War II are growing old. Research has shown that war experiences continue to impact those who have been involved in war for a long time. The present study targets old injured war veterans from World War II in Finland. The aim of this study was to produce knowledge of the impact of war experiences and injuries on the lifespan of Finnish war veterans. METHOD: The method used was grounded theory. Data were collected by interviewing 20 aged war veterans in their homes. RESULTS: The analysis resulted in four categories, with also subcategories: (1) lost childhood and youth; (2) war traumas impacting life; (3) starting life from scratch; and (4) finding one's own place. A substantive theory of war veterans' lifelong struggle for freedom throughout the lifespan was outlined. CONCLUSION: The war overshadowed the whole lifespan of the veterans, but in old age they finally felt free. Since war experiences vary depending on historical context, a formal theory would require additional research.

Home as a health promotion setting for older adults.

BACKGROUND: The number and the proportion of older persons is growing in the Nordic Countries. The growth in the older population has a clear impact on the care system for older persons. One trend is to prioritise home care instead of care in institutions. Another trend is to emphasise preventive and health promotion care. As official guidelines in the Nordic countries state that home is the best place to grow old, it is essential that older persons keep their health and functional capacity in order to be able to live at home for as long as possible. As current policy emphasises living at home, home care, preventive work and health promotion it becomes essential to study the home as a health promotion setting. OBJECTIVE: The aim of this study was to reach a new understanding of home as a health promotion setting for older persons. STUDY DESIGN: The method used was a literature reflection and analysis with a hermeneutical approach. RESULTS: The results show that with increasing age the home environment becomes a crucial determinant for independence. The home environment supports the self as people age; it has associations with the past, can provide proximity to family, and a sense of being a part of neighbourhood life. CONCLUSIONS: Only by taking into consideration the meaning of home and the resources of the individual older person can home function as a true health promoting setting if health personnel focus solely on risk prevention, they can neglect the perspectives of the older person, resulting in dis-empowerment not health promotion.

Appetite and falls: Old age and lived experiences.

Falling among older adults is a well-known public health problem but the association between falling and appetite is seldom studied although poor nutritional status is accepted as a risk factor for falls. On this background the aim of this study was to understand how older adults, who have fallen several times within a year, related their experiences of appetite as a phenomenon in everyday life. In narrative in-depth interviews, eight women and four men contributed with their stories. Using interpretative phenomenology the thematic analysis resulted in three main themes: appetite for food; appetite for social relations and appetite for influence. Eating was not trivial everyday routine and required self-regimentation. Meals were not an object of desire, but of discipline out of the wish to survive. Feelings, reflections and ambivalence were bound to the lack of appetite on food. The participants were oriented towards the forbidden, the delicious and to everyday food as a strengthener and as medicine. In their dependency on help, home was the framework for establishing social relations as means of social support. As well as family and neighbours, the significant others were persons on whom the participants were dependent. Personal relationships and mutual dependencies may ensure social security in lives characterised by contingency and maintain influence in daily life. Falling is both a dramatic and a trivial incident where life and death could be at stake. From this perspective, connectedness was prominent in all fall stories. The quest for influence and a sense of social connectedness was the incentive to re-enter local community arenas and to express solidarity. In health-care practice multi-factorial fall-prevention should be complemented with a multi-dimensional approach in order to balance the medical approach with humanistic and societal approaches towards fall-prevention.

Stress of conscience among staff caring for older persons in Finland.

Caring for older persons is both rewarding and consuming. Work with older people in Finland has been shown to be more burdensome than in the other Nordic countries. The aim of this study was to try out a Finnish version of the Stress of Conscience Questionnaire (SCQ) and explore stress of conscience in staff caring for older persons in Finland. The data were collected from the nursing staff (n = 350) working with older people in health centre wards, municipal and private nursing homes, and municipal and private dementia care units in Finland. It emerged clearly from the results that Finnish nursing staff mostly felt that they did not have enough time to provide good care to patients, and this gave them a troubled conscience. They also felt that the demanding work taxed their energy, a consequence being that they could not give their own families and loved ones the attention they would have liked.

Fear of falling from a daily life perspective; narratives from later life.

Fear of falling is a well-known condition in later life. The aim of this study was to illuminate the experiences and the meaning of fear of falling in a daily-life context. The method used was a qualitative study inspired by interpretive phenomenology. In narrative interviews, five community-dwelling women over 80 years of age told about their fear of falling from a daily-life perspective. The overall thematic analysis resulted in three main themes: the meaning of managing daily life necessities; keeping in contact with the outside; living with fear. The findings showed that to live with fear of falling was to discipline daily life, and to learn to live with the challenge of a vulnerable bodily condition and of losing control at different levels: from falling, from incontinence, from dirt and from the stigma of being in a humiliating situation. The women created a perception of independence while they were dependent on help and community care and on news from the outside. At an existential level, they coped with their fear by strengthening their will. The conclusion was that the older women studied accepted the condition of fear of falling. They shared the ability to cope in various ways with the limitations of their bodily capacity and their imbalance.

The meaning of vulnerability to nurses caring for older people.

Research concerning work on caring for older people shows that care providers experience a variety of consuming emotions and stress. They can be said to be in a vulnerable position. It is not known, however, how the care providers themselves understand vulnerability. The aim of this study was to illuminate the meaning of vulnerability to care providers caring for older people. A qualitative interpretive approach was adopted. Data were collected through tape-recorded interviews with 16 female registered and practical nurses who were experienced in caring for older people. Qualitative analysis resulted in one core theme and six themes with subthemes. The core theme showed that, for the participating nurses, vulnerability essentially meant being human. The meanings of being human were illustrated by the six themes: having feelings; experiencing moral indignation; being harmed; having courage; protecting oneself; and maturing and developing. Analysis showed that vulnerability was a resource as well as a burden.

Experiential health from an ageing and migration perspective: the case of older Finland-Swedes.

Research has shown that immigrants and minority groups tend to have a lower health status compared to the majority population. The Finnish immigrants in Sweden are no exception. The Finland-Swedes, i.e., persons living in Finland who have Swedish as their mother language, seem to be an exception, however. They have been found to have better health and longer life expectancy compared to the Finnish majority. Research on health among migrated Finland-Swedes is scarce. The aim of this study was to describe and deepen the understanding of how older Finland-Swedes living as immigrants in Sweden, as well as re-migrants in Finland, experienced their health. Data was collected through 39 qualitative interviews with 29 older Finland-Swedes aged 65 or more. Data was analysed through qualitative thematic content analysis. The analysis resulted in five themes: Ageing means becoming frail and closer to death; Despite frailty and old age it is possible to feel well and experience peace; Being grateful for health as a source of life; Health comes from inner strength and external sources; Migration meant a mental and physical burden to health. Overall, both ageing and migration were experienced as jeopardising health.

Differences in self-rated health among older immigrants--a comparison between older Finland-Swedes and Finns in Sweden.

AIMS: Research has shown a tendency among immigrants and ethnic minorities to have a lower health status compared with the majority population. This applies to Finnish immigrants in Sweden. This group, however, also consists of persons who belong to a small ethnic minority in Finland, the Finland-Swedes, who speak Swedish as their mother tongue. In Finland, this minority has been shown to have better health and longer lives than the majority of Finnish-speaking people. Most of the previous research has studied the objective health of immigrants and minorities, while less is known about their subjective health. The aim of this study was to describe and compare self-rated health in older Finland-Swedes and Finns living as immigrants in Sweden. METHODS: The study was carried out as a sample-based cross-sectional study. Data was collected by a postal structured questionnaire. The response rate among the Finland-Swedes was 47% (n = 169) and among the Finns was 54% (n = 643). Data was analyzed descriptively and tested with Pearson's chi-square test. RESULTS: The results showed significant differences between the language groups in self-rated health, age of retirement and causes for retirement. The Finland-Swede immigrants rated their health as better than the Finnish-speaking ones. They had retired at an older age and less frequently because of health problems. CONCLUSIONS: The results indicate that there may be significant differences in health, at least in subjective health, between immigrant groups. Due to the low response rate, the results cannot be generalized.

Health promotion and empowerment from the perspective of individuals living with head and neck cancer.

The aim of this study was to shed light on health promotion from the perspective of individuals living with head and neck cancer. Eight informants were interviewed and latent content analysis was used. Individuals living with head and neck cancer experienced many problems that had a negative impact on their health. One overarching main theme was demonstrated; the ability to regain control and empower oneself. Three themes emerged: (1) Being enabled by dialogue with one's inner self, including three sub-themes: transformed and improved self-esteem, recognising and embracing existentiality, and increased self-determination. (2) Being enabled by means of contact with a social network, including two sub-themes: emotional support and practical support. (3) Being enabled by means of contact with and a passion for the environment, including two sub-themes: nature, hobbies and activities. Empowerment, the goal of health promotion, was understood as an ongoing process, and the ability to promote health varied and was dependent on internal and external enabling of acting and doing. The interpretation of this ongoing process demonstrates interplay assisted by a dialogue with one's inner self, contact with a social network and a passion for the environment. Altogether, these findings may inspire nurses and other health care professionals to support the individual's empowerment process and pose non-pathology-oriented questions such as "what improves your health?" or "what makes you feel good?"

Culturally congruent care for older people: Finnish care in Sweden.

An increasing number of older people belong to minority and immigrant groups. This calls for new models on the subject of how to provide culturally adjusted care for these populations. The aim of this study is to describe how cultural congruency is used in care for older Finnish immigrants in order to promote their well-being. The study was conducted with an ethnographic design, based on participant observations and interviews among residents, staff, and visitors in the Finnish Home in Sweden. In the core of the cultural congruency is the use of the Finnish language, and the fact that both residents and staff have Finnish backgrounds. In addition to this, Finnish customs and celebrations, popular culture, and topics of discussion, are actively used in order to create a common ground for communication and shared understanding of the individual person. Cultural congruency, based on the residents' mother language, shared ethnic background with staff, and shared customs creates a common ground for communication and an understanding. This enables caring relationships, which, in turn, increases the residents' well-being.

Inappropriate treatment of people with dementia in residential and day care.

Dependence on the help provided by other people increases the risk of a person being inappropriately treated. Our objective was to investigate inappropriate treatment and its context in the care of people with dementia. Some 85 clients across eight care units providing dementia care were observed by means of a structured Dementia Care Mapping method (DCM). Of the 17 DCM categories for inappropriate treatment, withholding, invalidation, and objectification were the categories coded most frequently. Inappropriate treatment episodes were mostly associated with eating and situations in which a client had a need or request. Most episodes occurred accidentally. The results show that nurses involved in dementia care need more knowledge of how illnesses causing dementia change the way the affected person experiences reality, and of the ethical aspects of their work.

Experiences of self-determination by older persons living in sheltered housing.

Respect for autonomy and self-determination is a central principle in nursing ethics. Autonomy and quality of life are strongly connected, and, at the same time, autonomy is an important quality indicator on how older persons' housing functions. In this study, autonomy was conceived as self-determination. The aim of the study was to describe how older people living in sheltered housing experience self-determination and how they are valued as human beings. Eleven persons living in five different housing facilities for older people in southern Sweden were interviewed. The data were analysed by manifest and latent qualitative content analysis. The overall theme expressing the latent content in the interviews emerged as disempowerment, which implied an environment that does not strengthen individual self-determination. The results showed a negative experience of how these older people thought they were valued in the sheltered housing where they lived. In sheltered housing, more attention should be paid to residents' self-determination and sense of value.

Health resources and health strategies among older Swedish-speaking Finns--a hermeneutic study.

Research has shown that the Swedish-speaking Finns have better health than the Finnish-speaking majority. The aim of this paper was to explore the health resources and health strategies among home-dwelling Swedish-speaking Finns aged 75 or older. The objective was to develop health-promotive nursing care for this group. Data was collected through recorded semistructured conversations with 22 older persons. The conversations were transcribed and interpreted through a hermeneutic approach. The material was read through several times and compiled into 22 narratives with relevant quotations. The narratives were subsequently summarised into one core narrative under each major category, to present the health resources and health strategies. Six categories were found: the Positive, the Social, the Active, the Adaptable, the Stubborn and the Passive. Within the Positive category, morale played an important role as a health resource and health strategy. Within the Social category, social activities were regarded as both health resources and health strategies, whereas their absence was a health obstacle. Within the Active category, a wide range of physical activities played an important role. Within the Adaptable category, contentment was a health resource. Within the Stubborn category, stubbornness itself was a health resource, whereas strong belief was a health strategy. Within the Passive category, although health obstacles permeated the life context, contentment and caution were seen as health resources. The vision of the future varied from the confidence found in the Positive category to the uncertainty prevalent in the Passive category. The main health resources and strategies used by the elderly Swedish-speaking Finns were related to social and other activities as well as to personality. Transforming health obstacles into resources could be an important health-promotive nursing strategy.